Concert Review: Timbaland

Concert Review: Timbaland

Supporting Act: Keys 'n' Krates, Sebastian

Date: January 22nd, 2010

Location: The Sound Academy, Toronto, Ontario

Known for his production and background vocals on hit songs for artists such as Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado, and Keri Hilson, Timbaland visited Toronto for his Shock Value II tour promoting the album of the same name.

The show started with an opening by Keys ‘n’ Krates, a Toronto based remixing group that performed a really cool set. They used DJ turntables, keyboards, soundboards and many real instruments to create remixes of some popular songs, sampling the beats or vocals of the song. It was an appropriate opening and was very appealing to see. The group would make an amazing guest feature at a nightclub.

Between Keys ‘n’ Krates and Timbaland, a DJ played Timbaland produced songs at the venue. It was another great way to get people hyped for Timbaland. About 40 minutes later, Timbaland took the stage. The stage wasn’t much, however it did have cool lighting and video screens in the background. Timbaland performed tracks mostly from Shock Value II however, he did a bunch from the first Shock Value as well. Because most of Timbaland’s songs are more just his productions with a featured guests, he had the featured guests create live videos that were broadcasted on the screens while he mixed and added his vocals. This was done during songs If We Ever Meet Again in which Katy Perry is in the chorus, Carry Out with Justin Timberlake, Say Something with Drake, and many more including Chad Kroeger from Nickleback, The Fray, SoShy, and of course, Keri Hilson. During the featured performances, Timbaland added some more of his vocals, and although using the screens for the featured guests may sound a bit cheesy, it was an effective way of “bringing his guests on tour” rather than just having the audio track play. I enjoyed it.

His voice was just as good live as it is on his songs, and he’s one of the few producers/singers that hasn’t resorted to the popular use of auto-tune on his songs. Timbaland himself seemed to be very friendly and during his performance of “Ease Off The Liquor” he did some major fan interaction, speaking to audience members (mostly those in the first few rows), complementing girls on their beauty and offering to buy them drinks, which eventually eased into him telling the venue that drinks were on him. Whether this was just something he said as part of his show, or he really meant, I’ll never know. In between his songs, he took some very long breaks going backstage and coming back almost 10-15 minutes later at times. During this time, a DJ would spin some classic Timbaland produced tracks. This eventually got annoying as he left quite a few times. About 3/4 of the way through the show, Timabaland did a little break down and free-styled over some of his newer produced tracks like SexyBack, Promiscuous, etc. and would add more raps and verses over it. This was probably the best part of the show, as we got to hear more of Timbaland’s voice and raps rather than his beats.

Another thing the Shock Value II tour was known for was Timbaland’s announcement of bringing special guests to each one of his shows, a different one at each venue. I was a bit excited thinking he might bring out Drake or Nelly Furtado, both being Canadian artists, but instead he brought his brother Sebastian onto the Toronto stage. Sebastian was featured in The Way I Are as well as a few other songs on both Shock Value albums. I was disappointed in this, not only because I was hoping for Drake or Nelly, but also because his performance was less than average. It just seemed to be a drag.

Overall, the show was just average and easily forgettable. For someone at his caliber, I expected a little more from the show. The breaks between songs were not only annoying, but unnecessary; its not as if there was a costume change or heavy choreography that he needed to take a little break. The TV screens to broadcast the featured guests during the songs was a really neat touch the show, and was probably one of the most interesting about his show. That doesn’t say much about Timbaland.

'According to Greta' according to Khizer

Okay, so two days ago the long awaited movie "According to Greta" or"Greta" as it was titled before (and how I like it better) was finally released on Blu Ray and DVD. This movie starring Hilary Duff, was announced early in Duff's career when she stated she had a project about a suicidal girl that she was going to wait to do until she was older. In late 2007, Duff announced that she was ready for the role and the film was shot in 2008. After having a website and teaser released in early 2009, the movie got a limited theatrical release in December and the DVD/Blu Ray came out this past Tuesday (January 19, 2010).

