“I can’t run from where I came from, nobody can,” says Katy Perry. When it came time to make her exhilarating second album “Teenage Dream,” Katy found herself increasingly drawn back home to Santa Barbara, Calif. Back to where they knew her before she became a superstar. Before she kissed a girl and liked it. And, certainly, before she sold 5 million copies of her Capitol Records blockbuster, “One of the Boys.”

“I love the vibe that Santa Barbara gives off and I wanted to really tap into the purity of my childhood and that feeling,” says the two-time Grammy nominated singer. “It was really fun to get away and walk into the studio with no make-up on.”

“Teenage Dream,” out Aug. 24, will move you, both emotionally and physically. “When I was touring, I wanted people to dance more,” Katy says. “So I wrote an album that made people move, yet didn’t sacrifice the story substance that I had on the last record.”

The album, whose producers include Max Martin, Tricky Stewart, Stargate, Dr. Luke and Greg Wells, is a glorious evolution from “One of The Boys,” It showcases an artist who dares us to join her as she experiences every facet of life.

“I’m giving everyone the full spectrum on this record,” Katy says. “You’re getting the sugary sweet, but you’re also getting the ‘Oh my goodness, she had to sit down for a minute and let some things off her chest’.”

Fun first single, “California Gurls,” declared by Entertainment Weekly as “unforgettable,” is the undeniable summer anthem of 2010. Featuring Snoop Dogg, “Gurls” is a sizzling salute to sun-kissed days spent in Daisy Dukes and a bikini top. Other album highlights include the heartbreakingly wistful “The One that Got Away,” the naughty, playful strut of “Peacock,” the uplifting “Firework,” the pulsing, stinging “Circle the Drain,” and the spiritual quest of “Who Am I Living For.”

And then, of course, there’s the passionate, thumping title track. “I called the album ‘Teenage Dream’ because I feel like I will always want to be that pin-up poster,” Katy says. “I definitely want to be in everybody’s dreams at all times until I get to Liz Taylor’s age when I’m not in your dreams anymore, and I’m just a diva!”

Southfield, Michigan-bred Mike Posner, 22, is not only a recent Duke University graduate but also an incredible producer/singer/songwriter. He has already built a rabid following by tirelessly touring including dates on the Warped Tour. Mike calls his sound guiltless pop music and features the work of producer Benny Blanco (Britney Spears, Ke$ha). The first single from 31 Minutes To Takeoff, Cooler Than Me, has exploded at radio and is dominating the charts.

MAYA, M.I.A’s third full length release, follows the internationally critically acclaimed records Arular (2005) and Kala (2007). Like its predecessors MAYA deftly mixes politics, social consciousness, and inimitable genre blending. Perhaps as much a political statement as a musical one, the new album scathingly takes on our ever-increasing dependence on the digital world.

Influences on the sound of MAYA include dubstep, electro, punk, and pop but the end result is not so easy to define. With songs geared towards the dance floor (“XXXO”, “Teqkilla”), the rock club (“Born Free”), or towards a quiet moment alone (“It Iz What Iz”), MAYA covers a lot of ground, but is held together by the controversial and incomparable aesthetic of one Maya Arulpragasam.

Track Listings