My Pride Music Playlist - 7/16/2024

 
My Pride Music Playlist - 7/16/2024

1. Lemonade Mouth - Determinate
2. David Archuleta - Switch
3. Bad Bunny - Tití Me Preguntó
4. Plasma - Don't Rain on My Parade
5. Tevin Campbell - I 2 I
6. Aaron Carter - Crush on You
7. Aaron Carter - I Want Candy
8. Dream - This is Me
9. Sylvester - You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)
10. Bob the Drag Queen - Gay Barz
11. Toderick Hall - Twerking in the Rain
12. Michael Johnston - Gravity
13. Oliver Twixt - Lolly (featuring The Chordettes)
14. Jamie Miller - It Is What It Is 
15. Blue - This Temptation
16. Blue - One Love
17. FO&O - Hurt Like We Did
18. Omar Rudberg - Moving Like That
19. Calum Scott - You Are The Reason
20. FutureLove - Obsessed
21. ETHAN - Single In The Club
22. Ricky Martin - María
23. AJ McLean - Electric
24. Omar Apollo - Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me at All)
25. PinkPantheresss - Boy’s A Liar Ft. Ice Spice (Extended Remix)
26. S Club 7 - So Right
27. S Club 7 - Have You Ever
28. Steps - It's the Way You Make Me Feel (Official Video)
29. John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Michael Lomenda, and Vincent Piazza - "Closing Credits "Sherry/December 1963, Oh What A Night Finale"
30. Gustaph - Already Know

My Pride Music Playlist - 7/14/2024

 

And here it is: this is my first attempt at making a playlist mainly centered around the LGBTQIA+ music artists, with the occasional odd ally. So it's probably not the best, but we all have to start somewhere. And I'm really proud of how this playlist turned out.

It mostly focuses on recording artists who were already well-known before they came out, but eventually came out before the making of this series.

My Pride Music Playlist - 7/14/2024

1. Domo Wilson - Bisexual Anthem
2. Janet Jackson - Free Xone
3. Mad Tsai - Boy Bi
4. John Duff - Hokie Pokie
5. David Archuleta - OK, All Right
6. Demi Lovato - This Is Me (featuring Joe Jonas)
7. Adam Lambert - Whataya Want From Me
8. Jim  Verraros - All I Am (Cyber Trick)
9. Tevin Campbell - Can We Talk
10. Monifah - I Miss You (Come Back Home) (featuring Heavy D)
11. Phase Five - Upside Down
12. Echo V - Rainbow
13. 3LW - Playas Gon Play
14. The Cheetah Girls - Step Up
15. Raven-Symoné - Green
16. Menudo - Lost
17. David Archuleta - I'm Yours
18. Fin Argus - Exposure
19. Allocai - Bad for Me
20. Tevin Campbell - Tell Me What You Want Me to Do
21. Jason Mraz - I Feel Like Dancing
22. David Archuleta - Afraid to Love
23. Oliver Twixt - Zap
24. Kerry D - With You
25. Midnight Red - Take Me Home
26. Menudo - En Mis Sueños
27. Joel Corry - Head & Heart (featuring MNEK)
28. Awgust - Boys Don't Cry
29. Troye Sivan - Angel Baby
30. MNEK - Girlfriend

My Pride Music Playlists

Hey beautiful people! 

Since the summer of 2024, I've created a colorful collection of songs from queer, trans, and nonbinary artists (past and present) for everyone to enjoy. 

Also included are some of my personal favorite allies, some of whose songs became queer anthems. But while those artists are much easier to find and include (not to mention, more well-known), there aren't that many of them on these playlists. That is because I decided to let the LGBTQIA+ artists take center stage, out of respect. Keep in mind that bands and groups that consist of at least one queer/trans/nonbinary member are also eligible. 

If you know of any other artists from the community (preferably artists who already came out), feel free to recommend them to me, and I'll add their music. As long as I'm alive, and humans aren't extinct, this series will never be complete.

Enjoy!

Here are all the playlists I've created so far

1. 7/14/2024
   
2. 
   