The movie itself bears a close resemblance to Georgia Rule, ironically starring her former rival, Lindsay Lohan. Though it is debatable which story was actually written first (as Duff announced this project in her early years), both follow a similar plot. Greta (Hilary Duff) is sent to her grandparents (Ellen Burnstyn and Michael Murphy ) because she is problematic. Immediately after arriving at her grandparents living in the Jersey Shore area, she informs them of her plans to commit suicide. She has this notebook in which she writes down ways she can kill herself, and things she wants to do before she dies. While crossing things off her list, she meets Julie (Evan Ross), a line cook at the restaurant she works at who seems to be the only person getting through to her and making some type of change for the better in her life. And thus the plots revolves around Greta's teenage rebel attitude toward her grandparents, people, and life in general. Of course, Greta isn't just a rebel to be a rebel, but she has a reason deep down that is causing this attitude, some of which comes from her mom (Melissa Leo) who seems to care more about her relationships (currently on her 9thhusband/boyfriend) than for Greta herself. I will stop there before I say too much and spoil the ending.

Now, here comes the Khizer rant (here there will be spoilers, so if you haven't seen the movie and are planning to, I would stop reading...NOW):

I was heavily anticipating this movie and thus had high expectations. The movie was overall successful in fulfilling these expectations. Hilary's acting was really good and she played a convincing and amusing role as a troubled teenager. Evan Ross also delivered a great performance, and the chemistry between him and Hilary onscreen was also brilliant. Character development throughout the movie was also great...until the end. The climax of the movie seemed to be when Greta's mom came to pick her up and send her to boot camp. Greta didn't want to go and suddenly had the urge to stay with her grandparents. When did she go from completely rebellious to nice girl? Did we miss a few scenes? After making this suggestion, Greta just walks away, and when she comes back she finds her mom packed her suitcase and is lugging it out. Greta snaps and starts fighting with her mom playing a sort of tug-of-war with the suitcase. Greta's grandfather comes to the rescue, and tells his daughter (Greta's mom) that no one is going anywhere except her boyfriend. After a few seconds of unconvincing arguing that she needs her boyfriend, Greta's mom seems to agree to stay, although this is also unclear. A woman who is earlier portrayed as a carefree mom who wants to send her daughter away to her grandparents so she can have time with her boyfriend/husband is so easily convinced and is so vulnerable to her parents' anger that she decides to stay? This already being unclear, it seems that Greta is now a completely changed character, very happy and cheerful with her mom and grandma as they look at younger pictures of her and her deceased father. Is there a time lapse we are missing? Again, how did Greta go from a rebellious teenager, to a happy family girl? There was no "1 month" or "1 week later" title slide to explain a time lapse. Is it that easy to change someone from being suicidal to happy? After this scene, Greta is shown going into the beach and dumping her diary in the water. As she walks out, she is scene walking on the shore and the credits begin to role. So what, is everything okay now? Her mom came back, they got in a quick fight, and a day later everything is okay? She is normal now? She is saved? What happened to Julie? What happened to the character development that was going so well till that point? If this was a joke, where's the punch line? It's not like the movie was going excessive in time: the movie ended at a mere hour and half at the end of the credits. They could have added even 15-20 minutes more to the movie to make it more well rounded out and less rushed at the end. I went and looked at the alternate ending featured expecting an answer to all my questions. Instead, I saw the same ending with the only difference being Greta waving/acknowledging Julie as she came out of the beach walking on the shore. Okay, so despite not changing my opinion on the rushed ending, this ending would've STILL been better than the one actually used. At least it kind-of showed what happens with her and Julie at the end.

The blame doesn't really go to the cast of the movie (though Melissa Leo had a really hard time proving she was an Oscar nominee with her character in this film), but to the director. How could you let such a good movie just end like that? How did you not see everything going smoothly and then an end that seemed so sudden. When leaving a movie theater, or a sofa in my case, its the end that you remember as its the last thing you see. If my opinion was based on just the end, then the movie would get 1 out of 5 stars. A major let down on a movie that I was anticipating since it was announced by Hilary Duff. However, after looking at the movie as a whole, the first hour and 10 minutes were great. Hilary Duff, Evan Ross, Ellen Burnstyn, and Michael Murphy all gave great performances, and all of them brought their own sense of humour. All the characters had great chemistry...of course up and till the end where everything just went down hill. Hilary Duff also proved herself as a good actress, portraying and capturing Greta's character, one so different than her own. So what's my final verdict? Well, if I could contact the directer and give her an earful, I would. If I could call the cast and shoot some scenes to complete the missing pieces, I would. I can't. The movie was like a sundae that only came with the the ice cream; no sauce or sprinkles. Although it still tastes good, it doesn't taste as good as it would with the condiments, and I feel that's the best way to describe "According to Greta". Overall, the movie was good, but to go from good to great, it needed some sauce and sprinkles...mmmm sauce and sprinkles.

