Sabrina Carpenter: Teen Star

She's a teen star who is starting to make her mark in the "real" world, not just in the Disney realm. One to watch for the next few years ... and beyond.

Sabrina Ann Lynn Carpenter (born May 11, 1999) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She stars as the young version of Chloe Goodwin in The Goodwin Games and as Maya Hart in the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World. She is signed to Hollywood Records.

Carpenter booked her first acting role in 2011, a guest role on the NBC drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She played a young rape victim interviewed by Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni). Around the same time, she performed live on the Chinese television station Hunan Broadcasting System, for the Gold Mango Audience festival. She performed Etta James' "Something's Got a Hold on Me", in the style of Christina Aguilera from the movie Burlesque. Less than two years later, Carpenter booked a series recurring role on Fox's The Goodwin Games as Young Chloe, a series regular role on Disney Channel pilot Gulliver Quinn and the ABC pilot The Unprofessional.

She portrayed young Merrin in the 2013 film Horns. Carpenter performed "Smile" for the album Disney Fairies: Faith, Trust And Pixie Dust"; the song charted on Radio Disney. Her song "All You Need" is featured on the Sofia the First soundtrack.

In January 2013, Carpenter was cast as Maya Hart in the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World, opposite Rowan Blanchard. The series is a sequel to the 1993-2000 ABC series Boy Meets World. On March 14, 2014, Carpenter's debut single, "Can't Blame A Girl For Trying", premiered on Radio Disney, and was released on iTunes later in the day. The song is the title track on her debut EP which was released on April 8 and was generally well received. Carpenter is featured on the Girl Meets World theme song, "Take On The World", which also features her co-star Blanchard. Carpenter contributed to the song "Stand Out" in the Disney Channel Original Movie How to Build a Better Boy, which premiered August 15, 2014, on Disney Channel. On July 20, 2014, Carpenter contributed lead vocals to Disney Channel Circle of Stars's cover version of "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?". In January 2015, it was announced that Carpenter, along with Sofia Carson, will star in a Disney Channel Original Movie Further Adventures in Babysitting, based on the movie Adventures in Babysitting.

On February 22, Carpenter announced the title of her debut album Eyes Wide Open. It is preceded by the debut single "We'll Be the Stars" which was released on January 13, 2015. It was originally to be released April 21, 2015, but the release date got moved and the album was released on April 14, 2015. In 2015 she won a Radio Disney Music Award in the category "Best Crush Song" for her song "Can't Blame a Girl For Trying".

In December 2015 Carpenter portrayed the role of Wendy in the Pasadena Playhouse's production of Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirate's Christmas.

In August 2015 it was reported that Sabrina had begun work on her second album. On November 5, 2015 she unveiled the artwork for her new single, "Christmas the Whole Year Round", which was released a week later. On February 2, 2016 Sabrina Carpenter announced via social media, the first single from her second album, "Smoke and Fire", was released on February 19, 2016. Speaking of the single, Sabrina said: "Smoke and Fire was the first story that I was waiting to tell out of the many stories from the second album... I kind of write wherever I go. I'm always writing down things in my phone and in my notes on stuff that inspired me and stuff that I see in everyday life, or even just fun words."



Sources: Wikipedia

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Teen Star: Rowan Blanchard

I don't know if Rowan intends on continuing acting when she turns 18 and beyond, but it wouldn't surprise me a bit if she does and becomes the next big thing. She is a very talented young lady. However, I kind of see her as maybe getting into politics and or marrying a bad-boy jock. lol One thing is for certain, all of my nephews and nieces seem to love her and Sabrina Carpenter.

Rowan Blanchard (born October 14, 2001) is an American actress. She is known for her role as Riley Matthews on the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World.

 Blanchard was born in Los Angeles, California, to Elizabeth and Mark Blanchard-Boulbol, who are yoga instructors. Her paternal grandfather was an immigrant from the Middle East and her paternal grandmother's ancestors are from England, Denmark and Sweden. She also has Armenian ancestry. She was named after a character in Anne Rice's The Witching Hour. Rowan has two younger siblings, Carmen and Shane.

Blanchard began acting at the age of five. In 2010, Rowan was cast as Mona's daughter in The Back-up Plan and was in the main cast of the Disney Junior Original Series Dance-A-Lot Robot as Caitlin. In 2011, she was cast as Rebecca Wilson in Spy Kids: All the Time in the World, and as Raquel Pacheco in Little in Common. In late January 2013, Blanchard was cast as Riley Matthews in the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World. She also sings the title song, along with co-star Sabrina Carpenter. The titular character is the daughter of Cory and Topanga from Boy Meets World. She is an active member of Disney Channel Circle of Stars. In early January 2015, Blanchard was cast as Cleo in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Invisible Sister.

Rowan Blanchard is an outspoken activist in areas such as feminism, human rights, and gun violence. While most of her comments regarding these issues are posted via Twitter or Tumblr, she has spoken at the UN Women and US National Committee's annual conference as part of #TeamHeForShe, a feminist campaign.

In a series of tweets in January 2016, she stated that while she had "only ever liked boys" in the past, she was "open to liking any gender" and therefore she identifies as queer.




Sources: Wikipedia

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Debbie Gibson: Teen Idol

Back in the day, I thought she was the cutest thing since fluffy puppies. She was adorable, no doubt about that ... and she's still a sweetie to me. I was a huge fan right out of the gate. However, my best Debbie Gibson story was when I was in Cincinnati, Ohio one time taking advantage of some free Reds tickets I got for the weekend and in the elevator of my hotel to go my room and it stopped at a floor a few levels below mine and in walked Debbie. I recognized her right off the bat. (A baseball reference) She simply smiled and said, "Hello." Just as cheerful as could be.

I smiled back and returned the greeting and followed it with the obvious. "Great fan of your music." And in true Debbie Gibson style she said, "Thank you." Then the door opened to my floor. Now, "only in my dreams" did she and I get off the elevator together and went to my room and discovered our "electric youth" but in reality, I walked to my room alone .... but with one amazing and awesome memory to carry around for the rest of my life. And trust me when I say, she's even more pretty in person. And just as sweet as she can be. This post is just my way to "shake your love" (my favorite DG song) Debbie, and honor you and our five minute moment inside that elevator. One of the best of my life.

Deborah Ann "Debbie" Gibson (born August 31, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress.

Debbie Gibson was born in Brooklyn, New York, the third daughter of four of Joseph Gibson and Diane Gibson. Her father was orphaned as a boy and enjoyed singing. Originally named Joseph Schultz, his biological mother married a man with the surname Gibson before putting Joe into an orphanage. Debbie grew up in the Long Island suburb of Merrick and was raised Catholic. She is of Italian/Sicilian, German and possibly Russian descent. At age 5, she began performing in community theater with her sisters Karen, Michele, and Denise, and cousin T.J. Normandin and wrote her first song, "Make Sure You Know Your Classroom". At age eight, she sang in the children's chorus at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. She began playing the ukulele and taking piano lessons soon after, including with American pianist Morton Estrin. She said that her household was probably the only one where bystanders would hear children fighting over piano playing time.

