The products keep coming. The latest announcement from Samsung is a new addition to its ATIV range and it's a hybrid in more ways than one. Similar to the ASUS Transformer Book Trio, announced earlier this month at Computex, Samsung just introduced its own dual-OS portable. It's called the ATIV Q, and it combines Android 4.2 and Windows 8, with equal parts tablet and typing. Under the hood, the device is powered by a Haswell-series Intel Core i5 processor and manages to fit a 13.3-inch, 3,200 x 1,800 touchscreen into a 1.29kg package that measures just 13.9mm thick. Other notable specs include an S Pen with 1,024 degrees of sensitivity. There's space for the stylus to be stored in the bottom corner of the device. Hardware considerations have also been folded into the design, with the processor housed inside the ATIV Q's hinge. Samsung says that this ensures that heat dissipates from the back of the device.
A software highlight from this particular Windows 8-Android team-up is the ability to share files (photos, documents... seemingly anything that can be opened with programs on the other OS) and share folders across the operating system divide. We can certainly see the usefulness in this approach -- sharing images to your favorite Android social app and generally unifying how you use the hybrid, regardless of OS. The ATIV Q will launch globally in Q3, and we've been told "in time for the back-to-school season", which sounds like sooner rather than later. We've managed to spend a bit of time with the new multi-talented slider: check out some first impressions after the break.
Here is another wonderful article by marketing maven, Penny C. Sansevieri! Take heed, authors. All of us are guilty of at least one of these...
Ten Lethal Marketing Mistakes Almost Everyone is Making
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People always ask me what's the single biggest mistake authors make. I'm not sure it's just one mistake, though the truth is that one mistake can sink your entire book. Often when I tell a group of authors what I'm about to share with you they shake their heads in disgust, yet so many authors continue to make mistakes that can be fatal to their book's success. Most of the time, though authors know that publishing a book is like starting a business, they're still shocked when their book is a failure, despite the fact that they didn't market it. "I don't have the time," they'll say. Well, guess what? If you don't have the time to market then don't spend the time to publish it. Unless it's just a "thing" you wanted to do, then fine. Publish away, but don't expect success beyond your immediate family and close friends. Most authors, however, seek to publish for other reasons, most of them tied to their platform, business, or speaking. If you fall into this category, here are ten things you should avoid like the plague: 1. Waiting to see what happens: Often authors will put stuff out there and wait. They'll wait to see if it works, wait to see what comes back, or wait to see what kind of sales they make. Authors often tell me this, too when they hire us. "I'm going to wait till your work is done before I market." Why do they do this? Sometimes they want to measure the effectiveness of what we've done which I totally get. But it's just not a good idea to wait, at least not in this climate. You should keep working, whatever you can do. 2. Feeling like you have to do everything: You don't. Yes, I know it often feels like you need to do everything. There are social media sites calling your name, blog posts to be written, book events to attend, blogs to read. There's a lot that you can be doing but focus on what you should be doing and, to that end, make sure you're doing the right things. Spend your time wisely. Don't get distracted by the latest big social media craze. If you can't be on both Goodreads and Library Thing then pick one. You're better off being in one place and having a solid presence there than just dabbling in networks. Dabblers typically don't make sales. 3. Not putting out enough content: The reason that it's important to pick your battles in social media and marketing is not just because of the "dabbling factor" but also because you have to create content. Lots of it. Blog posts, Twitter updates, YouTube videos, engaging pins on Pinterest, and the list goes on. Creating content can be a full time job if you let it, but there are hundreds of articles out there that can teach you simple ways to create helpful, engaging content for your readers. Good content is the single biggest driver of audience attention. Don't have time to create content? I was listening to a talk by Gary Vaynerchuk on social media and content. Someone asked him, "But what if someone doesn't have time to create a lot of content?" He smiled and said, "Then you shouldn't be doing this." I couldn't agree more. 4. These rules don't apply to me: I was doing a series of speaking events recently and after I was done, an author came up to me and told me about his book. I asked him what he was doing to promote it, he said: nothing, really. Not because he didn't have the time, but he felt that his topic was such a hot trend, he didn't need to. This might be the worst mistake authors make and the most frequent. The basic rules of marketing today do apply to you. I don't care if you are somehow connected to someone who is famous, writing about someone who is famous, or slightly famous yourself. If you don't work for it, the results will still be the same: crickets. 5. Not staying on top of trends in your industry: The basic idea here is that you stay on top of not just your industry, but the industry you're in, too. That is: publishing. Why should you stay on top of what's going on in publishing? Because the trends might affect you. Let's say you have a book you want to put out and because it's short, you figure it's not substantial enough to warrant publication. Guess what? If you'd been staying up on trends you'd know that for a variety of reasons short is the new long. Thanks to consumers who want quick bites of information and things like Kindle Singles, consumers love short. I just published a book called How to Sell Your Books by the Truckload on Amazon.com. Every single email I've gotten back from readers is that they love it because it's packed with information, no frills and, most of all, short. 