Universal Studios Hollywood - StarWay/Plaza/Lower Lot Xmas BGM (2021)

Since as early as 2021, every Grinchmas season (December to January), these hit Christmas songs will play on a loop for Universal Plaza, the StarWay escalators, and Lower Lot.

* = no longer included on the music loop

Here's the link to the YouTube playlist!

1. Mariah Carey - All I Want for Christmas is You
2. Kelly Clarkson - Christmas Eve
3. Emmy the Great & Tim Wheeler - Zombie Christmas
4. Royal Crown Revue - Hey Santa
5. Barenaked Ladies - Green Christmas
6. The Beach Boys - Santa's Beard
7. Mariah Carey - Oh Santa!
8. Kelly Clarkson - 4 Carats
9. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - Mr. Heatmiser
10. Fitz and the Tantrums - Santa Stole My Lady
11. Jackson 5 - Someday at Christmas
12. Little Isidor And The Inquisitors - Christmas of Love
13. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - Just Another Christmas Song
14. Bruce Springsteen - Santa Claus is Coming to Town
15. Ben Folds - Lonely Christmas Eve
16. Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Whoville Medley: Perfect Christmas Night/Grinch*
    
17. George Thorogood & The Destroyers - Rock and Roll Christmas
18. John Lennon - Happy Xmas (War is Over)
19. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Christmas All Over Again
20. Sia - Santa's Coming for Us
21. Eels - Christmas Is Going To The Dogs
22. Sheryl Crow - Run Rudolph Run 
23. Wham! - Last Christmas
24. U2 - Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
25. Pentatonix - Carol of the Bells
26. Gwen Stefani - You Make it Feel Like Christmas (featuring Blake Shelton)
27. Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas?
28. Kelly Clarkson - Santa, Can't You Hear Me (featuring Ariana Grande)
29. Michael Bublé - Jingle Bells (Feat. The Puppini Sisters)
30. The Supremes - My Favorite Things*

LMNT - Making the Forgotten Band

The 2000s decade wasn't a good one for pop boy bands, and saw the hiatus of the Backstreet Boys, and the disbandment of NSYNC, 98 Degrees and 5ive. But it was also quite an experimental decade for singing groups in general on the small screen; especially within the genres of reality television and comedy. Before shows like 2GE+HER, Big Time Rush, and Making Menudo, there was Making the Band. 

While most fans of the ABC/MTV reality series favor the later seasons that gave the world various acts such as Day 26 and Danity Kane, I only watched the original iteration of the series. Sometimes referred to as Making the Band 1 - to help distinguish it from the later versions that apparently happened - this three-season era didn't just give us the quintet O-Town. It also introduced us to three future members of a lesser-known boy band called LMNT, pronounced 'element'.

Earth

These future members were 25-year-old Bryan Chan, 21-year-old Ikaika Kahoano, and 19-year-old Mike Miller. In 1999, these three young men each auditioned to become members of O-Town, as documented on the very first season of Making the Band. Ikaika - whose name means 'strong as the sea' - grew up in a musical family. His father (Kimo Kahoano) was a fire knife dancer and went on to work as a singer, dancer, actor, emcee, and DJ. And his mother (Lynette Kahoano), and two brothers (Haku and Kamuela) can also sing. 

Ikaika himself already had experience singing in a music group, having performed in an acappella group in high school, and recorded an album (1999's Fruit from the Tree) with his brothers under the band name ANO. He would join Bryan and Mike as three of the eight finalists on the show. And while Mike and Bryan did not make it into O-Town, Ikaika became an official member of the group, and was joined by Ashley Angel, Erik-Michael Estrada, Trevor Penick, and Jacob Underwood. 

Eventually in 2000, Ikaika would leave O-Town and Making the Band during the show's first season. Realizing that music would be an afterthought in favor of reality TV drama, and feeling like some of the other members were vocally and physically weak were some of the many reasons why he left. During his short time on the show, Ikaika recorded two songs for the group: "All for Love" and "Baby I Would". And according to Ikaika himself, he would've left O-Town anyway, when he heard that the group's first single was to be "Liquid Dreams".