After years of writing and producing her own material, Gibson finally found her demo in the hands of a radio personality who eventually shared it with an executive at Atlantic Records. Based solely on Gibson's original song, "Only in My Dreams", she was signed to a development deal and began a promotional tour of club venues throughout the United States.

Gibson spent much of 1986 and the beginning of 1987 building her songwriting catalog while continuing to play club dates. Continuing her promotional tour, Gibson also continued attending classes at Calhoun High School in Merrick, New York, where she would later graduate as an honor student. Diane Gibson, Debbie's mother and manager, accompanied her daughter on many of these track dates. "We played dance clubs, straight clubs and gay clubs", Diane has said.

The promotional pressing of "Only in My Dreams" landed the song within the Billboard Hot 100. Atlantic Records signed Gibson to a recording contract and thus began the process of completing what would be the first record.

Gibson, along with producer Fred Zarr, wrote, recorded and produced her first album Out of the Blue in only 4 weeks. Now having something to market, "Only in My Dreams" was selected as Debbie's 1st single. This time, "Dreams" found traction on Top 40 radio and reached a peak of No. 4 on the Hot 100 chart.

Following the success of "Dreams", "Shake Your Love" was released as the follow-up single and reached the Billboard Top 5. The "Shake Your Love" video was choreographed by Paula Abdul and was the 1st time MTV had visited Debbie on a video shoot.

In 1987, while performing around the United States at nightclub venues, Gibson was recording what would become her debut album, Out Of The Blue. It was recorded in four weeks. Four singles from the album reached the Top 5 of the Hot 100 chart: "Only in My Dreams", "Shake Your Love", "Out Of The Blue", and the number-one hit "Foolish Beat", followed by "Staying Together", which performed more modestly, reaching No. 22. "Foolish Beat" set a record for Gibson, making her (at 17) the youngest artist ever to write, produce, and perform a Billboard number-one single, as entered in the 1988 Guinness Book of World Records, and she remains the youngest female artist to do so. "Out Of The Blue" was established as a hit album and she had success in the UK and southeast Asia, filling stadiums with her "Out Of The Blue" tour. By the end of 1988, "Out of the Blue" had gone triple platinum.

The Out Of The Blue music video compilation was certified platinum by the RIAA; the concert tour video was certified 2x platinum. In October 1988, Gibson sang the national anthem for Game One of the Major League Baseball World Series.

Electric Youth was released in early 1989, and spent five weeks at No. 1 on the Top 200 Album chart. The first single released, "Lost in Your Eyes", was No. 1 on the Hot 100 for three weeks, garnering her another achievement as the first female to have both an album and single simultaneously at No. 1. (She shared the 1989 ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Award with Bruce Springsteen.) Subsequent singles from the album were "Electric Youth" (No. 11), "No More Rhyme" (No. 17), and "We Could Be Together" (No. 71). The Electric Youth album was certified 2x platinum by the RIAA. The successful "Electric Youth" world tour and Live Around the World VHS (2x platinum) followed. In 1988, Debbie sang "Don't Flirt with Me".

In tandem with the second album, she created a perfume called Electric Youth that was distributed by Revlon, and other makeup essentials for young girls that were distributed nationwide through Natural Wonder Cosmetics, another of her sponsors at the time, among the first of artists to do so. Debbie's trademark was her hats, usually black bowlers. She also made tight, rolled-up jeans and wearing vests over your T-shirt, friendship bracelets, and two Swatch watches popular as she is clearly seen wearing on the back cover of her popular Electric Youth album and in her "Staying Together" music video. Her influences were Madonna and Olivia Newton-John, though she has often stated she admires Elton John and Billy Joel as favorite artists and was asked and did sing and perform live with Billy Joel and John at Elton John's Madison Square Garden show. She appeared on the covers of numerous teen magazines such as Tiger Beat.

She recorded two more albums for Atlantic Records: Anything Is Possible (1990) and Body Mind Soul (1993). "Anything Is Possible", co-written with Motown mainstay Lamont Dozier, peaked at No. 26 on Billboard's Hot 100 in 1991. Subsequent singles from Anything Is Possible failed to chart on the Hot 100, although "One Step Ahead" scored on the Hot Maxi Singles and Hot Dance charts, peaking at No. 21 and No. 18 respectively. Body Mind Soul spawned another minor hit in "Losin' Myself", which was accompanied by a somewhat controversial video clip, which Matthew Rolston directed, that featured Gibson as a stripper. The second single from the album, "Shock Your Mama", would become a minor hit in Europe and the UK; however, "Losin' Myself" remains Debbie Gibson's last appearance on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 1995, she signed with EMI's SBK Records division and recorded what would be her only album for the label, Think With Your Heart. It was an Adult contemporary-heavy album consisting of piano and keyboard ballads recorded predominantly with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The album's producer, Niko Bolas, who was usually Neil Young's co-producer, was producing the reunion album for veteran punk band Circle Jerks, and invited Gibson to a recording session for that band's album. She sang background vocals on the song "I Wanna Destroy You", as well as appearing at and participating in the Circle Jerks' performance at punk venue CBGB, wearing one of the band's T-shirts and sharing a microphone with frontman Keith Morris.

After parting company with EMI, Gibson formed her own record label, Espiritu, to release her original material. Her sixth album, Deborah (1996), marked her full return to dance-pop. Deborah includes the lead single "Only Words". "Only Words" (Dance Edit) became a Top 40 Hot Dance Music/Club Play hit. The album's other single was the ballad, "Naturally". Though it only sold 20,000 in the US, Deborah remains well-respected.

In 2001, she released her seventh album on her new record label, Golden Egg, titled M.Y.O.B.---i.e. Mind Your Own Business. It featured three singles: the sensual pop song "What You Want", the Latin-infused Dance-pop song "Your Secret", and the bass heavy "M.Y.O.B." Highlights from the album include the sultry Latin-flavored smooth jazz song "In Blue", a vintage style ballad "Wishing You Were Here", "Jaded", and a remix of "M.Y.O.B." with the background vocals of her two nieces.

In 2005, Gibson co-wrote and recorded a song titled "Someone You Love" with the O'Neill Brothers. With the O'Neill Brothers, she released an updated, acoustic version of her number-one hit "Lost in Your Eyes". There was an Emmy-nominated PBS special in 2005.

She had a resurgence of popularity in niche markets. Her single "Your Secret" came back from its dormant state and became popular on some radio stations including Super 91.7 WMPH in Wilmington, Delaware. "Your Secret" has been on their request show, Total Control Radio, for 12 months; it reached No. 1 on its third week on that station's chart in May 2006. It charted along with a few of her other singles, "M.Y.O.B." and "Only Words" (Dance Edit), the Eurodance mix. They all have become recurrent hits on WMPH.

The March 2005 issue of Playboy featured a nude pictorial of Gibson, coinciding with the release of her single, "Naked". She has said that the magazine had asked her five times to pose for them since she turned 18. She agreed to pose in an effort to revamp her image, describing how one casting call called her agent, not realizing that Gibson had long since outgrown her teenage image. The single peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard Hot Single Sales chart in March 2005.

