"Operation Let It Out": Complete!

Hey Op-illians!

Ashlyne Huff here! I just finished Street Week for my new album Let It Out and while I'm tired, it was so worth it! I was already in the third week of touring with NKOTBSB (New Kids and Backstreet Boys) when we left for NYC to visit MTV's The Seven and MTV Radio, Billboard for a little unplugged performance, and the MLB FanCave (which put any man cave I've seen to shame) for another performance! And that was just one day! Next, I visited Peridance Capezio Center to teach a class/audition to my Whatever choreography. I forgot how much I missed teaching classes! I used to teach every summer before I got out of college and they were some of the best experiences in my life. Peridance was no exception. The girls and boys were confident and determined and it paid off!


The next morning we had a 3:45 AM lobby call, which means we LEAVE the hotel that early (BRUTAL). Our flight landed in Atlanta, Georgia and we were fighting the clock to get to the Anderson Merchandisers Distribution Center for a performance and a tour of how CDs are actually made and packaged! I will say, it's a complicated process AND I got to ride on the conveyer belt! Haha! Then, we drove to Alpharetta for a Walmart in-store! I definitely heard some of my fellow southern accents! It was great!

Another early lobby call later, we were off to LA to film Extra! at the Grove with Mario Lopez...I LOVED him on Saved By The Bell when I was younger. He was so normal and sweet! And as soon as we wrapped, I jumped in another car to A Place Called Home where I got to teach the girls and boys the Whatever dance! Again, GREAT dancers and we all had so much fun. I've decided I want to visit dance schools a lot based off this week! Instead of lobby call, this time we headed to the airport right after we finished at APCH and flew overnight to Sacramento! (when do I sleep? who knows!)

In Sacramento, we visited a Walmart and I met a lot of sweet people including my Street Team leader of California for the first time! She was adorable and so sweet! Finally we met! And the end-cap of the week was a performance at the Girl Scouts End of the Year Party! Two hundred young women that I got the chance to meet... very sweet, confident, happy... just how we all should be! I was a Brownie Girl Scout when I was younger and I happened to still have a shirt (and still fit somehow), so I wore it with pride! Scout's Honor. :)

Now, it's back to tour in New Jersey!! I'll catch up with you next week! Have a great one! OP for life!

Love, Ashlyne

We Hate We Missed This!!

Hey Op Fans! We hope everyone had a great weekend and is having a wonderful Tuesday! Did any of you go to Hangout Music Festival this past weekend?? We are so jealous if you did because we heard it was amazing! One moment from the Festival we hated we missed to see was on Saturday afternoon. A party erupted on the beach when the Foo Fighters jumped on the main stage and played a four-song cover set: Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out,” Queen’s “Tie Your Mother Down,” Tom Petty’s “Breakdown” and Prince’s “Darlin’ Nikki.” Cee-Lo joined the band on vocals in the middle of “Darlin’ Nikki” and Dave Matthews also shared the stage for a song before The Foo’s and Dave bowed out and Cee Lo played for the crowd of 30k plus on the white sandy beaches of Gulf Shores.

How fun does that sound?! Did any of you see it live?? If you did we are very jealous and hope you enjoyed it! For those of you who didn't... maybe next year!

Here is the official music video of one of our favorite Foo Fighters songs, Rope! Hope you enjoy :)

It's Summer Tour Time!!

May 27th is a BIG day for kicking off amazing Summer Tours! On the list to also begin their tour on the 27th is our favorite jam band, Phish! Phish begins their 2011 Summer Tour on Memorial Day weekend, with three consecutive nights (May 27, 28 & 29) in Bethel, NY!! Their stops along the way include Cleveland, Cincinnati, Mansfield, Darien Lake, and 2-night runs in Holmdel, Columbia and Alpharetta!! The band is also hosting Super Ball IX, their own 3-Day Festival over Fourth of July Weekend in Watkins Glen, NY!! We are PUMPED!! The band is wrapping up their 2011 Summer Tour with three consecutive nights at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, CO over Labor Day weekend (September 2, 3 and 4). Can we say YES, PLEASE?!

Go on their website to check out every stop on their Summer Tour and enjoy this video of one of our favorite Phish songs, “Backwards Down the Number Line”!!

http://phish.com/

an amazing artist AND person??!!

Hey Op fans!! Another tour we are SO excited about this summer is another one of our favorite female singers, Taylor Swift!! Taylor kicks off her Speak Now World Tour on May 27th in Omaha, Nebraska!! However, on May 21st in her hometown of Nashville, TN, Taylor announced that she is opening the last dress rehearsal for her Speak Now Tour as a fundraiser to benefit the victims of the recent deadly tornadoes in the Southeast! How amazing is that??! She is an amazing artist AND an amazing person! We have never loved her more!! 13,000 very lucky fans will get a first look at Taylor’s new show almost a week early in Nashville at her, “Speak Now… Help Now” performance!! We cannot wait to hear how it goes!!

