Album and Single Sales (Taio Cruz)

Taio Cruz is still killing it with his single Break Your Heart which fell 3 from 7 to 10, while follow-up Dynamite climbs to number 31! Last week Dynamite fell 26-45. On a sad note his overall album sales have taken a huge fall over the last two week, first week 8, second falling to 50, third falling again to 101!!

Billboard Top 10, Taio Cruz falls to 10

Looks like this could be our last week in the top 10 for our boy Taio Cruz. Let's see if he can hold on.

Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 For the Week Ending July 3rd, 2010:
1. “California Gurls,” Katy Perry feat. Snoop Dogg
2. "OMG," Usher feat. will.i.am
3. “Airplanes,” B.o.B. feat. Hayley Williams
4. “Billionaire,” Travie McCoy feat. Bruno Mars
5. "Find Your Love," Drake
6. "Your Love Is My Drug," Ke$ha
7. “Alejandro,” Lady Gaga
8. "Cooler Than Me," Mike Posner feat. Big Sean
9. "Not Afraid," Eminem
10. "Break Your Heart," Taio Cruz feat. Ludacris

SPIN's "Cheat Sheet"

Let's hope he isn't the "flavor of the month" but here is an article written by SPIN about Taio Cruz:


Find it hard to keep track of the newest pop music phenoms but don't want to look dumb at a party? We're here to help. Here's SPIN's handy cheat sheet to pop's flavor of the month:

Who: Taio Cruz

Huh? It's pronounced Tie-o, not Tay-o.

Why you've heard the name: This British R&B smoothy's dancefloor-friendly pop smash "Break Your Heart," featuring Ludacris, recently hit No. 1 on the Billboard 100. His sophomore album, Rokstarr, entered the Billboard Top 200 at No. 8.

How he got started: The 27-year-old Cruz was a successful songwriter and producer for the likes of Justin Timberlake, Usher, Ke$ha, and Britney Spears, so he knows his way around a hook.

He might remind you of: A slightly less randy Akon.

Favorite video props: Speedboats and hot women.

Blimey! Cruz has "slightly more sex appeal than JLS basted in turkey grease by Louis Walsh," says NME. We don't know what that means, but it doesn't sound good.

Girl trouble: Cruz had planned to release a version of "Umbrella" as an early single, but Rihanna called dibs and scored a huge hit. More recently, Brit pop chanteuse Corrine Bailey Rae threatened to sue Cruz, claiming that his "She's Like a Star" plagiarized her "Like a Star." The case never went to court.

He's got a fever: And it'll only get worse. Cruz is writing songs for Justin Bieber's next album.

Source: http://www.spin.com/articles/what-you-should-know-about-taio-cruz

Win Golden Circle tickets to T4 On The Beach!

The party of the summer is almost upon us as T4 On The Beach gets ready to put on yet another unmissable show! The sold-out event, sponsored by Aygo by Toyota, will take place in Weston-super-Mare on Sunday 4 July with over 45,000 sun-seeking music fans taking to the beach – and heatworld has three pairs of Golden Circle tickets to see all the action unfold from the front of the stage.
Stars including JLS, Tinie Tempah, Jason Derulo, Dizzee Rascal, Pixie Lott, Chipmunk, N-Dubz, Alexandra Burke, Scouting For Girls, Plan B, Ellie Goulding, Basshunter, Diana Vickers, Taio Cruz, The Saturdays, Professor Green, The Hoosiers, Kids In Glass Houses, Example and more will be joined by tons of special celebrity guests such as Louie Spence, Starman and Gok Wan, as well as T4’s very own Steve Jones, Miquita Oliver, Rick Edwards, Jameela Jamil and Nick Grimshaw. It's always a brilliant day out and this year we just know it's going to be sunny!

T4 On The Beach will broadcast in a packed 3 hour 45 minute show on C4 on Sunday 4 July from 2pm, followed by a repeat if you missed any of the action on the 4Music channel from 5.45pm. Further highlights from the day will be screened across Channel 4 and 4Music with details to be announced shortly.

