Beyonce is taking no chances on her upcoming album. The singer has enlisted Pharrell Williams, Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, and Dream to ensure her next release flies up the charts in 2013.

Featured in a racy cover on the latest issue of GQ, the singer told the magazine:

“I’ve been working with Pharrell and Timbaland and Justin Timberlake and Dream. We all started in the ’90s, when R&B was the most important genre, and we all kind of want that back: the feeling that music gave us.”

Elaborating on what her fans can expect from the new album, the new mother described its flavor as:

“Mostly R&B. I always have my Prince and rock/soul influences.There’s a bit of D’Angelo, some ’60s doo-wop. And Aretha and Diana Ross.”

Yesterday, Beyonce revealed on Facebook that Destiny’s Child will release their first new material in eight years later this month.

Titled Love Songs, the Destiny’s Child album — which will reunite Beyonce with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams — is slated for a January 29 release. Only one new song made it on to the album, but in its favor “Nuclear” is produced by Pharrell. NME has the full tracklisting.

Along with the announcement, Beyonce added a personal message, writing:

“I am so proud to announce the first original Destiny’s Child music in eight years!”

The 31-year-old singer has busy first half of the year to look forward to.

In addition to recently inking a $50 million deal with soft drinks giant Pepsi, Beyonce is also set to star in a self-directed HBO documentary on February 16.

Following that, the Houston native will perform in the halftime slot of the Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz superdome in New Orleans on February 3.

In addition to sponsoring the event, Pepsi hosted a worldwide online contest and invited fans to send in ‘Beyonce-like’ posed photographs of themselves that could be used to promote the singer’s Super Bowl appearance.

The best 50 ‘posers’chosen [and one guest each] will then join Beyonce on stage on February 3.

The singer, who is a long time Obama supporter along with husband Jay-Z, will also perform the National Anthem at the President’s second inauguration ceremony on January 21.

Queen Bey, version 2013, is definitely back to business.

Beyoncé Brings In Big Guns For New Album, Working With Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, And Pharrell is a post from: The Inquisitr

D’Angelo hasn’t performed in the United States for over a decade. But last night at Bonnaroo the famous R&B singer hopped up on stage to join Questlove during a “Superjam” session.

MTV reports that D’Angelo has done a few shows in Europe this year but this is the first time he’s played in America in the last 12 years. D’Angelo joined Questlove for about an hour on stage, singing songs like Jimi Hendrix’s ”Have You Ever Been (to Electric Ladyland),” the Beatles’ “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window,” and Led Zeppelin’s “What is and What Should Never Be.”

Questlove said while introducing the reclusive singer:

“I’ve been waiting 12 years to say this — ladies and gentlemen, D’Angelo!”

The Consequence of Sound reports that this won’t be D’Angelo’s only US performance this summer. The singer, who is currently working on his long-awaited third studio album, will playing in New Orleans this July at Essence Festival, and in Philadelphia in September for Jay-Z’s Made In America Festival.

Questlove told the SF Gate that D’Angelo’s new album is finished but the singer is reluctant to send it out to the public. The Roots drummer said he wanted to get D’Angelo back on stage to show him that he still has fans that are anxiously awaiting his new album.

Questlove said:

“I wanted him to see that… That’s a green light. Me doing it wasn’t, like, running out of jam partners. Me doing it was basically showing him, `Look, you are so missed you don’t even realize how much you are missed,’ hoping that this will be the adrenaline boost that will finally get him to turn his record into the label. It’s done, it’s brilliant. I played on it. I know it’s brilliant. Now it’s just time to let his kids go and show it to the world. That’s what I’m here for.”

Here’s D’Angelo singing at Bonnaroo with Questlove.

D’Angelo Gives First U.S. Performance In 12 Years [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

D’Angelo has released a cover of the Soundgarden song Black Hole Sun this week, one of the first pieces of music we’ve heard from the soulful singer since he dropped the 2000 masterpiece Voodoo. 

The Soundgarden cover comes at a time when the 12-year drought of D’Angelo is coming to an end as he prepares to release a new album while also getting ready to perform a handful of shows in Europe.

News of the nearly finished album comes from some of the masterminds who have teamed with the singer for his new album including Roots frontman ?uestlove and Amy Winehouse producer Mark Ronson.

A warning to all you D’Angelo and Soundgarden fans, the demo is rough, likely something thrown together in the studio as a first take on the song but Black Hole Sun is none-the-less interesting to hear with the soulful neo-soul tropes used by the singer to weave his psychedelic type mastery of his art.

Here’s the D’Angelo-Soundgarden cover of Black Hole Sun:

D’Angelo’s new album is currently titled James River and rumors are giving it a 2012 release although nothing has been confirmed at this time. In the meantime it’s still unclear how many of the tracks on the new album will be new offerings and how many will be more along the lings of his grunge inspired Soundgarden cover.

Will you be running out to purchase the new D’Angelo album when it arrives in stores and through the likes of iTunes?

Heck iTunes didn’t exist the last time this guy released an album.

D’Angelo Covers Soundgarden, Prepares To Drop New Album [Audio] is a post from: The Inquisitr