A Taste:

Empire of the Sun, Tom Petty, Jay-Z

Leighton Meester wants to make you sweat, and that’s just what her music is going to do.

“Somebody to Love,” the first single from her forthcoming debut album, is a bona fide club anthem that’ll be lighting up dance floors for a long time to come. It’s sexy and sassy just like the young starlet. Even though Leighton definitely loves her fair share of dance music, she’s got quite an eclectic playlist overall. The fact that she’s all-over-the-map makes her tunes that much more interesting.

Leighton’s in the studio finishing up the album right now, but she found the time to sit down with ARTISTdirect.com editor and Dolor author Rick Florino for this exclusive playlist feature.

Check out Leighton’s playlist below and be sure to keep an eye out for her debut album!

Leighton Meester’s Playlist:

1. Empire of the Sun

I’ve been listening to Empire of the Sun a lot. They’re amazing! They have a lot of really good songs, but “Walking on a Dream” is one of the most-played on my iTunes. They’re very electro. It’s beautiful music, but it’s a little disco-sounding too. This song holds a lot of memories for me. I started listening to it about a year ago, and it reminds me of dancing all night in my hotel room in Paris drunk on champagne [Laughs].

2. Tom Petty

I love Tom Petty. I’m a huge Tom Petty fan. I really like a lot of his songs. I think “Refugee” is a really good song. I feel like the song has got so much soul and personality. I really like singing it. If I ever do karaoke, that’s my song!

3. Jay-Z

Lately, I’ve been listening to “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z. A collaboration between Jay-Z and Empire of the Sun would be amazing. I love this song though; it’s gorgeous. It’s an instant classic, and it’s like an anthem. I live in New York so I really love the song.

4. Lykke Li

I really like “Little Bit” by Lykke Li. Her voice is so beautiful. It’s very honest and simple, and it captures the feeling of young love.

5. Peter, Bjorn and John

I really like Peter, Bjorn and John. I love that song “Paris 2004.” It’s such a happy song. It reminds me of a sunny day.

6. Jori Hulkkonen

I really like this song called “Lo Fiction” by Jori Hulkkonen. A friend of mine introduced that song to me over two years ago, and I’m still not tired of it. It’s the kind of music that I love to make. There’s a good electronic beat, but the vocals are melodic and the lyrics are very personal but simple. It reminds me a little bit of “Somebody to Love” because it feels like a nighttime song.

7. Neil Young

8. Leighton Meester

I’ll say my own song, since it’s out now [Laughs].

9. Outkast

10. Gnarls Barkley

I love Gnarls Barkley. I have such a huge variety because good music is good music!

—Rick Florino
10.22.09

Check out Rick Florino’s new novel Dolor available now for FREE here…

A Taste:

Lupe Fiasco, Jay-Z, Phoenix

Marié Digby’s got folky croon that could serve as the perfect soundtrack for a dream.

Her sophomore album, Breathing Underwater, is ethereal and smoky in all the right ways. She’s got a lot of heart, but at the same time, she knows how to carry a big pop hook.

Marié opened up her iTunes and gave ARTISTdirect.com an exclusive look at what she’s spinning. Check out her playlist below!

Marié Digby’s Playlist:

1. Lupe Fiasco — “Shining Down”

Right now I’m really into Lupe Fiasco. He’s got this new song called “Shining Down.” He’s such a smart lyricist and he’s very fresh. I really appreciate everything he does.

2. Jay-Z — “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)”

I’ve been listening to “Death of Auto-Tune” by Jay-Z. He and Lupe have been in constant rotation. I love Jay-Z too. I admire rap artists who are unique and fresh and they don’t rap about the things that everyone else raps about. I like those two rappers a lot!

3. Phoenix — Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

I’m listening to the new Phoenix album. The song “Fences” is great. They’re able to take these chords that shouldn’t normally work in a pop song and put the perfect melody on top of them. I love the vocalist. I’ve been a fan for a long time, and they’re fantastic. I’m upset because I was doing a TV show in this little tiny building in Japan a few weeks ago and they were next door literally 20 feet away doing a show on the same side of this building. I really wanted to introduce myself, but I didn’t have the courage to do it [Laughs].

4. Imogen Heap

I’m obsessed Imogen Heap’s new album Ellipse. I’m obsessed with it. I think it’s epic. I look up to her a lot. She does almost everything by herself. She’s independent. She mixes, writes, produces and plays just about everything on her albums. No one can do what she does.