For more information, check the T4 On The Beach website at channel4.com/t4

To be in with a chance of winning your pair of Golden Circle tickets, just go here and answer the question:

Click Here



Source: http://www.heatworld.com

Billboard Top 10

Our boy Taio Cruz falls another one this week 6-7, but he is still holding out in the top 10. Taio's other hit Dynamite has fallen from 26 to 45! A huge disappointment, I have a feeling it will rise again next week...start requesting it on the radio, it is a good hit!

From: Billboard.com:

Katy Perry holds at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for a second week with "California Gurls," featuring Snoop Dogg, and further distances herself from the pack as the title takes both the Airplay and Digital Gainer awards. Downloads improve 11% to 353,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan, while listener impressions surpass the 100 million mark (105.2, up 18%), according to Nielsen BDS. Perry is the first female artist to claim simultaneous gainer awards while residing at No. 1 since Alicia Keys, with "No One" on the chart dated Dec. 1, 2007.

Usher remains at No. 2 with "OMG," while maintaining its No. 1 standing for a third week on Radio Songs. Also holding in place on the big chart is "Airplanes" by B.o.B featuring Hayley Williams at No. 3.

Travie McCoy and Ke$ha swap spots as the former's "Billionaire" bounces 5-4 and the latter's "Your Love Is My Drug" dips 4-5. Meanwhile, Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" returns to its highest ranking (7-6). "Break Your Heart" by Taio Cruz featuring Ludacris falls 6-7.

When you start your chart life at No. 1, there's nowhere to go but down, but Eminem finds a way to rebound (11-8) with his former chart-topping debut "Not Afraid." Digital pre-order placement for the June 21 release of his album "Recovery" spurs downloads (up 11%) for the set's leadoff track as does increased radio play (up 7%), lifting the song back into the top 10 of the Hot 100 after a one-week respite.

Rounding out the top 10 are The Black Eyed Peas' "Rock That Body," which hold at No. 9 and Drake's "Find Your Love" which improves 13-10. "Love" is Drake's third top 10, all as a lead vocalist. He also visited the region with "Best I Ever Had" (No. 2 peak last July) and "Forever" (No. 8 in October).

What Have You Heard?

So,

I haven't found anything good enough to post. Does anyone have any news, pictures or anything that they would like to share? I would really love some pictures for the new website I am creating. Please let me know if you send pictures how you would like to give you credit, for example; name, or any other info you want.

Send anything here: webmaster@taiocruznews.com

Taio's no Diva

British pop star Taio Cruz might break, break your heart ... but he won't act like a diva

Now that Taio Cruz is a certifiable international pop star - his Break Your Heart has topped the charts in the United States, Canada and his native U.K. - he can finally feel free to start acting the part and unleash his inner diva.

Except that's not really his style.

"I don't have diva tendencies," the soft-spoken Cruz said with a laugh during a trip to Toronto this week. "Usually, my rider is one bottle of water. That's it.

"Sometimes I don't even ask for that."

That sounds uncommon, maybe, but then Cruz has taken an thoroughly unusual path thus far in his career.

The 27-year-old - born Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere to a Nigerian father and a Brazilian mother in London - began as a songwriter (he's penned tunes for Usher, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and Kylie Minogue) before being singled out in Britain as a potential star talent in his own right.

His first record, 2008's Departure - a thoroughly smooth record fusing his elastic vocals and disco-infused pop production - went gold in Britain, and he followed with Rokstarr the next year, another digestible collection of dancefloor-ready pop/R&B tunes.

That record eventually proved to be his Stateside gateway, particularly after he released a remixed version of his buoyant breakout Break Your Heart with an obligatory Ludacris guest vocal added in.

Cruz notes non-rock acts from the U.K. have had trouble breaking into the U.S. music scene in recent years. So what was different about him?