Ikaika was later replaced by Dan Miller (the best singer of O-Town), who at age 19 also auditioned to be in the group back in 1999. Whether people loved or hated Ikaika, the brightest side of him leaving was that he no longer had to worry about Lou Pearlman. 

Fire

Ikaika returned to Hawaii, working a regular job and tutoring. Meanwhile, Bryan Chan and Mike Miller were starting a new vocal group, and Bryan wanted Ikaika to join. After his brief stint with O-Town, Ikaika was not exactly interested, but eventually had a change of heart and became the third member. Rounding out the group was 21-year-old Broadway star Matthew Morrison. 

An unnamed band at the time, they were eventually signed to Atlantic Records, who would hold a contest in the pages of a Teen People magazine to select a name for the new band. The winning name ended up being LMNT, which was admittedly a strange name to pronounce.

Together, the quartet recorded and performed for about a good year. But by the late summer of 2001, Matthew was no longer in the group. For Matthew, being in the band (which he refers to as "Lament") was not a positive experience; calling it embarrassing, and one of the biggest mistakes that he had ever made in his life. Having to sing "stupid, ridiculous songs" was apparently not for him. Hmmm... So Matthew was gone, and in his place was 18-year-old Jonas Persch. With the addition of Jonas came a lineup of LMNT that would be the most recognizable - at least for those that remember LMNT at all.

The new and improved LMNT released their energetic debut single "Juliet" on November 13, 2001. The song peaked at #49 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales Chart, and amazingly received a lot of airplay on Radio Disney, where it reached #1 and stayed in that position for eight consecutive weeks. The single - which would become their signature song - was even given a very interesting yet iconic music video on March 29, 2002, taking place in a laundromat. 

In the Spring of 2002, the guys got to tour with O-Town as the opening act in Palm Beach, Florida. Then on June 4, 2002, they finally released their debut album, entitled All Sides. The title was meant to represent the diverse musical tastes of each member, and imply that they were not like other boy bands. Unfortunately... All Sides received very poor reviews from music critics and only managed to hit #40 on Billboard's US Heatseekers Albums Chart. Still, I'm really not a hard person to please, and there were some decent highlights from All Sides, besides "Juliet": "Get it All", "The Best", "Forget to Forget" (co-written by Billy Crawford), and especially "It's Your Love" (originally performed by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill). An honorable (or maybe dishonorable) mention goes to the train wreck that is "Shangri La", easily one of the best worst songs they have ever done. That's right: BEST WORST.

Nonetheless, "Juliet" was a hit on Radio Disney, and that's all that mattered. In the summer of 2002, LMNT participated in the A*TEENS' Pop 'Til You Drop! Tour, alongside reggae band Baha Men, Christian co-ed pop group Jump5, and pop girl group Play. And they even got to tour with Britney Spears on her Dream Within a Dream Tour that same summer. In the Fall, "Juliet" reached #1 in Singapore and stayed in that position for four straight weeks. There were talks of possibly touring in Asia for early 2003, in response to the success. But on September 2002, LMNT became one of many music acts dropped by Atlantic Records, in order for the label to cut costs following the tragic 9/11 attacks the year prior.

In the meantime, Ikaika Kahoano had missed a handful of appearances, leaving the rest of LMNT to carry on as best as they possibly could. Their status as a trio was not official until Ikaika finally left the group by early December. The reason given was that he wanted to return to Hawaii to be with his family. Instead of finding another member to maintain their four-piece status, Bryan, Mike and Jonas agreed to soldier on as a trio, with their first public appearance as such being at the WBLI Winter Jam on December 2nd. Ikaika's departure was confirmed two days later, and it was reported that the trio would return to the studio shortly after to work on a second album, with hopes to get back on the road in early January 2003.