In November 2005, it was announced that Debbie would go on tour with The O'Neill Brothers for "Someone you love Tour"  in 2006. "Lost in your eyes" was revamped with an acoustic sound and a song "Someone You Love" was written and performed by Debbie and The O'Neill Brothers and also these two songs appeared on The O'Neill Brothers album Someone You Love.

The 2006 single, "Say Goodbye", featuring dance-pop artist Jordan Knight, has made a good impression on the Soft AC and Hot AC radio formats, becoming the third-most added single on the format during summer 2006. It debuted at No. 35 on the Hot Contemporary chart, peaking at No. 24 in early September through late November. The same year, Gibson appeared in the independent film Coffee Date with Wilson Cruz and Jonathan Silverman and provided a soundtrack song called "Sounds like love".

On November 14, 2006, Gibson released the song "Famous" on her official website. The song was written by Gibson and Tiziano Lugli, and the recording was produced by Lugli.
On May 2007 the world premiere of Electric Youth: The Musical was unveiled at The Starlight Theatre in Orlando, Florida. The musical featured 14 of Gibsons's songs and was directed by Dean Parker. On August 24, 2007, Gibson and Frankie Avalon hosted Time Life Presents Dick Clark's American Bandstand 50th Anniversary Collection.


In September 2007, Gibson considered creating a camp on the West Coast. She is the founder and creator of Camp Electric Youth, a children's summer day camp which ran from July 7–18, 2008. It claims to be the first camp of its kind in the Los Angeles area. The camp was reportedly attended by "over 120 talented singers, actors and dancers" from around the world.

Gibson was a judge for the online talent competition, Total Pop Star, along with Andrew Van Slee (producer and judge), and Joey Lawrence (from Blossom). The first season ran from Nov 12, 2007 – May 30, 2008, though it was later extended to June. The show ended abruptly during the 2nd season.
In January 2008, Gibson announced that she would revive and perform her 1980s hits - along with her Broadway role songs - during a three-run week in May 2008 at Harrah's in Atlantic City.

On March 5, 2009, Gibson announced via YouTube video blog that she would be releasing a new song/video called "Already Gone". Released on her official website and reverberation, the song was released first on March 9, 2009, then the video on March 13, 2009. The song was written by Gibson and produced by Fred Coury. It was accompanied by a music video produced by Guy Birtwhistle and directed by John Knowles, which starred Birtwhistle, Gibson, and Steve Valentine.

Gibson gave a sneak peek of a new song on June 5, 2009 through her YouTube video blog uploaded herself.

Deborah Gibson debuted on Broadway in 1992, playing Eponine in Les Misérables. She then went to London and starred as Sandy in Grease - a role 800 other girls tried out for before producers chose Gibson - in a West End production. The show broke box office sales records. The single version of "You're the One That I Want", a duet with Craig McLachlan, taken from the Original Cast Recording, reached No. 13 on the UK charts in 1993.

On returning to the States, she appeared in the Broadway touring production, this time playing Rizzo. She played Fanny Brice in a revamped Funny Girl tour. She has had many successful theater credits; she was among the many actresses who took the starring role of Belle in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast. She replaced Kerry Butler in September 1997 and was in the show until June 1998 when she was then succeeded by Kim Huber. She also starred the critically lauded production of Gypsy (in a production staged at The Paper Mill Playhouse). She starred as Louise opposite Broadway legend Betty Buckley. She participated in the national tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, where she played as The Narrator, and starred as Cinderella in the national tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's musical with Eartha Kitt as the Fairy Godmother. In October 2002, she starred as Velma Kelly in the Boston production of Chicago. In 2003, she played Sally Bowles in the Broadway revival of Cabaret. From March to April 2004, she played the role of 'Marta' in the UCLA Reprise! production of Company.

Gibson starred as Anna Leonowens in Cabrillo Music Theatre's production of the Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II musical The King and I which began October 17, 2008 in the Kavli Theatre at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza and ran through October 26.

Over the years, Gibson has been the target of stalkers. Robert Bardo, who was convicted for murdering actress Rebecca Schaeffer in 1989, had a wall in his house adorned with pictures of Gibson and Tiffany. In May 1998, Michael Falkner, a disgruntled fan from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, was arrested outside Manhattan's Palace Theater, where Gibson was performing in the live musical adaptation of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. This was after Gibson received threatening letters, emails and faxes from Falkner, who used the alias 'Starcade'. In 2008, Gibson filed for a restraining order against Spanish taxi driver Jorge Puigdollers, who had stalked her since 2002. However, a temporary restraining order was not issued by the court, and a court date was set to determine if a restraining order was appropriate in the matter. The proceeding was dismissed when Gibson failed to show up at the courthouse for the hearing to present her case.
Gibson was once engaged to Jonathan Kanterman and has been in a long-term relationship since 2008 with Rutledge Taylor.

Gibson has been battling Lyme disease since early 2013.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Wikipedia 

 

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Britney Spears: Teen Idol

Every now and then, in the musical industry, there comes along a song or singer, or both, that gets the young kids juices flowing and, gets pedophiles all excited too. For example, recently the song "Cake By The Ocean" by DNCE is  nothing more than "sex on the beach" or, to be more direct, "going down on a girl". Now, I know Joe Jonas will not go on record and say this is what it means, but trust me, that's what it means. Giving a girl oral sex. And with Disney and Nickelodeon channels playing this song and endorsing it, I'm quite positive the pedo's of the world are cashing in on it as well. Horrible thought? Well, yes it is, but a reality pill society has to swallow. (No pun intend .... eh, forget it).

But for Britney Spears, she splashed onto the musical scene with a song that not only got the boys of all ages kicking and screaming with "Hit Me Baby One More Time", but her video sent them to the cold showers, too.

Spears was born in McComb, Mississippi, the second child of Lynne Irene Bridges and James Parnell Spears. Her maternal grandmother, Lillian Portell, was English (born in London), and one of Spears's maternal great-great-grandfathers was Maltese. Her siblings are Bryan James and Jamie Lynn. At age three, she started attending dance lessons in her hometown of Kentwood, Louisiana, and was selected to perform as a solo artist at the annual recital. During her childhood, she also attended gymnastics and voice lessons, and won many state-level competitions and children's talent shows. Spears made her local stage debut at age five, singing "What Child Is This?" at her kindergarten graduation. She said about her ambition as a child, "I was in my own world, I found out what I'm supposed to do at an early age"

In June 1997, Spears was in talks with manager Lou Pearlman to join the female pop group Innosense. Lynne asked family friend and entertainment lawyer Larry Rudolph for his opinion and submitted a tape of Spears singing over a Whitney Houston karaoke song along with some pictures. Rudolph decided he wanted to pitch her to record labels, therefore she needed a professional demo. He sent Spears an unused song of Toni Braxton; she rehearsed for a week and recorded her vocals in a studio with a sound engineer. Spears traveled to New York with the demo and met with executives from four labels, returning to Kentwood the same day. Three of the labels rejected her, arguing that audiences wanted pop bands such as the Backstreet Boys and the Spice Girls, and "there wasn't going to be another Madonna, another Debbie Gibson, or another Tiffany."