Her Speak Now Tour has been widely anticipated and is already sold out in most of the cities she is performing in! We are hoping to get a ticket somehow though because we are dying to see her live!! Op <3’s Taylor!!

Check out her site to see all of the cities she is performing in this summer, and to get you as excited as we are here is her, “Mean” video!! Enjoy :)

http://www.taylorswift.com/

Taylor Swift - "Mean" from Taylor Swift on Vimeo.

Too Good To Be True??!

Hey Op fans!! Happy Hump Day :) We have a little over a month until our favorite female pop star, Britney Spears, kicks off her North American Summer Tour with another one of our favorites, Nicki Minaj!! It almost seems too good to be true, doesn't it?! This tour has obviously been long awaited by many, especially us!! The tour kicks off on June 16th in Sacramento, CA and wraps up on August 13th in Toronto, ON. We are dying to make it to one of the shows!!

Britney recently opened up about her album, Femme Fatal. Watch this video to see where her inspiration came from and which songs on the album are her favorites!!

Foster The People!

Hey Op fans!! Happy Monday :) We hope everyone had a great weekend! We want to start the week off by talking about one of our favorite new bands, Foster The People. Foster The People, is an alternative/indie rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band has an original sound and a fresh new feel to them. The band started in 2009 and since then they have been killing it! If you can't tell by now, we are obsessed! And you should be too!!

They are coming out with their first full length album on the 23rd and we are pumped!! We can't wait for more!!

Ready for the Weekend!!

Hey OP fans!! We hope everyone had a great Cinco De Mayo! We are SO happy it's finally Friday and are ready for the weekend to begin :)To get eveyone in the mood we have chosen one of favorite DJ's, Calvin Harris's, hit song, "Ready for the Weekend"! Calvin is playing in NYC tonight and we are dying to go! Enjoy this oldie but goodie and have a FUN weekend!!

Hellooo Ashlyne!!

After months of anxiously waiting it is FINALLY here! And we aren't talking about the warm weather, we are talking about the world premiere of Ashlyne Huff's newest music video, "White Flag"!! Hellooo Ashlyne... OP is in LOVE!! She looks amazing and we are LOVING the catchy lyrics! Keep it up, Ashlyne... we cannot wait to hear more!

Hangout Festival!

Just to get you as excited as we are about Hangout Festival (coming up on May 20th) here is a video from Girl Talk's performance last year! Sick right??! He is going to be there again this year and we are so pumped to see him!!

Here is a list of the other artists performing this year. Which ones are you most excited to see?? http://hangoutmusicfest.com/lineup/

It's Festival Time!!

Here is a list of the hottest music festivals happening this spring and summer! We are dying to go to some of them! Hangout Festival is coming up on the 20th and we are SO excited about it :) Also, on our list to see is Wakarusa, Bonnaroo, Governors Ball, and Camp Bisco! We really want to go to Glastonbury Festival, which is officially the largest music festival in the world, but a trip to the UK probably isn't happening this summer... but maybe next year!

Are you guys going to any of these and which ones are you dying to see??

http://www.musicfestivaljunkies.com/2010-music-festival-guide/calendar/

We are OBSESSED!!

Hey OP!! Happy hump day :) Check out this HOT music video from up-and-coming pop star, Ashlyne Huff! Ashlyne has just started breaking into the music scene and we think she is going to be BIG! She's going on tour this summer with Jordin Sparks on the New Kids on the Block & Backstreet Boys (NKOTBSB) North American Summer Tour! They are hitting up 25 cities on their tour and we hope we can be at one of them!

Check out her website to get more details and stay tuned for her new music video thats coming out tomorrow!

http://www.ashlynehuff.com/.

Naked and Famous

We're not talking about you...although maybe one day soon you will be!

Naked and Famous is an alternative band hailing from New Zealand. We were introduced to their music randomly while on a ski trip in Vermont! Pleasantly surprised is an understatement. This band ROCKS! Their sound is really indescribable. Lead Singer Alisa Xayalith has such a sweet yet powerful disposition. Without her, the band would really lose their specialness. They've already garnered quite the crowd with their eccentric beats and crazy personalities. They're album "Passive Me, Aggressive You" was released earlier this year with hits such as "Young Blood" and "Punching in a Dream." Listen to "Young Blood," we think you'll dig it as much as w do! Until next time..

OP

ULTRA TIME PEOPLE!!!!