—Rick Florino
09.20.09

A Taste:

Jeremih, Drake, Jay-Z, John Mayer

On Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory, Chris “Drama” Pfaff spends a lot of time making mischief with his cousin Rob, but he devotes even more of his time to making music.

Drama has logged time in the studio with Snoop Dogg, The Game, Chris Brown and Keri Hilson, becoming quite the production force in his own right.

However, if causing trouble were an Olympic sport he and his cousin would definitely be gold medalists.

When he’s not on some crazy suburban Los Angeles mission or in the studio, Drama is cranking his favorite tunes. He opened up his iTunes for ARTISTdirect.com and gave us an exclusive look at what he’s spinning. Check out Drama’s playlist below and catch him on Fantasy Factory on Thursdays at 9pm!

Chris “Drama” Pfaff’s Playlist:

1. Jeremih — Jeremih

Right now, I just hit “pause” on the new Jeremih album. He’s the guy who’s famous for “Birthday Sex,” which was actually charting before he had a deal. That’s why they signed him and knocked his shit out right away. I’m actually pretty impressed with the whole record. It’s really growing on me. His follow-up single, “I’m a Star,” is a banger. I’m backing it!

2. 50 Cent — “Baby By Me (Feat. Ne-Yo)

I’m all over the map, man. I just downloaded the new 50 Cent and Ne-Yo song—”Baby By Me.” I feel like 50 might have another hit with this one. I think that Ne-Yo-mainstream power might’ve done it for him. I like it! I’m looking forward to hearing the whole record.

3. Jay-Z — The Blueprint 3

I’m a fan of the new Jay-Z album. It’s really good!

4. Drake — “Forever”

The new Drake song, “Forever,” has been on heavy “repeat” for me. Drake was able to have hit singles, be in videos and establish a name before he even had a deal, which is absolutely insane. To get as far as he did without a label is crazy! My entire existence revolves around having new music to listen to. If I can’t find any new music, I’m bored out of my mind. Everywhere I go I hear the same things. I’ll get three or four new songs and listen to those for like a week straight until I can get three or four more new tracks. I repeat that cycle over and over [Laughs].

5. Trey Songz —Ready

I just bought the new Trey Songz. I’m not mad at it. I feel like that one has to grow on me. You have to listen to it in the right circumstances—with a girl and a bottle of wine or something [Laughs]. It’s pretty serious and love-inspired [Laughs]. It’s good! I’m a Trey fan for sure.

6. John Mayer

7. Jack Johnson

Every morning when I’m driving down to the Fantasy Factory and I’m annoyed at life waiting for my coffee to kick in, I’ll put on either John Mayer or Jack Johnson. I can’t start my day out with Jeremih’s “I’m a Star.” I have to relate to how I’m feeling at the time.

8. Young Jeezy

There are always the Young Jeezy days too!

9. Jay-Z — Kingdom Come

This is kind of random, but my favorite Jay-Z album is Kingdom Come. I was having a debate with Rob about it the other day. To be completely honest, when it comes down to Jay-Z as a whole, I’m not an extreme Jay-Z fan. I don’t go back and listen to old Jay-Z albums because they’re slightly before my time. For some reason, I love the entire Kingdom Come album. It’s so strange. It might be because he went with Dr. Dre on a lot of the songs. There’s an edge to it that I really like. I said that to Rob, and he said, “Man, he doesn’t even have an album called Kingdom Come!” I was like, “Yes, he does!” He responded, “No he doesn’t. You’re completely mistaken!” It just snuck through though. It has “Lost Ones.” The production on the Swizz Beatz song is crazy. Usually his stuff is that sample-heavy Kanye production, but Kingdom Come is all Dre and Swizz Beatz, newer younger producers. It’s just a different sound.

10. Kid Cudi

I’m really curious about the Kid Cudi record. I like stuff that’s left-of-center.

11. Ini Kamoze — “Here Comes the Hot Stepper”

I’ve been DJing lately, and I’ve been going back to old songs that were funny at the time like Ini Kamoze’s “Here Comes the Hot Stepper.” I remember having that in my tape player on a vacation to Myrtle Beach [Laughs].

12. Skee-Lo — “I Wish”

I love that song by Skee-Lo “I Wish.”