Two weeks later, executives from Jive Records returned calls to Rudolph. Senior vice president of A&R Jeff Fenster stated about Spears's audition that "it's very rare to hear someone that age who can deliver emotional content and commercial appeal.  For any artist, the motivation - the 'eye of the tiger' - is extremely important. And Britney had that." She then sang Houston's "I Have Nothing" for the executives, and was signed to the label. They appointed her to work with producer Eric Foster White for a month, who reportedly shaped her voice from "lower and less poppy" delivery to "distinctively, unmistakably Britney." After hearing the recorded material, president Clive Calder ordered a full album. Spears had originally envisioned "Sheryl Crow music, but younger more adult contemporary" but felt all right with her label's appointment of producers, since "It made more sense to go pop, because I can dance to it - it's more me." She flew to Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, where half of the album was recorded from March to April 1998, with producers Max Martin, Denniz Pop and Rami Yacoub, among others.

After Spears returned to the United States, she embarked on a shopping mall promotional tour to promote her debut album. Her show was a four song set and she was accompanied by two back up dancers. Her first concert tour followed, as an opening act for NSYNC. Her debut studio album, ...Baby One More Time, was released on January 12, 1999. It debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 and was certified two-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America after a month. Worldwide, the album topped the charts in fifteen countries and sold over 10 million copies in a year. It became the biggest selling album ever by a teenage artist.

The title track was released as the lead single from the album. Originally, Jive Records wanted its music video to be animated; however, Spears rejected it, and suggested the final idea of a Catholic schoolgirl. The single sold 500,000 copies on its first day, and peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, topping the chart for two consecutive weeks. It has sold more than 10 million as of today, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. "Baby One More Time" later received a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. The title track also topped the singles chart for two weeks in the United Kingdom, and became the fastest-selling single ever by a female artist, shipping over 460,000 copies. It would later become the 25th-most successful song of all time in British chart history. Spears is also the youngest female artist to have a million seller in the country. "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was released as the third single from the album. It became a top-ten hit worldwide and propelled ...Baby One More Time to sell even more. As of today, it has sold 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. It is also the best-selling first album by any artist ever.

The April 1999 cover of Rolling Stone featured Spears lying on her bed, covered with a bra, shorts and an open top. The American Family Association (AFA) referred to the shoot as "a disturbing mix of childhood innocence and adult sexuality" and called to "God-loving Americans to boycott stores selling Britney's albums." Spears responded to the outcry commenting, "What's the big deal? I have strong morals. I'd do it again. I thought the pictures were fine. And I was tired of being compared to Debbie Gibson and all of this bubblegum pop all the time." Shortly before, Spears had announced publicly she would remain a virgin until marriage. On June 28, 1999, Spears began her first headlining ...Baby One More Time Tour in North America, which was positively received by critics, but generated some controversy due to her racy outfits. An extension of the tour, titled Crazy 2k, followed in March 2000. Spears premiered songs from her upcoming second album during the show.

Oops!... I Did It Again, her second studio album, was released in May 2000. It debuted at number one in the US, selling 1.3 million copies, breaking the SoundScan record for the highest debut sales by any solo artist. The album sold over 25 million copies worldwide to date, making one of the best-selling albums of all time. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone said that "the great thing about Oops! – under the cheese surface, Britney's demand for satisfaction is complex, fierce and downright scary, making her a true child of rock & roll tradition." The album's lead single, "Oops!... I Did It Again", peaked at the top of the charts in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and many other European nations. The album as well as the title track received Grammy nominations for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, respectively.

The same year, Spears embarked on the Oops!... I Did It Again Tour, which grossed $40.5 million; she also released her first book, Britney Spears' Heart-to-Heart, co-written with her mother. On September 7, 2000, Spears performed at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. Halfway through the performance, she ripped off her black suit to reveal a sequined flesh-colored bodysuit, followed by heavy dance routine. It is noted by critics as the moment that Spears showed signs of becoming a more provocative performer. Amidst media speculation, Spears confirmed she was dating NSYNC member Justin Timberlake. She also bought a home in Destin, Florida.

In February 2001, Spears signed a $7–8 million promotional deal with Pepsi, and released another book co-written with her mother, titled A Mother's Gift. Her self-titled third studio album, Britney, was released in November 2001. While on tour, she felt inspired by hip hop artists such as Jay-Z and The Neptunes and wanted to create a record with a funkier sound. The album debuted at number one in the Billboard 200 and reached top five positions in Australia, the United Kingdom and mainland Europe and sold over 12 million copies worldwide. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of All-Music called Britney "the record where she strives to deepen her persona, making it more adult while still recognizably Britney. It does sound like the work of a star who has now found and refined her voice, resulting in her best record yet." The album was honored with two Grammy nominations - Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Overprotected" -  and was listed in 2008 as one of Entertainment Weekly's "100 Best Albums from the Past 25 Years". The album's first single, "I'm a Slave 4 U", became a top-ten hit worldwide.

In June 2002, Spears opened her first restaurant, Nyla, in New York City, but terminated her relationship in November, citing mismanagement and "management's failure to keep her fully apprised". In July 2002, Spears announced she would take a six-month break from her career; however, she went back into the studio in November to record her new album. Spears's relationship with Justin Timberlake ended after three years. In December 2002, Timberlake released the song "Cry Me a River" as the second single from his solo debut album. The music video featured a Spears look-alike and fueled the rumors that she had been unfaithful to him. As a response, Spears wrote the ballad "Everytime" with her backing vocalist and friend Annet Artani. The same year, Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst said that he was in a relationship with Spears. However, Spears denied Durst's claims. In a 2009 interview, he explained that "I just guess at the time it was taboo for a guy like me to be associated with a gal like her."

In July 2004, Spears became engaged to American dancer Kevin Federline, whom she had met three months before. The romance received intense attention from the media, since Federline had recently broken up with actress Shar Jackson, who was still pregnant with their second child at the time. The stages of their relationship were chronicled in Spears's first reality show Britney & Kevin: Chaotic. They held a wedding ceremony on September 18, 2004, but were not legally married until three weeks later on October 6 due to a delay finalizing the couple's prenuptial agreement. Shortly after, she released her first fragrance with Elizabeth Arden, Curious, which broke the company's first-week gross for a perfume. In October 2004, Spears took a career break to start a family. Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, her first greatest hits compilation album, was released in November 2004. Spears's cover version of Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative" was released as the lead single from the album, reaching the top of the charts in Finland, Ireland, Italy and Norway. The second single, "Do Somethin'", was a top ten hit in Australia, the United Kingdom and other countries of mainland Europe. The greatest hits album sold over 5 million copies worldwide. In August 2005, Spears released "Someday (I Will Understand)", which was dedicated to her first child, a son, who was born the following month. In November 2005, she released her first remix compilation, B in the Mix: The Remixes, which consists of eleven remixes. It has sold over 1 million copies worldwide.

