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Robin Thicke cuffs his jeans, flexes in a white tee, and channels his inner James Dean in the '50's-styled video for "Pretty Lil' Heart." (Although they didn't have Beats by Dre in the 1950s, but I digress.) The wretched of the earth that is Lil Wayne makes a guest appearance at the beginning of the video with his useless rap, so feel free to fast forward to about the 1:10 mark to miss him. The rest of the video is set in a motel where we find Thicke romancing two women (albeit not at the same time...bummer), performing in a lounge, and walking down a desolate highway. The scenery and lighting is sexy and Robin looks like he's been working out, which all combine to make this worth a watch even though the plot is pretty confusing to nonexistent.

Along with the untimely passing of a beloved artist, inevitably comes an influx of woulda, coulda, shoulda scenarios -- those songs and other projects that the artist had passed on, shelved, or never completed. We tend to grasp at these scraps, those half-done songs and demos that were never finalized or completely recorded, as a sad reminder of the possibilities that could have been. In recent years, we've seen this happen with the passing of both Michael Jackson and Amy Winehouse. So it was only a matter of time before Whitney Houston stuff started surfacing. Producer Waajeed dug into his vaults to unveil "All Alone Now," a 2007 demo that was written with Houston in mind and recorded by Cee Lo Green. Doing his best Whitney impression, Cee Lo makes it easy to envision Houston's voice on the haunting track. The fact that the song came post her divorce from Bobby Brown and didn't make it to her 2009 comeback album, I Look to You, makes it even more bittersweet. Whitney's powerful vocals likely could have catapulted it into chart-topper territory. Sadly for fans, all we're once again left with is the shadow of what could have been, making losing the troubled star even more heartbreaking.

Just a few months ago, we selected Bay Area collective The Seshen as one of our Bounce-Worthy artists. This week, the talented group released their self-titled debut for the masses. Continuing in their eclectic blend of electronic, R&B, and jazz, the set expands upon the sounds we heard in "Pieces," "Oblivion," and "Canvas" -- all three of which have also been included here. Songs like "Upside Down" and "Static" prove that those three songs weren't just flukes, but only the first signs of undeniable talent. Truly, The Seshen finds the group taking firm grasp of their unique style and turning it in ways that are unexpected yet perfect for them, placing them firmly in a lane all their own. The only drawback is that "Oblivion" is perhaps the most upbeat the crew gets on the record. I would love to hear what they could do with a more danceable number. Still, that's a minor quibble when the album as a whole is just plain great. So head to the group's Bandcamp page to purchase your digital copy of The Seshen now. Even better, contribute to the group's Kickstarter campaign. A contribution of 20 bucks will not only net you a digital download of their debut and a few pieces of swag, it'll also help the group in producing a physical CD and a video for "Oblivion" as well.

Hit-or-miss Norah Jones is usually for me, yet, I tend to be biased about her based on the fact that she attended my alma mater. (Go Mean Green!) OK, that's a real lousy reason for bias, as I do dig her vocally, and her 2002 set, Come Away With Me, is an aural treat. It's just that on the flip-side, Jones later on just didn't really sit with me. Like there was always a little missing puzzle piece that seemed to get sucked into and stuck in the vacuum cleaner to where I can never complete the full picture of her. What initially drew intrigue for Jones' upcoming project, Little Broken Hearts, was the fact that Danger Mouse was in the production driver's seat, and here on the first single, "Happy Pills," it's evident that he's added a little zip to Jones' step -- or the missing puzzle piece, if you will. Riding on thick basslines and country-fried bluesy guitar wails, "Happy Pills" is indeed the perkiest jaunt I've heard from her, and it has, in a way completed that picture of Ms. Jones to where I'm looking mighty forward to whatever Little Broken Hearts has in store when it hits shelves on May 1st.

I've already extolled the fact that black-and-white equals sexy when it comes to music videos. Here to verify that is the sexy LaTina Webb. Her new video for Toes in the Sand's "Honey's T-Shirt" is exactly what the title suggests: LaTina in nothing but a white t-shirt and a smile. While in most cases this would be a little raunchy, she manages to keep it classy and, once again, sexy as she parades around the video's simple set. The song itself is an upbeat little slice of pop that serves LaTina's voice and style well. Harkening back to the heydays of Prince protégés like Sheila E. and Sheena Easton, LaTina mixes nice and naughty so well. Why am I even stalling, though? I know you guys just want to see Ms. Webb do her thing, so check it out below.