6. Lack of engagement: If someone (a reader) writes you a note or an email, are you responding to them? Often times the answer to this is no, which surprises me. Reader engagement is crucial, not because you need to be polite (didn't your mother teach you that?) but because in an age where bloggers are inundated with review copies and review space is shrinking, guess who will be your next best ally? Yes, your reader. Engage with them, thank them but most of all, respond to them. 7. Waiting till the book is done to launch the website: This is one of my favorites actually. Well, not really. I speak with authors all the time who are a week away from having a book and have no website. "It's coming," they tell me. When? I ask. The answer is often, "Oh, when the book is out." That's about three months too late. Now, granted, sometimes this can't be avoided, I totally get that. Delays happen. But in 90% of the cases when I hear this, it's because the author didn't know that it can take months (and in some cases years) to get traffic to a website. Start early and the minute the site is up, start blogging, too. 8. Being in a rush: A few weeks ago I got an email from an author who asked me for my recommendations on a publisher. I told her and the next day she emailed back and said, "I got so excited that I just uploaded it. I didn't have it edited but that's ok, I still have a book!" Well, I'm not sure of that. Ok, yes, you still have a book but in the long run, did this really benefit you? She said she was using this book to promote herself. Let me ask you this: would you send a potential employer a resume that wasn't edited? Likely not, right? Yet many authors have published books that aren't edited, either. While I know there are a lot of options for publishing and a lot of very quick ways to get your book "out there" fast is not always good, sometimes it's just fast. If you just want a book for family and they won't judge you on your horrible editing, then go ahead and rush to publish. But if you want something that you can be proud of, that's going to help you build your platform, don't rush. Just because you can publish quickly, doesn't mean you should. 9. Ask for what you want: I was speaking with a group of authors recently and there was an author in the crowd who said that every book event she does always has a great turnout (lucky her!). I asked her how she was using these events and she looked at me sort of confused. "What do you mean?" she asked. I told her that with that kind of a turnout, she should be signing folks up for her mailing list and then following up with them (think reader engagement). I asked her what she really, really needed for her book. She said she needed more reviews. I told her to ask her readers for help. "You can do that?" she asked. You bet you can. Readers really do want to help authors they love so let them and tell them. Whether you're doing live events, online promotion or whatever. If you want reviews for a book ask your readers. I have an author who, every time someone writes her about her book, she will thank them and ask them to review it. Almost all of them do this. It's a fantastic way to build your reviews on Amazon. Because of this she now has hundreds of reviews on Amazon. Wouldn't you like to have that? Just ask. 10. Wanting to make a fast buck: With all the news around eBooks and the money some authors are making in this industry, it's tempting to think, "Hey, I need some cash, let me publish something." But as with any industry, these stories are the exception, not the rule. Yes, many authors are doing very well but they're also working on it every day. This isn't a "set it and forget it" type of market. You can't just throw content out there and wait for the sales to roll in but you'd be surprised how many people do this. I often find myself telling authors that "publishing is a business" so much I feel like I should get it tattooed to my forehead (and what a conversation piece that would be!). But the reality is that it is and, though many who are reading this will feel like this article is written for beginners, that's not true. I've seen authors who have spent years in this industry, struggling for success because they keep making the same mistakes over and over. Many mega-bestselling authors are turning to self-publishing as a way to get content to market quicker. I heard a formerly traditionally published author speak about this recently and during the talk she said, "I don't have time to do anything other than write the book. I just can't do anything else." I was sort of surprised that she said this, but coming from the traditional world and having been published for years that way I can see how she might have lived a somewhat sheltered life. Even for traditionally published folks the world is a different place and no one, even the biggest names, are immune to this. As to point #4, the rules apply to everyone. Yes, that means you.
Reprint permission ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ You are welcome to reprint any items from "The Book Marketing Expert Newsletter." However, please credit us as a source with the following paragraph:
Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com
Student engagement more complex, changeable than thoughtPublic release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Adam Reger reger@pitt.edu 412-624-4328 University of Pittsburgh
Pitt research paves way toward giving educators tools to recognize, correct disengagement among students
"Enhancing student engagement has been identified as the key to addressing problems of low achievement, high levels of student misbehavior, alienation, and high dropout rates." Pitt professor Ming-Te Wang
PITTSBURGHA student who shows up on time for school and listens respectfully in class might appear fully engaged to outside observers, including teachers. But other measures of student engagement, including the student's emotional and cognitive involvement with the course material, may tell a different storyone that could help teachers recognize students who are becoming less invested in their studies, according to a new study coauthored by a University of Pittsburgh researcher.