Water

On January 11, 2003, LMNT was back with a new song entitled "You're the One". It was recorded for an animated movie called 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure. I don't know what that movie is, to be honest. But from what I understand, the movie featured a nine-year-old Bobby Lockwood as the titular character, pre-House-of-Anubis and pre-Wolfblood. Back to the song, it was LMNT's first release under Walt Disney Records, after no longer being signed to Atlantic Records. Knowing Disney, "You're the One" can only technically be called a 'single', as it was only released exclusively on Radio Disney, and never officially released as a physical or digital record. It was not even included in the movie's soundtrack. The music video was basically just a montage of what I am guessing were the most memorable/iconic scenes from the movie, so LMNT was nowhere to be seen; just heard. The song itself was actually really good, but was not a success on Radio Disney, and was even rejected by listeners via Radio Disney's Music Mailbag. Does anyone remember Music Mailbag? I don't. Eventually, "You're the One" was included on the compilation album Radio Disney Jams 6 (released on September 9, 2003).

More than three months after the release of "You're the One", the guys attended the premiere of The Lizzie McGuire Movie at Los Angeles's El Capitan Theatre on April 26th (one day after my ninth birthday). They were there to promote not only the movie, but also their new song for the soundtrack: "Open Your Eyes (To Love)". This midtempo ballad is not only the shortest song they've ever recorded, but it's easily their best... song... EVER. And it sounds very appropriate for a second album, if that ever actually happened.

LMNT's next song would be made for the Disney Channel Original Series Kim Possible. The song was called "It's Just You", sung almost entirely by group member Jonas Persch. It was included on the Kim Possible soundtrack (released July 22, 2003), and it was a terrible song. And because the song was meant for children, LMNT would have the corniest music video of their careers known to man. At least "Juliet" had a more iconic (and dare I say, way less juvenile) conept. 

And finally, their last song was a cover of "A Whole New World" from the Disney animated film Aladdin, originally sung by Brad Kane and Lea Salonga for the movie, and later Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle for the film's soundtrack. LMNT's version is a beautiful underrated rendition, and on par with "Open Your Eyes (To Love)" and "It's Your Love", if you ask me. It was recorded specifically for the DisneyMania 2 album. As I mentioned on my blog about the music supergroup Disney Channel Circle of Stars, DisneyMania was a compilation album franchise in which music artists would sing their own version of one of their favorite Disney songs.

But months before the DisneyMania 2 album was ever released, LMNT quietly called it quits around the late summer of 2003. There was no official announcement given to confirm the disbandment. But on August 25, 2003 - exactly 20 years before this blog entry was posted - LMNT's official website (lmntmusic.com) was shut down (although it can still be found within Internet Archive these days). And when that happens, that usually means the end. DisneyMania 2 would eventually be released on January 2004, with LMNT's version of "A Whole New World" included on the album, as planned.

Air

As of now, it is publicly unknown what Mike Miller has been up to since LMNT ended. However, last I heard, he has been living in the state of South Carolina. 

Jonas Persch started a career in Furniture Sales and Design, and is now the president of OFS Interiors (based in Holladay, Utah), which he founded in June 17, 2008. 

Bryan Chan became a member of a male dance troupe in Las Vegas, Nevada called the Chippendales. And these days, he works as an emcee, host, and real estate agent for Prominent Realty Group LLC. Besides that, and a past relationship with television personality and fellow Chippendales member Jaymes Vaughan, Bryan keeps a very low profile, much like Mike Miller. 

Without a doubt the most notable and successful member of LMNT is Matthew Morrison, and not because of the group. After being the first member to jump ship, Matthew returned to Broadway, where he had already made a name for himself. He also released a few albums as a solo artist, and became best known for his role as William Schuester in one the most popular, yet polarizing TV shows of all time, Glee. What are the odds of that? So the man has been booked and busy, and continues to be the only LMNT member to still remain active in the entertainment industry. Just don't ask him about LMNT.

