兩袖清風
音樂,有一種魔力。
它可以讓人心如止水,
也可以讓人心潮澎湃。
它可以勾起傷痛的回憶,
也可以撫慰人們的心靈。
它激勵人前行,
它帶給人希望,
它就像是哈利·波特的魔法棒,
神奇,
美妙。
這大抵就是那么多人,
不論是像你我這樣的音樂小白,
還是那些具有音樂天分的音樂人,
都會愛上音樂的緣故吧!
What's it like to become a music star with millions of fans? These young artists know the feeling. Over the course of their relatively short careers, they have attracted the attention of the biggest stars in the world and taken home prizes from major shows. They've accumulated No. 1 hits and No. 1 albums, Grammys and VMAs, and millions of followers on Twitter and Instagram. Sure enough, they've already accomplished a great deal, but are they safe bets1) to continue finding success as they edge toward adulthood? For now they're just kids that everyone in music is watching. Check out the next generation of stars below.
成為一個擁有百萬粉絲的歌星是什么感覺?下面這些年輕的音樂人知道這種感覺。他們出道相對來說并沒多久,就已經(jīng)引起了國際當紅巨星的關注,并從各大選秀節(jié)目中把獎杯捧回了家。他們創(chuàng)下了歌曲、專輯熱度排名第一的成績,拿過格萊美獎和音樂錄影帶大獎,在推特和Instagram上擁有數(shù)百萬粉絲。誠然,他們已經(jīng)碩果累累,但隨著漸漸步入成年,他們還會繼續(xù)書寫輝煌,穩(wěn)能成功嗎?眼下,他們還只是音樂圈里人人矚目的小娃娃。下面就來欣賞一下這些新生代歌星的風采吧!
Fifth Harmony 五美組合
20世紀90年代是女子組合的輝煌十年:天命真女、辣妹組合、TLC組合、風尚合唱團、美玉組合……但自從天命真女解散(編注:2005年)以后,鮮有組合能夠轟動一時。這似乎并未對五美組合造成困擾。2016年,她們推出了自己音樂生涯的巔峰之作《在家工作》,這是一首鼓勵人們多請病假的流行歌曲。該單曲當時登上了《公告牌》百強單曲榜第四名,這是近十年來第一次有女子組合打進單曲榜前五名。除了在排行榜上獲得逆潮流的成功外,五美組合的《腦??M繞》還獲得了MTV音樂錄影帶大獎的夏季金曲獎?!昂芸炷銈兙湍苈牭綋嵛啃撵`的音樂,一切都會好起來,我們愛死你們了,我們是不會散的。我發(fā)誓。”五美成員勞倫在接受《公告牌》雜志采訪時這樣說道。在2017年1月17日舉辦的第43屆美國人民選擇獎頒獎典禮上,她們不僅表演了《在家工作》的改編版,而且還贏得了“最受歡迎團體獎”。
The '90s was a glorious decade for girl groups: Destiny's Child, the Spice Girls, TLC, En Vogue, Jade ... But after the breakup of Destiny's Child, few groups have been able to make much of an impact. This doesn't seem to bother Fifth Harmony, who landed the biggest hit of their career in 2016 with "Work from Home", a pop song that encourages everyone to call in sick2) more often. When the single climbed to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, it was the first time a girl group had cracked3) the top 5 in a decade. In addition to their trend-defying chart4) success, Fifth Harmony's "All in My Head (Flex)" was dubbed5) Song of the Summer at the MTV VMAs. "You'll have music to soothe6) your soul soon, everything will be fine, we love you to death and we're not going anywhere. I promise," member Lauren told Billboard. At the 43rd People's Choice Awards on January 17, 2017, they performed an edited version of "Work from Home", and went on to win the award for "Favorite Group".endprint
1. safe bet: 準能贏的打賭(或事情);準能成功的人
2. call in sick: 打電話請病假
3. crack [kr.k] vt. 打入;達到
4. chart [t.ɑ.t] n. 排行榜
5. dub [d.b] vt. 稱……為,將……冠以
6. soothe [su.e] vt. 使平靜,安慰
Shawn Mendes 肖恩·門德斯