More importantly for educators, the study, published online in the professional journal Learning and Instruction, suggests that student engagementessential for success in schoolis malleable, and can be improved by promoting a positive school environment. The result paves the way for future work to offer teachers diagnostic tools for recognizing disengagement, as well as strategies for creating a school environment more conducive to student engagement.
"Enhancing student engagement has been identified as the key to addressing problems of low achievement, high levels of student misbehavior, alienation, and high dropout rates," said Ming-Te Wang, assistant professor of psychology in education in the School of Education and of psychology in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences at Pitt, who coauthored the study with Jacquelynne S. Eccles, the Wilbert McKeachie and Paul Pintrich Distinguished University Professor of Psychology and Education at the University of Michigan.
"When we talk about student engagement, we tend to talk only about student behavior," Wang added. "But my coauthor and I feel like that doesn't tell us the whole story. Emotion and cognition are also very important."
Wang and Eccles' study is among the first attempts by researchers to use data to explore a multidimensional approach to the question of student engagement. In the past, only behavioral measures of student engagementsuch as class attendance, turning in homework on time, and classroom participationhad been evaluated when gauging student engagement. By conducting a study linking students' perceptions of the school environment with behavior, the authors have provided one of the first pieces of empirical research supporting the viability of the multidimensional perspective, which had previously been largely theoretical.
The researchers designed a 100-question survey that includes the evaluation of emotional engagement and cognitive engagement. Sample survey questions that tested emotional engagement in classes across all subject areas asked students to agree or disagree with statements such as "I find schoolwork interesting" and "I feel excited by the work in school." Sample questions concerning cognitive engagement asked students to provide ratings to questions like "How often do you make academic plans for solving problems?" and "How often do you try to relate what you are studying to other things you know about?"
Using the survey, Wang and Eccles conducted a two-year longitudinal study, tracking approximately 1,200 Maryland students from seventh through eighth grade. The authors also measured students' perceptions of their environment by having them answer questions in five areas: school structure support, which gauged the clarity of teacher expectations; provision of choice, which assessed students' opportunities to make learning-related decisions; teaching for relevance, which evaluated the frequency of activities deemed relevant to students' personal interests and goals; students' perceptions of the emotional support offered by teachers; and students' perceptions of how positive their relationships were with fellow students.
The authors found that students who felt that the subject matter being taught and the activities provided by their teachers were meaningful and related to their goals were more emotionally and cognitively engaged than were their peers. Adding measures of emotional and cognitive engagement could broaden researchers' perspectives on student engagement in future work in this area.
Also among the paper's main findings is that the school environment can and, indeed, should be changed if it is impeding student engagement. A positive and supportive school environment is marked, Wang said, by "positive relationships with teachers and peers. Schools must provide opportunities for students to make their own choices. But they also must create a more structured environment so students know what to do, what to expect, from school." Wang also noted, however, that there is no "one size fits all" strategy to the problem of student engagement.
"Usually people say, 'Yes, autonomy is beneficial. We want to provide students with choices in school,'" Wang said. "This is the case for high achievers, but not low achievers. Low achievers want more structure, more guidelines."
As a result, Wang said, teachers must take into account individual variation among students in order to fulfill the needs of each student.
Wang's current work, undertaken in partnership with six Allegheny County school districts, focuses on developing a diagnostic tool that teachers can use to identify students who are disengaged from school, with a specific emphasis on math and science classes.
###
The paper is titled "School context, achievement motivation, and academic engagement: A longitudinal study of school engagement using a multidimensional perspective." It is scheduled to appear in the December 2013 print issue of Learning and Instruction. It appeared online in that publication May 21, 2013. This research was supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Student engagement more complex, changeable than thoughtPublic release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Adam Reger reger@pitt.edu 412-624-4328 University of Pittsburgh
Pitt research paves way toward giving educators tools to recognize, correct disengagement among students
"Enhancing student engagement has been identified as the key to addressing problems of low achievement, high levels of student misbehavior, alienation, and high dropout rates." Pitt professor Ming-Te Wang
PITTSBURGHA student who shows up on time for school and listens respectfully in class might appear fully engaged to outside observers, including teachers. But other measures of student engagement, including the student's emotional and cognitive involvement with the course material, may tell a different storyone that could help teachers recognize students who are becoming less invested in their studies, according to a new study coauthored by a University of Pittsburgh researcher.
More importantly for educators, the study, published online in the professional journal Learning and Instruction, suggests that student engagementessential for success in schoolis malleable, and can be improved by promoting a positive school environment. The result paves the way for future work to offer teachers diagnostic tools for recognizing disengagement, as well as strategies for creating a school environment more conducive to student engagement.
