Poptastic Confessions!: December 2013

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

#1 of 2013

Dear Poptastic Readers,

#1 in our Top Songs of 2013 is “Nightlife” by Jody Watley. You can click on the song title to see what Poptastic Confessions had to say about it when it came out.

This feel-good song is just so fabulous! It is inspiring and uplifting. It makes you want to dance. It is so full of energy and just empowers you to be free to be yourself. That is why it is our #1 favourite song of the year. Jody filmed a video for the song, but before it could be edited and released, she gave us this lyric video with the original version of the song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j64kkLwerI

January 8, 2014 Update: Jody just released the video and it is for the Dave Doyle Remix, which features Gerald Brown (from her former group Shalamar) singing the second verse. The video is FABulous! Check it out ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7RDmjBC4Ss

Jody Watley definitely deserves the #1 spot. She is very approachable on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Jody runs her own accounts and sometimes she has to deal with the disrespectful fans. That part is a shame. But she is very generous and real to her lovely fans. More power to her, we say!

Photography: Albert Sanchez. Taken from Jody's Facebook Page

Jody has featured Poptastic Confessions on her website and even mentioned Davearama by name! WOW! A highlight this year was seeing Jody live in concert and she recognized Dave from Twitter. It was a dream come true for him, who has been listening to Jody’s music since he was 17 and living in a small town in Indiana. If you want your dreams to come true, make them happen. Jody has definitely inspired us all these years and even today.

Photography: Albert Sanchez. Taken from Jody's Facebook Page

Davearama would like to add: "I wish I could accurately describe how much Jody's music has meant in my life. Yes, mostly her first three solo albums ... they were the soundtrack to my life back then. It helped me from a place of being an awkward teen to help me be comfortable in my own skin. Thank you for the music, Jody Watley! It means so very much to me."

Photography: Wallace Butts. Taken from Jody's Facebook Page

Jody's next album is called Paradise and it will be out in 2014. We can't wait! Until then, there are glorious remixes of "Nightlife."

“Nightlife” is available on iTunes. Don’t delay, buy it today.

Cheers then,
—The Poptastic Confessions Collective

Check out the rest of the list ...

See #6 of 2013

#11 of 2013

#30 through #22 of 2013

#40 through #31 of 2013

P.S. See Poptastic Confessions Top Songs by year ...

2012, 2011, and 2010

Monday, December 30, 2013

#2 of 2013

Dear Poptastic Readers,

#2 in our Top Songs of 2013 is “We Are Young” by Le Kid. You can click on the song title to see what Poptastic Confessions had to say about it previously.

The official cover art

Gosh! We love them so! They are definitely one of the best pop bands around. Their music is euphoric and just makes you happy listening to it. “We Are Young” is an anthem of our time. It almost hit the #1 spot. They also came close with “America”, which came in at #3 on our 2011 countdown.

Poptastic Confessions cover art

We changed up the cover art for our own amusement. We found online that someone had added the Le Kid logo with the heart, so we just added the the name of the song and put it on the blog. And while "We Are Young" was at #5 in Italy, a music website must have done a Google search for the image because they used the Poptastic Confessions altered cover. Hahaha. Whoops!

The video is super cute. Looks like it was made with iPhones. They made it look so easy. Have a look and see just how much fun they are!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgUara8tnEU

We went most of the year thinking the first line of the lyrics were “I wanna kill the white elf.” But we recently looked the lyrics up online and that isn’t what they are saying. We kept wondering why they’d want to kill a poor white elf. Anyhoo … misheard lyrics are always fun.

Now you might remember that Davearama interviewed Felix for Poptastic Confessions last year. This year, Dave and Arturo had pleasure of having lunch with Märta and her boyfriend while they were visiting San Francisco.

Davearama and Märta

We’re hoping to go to Sweden soon! So hopefully we can meet up with Le Kid there and have a poptastic time! Hooray! Fingers crossed!

“We Are Young” is not available on US iTunes. However, you can get it on mp3va.com with a prepaid account. Don’t delay, get it today!

By the way, we should also mention that Le Kid's follow-up single in Germany was the amazing song "Physical." Now you must be wondering why it isn't in our Top 20 this year. It is indeed very worthy of being in the Top 10, as we had it at #6 in our Top Songs of 2012. Yes, it was released last year in Denmark under a different name: "Human Behaviour." So, that's why the song isn't on this year's countdown. But it is fabulous just the same! If you think it should be in 2013, then consider it a tie at #2 with "We Are Young."

Cheers then,
—The Poptastic Confessions Collective

Check out the rest of the list ...

See #6 of 2013

#11 of 2013

#30 through #22 of 2013

#40 through #31 of 2013

P.S. See Poptastic Confessions Top Songs by year ...

2012, 2011, and 2010

Sunday, December 29, 2013

#3 of 2013

Dear Poptastic Readers,

#3 in our Top Songs of 2013 is “Union” by Rebecca & Fiona. You can click on the song title to see what Poptastic Confessions had to say about it previously.

Our contributor Rao of the Brazilian blog Disco Attacks first introduced us to Rebecca & Fiona earlier in the year when us sent me the videos for “Jane Doe” and “Taken Over” (#12 on our countdown this year). We liked the songs, but somehow we were distracted by something else and didn’t give them their proper attention — until “Union” came along. This amazing song captivated us from the first listen. It made us go bonkers for the Swedish DJ duo. We are not quite sure what it is about this song, but we absolutely love it.

The video is fabulous and we love the ABBA-esque styling. There is something about their attitude that reminds us of Keren and Sara of Bananarama.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdMFpcVtCTw

Rebecca & Fiona came to San Francisco twice this year. Sadly, we didn’t see them either time as they were performing very, very late at a trendy club aimed at people in their 20s. We just don’t fit the bill anymore. Oh well.

Their sophomore album should be out next year. Their debut album called I Love You, Man and it is ace! “Bullets” being one of our favourite tracks. There is a fabulous new track called "Hot Shots" that is part of a fundraising effort for AIDS awareness. We are unsure if it is the next single or not. If it is, watch for it on next year's list!