[Official Video] Jessie J - Domino

2011 was undoubtedly the year of Jessie J. While it was Adele who sold by far the most, it was really Jessie who far better courted what the year was all about, all the while teasing the public with a number of questionable press interviews and vibrant outfits. And then there was the whole leg-in-a-cast incident. When it came to female-fronted pop, Jessie J was the name on everyone's lips.

And with new single Domino, she, to-a-degree, finally does what we always hoped for when we first heard Do It Like A Dude - putting out a gem of pure up-tempo pop. While the public at large lapped up Jessie's follow-up singles; the inescapable Price Tag and its fellow lilting R&B inflected cousins, many of us always hoped for a return to the unabashed fun and pomp of Jessie's debut.

And while Domino is no classic, it's a refreshing reminder of how good Jessie J can be when she wants to be. Throwing off much of her exagerated vocal inflections, it sees her going for a slickly produced Katy Perry-esque vibe, all shiny pop-rock riffs and carefree choruses.

Most importantly, Jessie actually looks like she's having fun in the video, instead of the tear-stained weep-athon she affected for Who You Are. As a young woman purveying her tunes to a young audience, this is what we want to see - popstars looking hot, having a good time.

Domino is the classic example of simplicity working best - it's not groundbreaking or amazing by any means, but by playing to well established pop tropes, it sees Jessie putting out one of her strongest performances to date, and manifesting another part of what makes her - beneath all the media storm - a thoroughly great modern popstar.

Domino is released on the 27th February.

Cheryl eyes up some hot collabs & Girls Aloud are a FIVE forever

Yup, it's time for the latest round of Girls Aloud news.

Reports today suggest that Cheryl wants to work with Rihanna, Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj on her next album. Let's face it, who wouldn't want to work with a trio of amazingness like those lovely ladies! These high profile collabs are apparently to help launch Cheryl in the US.

An insider revealed: "Cheryl's management want her to become the next big popstar in America and are working on securing some A-list names for the album. A Rihanna duet is a certainty and Will.I.Am is trying to convince Minaj to work on the LP too. Katy Perry has also been in talks with Cheryl about a duet, as she is a big fan."

We like to imagine will.i.am as one of those super-cool guys who's always on his phone lining up various business deals and meetings, and in this dream scenario, hooking Chezza up with the best in US female pop. There's even reports that Cheryl wants to work with Britney and Beyonce too.

Turning our attention back to Girls Aloud as a whole... this afternoon, the awesome-threesome of welovepop, supersonicpr and polydorrecords all tweeted this message:

"Time to set the record straight after another ridiculous story. Girls Aloud will always be, Sarah, Nadine, Kimberley, Cheryl and Nicola."

Which throws cold water all over Heat's super-silly story about them wanting to continue as a four-piece.

Katy Perry - ET

Katy Perry's Teenage Dream album campaign is a prime example in how to convert a nation of pop lovers to your cause - and with the run of four stellar singles she's released from the album, I can safely say I count myself among those converts.

If it's consistency you're looking for, then Katy delivers; something the brilliant video for ET seems keen to establish. You don't see many artists lavishing this much care and attention on the fourth video from their album, yet here we have a stunning science-fiction flick, brimming with CGI. Normally the fourth single is just hastily thrown out there as an afterthought to mop up the last of the album's sales before the artist moves onto the next project, but here it genuinely feels like this is the next project.

The other thing I love is that Katy isn't afraid to go out there with her outfits. You feel these days that some artists are almost intimated by the ever-prevailing nature of Lady Gaga's vastly extravagant creations, so much so that they don't even dare to attempt anything on that scale. But in the ET video, Katy arguably goes one better with her 'alien' attire. Certainly, it's visually striking - and for me, genuinely chilling, as opposed to the often quasi-comical or just outright bonkers Gaga outfits. For a song that is all about 'other-ness' and things coming from beyond our world, it fits perfectly.

The whole visual feel of the video is sumptuous - very Final Fantasy meets the Fifth Element. Kanye gets to ride in one of those cool futuristic sphere things that could have come straight out of Girls Aloud's Untouchable video.

ET works so well because it's a thing of contrasts, the harsh, mechanical beats with Katy's airy, supernatural vocals... her astounding beauty (particularly in the final vampy get-up) with the unsettling nature of the alien touches. You're never quite sure how you should feel, bewitched or frightened, enchanted or scared. One thing's for sure though, it's a great song, made even better by a brilliant video.