To honor the birthdays of pop music icons Madonna, Prince and Michael Jackson (who all turn 50 this year), Hypeful.com has put together a list of 150 cover songs of their material that other artists recorded over the years. They generously offer MP3s of each song, and some of the performers are favorite female artists and bands of AfterEllen.com bloggers and readers.

A few of the songs surprised me. For instance, did you know actress Rebecca Romjin recorded a version of Prince’s naughty “Darling Nikki” back when she was married to John Stamos? Others are a bit more familiar like Tegan and Sara’s version of “When You Were Mine.”

Michael Jackson songs:

“I Want You Back”: K.T. Tunstall, Nickel Creek
“Thriller”: Petra Haden

“Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough": Shivaree
“Beat It”: Amy Winehouse and Charlotte Church (Actually, it’s worth watching this train wreck.) … continue reading

How about a little reader participation? First, slide your feet up the street. Now bend your back. Next, shift your arm. Then you pull it back. That’s right, my friend, you’re walking like an Egyptian. And you know who else is right there with you? KT Tunstall.

The British songstress has covered the Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” for Yahoo! Music’s Cover Art series (you may remember Mandy Moore’s impassioned take on "Umbrella" for the series last summer). Let’s give KT’s take a listen, complete with kick-ass whistle solo.

KT’s reason for picking the ’80s smash couldn’t be cooler: “That song made me think it was probably cooler to be a girl than a boy because the Bangles were so cool.” Amen to that. … continue reading

Some things just naturally go together. Chocolate and peanut butter. Ebony and ivory. Laurel and Hardy. Other stuff, well, it needs a little more explanation. Like, I’ve always been a little confused by the Nobel Peace Prize Concert. It’s not that I think the winners of the Peace Prize don't deserve a good show. Quite the contrary. But I’ve been somewhat intrigued by the lineups in the past. What, exactly, do pop megasuperstars have to do with world peace?

Since it began in 1994, some of the hottest international performers have played the concert to honor the winners of one most respected international awards. This year the lineup includes Melissa Etheridge, Kylie Minogue, Alicia Keys, Annie Lennox and KT Tunstall. The show was hosted by Uma Thurman and Kevin Spacey. Great lineup. Cool hosts. But I’m still perplexed. Should we now change it to "all we are saying is give Uma a chance"? … continue reading