Khizer's rating: 3.5/5 stars

Ke$ha's Party

Tik Tok - Ke$ha

Now the party don't start till I walk in....

So it would be natural to choose this song to open today's blog. Not only because the blog is about Ke$ha, and the song is her debut hit single, but also because the lyrics did apply to the night I had. Check out the story:

This past weekend, newcomer Kesha or profesionally known as "Ke$ha" held a private album release party in Toronto called "Ke$ha's Party". This invite-only party was only accessible by winning tickets via her wesbite, or through local radio stations. Fortunately, I was able to get my paws on a pass to the event. The party took place at The MOD Club on Sunday January 17th, 2010 making it my first concert of the new year, and furthermore, the new decade. Ironically, Kesha also held the title for the first number one song of the new decade.

Being an event at The MOD Club, I had a few setbacks...the last time I went to the MOD Club for a concert, it didn't end up to well (link to other blog). However, the MOD Club was also known for being a cozy and intimate joint for concerts and because it was invite only, I knew it wouldn't be as overly crowded as it would've been for a regular concert.

Once I arrived at the venue, doors had not yet opened (I was there a few minutes early) so I joined a preformed line. Unlike most concert lineups, this one was rather amusing and entertaining. Three major Toronto radio stations were side by side battling it out. Kiss 92.5 (my favourite of the three) had its radio blasting from their truck with the likes of Lady GaGa and Pitbull playing. They were also handing out postcards advertising their station to everyone in the line. Virgin 99.9 were giving out t-shirts that had their logo over it, persuading people to wear it telling them if they wear the shirt in the venue, they would be qualified for a prize. Lastly, z103.5 were ALSO handing out t-shirts...a bad marketing approach in my opinion as they had no incentive offer with their distrubtion (not that I know of at least). While being amused by these stations, the doors shortly opened and into the party I went.

After getting coats checked, there were professional photographers taking red carpet pictures of

people entering into the party. These pictures were then going to be posted on Kesha's official website. Although some people went straight to the stage or the bar, I got my picture taken on the red carpet which was actually black. It was actually a really cool way of setting up the party, as it did make me feel very VIP and brought out my inner celebrity.

As soon as I got my picture taken, I head right up to the stage and I was lucky enough to get a great spot right up near the stage equivalent to being second row. The stage formation of the MOD club was similar to the Bronson Centre (a concert venue in Ottawa I've been to many times) in that there was no barricade between the stage and the person so you could lean up right against the stage. I was one row behind the people who could be right up at the stage and thus it made the concert very intimate. There was no opening act for Kesha, instead there was a DJ who was cutting top 40 hits and was constantly telling everyone to cheer for Kesha. In between this there was a VIP Contest where if you texted "VIP" to 556677 before 7PM you would be eligible to meet Kesha after the show. I promptly did this and had my fingers crossed the whole time. About 25 minutes later, someone beside me had gotten a winning text so I found out that I didn't win. The DJ kept spinning top 40, and it wasn't till he played "Just Dance" by Lady GaGa that the crowd went crazy again. In fact, I noticed that the crowd was louder when "Just Dance" played than they were when the DJ told the crowd to cheer for Kesha backstage. Eventually after cutting a few more hits, Kesha's band memebers (one who bore a big style resemblance to Lady GaGa) began setting a few things up meaning she would be arriving soon.