In February 2006, pictures surfaced of Spears driving with her son Sean, on her lap instead of in a car seat. Child advocates were horrified by the photos of her holding the wheel with one hand and Sean with the other. Spears claimed that the situation happened because of a frightening encounter with paparazzi, and that it was a mistake on her part. The following month, she guest-starred on the Will & Grace episode "Buy, Buy Baby" as closeted lesbian Amber Louise. She announced she no longer studied Kabbalah in June 2006, explaining, "my baby is my religion." Two months later, Spears posed nude for the cover of Harper's Bazaar. The picture was heavily compared to Demi Moore's August 1991 Vanity Fair cover. In September 2006, she gave birth to her second child, a son. In November 2006, Spears filed for divorce from Federline, citing irreconcilable differences. Their divorce was finalized in July 2007, when the couple reached a global settlement and agreed to share joint custody of their children.

In October 2007, Spears released her fifth studio album, Blackout. The album debuted at the top of charts in Canada and Ireland, number two in the U.S. Billboard 200, France, Japan, Mexico and the United Kingdom and the top ten in Australia, Korea, New Zealand and many European nations. In the United States, Spears became the only female artist to have her first five studio albums debut at the two top slots of the chart. The album received positive reviews from critics and has sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Blackout won Album of the Year at MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 and was listed as the fifth Best Pop Album of the Decade by The Times. Spears performed the lead single "Gimme More" at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards. The performance was panned by many critics. Despite the backlash, the single rocketed to worldwide success, peaking at number one in Canada and the top ten in almost every country it charted. The second single "Piece of Me" reached the top of the charts in Ireland and reached the top five in Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The third single "Break the Ice" was released the following year and had moderate success due to Spears not being able to promote it properly. In December 2007, Spears began a relationship with paparazzo Adnan Ghalib.

In January 2008, Spears refused to relinquish custody of her sons to Federline's representatives. She was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after police that arrived at her house noted she appeared to be under the influence of an illicit substance. The following day, Spears's visitation rights were suspended at an emergency court hearing, and Federline was given sole physical and legal custody of the children. She was committed to the psychiatric ward of Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and put on 5150 involuntary psychiatric hold. The court placed her under temporary, and later, permanent conservatorship of her father James Spears and attorney Andrew Wallet, giving them complete control of her assets. She was released five days later.

The following month, Spears guest-starred on the How I Met Your Mother episode "Ten Sessions" as receptionist Abby. She received positive reviews for her performance, as well as bringing the series its highest ratings ever. In July 2008, Spears regained some visitation rights after coming to an agreement with Federline and his counsel. In September 2008, Spears opened the MTV Video Music Awards with a pre-taped comedy sketch with Jonah Hill and an introduction speech. She won Best Female Video, Best Pop Video and Video of the Year for "Piece of Me". A 60-minute introspective documentary, Britney: For the Record, was produced to chronicle Spears's return to the recording industry. Directed by Phil Griffin, For the Record was shot in Beverly Hills, Hollywood, and New York City during the third quarter of 2008. The documentary was broadcast on MTV to 5.6 million viewers for the two airings on the premiere night. It was the highest rating in its Sunday night timeslot and in the network's history.

In December 2008, Spears's sixth studio album Circus was released. It received positive reviews from critics and debuted at number one in Canada, Czech Republic and the United States, and inside the top ten in many European nations. In the United States, Spears became the youngest female artist to have five albums debut at number one, earning a place in Guinness World Records. She also became the only act in the Soundscan era to have four albums debut with 500,000 or more copies sold. The album was one of the fastest-selling albums of the year, and has sold 4 million copies worldwide. Its lead single, "Womanizer", became Spears's first number one in the Billboard Hot 100 since "...Baby One More Time". The single also topped the charts in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Norway and Sweden. It was also nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Dance Recording.

Spears began work on her eighth studio album, Britney Jean, in December 2012, and enlisted will.i.am as its executive producer in May 2013. On September 17, 2013, she appeared on Good Morning America to announce her two-year residency show at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, titled Britney: Piece of Me. It began on December 27, 2013, and will include a total of 100 shows throughout 2014 and 2015. During the same appearance, Spears announced that Britney Jean would be released on December 3, 2013, in the United States. It was released through RCA Records due to the disbandment of Jive Records in 2011.

Britney Jean became Spears's final project under her original recording contract with RCA, which had guaranteed the release of eight studio albums. The record received a low amount of promotion and had little commercial impact, reportedly due to contractual obligations for Britney: Piece of Me. Upon its release, the record debuted at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 107,000 copies, becoming her lowest-peaking and lowest-selling album in the United States. Britney Jean debuted at number 34 on the UK Albums Chart, selling 12,959 copies in its first week. In doing so, it became Spears's lowest-charting and lowest-selling album in the country.

In March 2015, it was confirmed by People magazine that Spears would release a new single, "Pretty Girls", with Iggy Azalea, on May 4, 2015. The song debuted and peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted moderately in international territories. Spears and Azalea performed the track live at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards from The AXIS, the home of Spears's residency, to positive critical response. Entertainment Weekly praised the performance, noting "Spears gave one of her most energetic televised performances in years." On June 16, 2015, Giorgio Moroder released his album, Deja Vu, that featured Spears on "Tom's Diner". In an interview, Moroder praised Spears's vocals and said that she did a "good job" with the song. Moroder also stated that Spears "sounds so good that you would hardly recognize her."

Spears became an international pop culture icon immediately after launching her recording career. Rolling Stone magazine wrote: "One of the most controversial and successful female vocalists of the 21st century," she "spearheaded the rise of post-millennial teen pop ... Spears early on cultivated a mixture of innocence and experience that broke the bank". She is listed by the Guinness World Records as having the "Best-selling album by a teenage solo artist" for her debut album ...Baby One More Time which sold over thirteen million copies in the United States. Melissa Ruggieri of the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported: "She's also marked for being the best-selling teenage artist.

Before she turned 20 in 2001, Spears sold more than 37 million albums worldwide"
As of 2011, she has sold over 100 million albums worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time based on album sales alone. She was also ranked as the fourth VH1's "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era" show list, ahead of most of her contemporaries and only behind veterans Madonna, Janet Jackson, and Whitney Houston. Spears is also recognized as the best-selling female artist of the first decade of the 21st century, as well as the fifth overall. In December 2009, Billboard magazine ranked Spears the 8th Artist of the 2000s decade in the United States.

Spears is known for her iconic performances and music videos. The music video for her debut single, "...Baby One More Time", was ranked number one on TRL's Final Countdown of the most iconic music videos. At the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, before performing "Oops!... I Did It Again", the singer appeared behind a backlit screen, and descended a spiral staircase and started performing "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", while wearing a tuxedo. After performing a shortened version of the track, she tore the tuxedo off, revealing a skin-tight flesh-colored outfit. The following year, Spears performed her single "I'm a Slave 4 U". Jocelyn Vena of MTV summarized the performance, saying, "draping herself in a white python and slithering around a steamy garden setting – surrounded by dancers in zebra and tiger outfits – Spears created one of the most striking visuals in the 27-year history of the show.




