BANTER BLENDER #108: Louis Virtel Talks About Snapping on Jeopardy and Going Viral

Comic and journalist Louis Virtel (Hitfix.com) joins Ben Mandelker (bsideblog.com, Watch What Crappens podcast) to tell us everything about his recent appearance on “Jeopardy,” which subsequently went viral. From the application process to life atop Reddit, Louis shares the whole experience. After that, it’s just an avalanche of banter, most of it pertaining to Madonna, …

iHeart Radio Puts On The Ultimate Pool Party, Minus The Pool

Is there anything more fun than watching a youth-oriented broadcast and slowly realizing you are not the plucky 22-year-old you still fancy yourself to be? Such was the case last night when I found myself viewing the iHeart Radio Ultimate Pool Party courtesy of The CW network. Now, to be fair, this wasn’t a totally …

BANTER WITH BEN AND LISA #64: Miley, Gaga, and the VMAs

This week, Ben Mandelker (bsideblog.com) and Lisa Timmons (socialitelife.com) take on MTV’s annual display of craziness: the VMAs! We tackle everything from Miley’s twerking to Gaga’s wigging out. Plus, the much-hyped NSYNC reunion, Macklemore’s J-Hud moment, and Katy Perry’s time in the ring. Come listen!

VIDEO: The Best ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ Cover You’ll See All Year

I suppose we really shouldn’t be surprised to learn that when it comes to “All I Want For Christmas” by Mariah Carey, the best person to cover the song is… Mariah Carey. Check out the newest rendition of the holiday classic performed by Mariah, Jimmy Falon, The Roots, and some cute kids. Izzz the best.

Dissecting Kathy Troccoli’s ’90s Masterpiece, ‘Everything Changes’

Lisa Timmons and I were bored recently; so we decided to take a look at a forgotten gem from the ’90s: “Everything Changes” by Kathy Troccoli. Who? Doesn’t matter. Anyway, enjoy our commentary, and sorry for the bad audio quality. Will improve it in the future!

VIDEO: Past ‘American Idol’ Contestants Give Us ‘Beauty and the Beat’

People often wonder whatever happened to beloved American Idol songbird Vonzell Solomon, and I’m happy to report that she has resurfaced in a pretty amusing viral video called “Beauty and the Beat!” I won’t ruin the surprise of the video, but it’s not half bad. Plus, Vonzell’s not the only Idol alum on board. Forgotten …

10 Things Starships Were Meant To Do (Other Than Fly)

After hearing Nicki Minaj’s ubiquitous hit Starships for about the umpteenth time today, I couldn’t help but get the phrase “Starships were meant to fly” in my head for the latter part of my afternoon. It made me think: starships might be meant to fly, but is that all they can do? After the jump, …

VIDEO: Carly Rae Jepsen Before She Invaded Your Head

If you’re like me, you’re utterly obsessed with Carly Rae Jepsen’s song, “Call Me Maybe,” and while I am a thirty-three year old male, I’m not saying that I’ve spent countless hours singing the song at full blast in my car (I have), but I do quite enjoy the ditty a bunch. Well, there’s great …

5 Best ‘Call Me Maybe’ Tributes

Since Los Angeles Top-40 radio stations are perennially six weeks behind the rest of the country, I’m only now discovering the pure joy of a pop confection known simply as “Call Me Maybe.” The song, which is in iTunes’ top ten (and notably #74 on KIIS-FM Los Angeles’s playlist), might be described by the casual …