Song of the Moment: Give Your Heart A Break by Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato has a lot to celebrate lately. After a tumultuous period which include an assault and revelations of cutting, she released a new album and scored a coveted (okay, maybe not so coveted) role on X Factor alongside pop icon Britney Spears.

She also has a hot new song with the second single from Unbroken called "Give Your Heart A Break". It's a really sweet song, which is weird to call such an energetic song. In it, Demi is offering emotional support to her loveshy love interest, promising his heart a "break" from all of the hurt he has suffered in the past. It should come off as cheesy, but Demi is so passionately sincere that you can't help but appreciate it. Plus, the chorus is ridiculously catchy, which is always a plus. Even though there are times when I feel Demi oversings a bit, it is a very good vocal showing on her part. She is certainly the most talented of the Disney pop stars, if not the most exciting (that belongs to Selena Gomez).

Lovato will get a much needed boost from appearing on X Factor, and with this song spinning on the radio, I'm sure the television exposure won't be wasted.

3.5 STARS

Song of the Moment: "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri

4 STARS

I really don't care for Twilight, a feeling that has extended to nearly every aspect of the franchise, including its soundtracks. It is the primary reason why I ignored Bruno Mars' "It Will Rain" when top 40 went psycho for it (the other reason being it wasn't that good).

A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon another song from the soundtrack while listening to the radio, not really knowing where it was from. The song was "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri, the same girl behind last year's inescapable break-up ballad "Jar of Hearts". I had seen the title floating around the iTunes Top 100 since last year, but never bothered every clicking the preview button. I had figured it was shoved to the top of the charts by trigger-happy fangirls willing to buy anything with Robert Pattinson's face on it.

That still may be true, but the song itself has plenty of pop music merit. It has a simple, yet gorgeous piano and guitar arrangement made for slow dances on ballroom floors across the country. I'm a sucker for a good old-fashioned pop ballad, especially one that promises an epic vocal performance. Perri's vocals are epic, but not in the way you would expect. It's restrained, stretching only slightly for the big moments. She allows the emotive quality of her tone to do all of the heavy lifting, which makes the song both grand and intimate at the same time.

"A Thousand Years" is an excellent record. It can be argued whether or not it was attached to a lousy franchise (you probably could figure where I stand), but the benefit of exposing Christina Perri to a wider audience may just be worth it. This song is definitely a worthy introduction.