"Enhancing student engagement has been identified as the key to addressing problems of low achievement, high levels of student misbehavior, alienation, and high dropout rates," said Ming-Te Wang, assistant professor of psychology in education in the School of Education and of psychology in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences at Pitt, who coauthored the study with Jacquelynne S. Eccles, the Wilbert McKeachie and Paul Pintrich Distinguished University Professor of Psychology and Education at the University of Michigan.
"When we talk about student engagement, we tend to talk only about student behavior," Wang added. "But my coauthor and I feel like that doesn't tell us the whole story. Emotion and cognition are also very important."
Wang and Eccles' study is among the first attempts by researchers to use data to explore a multidimensional approach to the question of student engagement. In the past, only behavioral measures of student engagementsuch as class attendance, turning in homework on time, and classroom participationhad been evaluated when gauging student engagement. By conducting a study linking students' perceptions of the school environment with behavior, the authors have provided one of the first pieces of empirical research supporting the viability of the multidimensional perspective, which had previously been largely theoretical.
The researchers designed a 100-question survey that includes the evaluation of emotional engagement and cognitive engagement. Sample survey questions that tested emotional engagement in classes across all subject areas asked students to agree or disagree with statements such as "I find schoolwork interesting" and "I feel excited by the work in school." Sample questions concerning cognitive engagement asked students to provide ratings to questions like "How often do you make academic plans for solving problems?" and "How often do you try to relate what you are studying to other things you know about?"
Using the survey, Wang and Eccles conducted a two-year longitudinal study, tracking approximately 1,200 Maryland students from seventh through eighth grade. The authors also measured students' perceptions of their environment by having them answer questions in five areas: school structure support, which gauged the clarity of teacher expectations; provision of choice, which assessed students' opportunities to make learning-related decisions; teaching for relevance, which evaluated the frequency of activities deemed relevant to students' personal interests and goals; students' perceptions of the emotional support offered by teachers; and students' perceptions of how positive their relationships were with fellow students.
The authors found that students who felt that the subject matter being taught and the activities provided by their teachers were meaningful and related to their goals were more emotionally and cognitively engaged than were their peers. Adding measures of emotional and cognitive engagement could broaden researchers' perspectives on student engagement in future work in this area.
Also among the paper's main findings is that the school environment can and, indeed, should be changed if it is impeding student engagement. A positive and supportive school environment is marked, Wang said, by "positive relationships with teachers and peers. Schools must provide opportunities for students to make their own choices. But they also must create a more structured environment so students know what to do, what to expect, from school." Wang also noted, however, that there is no "one size fits all" strategy to the problem of student engagement.
"Usually people say, 'Yes, autonomy is beneficial. We want to provide students with choices in school,'" Wang said. "This is the case for high achievers, but not low achievers. Low achievers want more structure, more guidelines."
As a result, Wang said, teachers must take into account individual variation among students in order to fulfill the needs of each student.
Wang's current work, undertaken in partnership with six Allegheny County school districts, focuses on developing a diagnostic tool that teachers can use to identify students who are disengaged from school, with a specific emphasis on math and science classes.
###
The paper is titled "School context, achievement motivation, and academic engagement: A longitudinal study of school engagement using a multidimensional perspective." It is scheduled to appear in the December 2013 print issue of Learning and Instruction. It appeared online in that publication May 21, 2013. This research was supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
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?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
June 19, 2013 ? Using data gathered by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission, scientists believe they have solved a mystery from one of the solar system's coldest regions -- a permanently shadowed crater on the moon. They have explained how energetic particles penetrating lunar soil can create molecular hydrogen from water ice. The finding provides insight into how radiation can change the chemistry of water ice throughout the solar system.
Space scientists from the University of New Hampshire and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center have published their results online in the Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Planets. Lead author of the paper is research scientist Andrew Jordan of the University of New Hampshire's Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS).
Discovering molecular hydrogen on the moon was a surprise result from NASA's Lunar Crater Observation Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission, which crash-landed the LCROSS satellite's spent Centaur rocket at 5,600 miles per hour into the Cabeus crater in the permanently shadowed region of the moon. These regions have never been exposed to sunlight and have remained at temperatures near absolute zero for billions of years, thus preserving the pristine nature of the lunar soil, or regolith.
Instruments on board LCROSS trained on the resulting immense debris plume detected water vapor and water ice, the mission's hoped-for quarry, while LRO, already in orbit around the moon, saw molecular hydrogen -- a surprise.
"LRO's Lyman Alpha Mapping Project, or LAMP, detected the signature of molecular hydrogen, which was unexpected and unexplained," says Jordan.
Jordan's JGR paper, "The formation of molecular hydrogen from water ice in the lunar regolith by energetic charged particles," quantifies an explanation of how molecular hydrogen, which is composed of two hydrogen atoms and denoted chemically as H2, may be created below the moon's surface.