Source: Wikipedia

This work released under CC 3.0 BY-SA: Creative Commons

Mandy Moore: Teen Idol

I have to go on record and say that of all the teen idols that have come and gone, Mandy Moore has been my favorite. And no, it's not because she is perhaps one of the most beautiful girls I have ever laid eyes on.

Well, not JUST because of that.

The fact is, she is the only teen idol whom I have never heard regretted her choices that led her to be a teen idol in the first place. While Christina Aguilera was quoted as saying that "Jeanie In A Bottle", and many other of her early songs, were not the real "her", Mandy Moore seemed to embrace her bubblegum style from her early works. The only other singer/teen idol that I ever heard embrace their young teen cheesiness was Debbie Gibson.

Also, Mandy Moore did not "sell out" by taking off half her clothes to prove how "sexy" she was. The truth is, taking off your clothes (or even half of them) isn't being "sexy", it's being "slutty". With Mandy Moore, what you see is what you get. And that's more than enough. Mandy seemed to hold true to what she believes in and to her personality. For that, she has earned my respect. Her music may have evolved, but she didn't have to evolve it by dancing naked in her videos, or singing about how many guys want to do her. 

Still, those Mandy eyes are all the sexy any guy can handle - if you ask me - and her natural beauty shines with every wink and smile that she hands out. I also happen to own just about every movie she ever did, except her voice over work. But she made me cry with her "Walk To Remember" film. 

Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer. Raised in Florida, Moore first came to prominence with her 1999 debut single, "Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. Her subsequent album, So Real, went on to receive a Platinum certification from the RIAA. Two more singles, "Walk Me Home" and "So Real", were released but failed to have the success of their predecessor. Her 2000 single, "I Wanna Be with You", became her first Top 40 hit in the US, peaking at number 24 on the Hot 100 chart. The parent album of the same name, was released that same year to generally mixed reviews. The album went on to achieve Gold certification. After revealing her displeasure with her early works, Moore's self-titled third album, Mandy Moore (2001), featured a change of sound that drifted away from her "bubblegum pop" roots. The album spawned the single "In My Pocket", which became her third Top 20 hit in Australia. The album itself was her final album to be certified by the RIAA, receiving a Gold certification.

In 2003, Moore released her fourth studio album, Coverage, featuring covers of classic 1970s songs. Following the album's release, Moore parted ways with her record label, due to creative differences. The split prompted the label to release the compilation albums The Best of Mandy Moore (2004) and Candy (2005), both of which have sold an estimated 100,000 copies to date. Moore did not return to music until the release of her 2007 album Wild Hope, which failed to have much success. To date, the album has sold an estimated 200,000 copies, and failed to receive an RIAA certification. Similarly, both of the album's singles failed to chart worldwide. In 2009, Moore released her sixth studio album, Amanda Leigh, which peaked at number 25 on the Billboard 200 and sold an estimated 100,000 copies. In 2012, Moore confirmed that she was working on her seventh studio album, currently slated for a 2014 release. As of 2009, Moore has sold more than 12.5 million albums worldwide, according to Billboard. In 2012, Moore was ranked #96 on VH1's list of "100 Greatest Women in Music", as well as #63 on their Sexiest Artists of All Time List.

Aside from her musical career, Moore has also branched out into acting. She made her film debut in the 2001 film Dr. Dolittle 2, though it was only a minor voice role. Later that year, she appeared as Lana in the comedy film The Princess Diaries, alongside Anne Hathaway. She had her first starring role in the 2002 romantic film A Walk to Remember, which was based on the Nicholas Sparks book. Between 2003 and 2006, Moore appeared in various films, including Chasing Liberty, Saved!, and How to Deal. She later appeared in the 2006 film American Dreamz, which was both a critical and financial failure. The film failed to make back its $17 million budget, and debuted at number 9 at the box office. The following year, Moore appeared in the romantic comedy Because I Said So, alongside Diane Keaton. The film was negatively received by critics, but was a financial success, earning over $69 million worldwide at the box office. In 2010, Moore portrayed Rapunzel in the animated film Tangled, in which she performed the song "I See the Light"; the song won a Grammy for Best Song Written for Visual Media.

Amanda Leigh Moore was born on April 10, 1984 in Nashua, New Hampshire. Her mother, Stacy (née Friedman), is a former news reporter who once worked for the Orlando Sentinel, and her father, Donald "Don" Moore, is a pilot for American Airlines. Moore's father is of Irish and Cherokee descent, and her mother is of half-English and half-Jewish ancestry. She is the middle of three children with an older brother, Scott and a younger brother Kyle. When she was only two months old, Moore and her family moved to Orlando, Florida due to her father's job.

Moore became interested in acting and singing at a young age, and cited her grandmother, a dancer in the theater district of The West End of London, as one of her inspirations. Moore stated "My parents thought It was just a phase I'd grow out of. But I stuck to it and begged them for acting lessons, for voice lessons." Moore began starring in numerous local productions, as well as performing the National Anthem at numerous Orlando based events. She was only twelve years old when she attended the Stagedoor Manor theater camp, where other celebrities including actress Natalie Portman had once attended. Production director Konnie Kittrell said of Moore "She was a quiet, sweet girl", and stated that even though she earned numerous solos "She wasn't a spotlight seeker." When Moore was thirteen, she began working on music by herself. One day, while working in the studio, she was overheard by a FedEx delivery man, who had a friend in A&R at Epic Records. The delivery man, named Victor, later sent this friend a copy of Moore's unfinished demo, and Moore went on to sign with the label.

Moore branched into the fashion world in 2005 with her own fashion line named Mblem., a brand of contemporary knitwear and cashmere. One of her aims was to provide clothing for taller women (Moore is 5 feet 10 inches.) In February 2009, Moore announced that the line would be shutting down, but that she hoped to reenter the fashion world again under different circumstances in the future.

Moore has worked with and highlighted nonprofit organization Population Services International (PSI), and its subsidiary, Five & Alive, which addresses health crises facing children under the age of five and their families. Moore has served as the Honorary Chairperson of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's division on awareness for youth. She served as a spokesperson by helping young people be aware of the seriousness of leukemia and lymphoma. She also serves as the spokesperson for Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, held every January. In addition, to increase cervical cancer awareness, Moore teamed up with Dr. Yvonne Collins, The Gynecologic Cancer Foundation (GCF), and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). Moore is the ambassador for the UN Foundations’s Nothing But Nets malaria prevention campaign. Moore is also the spokesperson for Dove's self-esteem movement and the "Women who should be famous" campaign.

At the start of her career, Moore was known for her bubblegum pop sound, which she revealed was not the type of music she prefers, saying, "[The record company] was like, 'Here are your songs.' I was like, 'Hi, I'm fourteen. I'll do anything.' Those albums are why I'm here today, but god damn, I should give a refund to anyone who bought my first record."

Moore has often been praised by music critics for branching off and making her own music. Billboard stated, "She has successfully dropped all the tacky accoutrements of her past and turned into a sweet, classy singer-songwriter whose charms are readily apparent." AllMusic claimed, "Moore smoothly evolved from adolescent starlet to mature songwriter, continuing to distance herself from the scene that had launched her career one decade prior."