And then there was Ikaika Kahoano, who - after leaving the group - kept himself busy. In addition to family, education always came first, and I admire him for that. He would earn his BA in Biology, graduate with honors from the University of Hawaii in December 2003, and receive tuition waivers for tutoring Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry. He taught in both middle and high school for two years, and served five years as an Officer in the US Army (after spending the first two years as a military medical student at F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland). In 2009, Ikaika won the Army Physical Fitness Test Award during the 2009 OBLC (Officer Basic Leader Course) in Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

After being Honorably Discharged from the military, Ikaika (who has also been passionate about fitness his whole life) put his academic background in science and nutrition to use, and created Model-Fit Hawaii in 2011. And from that year until 2017, he was a radio cohost for the Aloha Friday Morning Show alongside his father Kimo Kahoano, stepmother Kumu Hula Leilani Kahoano, and DJ Minone. The radio show and podcast aired on KKNE AM 940 every Friday, and became the only Father/Son radio show on the air in Hawaii for six years. Ikaika was responsible for the Sportstime segment of the show with his tagline being “Go sports!”

He also managed to make time to star in three movies: Camp Slaughter (also known as Camp Daze) in 2005, Supergator in 2007, and El Chapo and the Curse of the Pirate Zombies which has yet to be released. And as a model, he signed with Premiere Models and Talent in Honolulu in 2004. With regards to music, he joined his younger brother Kamuela Kahoano in a duo called Green Light Go in 2005, and they released their self-titled album two years later. For the record, while many people have trashed LMNT's one and only album All Sides, Ikaika has openly stated that he is proud of the album and that it is still one of his favorites to this day.

LMNT was a very underrated group that only a handful of people, who do remember them, will only talk about them if they want something to mock. While LMNT certainly did not reach the same popularity, praise or success some of the other boy bands did in the 2000s - a decade that was not a great one for boy bands anyway - they will always have a special place in my heart. If Bryan Chan, Mike Miller and Ikaika Kahoano never met by way of Making the Band, there is no telling if "Juliet" would have existed at all. "Juliet" is still one of my favorite boy band songs of all time, and the first song I think of when the now-defunct Radio Disney comes to mind. 

One Year Later...

Hi everyone! Did you miss me? I cannot believe that it has been a year. A YEAR... since my last blog entry. 

A lot has happened since January 4, 2021.

I was given the opportunity to redesign a logo for the House of Noied, a lifestyle and design production company founded by reality stars Deion and Rome. They loved it and continue to use it as their official logo. As for school, I continue to make great progress each semester and show no signs of stopping or slowing down.

But perhaps my biggest and proudest moment in 2021 was that I got a job. On April 26, 2021, I visited Universal Studios Hollywood for the first time since August 2019, and had a wonderful time. It was during my visit that I was wondering what type of job I could possibly do in the park. Whatever it was, all I knew was that I did not want to work in retail again. 

And then about less than an hour before riding the newest attraction The Secret Life of Pets Off the Leash, I was eating my Krusty Burger lunch at Universal Plaza; just chilling out and enjoying the Fast & Furious music in the background. While eating my food, I randomly started observing the park attendants doing their job, and thought, "Maybe I can do that." At the time, I didn't know that the job position was called Park Services Attendant, but I felt in my heart that this was my calling. I was determined to find the name of the position as soon as I got home. 

But I literally had to push myself to stop worrying about rejection and just apply for the job. Believe it or not, there were several job offerings for Park services Attendant via Indeed.com, and I applied for all of them DAILY. Just in case, I also applied for Studio Tour Ambassador and (when in doubt) Retail, not that there were many available openings for those. But I think it was clear to the people reading my applications that I really wanted to work as a Park Services Attendant, and that I really wanted to be a part of the team in any capacity. 

Then came the phone calls, which always made me very nervous. The first phone call was basically me confirming that everything in my resume and job application for Park Services Attendant was factual. A few days later, the next phone call about when it would be a good time to do a job interview. The interview happened just two days later, and I was more excited than nervous. Not to mention, hot as Hell because I was wearing a business suit in early afternoon August, but it was worth it. I felt absolutely confident throughout that five-minute-long interview, knew what I was talking about, and knew what the job I was going for entailed. 