"After the finding, there were a couple of ideas for how molecular hydrogen could be formed but none of them seemed to work for the conditions in the crater or with the rocket impact." Jordan says. "Our analysis shows that the galactic cosmic rays, which are charged particles energetic enough to penetrate below the lunar surface, can dissociate the water, H2O, into H2 through various potential pathways."
That analysis was based on data gathered by the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) instrument aboard the LRO spacecraft. Jordan is a member of the CRaTER scientific team, which is headed up by principal investigator Nathan Schwadron of EOS. Schwadron, a co-author on the JGR paper, was the first to suggest energetic particles as the possible mechanism for creating molecular hydrogen.
CRaTER characterizes the global lunar radiation environment by measuring radiation dose rates from galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles. Says Jordan, "We used the CRaTER measurements to get a handle on how much molecular hydrogen has been formed from the water ice via charged particles." Jordan's computer model incorporated the CRaTER data and showed that these energetic particles can form between 10 and 100 percent of the H2 measured by LAMP.
The study notes that narrowing down that percent range requires particle accelerator experiments on water ice to more accurately gauge the number of chemical reactions that result per unit of energy deposited by cosmic rays and solar energetic particles.
Well, thanks to John Mayer, Joanna Rohrback can now add another 4 minutes, 23 seconds to her 15 minutes of fame. In the video for his new single "Paper Doll," the singer and serial dater has placed the creator of "Prancercise" -- the half-horsey-dance, half-skipping exercise method that went viral at the end of May -- front and center.
Mayer himself makes no appearance in the video, which opens on Rohrback giving a short introduction, noting that it's good to have a "prance to romance to." She then offers medical warnings to consult a physician if you're pregnant or nursing before undertaking the prance. The rest of the video is of her horse-skipping down an empty suburban street on a sunny day while Mayer's "Paper Doll" plays and the lyrics scroll by at the bottom of the screen.
Mayer clearly wanted to call attention to his words with the video, and the meaning behind the lines has already generated some discussion. Over at Rolling Stone, the suggestion is that the song is about Mayer's former girlfriend Taylor Swift (whose "Dear John" was supposedly about their relationship, and which Mayer said "humiliated me"). Lyrics like "You're like 22 girls in one" (Swift has a song, "22") and the repeated use of the color red (the title of Swift's latest album) are clues, says the magazine, which then allows the words could actually be about any breakup with any girl.
Still, whatever he's writing about, it's hard to avoid the fact that Mayer leaves a lasting impression: Katy Perry recently told Vogue that she is "still madly in love with him."
Now, if we could only get Perry, Swift, Mayer and Rorhback to start prancing down the street -- that would be a video to remember.
It's shocking to think now, but Judy Garland's signature tune was initially deleted from "The Wizard of Oz" because MGM executives thought it slowed down the action of the film. Ranked by the American Film Institute as the "greatest movie song of all time," it has since been recorded by Eva Cassidy, Patti LaBelle, Kylie Minogue, Matthew Morrison and others.
'The Man That Got Away,' Judy Garland (1954)
"A Star is Born" helped revive Judy's then-floundering movie career in 1954 (though she lost out on an Oscar to Grace Kelly in "The Country Girl") and this memorable solo number quickly became a regular part of her concert repertoire going forward.
Interestingly, the song has also been covered by a number of men, including Rufus Wainwright and Broadway performer Raul Esparza, without changing the gender.
'Don't Rain On My Parade' from 'Funny Girl,' Barbra Streisand (1968)
Years before it became known to teen audiences as a staple of "Glee" star Lea Michele, "Don't Rain On My Parade" was a signature tune for Barbra Streisand, who crooned it in both the stage and screen versions of the musical "Funny Girl."
'Dancing Queen,' ABBA (1976)
ABBA's only No. 1 U.S. hit, "Dancing Queen" originally contained another verse which was scrapped in the final recording: "Baby, baby, you're out of sight/hey, you're looking alright tonight/when you come to the party/listen to the guys/they've got the look in their eyes..."
'I Will Survive,' Gloria Gaynor (1978)
Gaynor's smash because the first -- and only -- song to ever receive the Grammy Award for Best Disco Recording in 1980, as the award was discontinued the following year.
Interestingly, the success of "I Will Survive" was sheer luck: the song was originally released as the B-side to a cover version of the Righteous Brothers' "Substitute," but club and radio DJs opted to play the other side of the record instead.
'Last Dance,' Donna Summer (1978)
The theme song to the film "Thank God It's Friday" was one of the first disco songs to also feature slow-tempo segments.
Although the song cemented Summer's "Queen of Disco" moniker, the star is said to have always resented that reputation. "I do not consider myself a disco artist," she once told <em>Time</em> magazine. "I consider myself a singer who does disco songs."