"I'm really, really, really sexy," he said with a laugh. "No, I'm just kidding, that's my ongoing joke."

"But I think just the musical trends have changed and (pop music) is sounding a little more dance-y and European, and that ... allows (listeners) to be a little more susceptible to U.K.-sounding music."

Cruz says he takes cues from musical movements bubbling a fair distance below the mainstream - "I listen to underground electro and dubstep, like really grimy records that people would never expect, and then I listen to ABBA, and then you kind of fuse the two," he explains.

And he says that experimental mentality has pop music moving in a more interesting direction.

"There was definitely a while when pop music had no soul in it, and it was just all about manufactured kids, five guys who were not necessarily the best singers but looked good, and the songs that had all the soul ripped out of them," he said.

"Whereas the origins of pop music didn't have to do that. Michael Jackson and Madonna made pop music, and it was great, and the production was amazing, and it had musicianship to it.

"So pop music doesn't have to be terrible. You can take really cool elements and put it in pop music and it'll sound really good. That's what I think, hopefully, what I do, what Will.i.am does and what Stargate (production team) do for Rihanna."

Cruz says he'll continue to write for other artists even as his solo profile grows.

In fact, he's recently penned a few tunes for Canadian teen sensation Justin Bieber, whom Cruz calls "the biggest thing in pop."

"They're just fun party records," Cruz says of the songs. "He's young and a fun kid. He appeals to the kids out there having a good time, so the songs I wrote for him were literally, you know: 'Let's go out and have a good time, party, and have fun.'

"In my opinion, they work for him, so it depends on whether he likes them personally or he and the label feel that's the direction for him or not, so I'll just have to wait and see."

Cruz also takes pride in his Rokstarr "high-street fashion" line, whose eponymous sunglasses (retailing for 165 British pounds online) are a permanent fixture on Cruz ("Even indoors, even at night - just because I feel like it," he says).

But Cruz points out that his is not a rags-to-riches story, and he doesn't feel as though he has to fabricate a rugged backstory just to gain credibility.

"My dad had enough money for us all when we were kids," he says. "I think it's a case of being yourself. I think it all goes wrong when you try to pretend that you're someone else. So if I hang out with Ludacris, I don't start trying to act like I'm gangster.

"You've just gotta be yourself. Either they accept you or they don't."

Source: http://dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/liveit/article/1093143

Taio Cruz Performs ‘Dynamite’ On Kimmel Video

Taio Cruz Performs ‘Dynamite’ On Kimmel

International crossover star, Taio Cruz, performed his new single ‘Dynamite’ on Jimmy Kimmel Live on June 11. The singer songwriter performed the track as part of his set to the promote his ‘Rokstarr’ LP – which was released in the States this week.

While I’m gonna need Mr Cruz to update the wardrobe pronto (fellow Brits will know what I mean), as well as his live performing skills, it’s hard to deny the song’s smash hit potential. Put simply, it’s the business.

In any case, check out Taio’s performance after the jump…

Taio Cruz Has Sold More Than 160,000 Copies of Rokstarr in Canada

Nobody can deny that with his global chart-topping dance pop smash Break Your Heart, the invigorating new single Dynamite and a hot selling album with Rokstarr, Taio Cruz is enjoying a breakout year.

But the London, U.K.,-based Cruz — born Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere — comes by much of his production pedigree from America. In his early 20s, he apprenticed with producers Chris “Tricky” Stewart (Rihanna, Beyoncé, Britney) and Rich Harrison (Beyoncé, Alicia Keys) in Atlanta.

“I’m an information sponge — I like to learn from people who know a lot more than I do, and then try to apply it to what it is that I do,” Cruz told Metro during a promotional stop in Toronto this week. ­“I was very excited to work with Tricky and all those guys because they’re amazing and have made so many hit records. I wanted to learn production tips and songwriting techniques and other bits and pieces. I honed my skills.”