Moore has noted that she was inspired by television and film as a child. She has also stated, "I’m stuck in the ’70s. I think I’ll always have that kind of influence. Joni Mitchell, Todd Rundgren, Harry Nilsson, McCartney – that’s the sort of stuff I’m really inspired and influenced by." Moore has also revealed how her husband, Ryan Adams, has had a huge influence on her music, and that he has begun to introduce her to heavy metal. "Not that I can necessarily differentiate between speed metal and black metal…" she said. "I'll tolerate it, but I turn it down.

Moore has said that she has been influenced by female singers such as Alanis Morissette, Blondie, Carole King, Debbie Gibson, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Shania Twain, Joni Mitchell and Tiffany.

Moore dated tennis player Andy Roddick for a little over a year from 2003 to 2004. In 2007, Moore dated Adam Goldstein, better known as DJ AM, for two months but with whom she remained close after breaking up. In 2008, Moore flew to be by Goldstein's side while he was in hospital after suffering burns from the 2008 South Carolina Learjet 60 crash.

In 2008, Moore began dating singer-songwriter Ryan Adams. They became engaged in February 2009 and married on March 10, 2009, in Savannah, Georgia.

There has been, and there will continue to be, many young, beautiful and talented girls to compete for the commodity of fame, but none will find it easy to match the beauty, talent and grace of my Mandy Moore. While many girls work to be called the queen of rock, queen of pop, queen of country, queen of trampville, or whatever, Mandy Moore settled on just being a queen. IMO!



Sources: Wikipedia

This work released through CC 3.0 BY-SA - Creative Commons

Bridgit Mendler: Teen Idol

Bridgit Claire Mendler (born December 18, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, producer and actress. She played Teddy Duncan in the Disney Channel Original Series Good Luck Charlie and appeared in the 2009 made for television film Labor Pains. In 2009, she became a recurring character for the Disney Channel Original Series Wizards of Waverly Place. In December of that year, she made her theatrical debut in the film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel, released on December 23, 2009. Following the positive reception to her character on Wizards of Waverly Place, who was a vampire and fell in love with David Henrie's character, she became the star of the Disney series Good Luck Charlie, which premiered in April 2010 and ended in February 2014. In 2011, she appeared in the film based on the series Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas.

She starred in the Disney Channel Original Movie Lemonade Mouth, in which her character Olivia performs numerous songs. Two singles were released from the soundtrack featuring her vocals, with both charting on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 2012, Mendler released her debut album Hello My Name Is..., which featured a pop sound. It debuted at number 30 on the US Billboard 200, and has sold over 180,000 copies as of 2013. Her debut single off the album "Ready or Not", became an international Top 40 hit, the song was certified gold in Norway, and platinum in New Zealand, United States and Canada and peaked at number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was announced that her second single would be "Hurricane". The video premiered on April 12, 2013 and was shot in London. "Hurricane" has been certified GOLD in the USA for selling 500,000 copies.

Bridgit Claire Mendler was born in Washington, D.C. on December 18, 1992. She moved with her family to the San Francisco area town of Mill Valley at the age of eight. It was there where she first expressed interest in acting and began working in plays. On the decision, Mendler stated "I was 11 when I did a play out in Northern California and I really enjoyed it and I decided that I wanted to pursue a career and so I got an agent and did commercials and voice-overs and that sort of thing." When she was only eight years old, Mendler began taking part in local roles in both dramatic and musical theatre, and became the youngest performer in the San Francisco Fringe Festival. When she was 11 years old, she hired an agent to help her get acting jobs.

In 2004, Mendler got her first acting role in the animated Indian film The Legend of Buddha, in which she portrayed Lucy. When she was only 13 years old, she got an acting role as a guest star on the soap opera General Hospital. She portrayed the dream child of character Lulu Spencer, in which the two have an argument on Mendler's character's birthday. The scene, lasting just under a minute, is later revealed to be a dream That same year, Mendler was the voice of the character Thorn in the video game Bone: The Great Cow Race, which was based on the Bone comic series. In 2007, Mendler made her film debut in the film adaption of the Alice series, titled Alice Upside Down. Mendler starred alongside Disney Channel actress Alyson Stoner and Lucas Grabeel. Bridgit portrayed the antagonistic role of Pamela, who is the rival of Stoner's character, Alice. For the film's soundtrack, Mendler provided backing vocals on the song "Free Spirit", performed by Stoner. The film was released straight to DVD on October 6, 2007.

In 2008, it was announced that Mendler would play the role of Kristen Gregory in the film adaption of the popular teen novel series The Clique by Lisi Harrison. Mendler had the role of Kristen, a girl who attends OCD on a scholarship, and works hard to keep her good grades. The Clique was released straight to DVD in Fall of 2008, her second film to be released in this format. In 2007, Mendler had begun working on a film with actress and singer Lindsay Lohan titled Labor Pains, which kept being pushed back due to various conflicts and problems. Though initially slated for a theatrical release, the film did not receive one in the US and was instead released as a TV film on ABC Family on 2009. The film did, however, receive a theatrical release in countries such as Russia, Romania, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Ecuador, and Mexico. The film drew 2.1 million viewers, a better-than-average prime-time audience for ABC Family, and per the network, was the week's top cable film among coveted female demographic groups. She had a supporting role in the film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel.

Beginning in 2009, Mendler became a recurring character in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place, alongside Selena Gomez and David Henrie. Mendler portrayed the role of Juliet Van Heusen, a vampire who later forms a romance with David Henrie's character Justin Russo. This lasts till the series finale. Mendler would go on to appear in eleven episodes total for the series, spanning from 2009 to 2012 when the series officially ended. Also in 2009, Mendler auditioned for Sonny with a Chance for the role of Sonny Munroe, but Demi Lovato was chosen for the role.

In 2010, Mendler became the star of the Disney Channel Original Series Good Luck Charlie, centering around a teenage girl who makes videos for her baby sister to watch as she gets older. The series premiered on April 4, 2010, and has since been met with a positive critical reception and viewership. In 2011, she starred as Olivia White, the lead role in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Lemonade Mouth, watched by 5.7 million viewers on its premiere night. Bridgit performed numerous songs for the film's soundtrack, which was released on April 12, 2011 by Walt Disney Records. The first single released from the soundtrack, titled "Somebody", was released on March 4, and peaked at number 89 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The second single, "Determinate", charted in numerous other countries and peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100. In an interview with Kidzworld Media, Mendler confirmed that there will not be a sequel to Lemonade Mouth, commenting: "There’s not [going to be a sequel to Lemonade Mouth] unfortunately. We had such a great experience working on the movie, and they tried to figure something out for a sequel, but everyone at Disney felt like the movie had completed its story in the first movie. It was a great experience, and I loved working with the cast members and still see them frequently.