13. John Mayer & Rob Dyrdek — “Rob’s Mom”

We did a song for the show with John Mayer that’s going to be on this Thursday’s episode. It came out really funny, as you can imagine. It’s called “Rob’s Mom.” It’s a song apologizing to Rob’s mom. Rob and John were on TMZ about a month ago because there were a bunch of Paparazzi outside of a club. Rob and John decided it’d be funny for Rob to act like he was passed out drunk and for John to carry him out of the club. John is just brilliant at that stuff! John was inside the club Twittering that Rob was wasted and he bit into a glowstick [Laughs]. The paparazzi read his Twitter to see what’s going on, so they all gathered outside of the club. Rob acted like he couldn’t even walk, so it was all over the news and TMZ. It made it all the way back to the Dayton Ohio news—where Rob’s mom lives. It said, “Local celebrity almost dies from drinking too much.” It was all a complete joke though! Needless to say, his mom got upset. She’s real diehard no drinking and no cursing. Rob and John called her, and she yelled at the both of them. So they decided the best way to make up for it was to write a song [Laughs]. It’s pretty ridiculous. John is so crazy musically! We were just in there joking around. John can say whatever he wants, and it sounds amazing. From working with him, I saw him do delays and fade outs on his own with his voice not with Pro Tools. He just really understands how it works all the way through. Working with John taught me a lot.

—Rick Florino
09.15.09

A Taste:

Montell Jordan, Boyz II Men, The Beatles, Jay-Z

Jeremy Piven gave ARTISTdirect.com a big treat.

In celebration of The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, his fantastically funny new Paramount comedy, Piven got us close to his character, Don Ready—real close. In fact, Piven runs down “Don Ready’s Pump-up Playlist” in this highly exclusive video. He shows us what the best songs to get psyched up for a crazy day of selling used cars are. You’re not going to believe the selections either.

You’re going to have to watch it to find out the best way to get pumped for a long day of slinging used metal…

The video is utterly uproarious! Check it out here and below!

Don’t miss The Goods when it hits theaters this Friday!

—Rick Florino
08.11.09

A Taste:

Michael Jackson, T.I., Jay-Z

“There’s something exciting about rock n’ roll,” says MIMS with a smile. “Maybe I’ll pick up a guitar one day and learn that craft.”

MIMS’ latest LP, Guilt, has a bit of a personal homage to rock music, in addition to a slew of club banging tracks that proudly stand alongside any of the “This Why I’m Hot” MCs’ catchiest material.

MIMS decided to share his playlist with us in this exclusive feature. Check it out below and grab Guilt in stores now.

MIMS’ Playlist:

1. Michael Jackson — Thriller

My favorite album of all-time is Michael Jackson’s Thriller. That’s on repeat every single day. I love how it’s put together. It’s not a long record. Everything is straight-to-the-point. I don’t want to compare it to my Guilt album, because Thriller is one of the most successful albums of all time. However, I design my music so when you pop it in you can go from song one all the way until the end and say, “Man, I didn’t hear one record that sounds the same.” That’s what Thriller represents for me.

2. Kanye West

3. Lil Wayne

4. Jay-Z

5. T.I.

—Rick Florino
06.15.09

A Taste:

T.I., Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, Eminem, Kanye West

Bobb’e J. Thompson knows what’s up.

For a 13-year-old, he’s really got his finger on the pulse of what’s hot. The actor has already lit up the screen in the likes of Role Models and Fred Claus. In Imagine That, he’s the catalyst for one of the film’s funniest sequences. It involves Eddie Murphy and a ball pit. That’s all that really needs to be said.

He laughs, “It was awesome going up against Eddie Murphy in the pit! He was a good sport [Laughs]. We really took him down! The fact that he was in the movie got me into it.”

Bobb’e’s got the comedic fire to follow in Eddie’s footsteps, but he’s more likely to take the Jay-Z route.

“I have to be honest; acting was never really my dream,” he continues. “I started off in music. Acting is like a stepping stool for me. My music is all hip hop. I’m like a producer—I make the beats, I rap over them, I do a lot.”

He certainly does! Bobb’e shared his playlist with us below in this exclusive feature. Check it out and be sure to catch him in Imagine That this Friday!

Bobb’e J. Thompson’s Playlist:

1. Bobb’e J. Thompson

I listen to my own music mostly. I haven’t collaborated with anyone really famous just other actors like Nick Nervies. He’s on Curb Your Enthusiam, and we’ve done some tracks together.

