‘The New Classic’ is Australian rapper Iggy Azalea’s debut album.<br /><br />The 23-year-old, who spent last autumn opening for Beyonce’s world tour, has managed to make a name for herself on the US rap scene with her hyper-sexualised lyrics and provocative stage antics. <br /><br />A white, middle-class female from an obscure outpost in New South Wales, Azalea says rap is everything she’s not and that’s why she’s attracted to it: “Rap’s always been the style of music that I was just in love with. It’s like bass heavy, it’s fun, it’s like rebellious and strong, masculine, I like all those things.” <br /><br />“And it’s flashy, and I have chains and clothes (in the videos) – I didn’t have any of those things where I was from (Australia), so I really loved rap music because it was the complete opposite of my life, so for that reason, I was really drawn to it,” she said.<br /><br />The single ‘Fancy’ featuring UK singer-songwriter Charli XCX has already become a hit, landing at number 1 on the iTunes Hip-Hop Songs chart. <br /><br />Iggy Azalea is currently touring the US as part of the Hip Hop Outbreak tour. Her album ‘The New Classic’ is out now.<br /><br /><br />Dan + Shay rock the country music scene*<br /><br /><br />They’re the new hot thing on the US country music scene – Dan and Shay started out less than a year and a half ago, but the prolific pair who claim to write up to three songs a day, quickly made a name for themselves. <br /><br />Launched on April 1, their album ‘Where It All Began’ started at number 1 on the Top Country Albums making them the first country duo ever to land their debut album on top.<br /><br />So what’s the secret of their success?<br /><br />“The process kind of changes. That’s something you can ask any songwriter. You don’t walk in there (the studio) and it’s like, step one: we do this. It just kind of happens. You feel the vibe of the room. Different writers are different. They will bring different things to the table. Dan and I both contribute. It’s definitely 50-50. There’s days that one of us will have a title and the other has a title. It definitely always changes,” says Shay Mooney of Dan + Shay. <br /><br />‘Where It All Began’ has garnered generally positive reviews from music critics, who nevertheless point out that the album could do better in the lyrics department. <br /><br />The duo will be joining country star Blake Shelton’s summer tour, Ten Times Crazier, in June.