In Summer 2012, Mendler confirmed that the title of her official debut single was "Ready or Not", written by Mendler herself, Emanuel "Eman" Kiriakou and Evan "Kidd" Bogart. The song was released for digital download on August 7 and for radio airplay on August 21, 2012. "Ready or Not" peaked only 49 in United States and 53 in Australia, but peaked at number seven in the United Kingdom and within the top twenty of the charts in Belgium, the Republic of Ireland and New Zealand. The song was platinum certification on United States and Canada and Gold in Denmark, New Zealand and Norway. Mendler ventured on her first headlining tour, Bridgit Mendler: Live in Concert, supported her first studio album. The tour primarily reached only the North America and she playing at state fairs, music festivals and Jingle Ball's concerts series. Mendler's debut album, Hello My Name Is..., was released on October 22 by Hollywood Records and all the songs were written by Mendler with collaborators. The album peaked at number 30 on the Billboard 200 and sold less than 200,000 copies in the country. Internationally "Hello My Name Is .." debuted in a few countries as Poland, Australia, United Kingdom, France and Spain. Mendler's vocals have been compared to Lily Allen, Cher Lloyd, Jessie J and Karmin. She released two promotional singles on the album: "Forgot to Laugh" and "Top of the World".

On March 27, 2012, Shane Harper said in an interview to Akash Sharma of Officially The Hottest for the first time that he was dating Mendler. Harper told they became friends early in Good Luck Charlie and began dating in 2011, but they decided not to reveal so far. In an interview with Cambio in September 2012, Mendler stated that it took two years between her meeting Harper and beginning to date him. She said "It wasn't one of those... 'you meet on a set and you wind up dating instantly,' it took like two years". In March 2013, Mendler said in an interview to Sarah Bull of Daily Mail that the fact her boyfriend in real-life is also her boyfriend on Good Luck Charlie doesn't disturb the relationship: "I think it makes it easier, especially when it’s a person who you’ve worked with for a long time".

In 2012, Mendler began taking classes at the University of Southern California of the Liberal Arts course. In 2013, she chose classes of jazz history to specialize in.

In July 2012 Bridgit became ambassador of the campaign Give With Target with Target Corporation to raise funds to reform schools in the United States. The campaign aims to get $1 billion by 2015. To start the Target campaign, they invested $5 million and distributes $25,000 grants to 100 in-need schools for the school year. Mendler told about the incentive: “I’m excited to partner with Target on their Give With Target campaign and celebrate the start of a new school year with kids across the country. It's so important for all kids to have everything they need for a successful school year”. In August she got $5 million donated by The Walt Disney Company and more $2 million donated by people at Facebook.

Mendler has cited Bob Dylan as her biggest musical influence. To Taylor Trudon of Huffington Post she said: "He was the first musician I got into where I paid attention to songwriting. He has a way of writing songs that's really playful with lyrics, but at the same time he's saying something that people feel is important and that they relate to. He spoke for a whole generation.". Also to Trudon, Mendler cited Etta James, B.B. King, Lily Allen and Billie Holiday, and talked about these artists: "I love that they have soul in their voices. I think that's something important is having.". Other musical influences include Fugees, Elvis Costello, The Delfonics, Red Hot Chilli Pepers and Van Morrison. She was also influenced by Canadian artists Feist and Tegan and Sara. Among the pop music artists, cited Maroon 5, No Doubt, Destiny's Child, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé Knowles and Bruno Mars.

Mendler said that she is influenced by British neo-soul and listed Ellie Goulding, Florence and the Machine, Marina Diamandis, and Lianne La Havas as her biggest British influences. She has also mentioned Natasha Bedingfield, Broken Bells, Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse. In 2013 Mendler cited Adele as influence: "I admire the career of Adele, because she has her own musical style. She does things her way and writes about things she is passionate about. It is really working out well for her." She also mentioned Ed Sheeran and said she would love to write songs with him.



Sources: Wikipedia

This work released through CC 3.0 By-SA - Creative Commons

Tony DeFranco: Teen Idol

The DeFranco Family, featuring Tony DeFranco, was a 1970s pop music group and family from Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada. The group, all siblings, consisted of guitarist Benny DeFranco (born 11 July 1953); keyboardist Marisa DeFranco (born 23 July 1954); guitarist Nino DeFranco (born 19 October 1955); drummer Merlina DeFranco (born 20 July 1957); and lead singer Tony DeFranco (born 31 August 1959).

The group had a number of hits between 1973 and 1977, including "Abra-Ca-Dabra" and their biggest hit, "Heartbeat (It's a Love Beat)." Either Tony DeFranco or the entire family appeared in almost every issue of a number of the teen magazines of this period, such as Tiger Beat and Flip. By the late 1970s, the group had faded from the pop scene.

The five siblings who comprised the DeFranco Family were born to Italian immigrant parents and raised in Port Colborne and Welland, Ontario. Initially performing as the DeFranco Quintet, the group found success after a demo tape of their songs was heard by Sharon Lee, editor of teen magazine Tiger Beat. Impressed by what she heard, Lee arranged for Charles Laufer to fly the group to Los Angeles for an audition. Laufer signed the group to an exclusive deal with his company, Laufer Entertainment, financed a three-song demo, and helped them to secure a contract with 20th Century Records.

The DeFranco Family recorded at United Western Recorders studios in Hollywood with accompaniment by Wrecking Crew veterans Hal Blaine on drums, Larry Carlton on guitar, and Max Bennett on bass. They appeared on Dick Clark's American Bandstand nine times.

With their lighthearted approach to music, the DeFranco Family became a successful pop music act in the mid-1970s. Their debut 1973 single, "Heartbeat, It's a Lovebeat," featuring the lead vocals of then 13-year-old Tony DeFranco, reached number one on WLS for five straight weeks (and was number two there for the entire year 1973), number three in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top slot on the Cashbox singles chart, as well as hitting number three in their native Canada on the RPM 100 national Top Singles chart, selling more than two million copies in the process. It was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A in November 1973. The song's writer, Purdue alumnus Michael T. Kennedy, was a long-time executive at Boeing/McDonnell Douglas. Their second single, "Abra-Ca-Dabra," which reached the Top 40, was followed by their final hit, "Save the Last Dance for Me," which reached number 18 on the charts in May 1974.

The DeFranco Family's active career reached a roadblock when a rock version of their tune "Write Me a Letter" failed to generate much attention and reached no higher than the 104th slot on the charts. Although their earlier hits had been produced by Walt Meskell, the disappointing sales of "Write Me a Letter" prompted their record label, 20th Century Fox, to dismiss Meskell involuntarily and team the group with Mike Curb, who had previously worked with The Osmonds. But the collaboration proved disastrous. When Curb attempted to recast the group as a cover band, they resisted and severed their relationship with their publisher and manager, Charles Laufer and Laufer Entertainment, and 20th Century Fox.

Unable to attract interest from another label, they continued to tour and perform in Las Vegas. Frustrated by their inability to attain their previous heights, they disbanded in 1978. A reunion concert at Rhino Records' Retro Fest in August 1999 was followed by the DeFranco Family's final performance at B.B. King's Nightclub in Los Angeles in April 2000.

Tony obtained a real-estate license and became a realtor with Sotheby's International Realty in Westlake Village, California.

The siblings took up residences within an hour's drive from each other in California and remained close. Although the DeFranco Family gave up its involvement in the music industry, Tony and Marisa continued to perform on occasion.



Sources: Wikipedia

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