I was told that I would get another phone call, within the next seven days, to find out whether or not I got the job. That part made me the most nervous, but I really wanted to believe that I made a great first impression on my interview. And I must have because as I was running errands, I randomly get a phone call from Universal Studios Hollywood just four days later. I was expecting to hear that I did not get the job, and instead I am congratulated for actually getting it! I was so happy that I nearly lost my composure while still talking on the phone. And as soon as I thanked them, hung up the phone and got back home after finishing my errands, I went into my room and screamed. I was screaming, I was crying, I was overwhelmed, and I was grateful. 

Two weeks later on August 24, 2021, I was officially a team member for Universal Studios Hollywood. Because I went through training, a fitting, and taking every feedback I can get, it was very empowering to be a part of the team. And I'm proud to still be working for Universal Studios Hollywood to this day!

And that is basically where I had been, and why I had not been active on Blogger since January 4, 2020. That is not to say that I do not plan on writing anymore blogs in the future, because I have plenty of drafts left incomplete. But timing is everything. Until then, thank you all so much for your patience, and I hope to see you guys real soon.

 - J

Disney Channel Circle of Stars

15 years before Disney formed the a cappella group DCapella, who specializes in Disney covers, Disney created what I like to call a "once every few years" singing group who also specialized in Disney covers and would later have original material almost 20 years later. This group is officially known today as the Disney Channel Stars (I know; very original), but they were also known as the Disney Channel All Stars, Disney's Circle of Stars, while being better known as the Disney Channel Circle of Stars. Hmm... I wonder where the latter two names came from...

Unfortunately, there's never really been any actual facts about how or why the Disney Channel Stars were even put together to begin with. That could be because they were not meant to be a very active singing group. But I am going to try my best to give you the basics of what I think started the Disney Channel Stars singing group, and then speak of the songs they have recorded together since 2003.

SO TAKE WHAT I'M ABOUT TO SAY ABOUT THEIR "HISTORY" WITH A GRAIN OF SALT!

Remember DisneyMania?

It's my belief that the story of the Disney Channel Stars begins with a compilation cover album that Walt Disney Records released on September 17, 2002. Entitled DisneyMania, this album would be the first of seven official volumes of the DisneyMania series. 

This is perhaps the coolest album that
Disney has ever put together.
Not just in the series, but of ALL TIME!

It was a very unique record at the time, as the singers who participated were to record their own versions of their favorite Disney songs. It was also the most unique of the entire series of albums, because it featured some of 2002's hottest artists (half of which you would never expect to hear on anything associated with Disney), including Baha Men, Usher, Ashanti (alongside her sister Kenashia), S Club 7, Ronan Keating, NSYNC, and the queen herself Anastacia. Also featured were the more tween-friendly artists Jump5, No Secrets, A-TEENS, Hilary Duff, and (of all people) Aaron Carter.

Although DisneyMania peaked at #52 on the Billboard 200, the record was still considered a hit and was certified Gold in February 2003. While it probably wasn't as mainstream as it seemed, the non-Disney artists made it very mainstream-friendly in my mind. 

Now let's be honest: most of us, even as children, would have never imagined some of these icons being on a Disney album for a multitude of reasons, but I'm glad they were, simply because I didn't watch Disney Channel yet, so I didn't know who Hilary Duff was. Sadly, the idea of bringing in artists who are not associated with Disney would slowly decrease by the seventh and final volume, DisneyMania 7 (2010). But to be fair, I would think that it's cheaper to just focus more on singers and rappers who are actually signed to Walt Disney Records or Hollywood Records. And for the most part, that's what Disney ended up doing, no only with later installments in the DisneyMania series, but also with Disney Channel.

So what does DisneyMania have to do with the Disney Channel Stars? Well, given that the whole idea of the DisneyMania project was to have every artist record a cover of a Disney song of their choice, and Disney Channel was becoming even bigger by this point thanks to its various sitcoms, it was only a matter of time before Disney Channel and DisneyMania came together somehow. Plus, Hilary Duff was the most recent Disney Channel actress on a recent Disney Channel show to be featured on the album. NSYNC's Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera (who's version of Reflection (Mulan) is also on DisneyMania for some reason despite being released in 1998) had already moved on from the Disney Channel by 2002.