'Y.M.C.A.,' Village People (1978)
Though "Y.M.C.A." is often understood as a reference to the Young Men's Christian Association's perceived reputation as a popular gay cruising and hookup spot, the Village People's lead singer Victor Willis (who appeared both as "The Cop" and "The Naval Officer") has claimed the song was written rather as a reflection of young urban black youth.
'We Are Family,' Sister Sledge (1979)
"We Are Family" wasn't just a dance smash, it was also the theme song for the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates.
As if to cement its reputation as a gay anthem, the song was featured in both the 1996 film "The Birdcage," starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, and the 1997 film "The Full Monty," about a group of working-class British men who decide to form a male striptease troupe.
'I'm Coming Out,' Diana Ross (1980)
Nile Rodgers, who also produced smash hits for David Bowie and Madonna among other artists, is said to have come up with the idea for the song after noticing three different drag queens dressed as Diana Ross at a New York club.
In 1997, the Notorious B.I.G. sampled this on the track "Mo' Money Mo' Problems," which became a No. 1 hit in the U.S.
'It's Raining Men,' The Weather Girls (1982)
"I thought, 'Nobody is going to buy this song. Nobody is going to believe this,'" Martha Wash now recalls of recording the song -- which had previously been rejected by Barbra Streisand, Cher and Donna Summer among others -- with her fellow Weather Girl Izora Armstead, who died in 2004.
Wash's doubts were quickly proven wrong, however, as the single nabbed the top spot on the Billboard dance charts and has since been covered by RuPaul and former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, whose version was featured on the soundtrack of "Bridget Jones' Diary."
'And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going' from 'Dreamgirls,' Jennifer Holliday (1982)
One of the few recent Broadway ballads to achieve success on the pop charts, "And I Am Telling You..." made a superstar out of Jennifer Holliday, who originated the role of Effie White in the musical "Dreamgirls," in 1982, and then did the same nearly 25 years later for Jennifer Hudson, who portrayed the character in the acclaimed movie version.
'I Am What I Am' From 'La Cage Aux Folles,' Gloria Gaynor (1983)
Arguably the best-known song from the 1983 musical "La Cage aux Folles," "I Am What I Am" didn't quite repeat the chart success of "I Will Survive" for Gaynor, but nonetheless went on to become the second of her singles to achieve gay anthem status.
'I Want To Break Free,' Queen (1984)
Queen frontman Freddie Mercury remains an LGBT icon for many reasons -- as one of rock music's first performers to not only acknowledge his bisexuality, but also embrace it in his flamboyant stage presence. Mercury's openness was certainly envelope-pushing in the world of 1970s and '80s arena rock, and it only seemed to further his band's popularity among the masses.
The video for the song, which featured Freddie and other band members in full drag, was considered controversial in the U.S. and initially banned by MTV.
'Relax,' Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1984)
When it was initially released, "Relax" sparked controversy for what some interpreted as graphic lyrics -- "When you want to come," for instance, was thought to be a reference to orgasm.
In addition, the original version of the video showed lead singer Holly Johnson cavorting in a leather bar along with other blatant homoerotic imagery, and was banned by MTV.
'True Colors,' Cyndi Lauper (1986)
Although Lauper's smash single has long been embraced a gay anthem, co-writer Billy Steinberg (who also penned Madonna's "Like A Virgin" and the Bangles' "Eternal Flame" with Tom Kelly) is said to have written the song about his own mother.
The song's title also became the name of Lauper's New York City-based foundation for homeless LGBT youth.
'A Little Respect,' Erasure (1988)
A 2010 remix of Erasure's 1988 hit merely re-affirmed its status as a gay anthem, with sales benefitting the Hetrick-Martin Institute, the home of the Harvey Milk High School in New York City.
In 2004, lead singer Andy Bell, who is openly gay, confirmed he was HIV-positive, noting, "My life expectancy should be the same as anyone else's, so there is no need to panic. There is still so much hysteria and ignorance surrounding HIV and AIDS. Let's just get on with life."
'Vogue,' Madonna (1990)
One of the Material Girl's seminal (and, arguably, most gay-encompassing) smash hits almost didn't see the light of day on radio, as it was originally planned as the B-side to "Keep It Together," the fifth and final single off her 1989 "Like A Prayer" album.
Madonna was introduced to "voguing" by two of her Blond Ambition Tour dancers at the New York City club Sound Factory, and her endorsement helped spark a major dance craze.
'Freedom '90,' George Michael (1990)
Oddly, George Michael refused to appear in the music video for "Freedom '90," so director David Fincher recruited a number of supermodels (including Cindy Crawford and Naomi Campbell) and male fashion models to star in it instead.
The song was later covered by British pop star Robbie Williams, who left boy band Take That to achieve global success as a solo star, much as Michael did following his split with Wham!