Shortly, the band members took their place and began playing Kesha's verse from Flo Rida's #1 hit, "Right Round". As it played, Kesha entered with a bang and started the show with "Backstabber". The performance was a great start to the show, and with the one song, Kesha really showed how the "party doesn't start 'till she walks in". She came dressed in a custom made outif wearing a black shirt with her trademark $ sign on it, tons of glitter, and a sequenced "diaper" as she called it. In addition, she had these really cool gloves on that had a laster pointer on each finger tips that flashed red lights through the crowd as she moved her hands and performed. In addition to accessories, the performance was backed with great choreography and she made use of the stage acting out lyrics and performing great dance steps. With all this, she definitely started the show with a bang.

Continuing on with the same recipe, Kesha went on to perform 5 more songs which included "Party at a Rich Dude's House", "Dinosaur", "Your Love Is My Drug", "Blah Blah Blah" and "Tik Tok". Of these performances, Dinosaur was a highlight for me as it included some really interesting choreography and an interlude in the middle where Kesha started playing a bell and a guitar with her tongue. During "Party at a Rich Dude's House" she had a bucket of beer (or some liquid substance) thrown over her as part of her act. During "Your Love Is My Drug", Kesha stated that it was the first time she ever performed the song. "Blah Blah Blah" that features 3OH!3 on the album version, had Kesha singing by herslef in the live performance (though she said that they were supposed to be at the show but didn't show up). Lastly, "Tik Tok" was probably the song that got the most cheer and sing along. It was also the final song in her set, with no encore. "Thank you Toronto," and she was gone.

After she left, the venue turned into a club for the night and although they weren't letting other people in, the already admitted people were allowed to stay as they played Kesha's record "Animal". Although most people left, many people just stayed and danced away. It wasn't long before I noticed that Kesha herself was still at the venue doing a meet and greet on the upper level with the VIP winners. I tried to get my hands on a VIP pass from people who already met her and were leaving, but since others did that before me thesecurity guards caught on and weren't letting new VIP people up the balcony. I tried other methods of getting up and meeting the startlet, including trying to get an event pass, but this also failed. Alas, I got my coat from coat check and just lounged around a little bit more. It was a few minutes later when mass amounts of luck and of course blessings shone down upon me (yes, yes, I get cheesy sometimes too). This girl who also tried the VIP pass thing, was desperately trying to meet Kesha (way more than I was) to the point where she starting yelling "KESHA KESHA". Kesha finally heard from the balcony and was like "YEA?" and she's like "Can you come down and take a picture?" and Kesha was like "OF COURSE". She (the girl) looks at me and is like "DID YOU SEE THAT CONNECTION? I SAW A CONNECTION". I replied, "OH THERE WAS DEFINITELY A CONNECTION". This is when Kesha came running down in her sequenced diaper shorts and $ sign shirt.

Everyone started running and I was privledged to having been at the bottom staircase. Before reaching the bottom, she looks at me and I just give her this big hug. She smelt amazing. It was a combination of alcohol and some really hot perfume and "Keshaness". After the hug, I exclaim, "You're my fucking drug". This was a little play-on-words to her song "Your Love Is My Drug" and she noticed what I did as she gave me a little smile and acknowledgement then laughed. I asked her for a picture and she said

"Definitely", though there were so many people crowding that it became difficult. While people were doing self-pictures, she kept her eye on me and was like "Don't worry, I'll stand with you and we'll get it" and with this she stayed close to me. The security then decided to make everything more organized and moved everyone to the red carpet telling them to form a line. They told everyone to have their cameras ready and any one thing they wanted signed. I was beyond excited and was at the front of the line. I gave the photographer my camera, but before he took our picture I got another hug and told her "you're fucking gorgeous" as we hugged. She really was. I didn't think she was that much of a looker when I saw her videos, but in person she just had this amazing energy, persona, and sexiness about her. It was odd.

As I told her this, she laughed and we took our picture. After our picture, I asked her if she could autography my copy of "Animal" and she said "sure" and signed it in big initials. I wasn't done. I didn't want to just leave while she was still standing with me. So before ending my night I asked her, "Do you think I could get a kiss?". She looked at me, smiled, puckered her lips up, kissed my cheek, and replied "KISS" and then laughed in such a cute way. ADSKFJASDSTARSTRUCK! "Ke$ha's Party" was now a major party for me. From a VIP Red Carpet entrance to upclose seats, to meeting her and getting a kiss from her, the night was amazing. It's true, the party doesn't start till Kesha walks in.

