Thursday, December 27, 2012

HK's Look Back At The Year In Music




Oh what a year in music it was- EDM crossed over to the mainstream and becomes the hottest thing in Pop with Skrillex taking home several Grammy Awards, and deadmau5 and David Guetta performing live at the Grammys. To everyone's amazement and a little creepiness Tupac appeared as a hologram.The Rolling Stones marked 50 years as an iconic rock n' roll band with a greatest hits album, two films, a book, two new songs and an announcement of a "50 and Counting" tour. Beyonce and Jay-Z kept the headlines coming with releasing new music, the birth of Blue Ivy Carter, concerts, work on a new album, supporting Obama's re-election and a mega million dollar sponsorship deal with Pepsi. Taylor Swift sold 1.2 million copies of "Red' in its first week, making it the biggest debut of any album this year. One Direction was named "Billboard's Top New Artist of 2012" with a pair of No. 1 albums. Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart and was stuck in my head for months. We saw everyone and some who shouldn't be dancing to PSY and his infectious "Gangnam Style". it become the most-watched video on YouTube and is set to break over 1 billion views by the new year.  Adele was rollin' in all things good, with her "21" album (that I must note was released 23 months ago) selling 4.3 million copies in 2012 alone, recovering from vocal cord surgery, winning six Grammys, selling 1.1 million copies of "Skyfall' and becoming a mom. I wonder what she has planned for 2013? 

I know I plan on rockin' the decks and droppin' the beats like a New Years Eve ball  with custom HK remixes on Justin Bieber & Nicki Minaj - "Beauty And The Beat", the hot new one fromMaroon 5 - "Daylight', Rihanna - "Diamonds", and  Pink - "Try". You won't believe what I've done to Ellie Goulding - "Anything Could Happen", Pitbull - "Don't Stop The Party" and the brand new club banger from Ludacris/Usher/David Guetta - "Rest of My Life".  

There's plenty more and it's all coming with the HK flavor. So lock it in for a non-stop throw down on the one's and two's you don't want to miss!

Remember..."If it's hot, if it's new, and it makes you wanna move...you're In the Mix with HK™".

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Lighting Up The Decks and Mixin' Up The Mistletoe




It's finally here. The weekend before xmas. By now I hope you decked the halls, got those last minute gifts like Cassadee Pope and are ready to hang with family, friends and truly take in the blessing of the holiday season. 

For many this year did not go well. Loss of a job, loss of income, loss of a home and everything you own, or for many even worse…the loss of a loved one.  The events of the Sandy Hook tragedy, Super Storm Sandy, the mall shooting in Oregon and the loss of friends and family that happen every day without making headlines is and should be a reminder of just how precious life is. As I wrote under my high school picture years ago…"Live, love and enjoy today for tomorrow is promised to no one". So this holiday season and in the coming year – live more, love more and enjoy more!

In my personal effort to get this energy going I'll be lighting up the decks and mixin' up the mistletoe In The Mix with HK™. So tune in to hear exclusive HK remixes on all your favorite hits. I'm droppin' bangin new beats on Bruno Mars - "Locked Out of Heaven", the hot new dance floor smoker from Ludacris-Usher-David Guetta - "Rest of My Life" and Pitbull - "Don't Stop The Party". And that's just the first set. You'll be beggin' for a towel and water before I even roll out new jams from Sam And The Womp - "Bom Bom", Macklamore & Ryan Lewis - "Thrift Shop" and Taylor Swift - " I Knew You Were Trouble". There's so much going on in this weeks show there isn't enough room in this blog to talk about it. All I can say is you don't want to miss what I've done to RihannaOne RepublicSwedish House MafiaNicki Minaj and I've got a special surprise. I'm gonna inject some HK flavor into a classic rock icon.

Remember…"If it's hot, if it's new, and it makes you wanna move…you're In The Mix with HK™".

Friday, December 14, 2012

MUSIC REALITY!



For the longest time I couldn't bring myself to watch any music competition show on TV. As someone who spends their life discovering, producing, remixing and programming talent – it was just to difficult for me to watch the fate of talented (and in some cases untalented) people be decided by the public at large. As if this was just a popularity contest. No not me! I take this to seriously. 

Then The Voice comes along. Ahh! A show with really talented judges and they actually pick who moves forward in the competition. Yeah! I'm happy! Well for a little while. That is until the Voice hit's the final stage and turns into every other music reality show by handing the voting reigns over to the 1-800 number. 

My bliss of hearing Amanda Brown sing is now over. The joy of seeing and hearing a young prodigy like Trevin Hunt gone. One can only hope Nicholas David will win at this point. Unlike his two remaining counterparts, Nicholas is a true artist in every sense of the word. His unique soulful voice, vibe and musicianship is that of a seasoned pro and every performance draws you in. Terry McDermott can sing. No denying that, but I personally know about 10,000 rock band bar singers who are just as good. The only thing I can say about Cassadee Pope is despite her being a huge public favorite she never should have made it this far. In the majority of her performances she has sung off key and with no dynamic.  She has Blake to thank for getting her this far. Note to sweet Miranda….don't leave those two alone for to long.

I've got nothing but the hottest artists In The Mix with HK™ and a few special gems from the past to heat up your night. For the best music reality tune in this week. I'll be remixing all your favorite hits like…Pitbull - "Don't Stop The Party", Swedish House Mafia - "Don't You Worry Child" and Rihanna - "Diamonds". I'll also be featuring remixes on some new bangers from…  Sam and The Womp - "Bom Bom", Chris Wallace - "Remember When (Push Rewind)" and  Neon Trees - "Lessons In Love"! It's an all out party music jam you don't want to miss!

Remember...if it's hot, if it's new and it makes you wanna move...you're In The Mix with HK.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

GRAMMY NOMINATIONS HK STYLE!


As a proud member of the voting body of the Grammy's I look forward each year to the nominations announcement with both excitement and wonderment. What I usually wonder about is the snubs and surprises. No matter how much you try to figure out what your colleagues were thinking you can't.

Here's the breakdown…Frank OceanKanye WestJay-Zfun.The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach and Mumford And Sons all got six nominations. You read that right…6 nominations. Justin Bieber's Believe and Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded were passed over for Best Pop Vocal Album and Bieber's manager, Scooter Braun, wasn't to happy about it. Taking to Twitter to vent his feelings. Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" was nominated for Song of the Year (a writers award), but not Record of the Year. She's also up for Best Pop Solo Performance. One of the biggest surprises is the Best New Artist category. There's a lot of young girls who will be wondering why both One Direction and The Wanted (arguably two of the biggest sensations this year) were overlooked. Perhaps the Grammy voters didn't feel either band had what it takes, who knows. But that's only the beginning, wait to you see the Album of the Year category. As with each year there is a lot to question, but than again I could say that about any awards competition. To check out all the nominations go to Grammy.com.

Regardless of who your personal fav's are, I'll be getting directly at it  In The Mix with HK. It's a non-stop music mix with custom HK remixes on Ke$ha - "Die Young", Justin Bieber & Nicki Minaj - "Beauty And A Beat", Pitbull - "Don't Stop The Party" and Ne-Yo's - "Let Me Love You". I promise even more bangers with my reworkings of Ellie Goulding - "Anything Could Happen", Ludacris/Usher/David Guetta - "Rest of My Life", fun. - "Some Nights" and the new one "Give Me Your Hand" from The Ready Set. Bring a towel and dress comfortably cause it's gonna be a smoker!!! 

Remember…"if it's hot, if it's new and it makes you wanna move…you're In The Mix with HK".