3 days of heaven...3 days of sun, warmth and awesome beats. For those of you who don't know, Ultra is a 3 day music festival based in Miami, Florida. It is the world's premiere electronic music festival. Artists such as David Guetta, Avicii, MSTRKRFT, The Disco Biscuits and Deadmou5 will all be performing. People flock in from all over the world to hear the most talented artists spin live for 3 days straight. You can expect the most outrageous performances and the most excited crowds; neon, glow sticks, crazy shades and much more will grace the grounds of Ultra. http://www.ultramusicfestival.com/ Check it out!

for the ears...

Foster the People

We don't mean that literally...

Foster the People is a hip new band hailing all the way from the West Coast. Their most celebrated song "Pumped up Kicks" has made its way around the world, and while it has no official release, it is sure to be a hit this summer. A UK based blog, the Guardian, said it perfectly: "It's MGMT's Kids meets Young Kids, with a hint of Empire of the Sun's We Are the People. Quite clearly, Foster the People are into people power, and they're doing it for the kids." "Pumped Up Kicks" is a really neat indie track with a killer beat. We hope you like it. Let us know what you think.

Feels like spring!

HEY OP! Spring is just around the corner!! We're loving the warmer weather and fresh air; being outside is finally tolerable!

Ultra is just around the corner! Are any of you going??? The lineup looks fantastic, we are beyond jealous of everyone that is making their way down there next weekend. What could be better than listening to some bumpin' music underneath sunny, Miami skies?

While roadtripping this past weekend, we came across a band called Graffiti6 and became instantly obsessed with their song "Stare into the Sun." It has been on repeat the past two days-we can't get enough of it! UK's singer/songwriter Jaime Scott is definitely talented-we can see this band going quite far! We'd love to hear your feedback!

TGIF!!

Hey OP fans!! It's finally friday and almost March! It's a rainy day and that means only one thing...ADELE!! She's one of our favorite new artists and she's been blowing up itunes!! In case you haven't heard of her, Adele is an English singer-songwriter who has become wildly popular in the US. She's recently announced an expansion of her tour to accommodate all of her new American fans! Fantastic!! Let us know what you think of her music. Her voice is SO powerful, so deep; such a fresh soul. "Rolling in the deep" is one of the best songs we've heard in quite some time. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!

Happy Friday!!!!

HTTM

Or...Hot Tub Time Machine. While watching this movie, which is positively hilarious, we came across one of our old favorites Talking Heads. In some form or another, I'm sure you've come across the brilliance that is their music. This group has a tumultuous past, but nonetheless has produced some of the greatest music of all time. The rock group started in the early 70's and continued to produce until 1991 when the band announced their split. Another husband and wife duo, such as Arcade Fire, comprised this group. Today's jam is none other than "Once in a Lifetime." You may ask yourself...how did I get here?

WAKE UP!!

WAKE UP!! IT'S MONDAY. Whether you're in school or work, Monday mornings stink :( Arcade fire rocks the song "wake up," which you may have heard from the "Where the Wild Things Are" soundtrack. Arcade fire is an awesome indie rock ban based in Montreal, Quebec. What's cool is the husband and wife duo that started the band! How many bands do you know that feature such a unique thing?! "Wake up" was originally released only on 7" vinyl, but has since been a worldwide hit. If you like...try listening live, the acoustics are INSANE!

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday OP fans. To welcome in the weekend, we've chosen an electronic jam band that hails from Philadelphia. The Disco Biscuits are a truly eclectic band; they incorporate elements from several music genres, including electronic and rock. During the summers you can find many biscuits fans camping out at their music festival "Camp Bisco." They attract a diverse audience mainly because each song is so different from the next and everyone can find something they enjoy...we just love them. Enjoy this song "fish out of water." Let us know what you think!

Coachella 2011

It is about that time! The Coachella lineup has officially been announced!! Sadly, one of our favorite house superpowers Daft Pank will not be taking the main stage this year. However, and this is a good however, the lineup is SICK!!!! We couldn't be more thrilled with the announcement. Headlining this years shows are Duran Duran, Arcade Fire and the Strokes. Our favorite Mumford and Sons will be performing as well!! Other headliners include Pearl Jam, who is celebrating the 20th Anniversary of their landmark album "Ten" this year. We always love us some Pearl Jam. Let's start off the afternoon with one of their classic songs from the album "Ten."

Are You Afraid of Ghosts?

Maybe mice? Dead Mice?

We kid...maybe. Deadmau5 has got us crazy in our cubicles this week. Joel Thomas Zimmerman, better known by his stage name Deadmau5, is a Canadian house producer based in Toronto, Ontario. He not only works solo, but has produced alongside house sensations Kaskade and Rob Swire. Our favorite Deadmau5 track this week is titled "Ghosts N' Stuff." The beat is fresh and totally unique. We think this song exemplifies pure electro beat and we can't stop listening. Let us know what you think!