'New York City Boy,' Pet Shop Boys (1999)
There's plenty of gayness to admire in the lyrics to "New York City Boy," but the Pet Shop Boys' embrace of the gay community doesn't stop there. The English electronic dance music duo has collaborated with some of the most beloved gay icons of all time, including Elton John, Liza Minnelli, Kylie Minogue, Madonna and Lady Gaga.
'Believe,' Cher (1999)
Named by <em>Billboard</em> magazine as "the best darn thing that Cher has recorded in years," the song -- which sold over 10 million copies worldwide -- breathed new life into the diva's music career, re-inventing her as a disco queen and making her the only recording artist to hit No. 1 on the pop charts in each of the past six decades.
'Your Disco Needs You,' Kylie Minogue (2001)
From 1987's "I Should Be So Lucky" to 2010's "Get Outta My Way," Kylie has a number of great tunes which could be considered anthems.
But none cemented the Aussie pop diva's status as a gay icon quite as effectively as 2001's "Your Disco Needs You," which had limited chart success at the time despite quickly becoming a fan favorite. The song got an extra layer of gay endorsement when it was covered by original Village People member Randy Jones in 2008.
'Beautiful,' Christina Aguilera (2002)
Penned by 4 Non Blondes frontwoman Linda Perry (who is openly gay), "Beautiful" earned Christina Aguilera a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, while its accompanying video -- which featured both gay and transgender characters -- nabbed the star a GLAAD Media Award.
'Defying Gravity' from 'Wicked,' Idina Menzel (2003)
A song about living without limits and going against the grain has undoubtedly immediate resonance to the gay community -- let alone a ballad sung by a famed "Wizard of Oz" villain in the Broadway musical version of "Wicked," which re-casts the Wicked Witch of the West in a more sympathetic light than in previous incarnations of the story.
A remix version of Idina Mendel's classic was the official anthem of 2007 Gay Pride Parade and Festival in Los Angeles, and was also performed by both Rachel (Lea Michele) and Kurt (Chris Colfer) in the hit series "Glee."
'Take Your Mama Out,' Scissor Sisters (2004)
The glam rock band is known for their upbeat, retro-sounding tunes, but perhaps none of their hits is better suited as a gay anthem than "Take Your Mama Out," which is said to be about a young gay man growing up in a conservative household.
'Single Ladies,' Beyonce (2009)
The choreography seen in the video for "Single Ladies" was inspired by Bob Fosse, who directed Liza Minnelli in the Oscar-winning movie music "Cabaret" as well as well as her "Liza With A Z" television concert, which won four Emmy Awards.
Things came full circle in 2010 when Liza covered the smash song for the soundtrack of "Sex and the City 2," and performed it -- with the full Fosse-inspired choreography -- for the film's gay wedding scene.
'Dancing On My Own,' Robyn (2010)
Robyn has said that "Dancing On My Own" was inspired by her own love of gay anthems, so it's only fitting her 2010 song has gone on to achieve major success within the gay community.
"I think it's a song about being on the outside -- very physically -- and if it feels like a gay anthem then I take that as a super compliment," she has said of the song.
'Firework,' Katy Perry (2010)
Perry revealed in an interview that the hit song, which she's said was inspired by Jack Kerouac's novel "On the Road," included the line "like a firefly," rather than "like the Fourth of July," which made the final cut.
The song's colorful video was shot in Budapest, Hungary and features aerial shots of several of the city's landmarks, including Buda Castle and the Chain Bridge.
'Born This Way,' Lady Gaga (2011)
Though it faced substanial criticism for its perceived similarities to another ambitious blonde singer's 1989 anthem, "Born This Way" has certainly achieved its own place in pop history.
Not only are we pretty sure it's the first time a song of this caliber has ever included the word "transgender," but it's also gone on to become the name of Lady Gaga's anti-LGBT-bullying foundation.
'Outlaws Of Love,' Adam Lambert (2012)
The "American Idol" alum became the first openly gay performer to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with his album "Trespassing."
However, none of his songs expresses openly gay sentiment as much as "Outlaws of Love," which he premiered at a Canadian music festival in 2011.
"All of the things I've been talking about over the past year, all of it boils down to acceptance and this is a song that I wrote about how it feels, that no matter where you go or where you turn, sometimes it feels like you're just running from the law," he has said of the song.
'Call Me Maybe,' Carly Rae Jepsen (2012)
Undeniably one of the songs that will define summer 2012, Jepsen's smash has already prompted a number of inspired covers, with everyone from Justin Bieber to Harvard University baseball players to gay porn stars crooning along. Of course, Jepsen's video isn't lacking in gay appeal, either, featuring a hunky handyman with a little secret of his own.
