Queen (soundtrack)

Queen is the soundtrack album by Amit Trivedi, to the 2014 Hindi film of the same name directed by Vikas Bahl and starring Kangana Ranaut in lead role. The album features eight tracks in a different array of genres. It was released digitally on 30 January 2014, and physically on 2 February 2014 at the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in Mumbai, attended by the cast and crew of the film and preceded by Trivedi's performance.

Trivedi travelled to European cities like Amsterdam and Paris in search of inspiration for the album, while also working on four different film projects at the time. The album received positive reviews from critics. All the tracks are composed by Trivedi and written by Anvita Dutt, with the exception of "Ranjha" written by Raghu Nath, composed by Rupesh Kumar Ram and the producer of the film Anurag Kashyap.

Development

Amit Trivedi composed the music soundtrack simultaneously working on four other ones like Ghanchakkar, Lootera, Bombay Talkies and Kusar Prasad Ka Bhoot in a time span of 5 months. The film based on a woman's self-discovery while travelling; Trivedi also travelled to Europe in Amsterdam, the film's shooting location so that he could understand the vibe and musical demand of the place in accordance with the local philosophy of "free living [..] especially in their [European] nightclubs". During the visit he also spent time in Paris and bonded with the locals there while working over music. Trivedi completed Ghanchakkar and Lootera before Queen.

Queen: The Story of an American Family

Queen: The Story of an American Family is a 1993 partly factual historical novel by Alex Haley and David Stevens.

It brought back to the consciousness of many white Americans the plight of the children of the plantation: the offspring of black slave women and their white masters, who were legally the property of their fathers.

A miniseries adaptation called Alex Haley's Queen and starring Halle Berry in the title role aired on CBS on February 14, 1993.

Historical background

The noted author Alex Haley (1921–1992) was the grandson of Queen, the illegitimate and unacknowledged daughter of James "Jass" Jackson III (the son of a friend, but not a relative, of Andrew Jackson) and his slave, Easter.

The novel recounts Queen's anguished early years as a slave girl, longing to know who her father was, and how it gradually dawned on her that he was her master. After the American Civil War of 1861 to 1865 and the subsequent abolition of slavery, Queen was cast out. Jass Jackson would not acknowledge her as his daughter, afraid of compromising the inheritance of his legitimate children and goaded by his wife, who despised Queen. After many adventures, often unpleasant, she married a reasonably successful former slave by the name of Alec Haley, and had one son by him (Simon Haley). Both, Alec and Queen, had a son, each from previous relationship.

Races of StarCraft

Blizzard Entertainment's bestselling real-time strategy game series StarCraft revolves around interstellar affairs in a distant sector of the galaxy, with three species and multiple factions all vying for supremacy in the sector. The playable species of StarCraft include the Terrans, humans exiled from Earth who excel at adapting to any situation; the Zerg, a race of insectoids obsessed with assimilating other races in pursuit of genetic perfection; and the Protoss, a humanoid species with advanced technology and psionic abilities, attempting to preserve their civilization and strict philosophical way of living from the Zerg. Each of these races has a single campaign in each StarCraft real-time strategy game. In addition to these three, various non-playable races have also been part of the lore of the StarCraft series; the most notable of these is the Xel'Naga, a race which features prominently in the fictional histories of the Protoss and Zerg races.

The original game has sold over 10 million copies internationally, and remains one of the most popular games in the world. One of the main factors responsible for StarCraft's positive reception is the attention paid to the three unique playable races, for each of which Blizzard developed completely different characteristics, graphics, backstories and styles of gameplay, while keeping them balanced in performance against each other. Previous to this, most real-time strategy games consisted of factions and races with the same basic play styles and units with only superficial differences. The use of unique sides in StarCraft has been credited with popularizing the concept within the real-time strategy genre. Contemporary reviews of the game have mostly praised the attention to the gameplay balance between the species, as well as the fictional stories built up around them.

Testimony (August Alsina album)

Testimony is the debut studio album by American R&B recording artist August Alsina. It was released on April 15, 2014, by Def Jam Recordings. The album was supported by six singles; "I Luv This Shit" featuring Trinidad James, "Ghetto", "Numb" featuring B.o.B and Yo Gotti, "Make It Home" featuring Jeezy, "Kissin' on My Tattoos" and "No Love (Remix)" featuring Nicki Minaj; along with the promotional single, "Benediction" featuring Rick Ross.

Upon its release, Testimony was met with generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised the whole creativity of the album. The album debuted at number 2 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 67,000 copies in the United States.

Singles

On February 14, 2013, the music video was released for the lead single, "I Luv This Shit" featuring Trinidad James. The song was produced by Knucklehead. It was officially released for digital download on February 19, 2013. The song peaking at number 48 on the US Billboard Hot 100, while peaking at number 13 on the Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts.

Ghetto (Akon song)

"Ghetto" is the second single from American singer/songwriter Akon's debut studio album, Trouble. The single was released on December 21, 2004, exclusively in Latin America and certain countries of Europe. The single peaked at #92 on the Billboard Hot 100. Akon describes the song's lyrics as "a description of the cycle of poverty experienced by those living in poor, inner-city areas. Additionally, it describes the physical and psychological oppression with which these residents must deal on a regular basis." The video for the track was filmed in New Jersey, New Mexico and the Navajo Nation reservation in Arizona.

Song information

Four official versions of the song exist. The main album version is sung entirely by Akon, and features on all versions of the album. The second version is entitled the "International Remix", features an additional rap verse from Ali B & Yes R, and is listed as the main version of the track on the most prominent single formats. The third version is entitled the "US Remix", and features additional vocals from 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. This version only features on the promotional version of the song. The fourth version is entitled the "Reggaeton Remix", and features vocals from Ali B, Yes R and Tego Calderon. The song is not available on the iTunes version of the Trouble album. There is also a Spanish version of this song, called "Pueblo libre" by MC Piri. Videos for the International Remix and Reggaeton Remix exist, and both appear on the main single format. This song Ghetto by Akon is covered from the original Ghetto song of Alborosie.

Ghetto (Kelly Rowland song)

"Ghetto" is a song by American recording artist Kelly Rowland, featuring vocals by rapper Snoop Dogg. It was written by Durrell "Tank" Babbs, Calvin Broadus, Lonny Bereal and Rowland, and produced by the former for Rowland's second solo album Ms. Kelly (2007). A mid-paced R&B ballad which was originally recorded for her shelved My Story album, "Ghetto" is influenced by the Crunk&B subgrene in the early to mid-2000s. Its instrumentation consists essentially of synthesizers and a drum machine rhythm and lyrically, finds Rowland, as the protagonist, singing sensually about becoming attracted to dangerous men.

One of Rowland's favorites on Ms. Kelly, "Ghetto" was released as the album's second single to US radios on August 7, 2007, while "Work" was serviced as the album's second international single. The song performed weakly on the Billboard charts, reaching reaching number nine on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart only, ranking it among Rowland's lowest-selling single to date. An accompanying music video was directed by Andrew Gura and shot in Los Angeles, California in August 2007.