Cruz, 27, whom Universal Music Canada reports has sold more than 160,000 copies of Rokstarr here, says his U.K. musical pals had some interesting ideas about U.S. pop music.

“Everyone had this idea that American music used some sort of magic dust to make it sound so good,” he chuckles. “Some of my friends thought it was the current, because the electricity standard is different in America and it affects the sound waves.

“I learned that the reason the music sounds so good is that they use the best of everything. They’re not afraid to spend money.”

Cruz almost scored another bonus working with Tricky: He was there when Terius “The Dream” Nash wrote Rihanna’s No. 1 smash Umbrella and actually recorded one of the song’s very first demos.

“I thought it was an amazing song,” Cruz recalls. “I really wanted to release it, but as you do as a songwriter, you send it out to various people and loads of different artists, and Jay-Z loved it for Rihanna. The rest is history.”

Besides his distinctive synthesized Europop sound, Taio Cruz is trying to make history of his own, as Rokstarr isn’t only the name of his sophomore album, but his own line of hip sunglasses. Cruz has plans to expand Rokstarr into offering watches, fragrance and luggage.

“I’d love for the Rokstarr empire to be as big as Apple one day,” says Cruz. “Steve Jobs and Apple — they’re my inspiration.”

Source: http://www.metronews.ca

Another Video Added

Someone requested that I add the video from Taio's live performance on "Live With Regis and Kelly" so I have added the video here and the video page. Let us know if you would like to see anything else.

Enjoy.

Meet Taio Cruz Video by US Magazine

Check this video out and learn some stuff about Taio Cruz! Enjoy:

Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart Results

Katy Perry is rocking it at the top with “California Gurls”. Usher with his hit “OMG” falls back a spot to No. 2. B.o.B’s Hayley Williams-assisted “Airplanes” sits  at No. 3 again. Ke$ha’s “Your Love Is My Drug” remains at No. 4.

Travie McCoy jumps into the top 10 for the first time as a solo act with “Billionaire.” It moves from No. 11 to No. 5. Singer Bruno Mars is secretly the big winner in the top 10. He’s the featured vocalist and producer on McCoy’s “Billionaire” and B.o.B’s No. 8 hit “Nothin’ On You.”

Taio Cruz’s “Break Your Heart” slips a place to No. 6. Lady Gaga‘s “Alejandro” also falls a spot to No. 7. After a brief vacation from the top 10, the Black Eyed Peas return with their fifth top 10 single from their multi-platinum set The E.N.D. The latest, “Rock That Body,” leaps from no. 19 to No. 9. La Roux‘s “Bulletproof” closes out the top 10, dropping from No. 8 to No. 10.

Source:http://music-mix.ew.com

Taio Cruz Debut's #8 For Top Selling Album For Week

Way to go Taio. 24,000 Album's sold shooting him into the top 10. Let's see how long he can stay there. If you haven't got the CD yet, it is amazing check out the samples at Amazon and buy it there too for only $10:

Jack Johnson's new album "To the Sea" becomes the singer-songwriters' third No. 1 on The Billboard 200, as the set racks up 234,000 copies. Just under a half of that number came from digital sales. The Hawaii-native last appeared at the summit his first week with 2008's 'Sleep Through the Static" (375,000); before that, his soundtrack to "Curious George" in 2006 (163,000).

That pushes "Glee: The Music, Volume 3 - Showstoppers" from No. 1 to No. 3 with 45,000 coipes, a 29% slip in sales. With a 4% bump, Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" goes from No. 3 to No. 2 with 52,000.

Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" at No. 4 (41,000, -12%), Usher's "Raymond v. Raymond" at No. 5 (35,000, -2%) and Lady Gaga's "The Fame" at No. 6 (33,000, +6%) all stay put at the same chart positions they had last week.

Taio Cruz's No. 1 Hot 100 hit "Break Your Heart" featuring Ludacris helped fuel sales of "Rokstarr," which debuts at No. 8 with 24,000. This is the British artist's first album release in the U.S.