The Real Deal...

In 2003, Disney came up with the idea of creating a supergroup of the latest actors from the latest of Disney Channel original shows and movies. Eventually, the group was put together, and at first they were known as the Disney Channel Circle of Stars. Figured out where the name comes from yet? However in Hungary, they were actually referred to as the Disney Channel All Stars instead. The original hook was that the group would record a pop-oriented cover of a Disney song to help promote a special edition DVD release of a Disney movie, from which the original song came. The DVD-promotion thingy was only the case with their first two covers: "Circle of Life" (The Lion King) in 2003 and "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" (Cinderella) in 2005. 

Both songs were also recorded to be a part of the DisneyMania franchise. "Circle of Life" appeared on DisneyMania 2, which was released on January 27, 2004. And two years later, "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" made its way into DisneyMania 4, which came out on April 4, 2006, during which this supergroup was now being referred to as simply the Disney Channel Stars. Admittedly, that name is less of a mouthful unlike its previous name, but not as memorable to many. 

After that, it seemed like the group and its gimmick were officially done. During the next decade, the Disney Channel would bring in fresh faces to our screens, from Roshon Fegan to Zendaya Coleman. So ideally, there would be fresh faces for the group, right? But by 2010, the DisneyMania series was no more, and there wouldn't be another song for the seemingly defunct Disney Channel Stars for that long period of time.

[NOTE: That is, of course, unless you count the song that Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers did called "Send It On" for the Friends for Change PSA in 2009. I don't count that for one reason, and one reason only: they were credited as "Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez," not as "Disney Channel Stars." Heck, even Disney never considered "Send It On" to be a song for the Disney Channel Stars either. But the music is freaking beautiful! The lyrics, on the other hand, are super cheesy, but the vocals are great.]

Then to my shock, Disney brought the group back in 2014. On July 20th of that year, the newly christened Disney's Circle of Stars (figured it out yet?) returned with a cover of "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" from the 2013 film Frozen. Christmas in July. This version of the supergroup was more of a choir, as there were a lot more people this time around (23 to be exact); most of whom were only singing the backing vocals. By the way, even though the name "Disney's Circle of Stars" didn't last, the omission of the term "channel" should have given away that some of the actors actually came from sister network Disney XD, whether or not they were also on the Disney Channel. Whether or not this was intentional, I Stan the variety!

In 2015, the group went back to their third name Disney Channel Stars. And as of right now, that is their official name, indicating that none of the newest members come from Disney XD. Damn... The next song, released on December 18, 2015, marked a departure from the tradition of only covering Disney songs. Instead, they covered a Christmas song, and their version was literally a jingle for the  Disney Channel: "Jingle Bell Rock". The song wasn't bad; it was fine. But by then, the whole cover thing was starting to get pretty stale. It didn't help that this specific cover had to be one of MANY frequently covered Christmas songs. It was time to move on. 

Then for the first time ever, the Disney Channel Stars would get their very first original song: "Legendary". Released on October 18, 2018, the track was featured on an episode of Raven's Home, and is an empowering anthem that celebrates girls and women working together. It is a very well-done song, and a great first original for the Disney Channel Stars. Oh, and it's the first to feature rapping! Overall, the song was a really good start to a possibly new direction for the Disney Channel Stars, especially now that an a cappella group had been formed by Disney Music Group around this time, under the name DCappella. They are what I like to call "the official Disney cover group".  

Aren't Kelly Taylor and Joe Santoni
just the dreamiest DCappella members
you've ever seen?!

Back to the Disney Channel Stars, their next and latest song released in November 28, 2020. It was a Christmas song, but thankfully an original and not a cover. "Put the Happy in the Holidays" is an uplifting up-tempo holiday song that literally put a smile on my face the first time I heard it! And it was truly a song that needed to be made, given how tragic a year 2020 was. To date, this is also the Disney Channel Stars' happiest song. "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" was close, but "Put the Happy in the Holidays" really put the much-needed high energy in the Disney Channel Stars, who usually had a serious, moody (and sometimes depressing) tone in their music.