肖恩·門德斯的故事聽起來有點兒熟悉:加拿大年輕歌手從網(wǎng)紅變成了真正的流行巨星。不過,他卻是位相當有自己個性的音樂人。2015年,門德斯不再局限于“下一個賈斯汀·比伯”這種標簽,以其首張個人專輯《手寫體》大獲成功,該專輯一經(jīng)推出就登上了《公告牌》200張熱銷專輯排行榜的榜首。這位曾在Vine (編注:短視頻應用)上引起轟動的網(wǎng)紅還憑借單曲《縫線》第一次登上了《公告牌》百強單曲榜前五名。這首歌他曾有幸在好友泰勒·斯威夫特的“1989世界巡回演唱會”(編注:“1989”是泰勒的專輯名)上作為開場表演嘉賓為體育館的眾多歌迷演唱過。門德斯在社交媒體上依舊風生水起,但即便互聯(lián)網(wǎng)明天垮掉,這位懷抱吉他的創(chuàng)作型歌手也自會有一批聽眾。
Shawn Mendes' backstory sounds a little familiar: young Canadian singer goes from Internet celebrity to real pop titan7), yet he is very much his own artist. In 2015, Mendes moved beyond the "next Justin Bieber" thing and scored big with his debut album, Handwritten, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The former Vine sensation also notched8) his first top-five hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Stitches", a song he's sung to huge stadium crowds thanks to his gig9) opening for buddy Taylor Swift on her 1989 World Tour. Mendes is still crushing it10) on social media, but even if the Internet went down tomorrow, this guitar-toting11) singer-songwriter would command an audience.
Lorde 洛德
It's been four years since the release of Pure Heroine—the mega-12) selling debut that made her a 16-year-old global sensation and the spokeswoman for a new generation of smart, strong-minded, innovative female pop artists—and yet Lorde continues to captivate13). Since conquering the charts with "Royals", the New Zealand phenom14) hasn't released any solo material. Instead she contributed to The Hunger Games soundtrack in 2014, collaborated with Disclosure on "Magnets" in 2015, and co-wrote "Heartlines" with Broods, which arrived last summer. What might she do next? Maybe, we should expect something totally different.
從洛德的第一張專輯《天生英雄》發(fā)行到現(xiàn)在,已經(jīng)有四年的時間了。這一專輯的大賣讓年僅16歲的她一躍成為國際巨星,并成為聰明、堅毅且具有創(chuàng)新精神的新生代流行女歌手的代言人。而且今日的洛德魅力依舊。自從單曲《皇家》橫掃各大榜單以來,這位新西蘭當紅歌手就沒有再推出任何個人單曲,反而在2014年為電影《饑餓游戲》獻唱了插曲,緊接著在2015年與解密兄弟(編注:英國的電子音樂組合)合作推出了歌曲《磁鐵》,而后又與兄妹組合(編注:新西蘭組合)共同創(chuàng)作了歌曲《情感線》(于去年夏天發(fā)布)。接下來她會有什么動作?或許,我們應該期待她帶來迥然不同的作品。
Troye Sivan 特洛耶·希文
You might recognize the rising star Troye Sivan from YouTube, where he's been uploading videos since he was 12 and his channel already has millions of subscribers, or from the movies, where he played a young Wolverine in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. And by now, you may also be familiar with his budding15) music career. This singer, songwriter, actor and Internet star is making a play for16) the pop charts. On the heels of two top-five EPs on the Billboard 200, TRXYE (2014) and Wild (2015), the South Africa-born, Australia-raised multi-talent returned December 4, 2015 with Blue Neighbourhood, his anticipated full-length debut. Since signing with EMI in 2013, the soulful Sivan has pursued a sonically adventurous brand of ambient pop17). "I'm on the path to being someone I'm equally terrified by, and obsessed with. My true self," he told his fans.endprint