2. T.I.

3. Jay-Z

I like T.I. and Jay-Z’s swag—the way they rap and the intelligence in their music. They’re big influences on me.

4. Kanye West

I love Kanye West! The last record was great with “Amazing.” It wasn’t the Kanye that we’d seen already at the beginning.

5. Eminem

The new Eminem record is great.

6. Dr. Dre

7. Snoop Dogg

8. Lil Wayne

I listened to a lot of Lil Wayne on the set of Imagine That. Everybody’s coming out with new swag. Lil Wayne’s just happens to be rock n’ roll.

—Rick Florino
06.08.09

A Taste:

Jay-Z, Kanye West, Drake, Kings of Leon

Some families have a secret recipe that they hand down for generations.

Sometimes it’s for cookies or lasagna, however, it’s different for every clan. For the Wayans family, it’s a potent comedy concoction—the perfect mixture of slapstick and sarcasm. With Dance Flick, director Damien Wayans carries on his family’s time-honored tradition of parodying Hollywood trends. In fact, Dance Flick stands proudly alongside the Wayans’ funniest fare, striking the same irreverent comedy gold.

Damien shared his playlist with us in this exclusive feature. Check out what he’s spinning below! Dance Flick is out now!

Damien Dante Wayans’ Playlist:

1. Jay-Z

2. Kanye West

3. Drake

4. Lil Wayne

5. Kings of Leon

6. MGMT

Check out the video interview here here!

—Rick Florino
05.22.09

A Taste:

Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Barbara Streisand, Frank Sinatra

In Dance Flick, Shawn and Marlon Wayans bring all jokes right to the dance floor. The film pulls the right moves to make audiences laugh out loud. Shawn had a hand in the script, and he’s also hilarious as “Baby Daddy.” Check out the scene where he goes to “pick up his son.” Dance Flick has the kind of infectious irreverence that audiences have come to expect from the Wayans Brothers.

Shawn’s comedy has a rhythm to it, so in order to get us closer to that flow, he shared his playlist with us in this exclusive feature. Marlon added some commentary on Shawn’s selections too…

Peep Shawn’s playlist below and be sure to catch Dance Flick on May 22nd in theaters.

Shawn Wayans’ Playlist:

1. Jay-Z

2. 50-Cent

Shawn: “I’ve got Jay-Z and 50-Cent on my playlist.”

Marlon: “That brother’s lying! He’s got Barbara Streisand, Julio Iglesias…”

Shawn: “I don’t have no Julio Iglesias! I do have Barbara Streisand.”

3. Barbara Streisand

Marlon: “Shawn has the most eclectic iPod ever.”

Shawn: “Music is for different times of your day and your life.”

Marlon: “Shawn, you play Christmas music in July, dude!”

Shawn: “I’m getting ready for Christmas.”

Marlon: “At least play hip hop if you’re going to do that.”

4. Stevie Wonder

5. Frank Sinatra

6. Maxwell

Shawn: “I like Maxwell; he’s got a new song coming.”

Marlon: “But he doesn’t have the afro anymore.”

Shawn: “What do you care? I just want to hear the music.”

Marlon: “It might not be the same without the afro.”

Shawn: “What dude sits around going, ‘Man, he ain’t sexy anymore?’” [Laughs]

Check out Marlon’s playlist here!

—Rick Florino
05.20.09

A Taste:

Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Jay-Z

B Real’s new solo album may be called Smoke and Mirrors, but there are no illusions when it comes to the quality of the legendary Cypress Hill MC’s songs. B Real delivers a dark hood narrative over the course of the record, and in the process, he drops some of his most fiery and raw verses to date. While working on Cypress Hill’s next juggernaut of an album, B-Real took some time to share his playlist with us.

About what’s in his iTunes, the rapper says, “I’ve been listening to a lot of Satellite Radio, so I jam whatever they’re playing there. It’s a lot of 50 Cent, this cat named Maino and some of Eminem’s new stuff. I’m definitely not listening to regular radio right now [Laughs].”

He elaborates, “Regular radio is a bunch of stuff that’s not necessarily my cup of tea. It’s a lot of really popular rap—which is cool. That’s their lane. We all want opportunities to be able to make a career and do our thing, but it’s still not normally what I would listen to. Most radio stations have become Top 40. You hear Lil Wayne, T.I., Soulja Boy, T-Pain and stuff like that. That’s cool, but I like listening to different shit.”

What is some of that aforementioned “different shit?”

B-Real’s Playlist: