This week: The Magic of Motown and Taylor Swift Redux
When Smokey Sings
Smokey Robinson turns 81 today, and it’s a perfect time to celebrate the iconic label, for which he has been a singer, songwriter, producer, and even vice president: Motown.
As part of the Miracles, he was one of the first acts signed to the label and swiftly wrote, produced, and performed hit after hit for the imprint. Berry Gordy’s Motown Records Corporation was a cultural megaforce that put Detroit on the map and in the musical history books, gifting the world with songs by The Supremes, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and so very many more.
Celebrate the miracle of Smokey’s voice with our Smokey Robinson At His Best playlist and enjoy the biggest hits from his labelmates with 60s and 70s Motown Classics and The Supremes At Their Best – that you can find in The Magic of Motown on ROXi.
Taylor’s Versions
Not only has Taylor Swift recorded two brand-new albums during quarantine, Folklore and Evermore, but she’s also been busy re-recording every song of hers released before 2019’s Lover album. Why? Well, when her former record label was sold to Justin Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun, Taylor missed out on being able to purchase the rights to her old tracks. By recording new versions, she can own them for infinity and beyond.
Her first new/old single is Love Story (Taylor’s Version), with the rest of the re-recorded Fearless album following in April (including six never-before-heard songs she had hidden under the bed). For future reference: When you see a Taylor track with the parenthetical “Taylor’s Version” following the title, that denotes the fresh re-recorded rendition. Hear the first of many re-records by heading to Charts / New Releases.
Also on ROXi this week…
ROXi FEATURE REVIEW:
Visuals:
ROXi’s visuals make music a multisensory experience, featuring curated photo sets with hundreds of images from the Getty archives. Browse the many available themes under the Visuals section and choose a new favourite.
NEW SINGLE ON ROXi:
Lil Tjay, the Bronx rapper discovered at a hip-hop talent contest, is ready for solo glory following his appearance on Pop Smoke’s Mood Swings — search for “Lil Tjay Calling My Phone” on ROXi to hear his new single.
NEW ALBUM ON ROXi:
Mercury-nominated Brit rapper Slowthai is headed for the top this week with his second album: Tyron. Hear why it’s poised to be his biggest success yet by searching for “Slowthai Tyron” in Albums.