Wednesday morning, while a small percentage of the world celebrated their birthdays for the first time in four years, we celebrated the release of a hidden gem. Martin Park's front-woman Jacque Hammond released her first solo effort, the Lazy Love EP, consisting of five tracks and containing about 15 stripped-down minutes of guitar, piano, saxophone, a few hand claps, and angelic harmonies. Although this offering comes as her initial solo release, it follows almost as a sequel to three solid predecessors. Since 2009, Jacque along with producer and rapper Roman Lee have been pouring out sound after sound (see The Back of The Bus mixtape, Barefoot, and Thankful For Sound) as the experimental hip-hop soul duo Martin Parks, deriving their name from civil rights icons Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks. However, whether you're familiar with the Chicago-bred duo or not, Lazy Love, written and produced entirely by Jacque, stands as a perfect introduction to her incredible voice. Standout tracks include "Simple" and the lead single, "Lazy," which features the smooth addition of background vocals from yours truly and the video for which you can view after the bounce. Give the entire EP a listen below and then bounce on over to Bandcamp to seal the deal with a purchase. "Listen with you heart not your ears. Feel with your soul, lose your fear. Listen with all you are..." Jacque chants on the final track, "Listen," leaving you anticipating her next move. Stay tuned; I guarantee there will be more.

Jacque Hammond [Facebook][Twitter]
Martin Parks [Official][Facebook][Twitter][Bandcamp]

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Last night, multiple artists performed around the country as a part of the Plot Your Escape concert series sponsored by Pepsi. The concerts streamed live online from four different venues in four different cities and allowed a total of 200 fans to witness in person while millions could watch from their homes on Ustream. Cee Lo Green and Nicki Minaj took to Los Angeles, Mary J. Blige and Gavin DeGraw performed in New Orleans, Maroon 5 and Sara Bareilles were in Chicago, and Diddy and Mariah Carey stormed New York City. In what would be her first performance since 2010 prior to giving birth to twins in April of 2011, Mariah dove into a soulful rendition of her 2005 hit "Shake It Off." It's no "Vision Of Love" and it's definitely not 1990 anymore, but she sounds to be in good enough voice. At least Mama Mariah looks fantastic since shedding that "dem babies" weight on Jenny Craig. Look forward to clips from each artist's performance to be aired this Saturday, March 3rd on a special edition of ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Sy Smith is on the verge of releasing her fourth, and dare I say it best, album in a matter of days, when The Fast and the Curious drops on Tuesday, March 6th. Produced by the incredible Mark de Clive-Lowe, this is her finest body of work to date. Known for their frequent collaborations, you really can't go wrong with her sweet voice on an MdCL production. They go together like cookies and milk, and this album is proof positive. My gushing aside, everyone will get to find out just how good it is next Tuesday, but if there's anything else that you'd like to find out about Sy Smith then join us on Twitter on Monday, March 5th for SoulBounce's exclusive Twitterview with her.

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• Wedding bells will soon be ringing for Wiz Khalifa and Amber Rose, who announced their engagement on Instagram and Twitter. [MASH]
• Musiq Soulchild is working on a new album and writing a book about love and relationships. [BB]
• Whitney Houston is the first woman to have three albums in the Billboard 200 top 10. [TLL]
• American Idol announced its Top 13 contestants and the only one worth tuning in for is Joshua Ledet. Here's to hoping he goes far in (and maybe even wins) the competition. [OMG]

We already gave you the heads up that Van Hunt would be hitting the road soon as he embarked on a concert tour to promote his last album, What Were You Hoping For?. Well, if you happen to live in Houston, then today is your lucky day because we've gotten a pair of tickets from a2zPresents to give away to Van's show at Warehouse Live when he slides into town on Friday, March 16th. In the event that you missed his sold out show in H-Town last September, then don't make the same mistake twice. That's why we're here to hook one Houston Bouncer up with these tickets. To enter to win these tix, just hit the bounce and try your luck.

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