你或許能從YouTube上認出特洛耶·希文這位后起之秀,他從12歲開始就在YouTube上上傳視頻,如今他的頻道已有數(shù)百萬訂閱者;或是從電影中認出他,他在《金剛狼》里飾演了小時候的金剛狼。如今,你可能對他正在起步的音樂事業(yè)也有所了解。這位創(chuàng)作型歌手、演員兼網(wǎng)紅正為挺進流行歌曲排行榜而努力著。在兩張迷你專輯《特X耶》(2014年)和《狂野》(2015年)打入《公告牌》200張熱銷專輯排行榜前五名后,這位南非出生、澳大利亞長大的多面才子再度來襲,于2015年12月4日推出了他備受歌迷期盼的首張完整專輯《藍色街區(qū)》。自從2013年簽約百代唱片(編注:全球歷史最悠久的唱片公司之一)以來,多愁善感的特洛耶就一直在追求一種聲音前衛(wèi)的氛圍流行樂?!拔艺诔蔀橐粋€我既畏懼又崇拜的人,一個真正的我?!彼@樣對粉絲說。
7. titan [.ta.tn] n. 泰斗;巨子;巨人
8. notch [n.t.] vt. 贏得,獲得
9. gig [ɡ.ɡ] n. (尤指演奏現(xiàn)代或流行樂的)演奏會
10. crush it: 做得非常好;做得很成功
11. tote [t..t] v. 攜帶;手提
12. mega-: 百萬倍的;巨大的;非常多的
13. captivate [.k.pt.ve.t] v. 迷??;吸引
14. phenom [f..n.m] n. 成功的人(或事物)
15. budding [.b.d..] adj. 開始發(fā)展的;嶄露頭角的
16. make a play for: 想方設法得到;千方百計追求
17. ambient pop: 氛圍流行樂,是一種結合了寧靜和歡快兩種不同風格的音樂。ambient [..mbi.nt] adj. 周圍的;周圍環(huán)境條件的
Hailee Steinfeld 海莉·斯坦菲爾德
在這些年輕音樂人當中,有幾個可謂年少有為,在電影和流行樂中一樣如魚得水玩轉(zhuǎn)自如。斯坦菲爾德就是其中之一。在科恩兄弟(編注:美國著名電影導演)執(zhí)導的西部片《大地驚雷》中取得突破性表現(xiàn)后,斯坦菲爾德又參演了諸如《安德的游戲》《完美音調(diào)2》之類的電影,更不用說還在泰勒·斯威夫特的單曲《敵對》的MV中露了臉。2015年,她又同時開創(chuàng)了流行音樂事業(yè),推出了頌揚身心兩方面都要自愛的歌曲《愛自己》。這首歌是她和頗受歡迎的創(chuàng)作團隊朱莉婭·邁克爾斯以及賈斯廷·特蘭特共同創(chuàng)作完成的。之后,斯坦菲爾德再次和邁克爾斯搭檔,創(chuàng)作了她的下一首單曲《低潮》,并與美國放克流行樂隊DNCE合作演唱了這首歌。而她最新發(fā)布的單曲《饑餓》則是跟俄裔德籍音樂制作人澤德合作完成的。再回頭說說電影這一塊兒:這位獲得奧斯卡獎提名的演員主演了電影《成長邊緣》,該片于去年9月在多倫多電影節(jié)上首映。對大多數(shù)人來說,同時兼顧兩份事業(yè)可能很難;在接受采訪時,斯坦菲爾德則說她協(xié)調(diào)起來“天衣無縫”。
Steinfeld is one of several precocious18) artists on this list who star in film as easily as they do in pop. After her breakout performance in the Coen Brothers' western True Grit, Steinfeld found roles in movies like Ender's Game and Pitch Perfect 2—not to mention an appearance in Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood" music video. In 2015, she launched a parallel pop career with "Love Myself", an ode to both kinds of self-love, co-written by the hit writing team of Julia Michaels and Justin Tranter. Steinfeld reunited with Michaels to compose her next single, "Rock Bottom", a collaboration with American funk pop band DNCE, while her latest release, "Starving", features contributions from Russian-German producer Zedd. Then it's back to the big screen: The Academy Award nominee stars in The Edge of Seventeen, which premiered19) at the Toronto Film Festival last September. Maintaining two careers may be difficult for most; in an interview, Steinfeld described the balancing act as "pretty seamless".