4 Non Blondes - 'What's Up'
(user submission) Music video by 4 Non Blondes performing What's Up. (C) 1992 Interscope Records
Robin S - Show Me Love (Official Music Video) [1993]
(user submission) Join us on Spinnin' Facebook: ?facebook.com Follow us on Twitter: ?twitter.com Check out our playlists on Spotify: spoti.fi Join us on G+ : ?gplus.to Official 'Show Me Love' videoclip
David Bowie - Rebel Rebel
(user submission) David Bowie (Halloween Jack) - Rebel Rebel
Carol Douglas - Doctors Orders
(user submission) Buy on Itunes: is.gd Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com Like us on facebook: facebook.com Carol Douglas - aka Carolyn Strickland and Carolyn Cooke - was born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York. She is the daughter of Minnie Newsome, a jazz performer who has been cited as the inspiration for the Cab Calloway classic "Minnie the Moocher"; Douglas' father was a mortician. Sam Cooke was Douglas' cousin. At the age of 10 Douglas was a contestant and winner on the game show Name That Tune and says "Ebony followed my career for the next three years". Douglas attended the Willard May School for professional children and afterwards the Quintanos High School for young professionals alongside Gregory Hines, Bernadette Peters, Carol Lynley and Patty Duke. While in high school Douglas sang in a female trio named April May & June who were signed as a management client by Little Anthony and the Imperials. Douglas made a one-off recording in 1963 for RCA Victor cutting the single "I Don't Mind (Being Your Fool)" under the name Carolyn Cooke: becoming pregnant with her first son at age 15 ended RCA's interest in promoting her. Douglas also cut several jingles for TV commercials - "[I] used to do voiceovers for Ideal Toys and General Mills with Bernadette Peters" - but recalls: "I never thought I would be a singer", and for most of the 1960s Douglas pursued an acting career, appearing in an episode of her classmate's The Patty Duke Show but mostly acting in theatrical productions <b>...</b>
Beres Hammond - Doctor's Orders
(user submission) www.usainbolt.co.cc
Sunny - Doctor's Orders
(user submission) A March 1974 UK hit for Sunny Leslie.
PROUD Heather Small
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Spice Girls - Who Do You Think You Are
(user submission) Music video by Spice Girls performing Who Do You Think You Are.
Charlene - I've Never Been To Me (1977/1982)
(user submission) This seems to be a polarizing song, people either love it or hate it. I expect a lot of thumbs up and thumbs down on this one :) Lyrics Below. From Wiki: Charlene Marilynn D'Angelo (born June 1, 1950, Hollywood, California) is an American R&B singer best known as Charlene. She is known for her 1982 popular song "I've Never Been to Me", and is considered a one-hit-wonder. Charlene originally recorded "I've Never Been to Me" in 1976, and the single reached #97 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1977. When released again in 1982, the single reached #3 in the United States (US), and #1 by June 1982, in the UK Singles Chart. The song has been her only Top 40 hit. In 1982, Tampa, Florida disc jockey Scott Shannon, then at WRBQ, started playing the song at the behest of a girlfriend, by which time Charlene had lost her recording contract, moved to England and was working in a sweetshop in Ilford, London. Audience reaction was impressive, resulting in the song's second release with the original spoken bridge. The second release was a hit in England as well. When the song was first released in the US in 1976, Charlene's legal name was Charlene Duncan from her marriage to record producer Larry Duncan; by the time the song was released in 1982, her name was Charlene Oliver by her subsequent marriage to Englishman Jeff Oliver. The single reached the top of the US pop and adult contemporary charts that year, and the concurrent release of her album I've Never Been to Me, was <b>...</b>
Carl Bean - I was born this way
(user submission) Carl Bean - I was born this way a gay anthem from the disco 70's
Rupaul - Supermodel (You Better Work) OFFICIAL VIDEO
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Jessie J - Stand Up (Music Video)
(user submission) In this video: www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com My fan made video of jessie j's stand up. NONE OF THESE CLIPS BELONG TO ME. THEY BELONG TO THERE RIGHTFUL OWNERS
JUDY GARLAND "GET HAPPY" (SUMMER STOCK, 1950)
(user submission) JUDY GARLAND "GET HAPPY" Though it's called Summer Stock, this marvelous "let's put on a show" musical - the final one that showcased the peerless pair of Judy Garland and Gene Kelly - is a delight for all seasons. The story is simple: a homespun farm family allows a Broadway production company to rehearse its new show on their property - if the performers "pay" their way by pitching in with all the farm chores! But the pleasures are abundant: a show-stopping, all-star "Battle of the Dances" that starts out as a square dance and blossoms into a cavalcade of high-stepping dance favorites; Kelly's marvelous song and later dance to "You, Wonderful You;" four of the most popular comedic screen actors ever: Phil Silvers, Eddie Bracken, Hans Conried and Marjorie Main; and Garland's incomparable "Get Happy," a smashing sequence that's one of her peak movie moments.
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Public release date: 20-Jun-2013
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