He's only 2,000 copies ahead of "American Idol" favorite Clay Aiken, whose covers set "Tried & True" starts at No. 9 with 22,000. His last album before leaving RCA was 2008's "On My Way Here," which sold 94,000. Yowch.

With help from her rising single "Your Love Is My Drug," Ke$ha's "Animal" album re-enters the top tier No. 17 to No. 10 with 20,000, a 5% increase.

Sales are up 4% compared to last week's dismal album sales week, and up 8% compared to the same week last year.

Source: http://www.hitfix.com

CD Review by Startribune

Not the best review, but not bad either...

"This British R&B-pop star's U.S. debut mostly features songs from his first two British albums, released in 2008 and 2009. Cruz, who produced every track on this album save one, works at the intersection of R&B and electronic music, taking the digital soul of T-Pain and The-Dream to extremes that make even borglike competitors like Jason Derulo appear earthy.

But the older songs here are gentler in subject matter, attitude and volume than the more recent ones, which have made Cruz something of an instant pop star. "Break Your Heart," which has already reached No. 1, manages to be airy while abusive synths descend from every corner. It's probably the most optimistic song about romantic malfeasance in recent memory.

Most of "Rokstarr" chugs along like this, though with less cynicism, fully mechanized and overflowing with empty calories. It's exhilarating and exhausting, and ultimately memory-depleting. Harsh, bombastic synths imported from megaclub trance music give these songs (particularly "Take Me Back" and "No Other One") motion and heft, and Cruz, or his voice box approximant, brings sweetness. There are vapid lyrics to navigate but they don't disrupt the mood, which is emphatic and rarely sensual: Turns out Cruz has no off switch."

Source: http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/95805609.html?page=2&c=y

Taio Cruz on Jimmy Kimmel Thursday!

Jimmy Kimmel has two shows this week, and on Thursday a performance by Taio Cruz.

Other artists include: Jimmy Fallon - Kings of Convenience (Monday), Phish (Wednesday) and Sarah McLachlan (Thursday).

Tune in to "Lopez Tonight" on Monday for a performance from Hanson.

Taio Cruz Played at 14th Annual KFEST

Sounds like it was a great time despite the medicore weather. If anyone has pics they would like to share please feel free to do so and I will put them up!

Article about KFEST:

The 14th annual KFEST entertained thousands of music lovers today in spite of some rain with the possibility of more on the way.

Omar Perez of Patterson attended the music festival two years ago. He returned this year because of the lineup.

"They have some good artists," Perez said. "I like all of them."

Adam Lambert, Ludacris, Train, B.o.B., Orianthi, Taio Cruz, Kevin Rudolf, Aaron Fresh, Iyaz, Charice and Kat Deluna are scheduled to perform at the annual extravaganza staged by Fishkill-based WSPK (104.7 FM), known as K104.

A last-minute addition to the lineup was "American Idol" contestant Allison Iraheta from season eight who sang briefly.

This year’s KFEST concert is sold out.

This year marks the 10th year at Dutchess Stadium, the home of the minor-league Hudson Valley Renegades.

Rain and severe weather held off held off until around 2:15 p.m. Two storms went through the area.

Otherwise, a stiff breeze and overcast skies kept the temperatures down. Free sunblock was, however, being distributed.

Blankets were spread over the tarp-covered outfield, though when the musicians were performing people are all standing and moving to the music.

Dale Bramwell of the Town of Wappinger and his 12-year-old daughter, Reilly, are in attendance at KFEST for the first time.

"There are a lot of people here," Dale Bramwell said. “It's pretty cool and not too rowdy."

Source:http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com

Taio Cruz proudly wears pop label

Although Taio Cruz's debut album, out this week, is called "Rokstarr," he wears the pop-genre label proudly.

But Cruz — who recently had a No. 1 hit with the song "Break Your Heart" — knows some people don't have much respect for pop.

