Shakira has been making the most of her recent power as judge of The Voice (NBC). This is really helping her recording career in a big way just as “Empire” (RCA/RLG) gets released into the market place. Pharrell Williams is also back at it for more Top40 activity. He’s pulling out all of the stops once again with his new “Come Get It Bae” (Columbia/Sony) track. I also love the new pairing of Jason Derulo and the infamous Snoop Dogg. Together these two music powerhouses are taking the single “Wiggle” (Beluga Heights/WB) out for a spin and it’s getting rave reviews. Just ask any of our music and program directors and they will tell you just how good this track really is. We’re been getting some stellar reports regarding the act known as My Crazy Girlfriend. Word has it that their single “Crazy Stupid Love” (Capitol) is pulling in record phones and why not – it’s just that good. Afrojack has been proclaimed one of the highest paid DJ mixers on planet earth earning ½ a million just for showing up at a club. He’s taking the track entitled “Ten Feet Tall” (Island) out and about and this one could add some extra dollars to his already high price tag. After checking this guy out I really think that I’m in the wrong business. Let me get back into spinning those records. Chromeo is taking the music world by storm as well. All bets are on that the single “Jealous” (Big Beat/Atlantic) becomes a super big hit in record time. You might need to pay some extra special attention to this gem. Also getting in on the action is Bleachers. Their offering of “I Wanna Get Better” (RCA/RLG) proves that all it takes is a clever idea and you can have a huge hit record. One Direction is back and that’s always a good thing for radio these days. Simon Cowell and the band are taking the single “You And I” (Syco/Columbia) out for a drive and the fans are going crazy once again. Don’t count on a new One Direction movie any time soon as Simon as put a freeze on the notion for now. Recording artist Sam Smith is taking the Top40 and AC world by storm. His new raging single “Stay With Me” (Capp) is the talk of the music industry. You can expect some huge weeks ahead for this amazing vocalist and what a song this is my friends. Newcomer Jennifer Ashley is getting quite a lot of love from our panel. Her single “Back Where We Started” (SNMG/RED) ranked at the top of our “most added” list for a few weeks and the spins are now out of control. You can expect this track to reach the top of our charts and in record time. Please remember that you heard about Jennifer Ashley first right here on the pages of your favorite New Music Weekly magazine. Ed Sheeran has a good thing going at Top40 radio and make no mistake about that. His current single “Sing” (Atlantic/WEA) proves that it was a very smart move to spend some time with Taylor Swift in making better connections. Opening her big Red tour didn’t hurt a bit either. Phillip Phillips keeps making his American Idol family proud. The single “Raging Fire” (19/Interscope) is turning into quite the hit for him. He recently performed it on the American Idol finally and that helped quite a bit. His Dream Of Lions is a band to watch closely. Their debut single “Novel” (Droggmore) has been rocking strong since it first came out last month. Recording artist Benzo is also making huge waves at the format with “Heart Beat” (New Terra). One of our favorite new bands in Bad Mary is showing us how it’s done as “Better Days” (Dead Pill) moves past the rest. John Legend continues to work his magic with “All Of Me” (Columbia/Sony) taking on multiple mixes. Newcomer Abigail Duhon is breaking fast and furious with her stellar “ “La La La” (iShine/Sony). Marsha Jewell continues her #1 ways with “Butterfly” (Jewell Lane) just as a new single gets set to drop. I’ll be back with more gems from the Top40 world next time right here.