5 Seconds of Summer 五秒盛夏
Some would say the boys of 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS) are hot just because they have tattoos, play guitars and wear sleeveless band tees. But those aren't the only factors that have made the quartet20) rise from relative unknowns to superstar status in less than a year. After becoming famous via YouTube, the Australian band got its big break by opening for One Direction on its 2013 Take Me Home tour. However, 5SOS just did fine on its own. The band had millions of Twitter followers and rocked 2014's Billboard Music Awards well before they even had an album to their name. 5SOS's self-titled debut dropped on June 27, 2014 and songs like "Amnesia21)" and "She Looks So Perfect" quickly surged on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2015, from May through September, the boys rocked the world with its Rock Out with Your Socks Out tour and on October 23, they made waves22) with their sophomore effort, Sounds Good Feels Good. Last year, the band recorded one of their better singles "Girls Talk Boys", a song that appeared on the soundtrack for 2016 American supernatural comedy film Ghostbusters. If the momentum keeps up, 5 Seconds of Summer have a good chance of sticking around much longer than their name implies.endprint
有些人會覺得五秒盛夏的這幾個男孩時髦性感,只因他們刺文身,玩吉他,穿無袖的樂隊T恤。但這些并非這個四人組合在不到一年的時間從相對的籍籍無名躍居超級巨星地位的全部原因。在YouTube上走紅后,這支澳大利亞樂隊在單向樂隊2013年的“帶我回家”巡回演唱會上做了開場表演,得以聲名大振。不過,五秒盛夏本身就表現(xiàn)不俗。甚至早在推出同名專輯之前,該樂隊就在推特上擁有了數(shù)百萬粉絲,還在2014年《公告牌》音樂大獎頒獎典禮上演唱了搖滾歌曲。2014年6月27日,五秒盛夏推出了首張同名專輯,其中諸如《健忘》和《正點女孩》這類的歌曲很快就打入了《公告牌》百強單曲榜。從2015年5月份開始到9月份為止,這幾個男孩的“脫掉襪子嗨翻天”巡回演唱會震撼了全球;10月23日,他們推出了第二張專輯《聽起來不錯感覺良好》,再次引起了轟動。去年,樂隊錄制了他們眾多優(yōu)秀單曲中的一首《女孩聊男孩》,這首歌成為2016年美國奇幻喜劇電影《超能敢死隊》的插曲。如果繼續(xù)保持這個勢頭,五秒盛夏很可能會比他們名字中的五秒要紅更長的時間。
18. precocious [pr..k....s] adj. 智力超常的,早慧的
19. premier [.premi.(r)] vi. 首次上映;首次上演
20. quartet [kw...tet] n. 四重奏樂團;四重唱組合
21. amnesia [.m.ni.zi.] n. 失憶癥;健忘癥
22. make waves: 引起軒然大波
23. presumptive [pr..z.mpt.v] adj. 可據(jù)以推定的
24. ascend [..send] vi. 上升;攀登
Austin Mahone 奧斯汀·馬洪
Austin Mahone, the heir presumptive23) to the teen-pop throne Justin Bieber, continued to ascend24) these years. His first EP, The Secret, reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200. With "Dirty Work", a song he released in July, 2015, Mahone sent a clear message: "Baby Bieber" has grown up. If The Secret suggested the young American boy was becoming a man, his debut album, This Is Not the Album, showed even greater evolution. Chatting with Billboard, Mahone repeatedly used the phrase "next level" to describe the music; given that his previous levels have earned him millions of fans and allowed him to tour as both a headliner and an opener for the likes of Taylor Swift and Jason Derulo, he's getting ready to really blow up.
奧斯汀·馬洪是公認的青少年流行歌王賈斯汀·比伯的接班人(編注:因長相和比伯酷似,且翻唱好幾首比伯的歌曲,有“小比伯”之稱),這些年可謂步步高升。他的第一張迷你專輯《秘密》曾登上《公告牌》200張熱銷專輯排行榜第五名。2015年7月,他推出了單曲《苦差》,并釋放出了一個明確的信息:“小比伯”已經(jīng)長大了。如果說《秘密》表明這個美國少年正在長大成人,那么他的首張個人專輯《這不是那張專輯》則帶來了更大的變化。在接受《公告牌》采訪時,馬洪多次用“新高度”這個詞語來形容自己的音樂。鑒于他先前的高度已經(jīng)讓他贏得了數(shù)百萬粉絲,還讓他可以作為泰勒·斯威夫特和杰森·德魯羅(編注:美國說唱歌手)這類歌手的主要演員和開場嘉賓進行巡回演唱,如今的他已經(jīng)準備好來一場大爆發(fā)。endprint