"I think 'pop' became a dirty word. I'm not going to name any names, but then some people ripped all the soul out of it," said the 27-year-old, who hails from Britain.

"People like Madonna, people like Michael Jackson — that's pop music, but it had soul, it had real musicianship to it," he added. "Then it became very manufactured, this terrible thing to say that you are. But, for me, I just love pop music that takes influences from loads of different genres, and just focuses on the catchiest parts of that music."

That's what Cruz has tried to do, not just with his own music, a mix of dance and pop. He has been a Top 40 mainstay in the U.K. since 2006.

Still, American success was important to him: "For me, as a kid, all of my influences were pretty much American, whether it was Michael Jackson or Madonna — most of the big stars generally come from here. My music has always been geared that way."

Cruz made his impact on the U.S. charts in a big way with "Break Your Heart." It set the record for the largest jump to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 by an act with its first charting single, soaring from 53-1 in early March. Despite setting a precedent, Cruz tried not to let himself get too excited over the milestone.

"I just kind of try to just remain calm with everything that I do," he explained. "If I release a record and it sells 20,000, or if I release a record and it sells 20 million, I try to treat them both the same."

Source: http://www.musicweek.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=1041400&c=1

New Top 10 List is Out

Usher maintains his reign on top with "OMG" featuring will.i.am.

Katy Perry's "California  Gurls," featuring Snoop Dogg, moves up one to 2, after debuting at number 3 last week.

B.o.B's "Airplanes," featuring Hayley Williams, dropped one to No. 3.

Ke$ha has another his with "Your Love Is My Drug" which rose from 7 to 4.

Taio Cruz fell once more from No. 4 to No. 5 for "Break Your Heart"

Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" stayed No. 6.

Watch Live with Regis and Kelly Season Episode ‘Demi Lovato / Carrot Top / Taio Cruz’

There isn't much show left, but if you tune in now you can watch Taio Cruz live on Live with Regis and Kelly. Details:

To stream Live with Regis and Kelly Demi Lovato / Carrot Top / Taio Cruz online you can head over to the official website to get access to some great content: http://regisandkelly.go.com

Another website with official Live with Regis and Kelly video can be found here: http://www.tv.com/live-with-regis-and-kelly/show/1689/videos.html?tag=page_nav;videos

I will post a video of the recorder performance later today, or tomorrow. Enjoy!!

Album Released Yesterday!! Did You Get It Yet?

Rokstarr is out today! Get it cheap at Amazon.com, only $7.99, I already ordered my on pre-order.

Free MP3, "I Just Wanna Know"

Fresh-faced Taio Cruz is brand-new on the scene in the U.S. but already breaking records. The British singer and producer exploded into the record books with his debut U.S. single on Mercury Records, “Break Your Heart” (featuring Ludacris) – which scored the Billboard Hot 100’s biggest one-week jump to #1 (from #53) by any New Artist’s debut single in the chart’s history.  Not too shabby when you're just getting started.

In the U.K., this son of a Nigerian father and Brazilian mother has already established himself as a major artist where he has had chart success as a singer, songwriter and producer. In the wake of success of his debut album Departure (2008), which spun off a quintet of UK chart hits (“I Just Wanna Know,” “Moving On,” “Come On Girl,” “I Can Be,” “She's Like a Star”), Taio was tapped to work in the studio with X Factor champs Alexandra Burke, Leona Lewis, and Shayne Ward.  Sessions followed in Philadelphia with Britney Spears, and Brandy. The year climaxed at the MOBO Awards with a Best Single nomination for “She's Like a Star,” which Taio performed with Sugababes.

Today, he is releasing his much-anticipated debut album "Rokkstar" in the U.S. Check out a totally guilt-free MP3 download of his middle of the road pop R&B ditty "I Just Wanna Know," a non-album bonus track that shows off his chops as a smooth and sultry balladeer. 

 Download a the free MP3 here!

Source:http://www.arjanwrites.com