If this group continues, it will be interesting to see what's next in store. Hopefully another original song? Because right now, DCappella is THE cover group for all things Disney. We'll just have to wait and see.

In retrospect...

I don't think the Disney Channel Stars were really meant to last. But they couldn't have come at a better time than the early 2000s; a time when Disney Channel had already had a handful of successful original shows and movies by 2003. At that point, it seemed to be a rule that if you were going to be a main cast member on a Disney Channel series, you had to know how to sing, and you would probably be signed to either Walt Disney Records or Hollywood Records or both. Obviously, that's not true for every actor that's been on a Disney Channel series during the past two decades, but who didn't believe that assumption? We'll wait.

That said, not everyone who was a member the Disney Channel Stars is a recording artist. As a matter of fact, some of them have not recorded another song since (or even before) their stint in the group, because they're not singers at all (their words; not mine). For those people, it was probably just a one-time thing. The fact that the group even exists on and off  to this day kind of begs the question: were all of the members obligated to sing in the group as long as they were still on the Disney Channel, or was their participation voluntary? I guess we'll never know, because like I said, there's not a lot of ACTUAL information. But hey, get your money while you still can. I certainly wish I had this group's bravery, but I cannot sing at all. 

And so concludes my uh... sort of history (if you will) on the Disney Channel Stars. I'm sure most of you reading this grew up with the "post-Zoog" era of the Disney Channel and had no idea that this supergroup still existed to this day. They may not be the group that you would have preferred based on when you started watching the Disney Channel as a kid, but that's what happens when a singing group is built around the latest actors from the latest of Disney Channel original shows and movies. It's like school, or the boyband Menudo: people come and people go.

Hope to see y'all next time, and until then, here are the music videos of all the songs the Disney Channel Stars have performed so far, including the names of every member for each lineup.

Prepare to feel old!

Circle of Life (2003)

(Orlando Brown, Hilary Duff, Tahj Mowry, Kyla Pratt, Christy Carlson Romano, Raven-Symoné, A.J. Trauth and Annelise van der Pol)

A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes (2005)

(Orlando Brown, Amy Bruckner, Aly Michalka, Kyla Pratt, Brenda Song, Cole Sprouse, Dylan Sprouse, Raven-Symoné, Ashley Tisdale, Raviv Ullman and Annelise van der Pol)

Do You Want to Build a Snowman? (2014)

(Leigh-Allyn Baker, Kelli Berglund, Rowan Blanchard, Joey Bragg, Karan Brar, Sabrina Carpenter, Kevin Chamberlin, Peyton Clark, Piper Curda, Jordan Fisher, Sarah Gilman, Olivia Holt, Leo Howard, Skai Jackson, Peyton List, Blake Michael, Austin North, Bradley Steven Perry, Grace Phipps, Jake Short, Dylan Riley Snyder, Tenzing Norgay Trainor and Tyrell Jackson Williams)

Jingle Bell Rock (2015)

(Nathan Arenas, Karan Brar, Sabrina Carpenter, Sofia Carson, Gus Kamp, Nina Lu, Miranda May and Kevin G. Quinn)

Legendary (2018)

(Meg Donnelly, Madison Hu, Sky Katz, DeVore Ledridge, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Kayla Maisonet, Jenna Ortega, Sophie Pollono, Dara Renee', Navia Robinson, Olivia Rodrigo, Sofia Rosinsky, Kylee Russell, Olivia Sanabia, Ruby Rose Turner, Sofia Wylie and Cozi Zuehlsdorff)

Put the Happy in the Holidays (2020)

(Meg Donnelly, Issac Ryan Brown, Chandler Kinney, Trevor Tordjman, Ruth Righi, Navia Robinson and Sky Katz)

Hi, I'm Jordan Brown and you're watching Disney Channel!