Putting my excitement about meeting her and getting a kiss aside, the show itself was really intimate and entertaining. For an artist who is just starting out (as a live performer), she really had good stage precense. Between her choreography, props, and acting out of lyrics, she really knew how to put on a show despite not having a huge budget. She had a heavy backing track throughout the show, so some performances had some heavy lip synching, which was noticeable when she would act out some of her lyrics and her lips would be a tad off beat from the track that was playing. Compared to superstar Britney Spears though, who normally mimes the whole show, Kesha did predominantly sing and only used the backing tracking during heavy choreography instances. However, I'm still not convinced if she has the staying power and the dedication for the industry. Her lyrics have no substance, and her music isn't too different from what's already been done. She is attempting the "freak" style being all careless and party girl, though this hasn't worked for other artists including Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton. However, what set's her apart from these two is that she seems like she knows what she's doing. Behind the party girl image, she knows what to do for success, and I think the most impressive thing about her debut album is that she co-wrote every song. Even if the songs are all about partying, throwing up in Paris Hilton's closet, or waking up feeling like P.Diddy, you have to give her credit that she is dedicated to making her record, herself.

So let's see how far she goes in her career. Will she have success with follow up singles and albums, or will she be a one hit/album wonder? While we wait and find out, I'll continue being excited about my meet with her!

Who I Am

Who's That Girl – Hilary Duff

Who’s that girl? Where’s she from? No she can’t be the one…that you want, that has stolen my world. It’s not real, it’s not right, it’s not day, it’s not night, by the way...who’s that girl? Living my life…Similar to how Hilary Duff felt when singing this ballad from her sophomore album, I’ve been going through a similar questioning period in my life.

Over the past month I got in so deep with drama, school, and bad health that I began to forget who I really am. I felt like I was just a body and someone else was living in it. After reflecting on this further, I felt that it wasn’t only over the past month but it was also throughout the year that someone else would be living my life. Someone else had stolen my world. Who was this person?

It wasn’t till I came back home for my December holidays that I had time to think about this. I needed to get away from my life in Ottawa and take some time to sit down and figure out who I was before I left for University and what I became in the 1st year and half of. To be honest, I didn’t know. I didn’t know what I had become, but I knew it wasn’t someone who I wanted to be. I wanted to be devoted to academics, but also have time for family and friends. I wanted to go out and party, but also know when to stop and where my limits were. I wanted my life to be prioritized, in which I would keep myself busy with school, extracurricular activities, work, and religion. I wanted to be a compassionate, generous, nice, down to earth and humble person. Was I?

I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t as religious as I wanted to be nor was I able to balance all the activities that I wanted to. I did however balance my friends and family. I did balance a job in my life, and did a tad better academically than I had during my first semester of university. This wasn’t enough for me. In 2010 I would be turning 20 and I knew I needed to take my life more seriously. I needed to make that transition from the lingering high school student in University to the mature adult in University. I needed to know where my priorities were and become more involved with my religion. Religion is very important, and losing it would be a grave mistake. I needed to choose my friends wisely and keep around me only the people who I could trust and who would love me for me. I needed to go through a metamorphosis. I needed to see what in my life needed to change, what needed to stay the same. This needed to be done to rediscover and revitalize the real Khizer. Who’s that Khiz? Where’s he from? Can he be the one?

With all this reflection, I formulated my resolutions for the New Year and new decade. As mentioned before, in this year, I’m turning 20 and I need to make my transition from teenager to adult. I need to figure out my focus, not only in life but also academically. Medicine? Law? Media? Whether it be law or medicine, I know media will always be a part of me. After all, I wouldn’t be Khizer without being Khizerlicious would I? As mentioned above, I need to become closer to my religion. I need to make sure I’m friends with people who I know will be there for me when I need and who I know I’ll be there for as well. Most of all, as previously mentioned, I need to go through this metamorphosis and revitalization to become the person I used to be and who I want to be. To do this, I will need to go through some self discovery, but as 2010 progresses, I’m sure this will all come naturally. Naturally, I will find out who this boy is. I’ll find out where he came from. I’ll take back my world and live my life.