The Amazing Saga of Lucy Schwartz and Her Scientist Minions…

My friends, there is a new artist on the block who has songs infecting our television and movie culture, and is finally about to explode on the scene with the released of her new EP “Help Me! Help Me!” Her name is Lucy Schwartz and this young shooting star has been heard in shows like Private Practice, Make It or Break It, and Grey’s Anatomy. We had the chance to slow her down and talk to her about her upcoming EP "Help Me! Help Me!", her scientist minions, and her EP cover picture choice, and may I say that we found a very insightful, eclectic, humorous, and awesome young lady! So pull a chair up to your desk and read a little about Miss Lucy Schwartz!

For the full text version of the Q&A with Lucy check out http://www.hollywoodteenzine.com/, but for the quick and easy summary follow along with me. Not yet 21, Lucy Schwartz is the girl you don’t yet know, but I’m pretty sure you’ve heard her music. She has had songs in a ton of television shows including Private Practice, Make It or Break It, and Grey’s Anatomy along with movies such as Post Grad, Adam, and the upcoming Shreck 4. She is releasing an EP January 26th with a goal to release her full album sometime later this year. If you want to check out some of her music, check out her MySpace account at http://www.myspace.com/lucysong and see why I think she’s got an amazing gift. In our interview for HTZ she discusses how she develops her sound “in a top-secret laboratory with (her) scientist minions”, joking with us as she shares insight into the mind of a songwriter with a maturity beyond her age. She’s humble, helpful, and hilarious throughout the interview discussing melody versus lyrics being “like asking for the peanut butter without the jelly. You need both if you want to make a tasty sandwich”, sharing where the visual for her EP came from, and a discussion of her EP release party at Hotel Café on Wednesday January 27th at 9:00 pm anyone who wants to come and check her out. So give her a listen on MySpace, or grab her EP from Amazon, iTunes, or any of the usual bunch, and give her a listen because you will be glad you did.

Top 5 Reasons to Go For the Gold (Make It or Break It: Season One)

Top 5 Reasons to Go For the Gold
(also known as Make it or Break it – Season One Review)
Review by JAM

Welcome to the new combination of the teenage soap opera drama of 90210 mixed with the intense sport competition of the Summer Games, with a side of Melrose Place when you watch the parental drama and you have the magic of Make It or Break It, ABC Family’s amazing gymnastic drama. While watching it, you must remember the immortal words of Joanne Charis (as played by Vanessa Lengies) from the classic movie Stick It, “It's not called gym-nice-stics.” From the very beginning, storylines involving career threatening injuries, boyfriends cheating with best friends, lying thieving backstabbing gymnasts, and we have not even begun to discuss what’s happening with the parents behind the scenes. Make It or Break It has been able to give us insight into the dramatic aspects of training for Olympic stardom, in a made for television dramatic train-wreck of a way, but I have been caught watching nonstop and so should you. In fact, here’s the top 5 reasons for you to watch Make It or Break It on ABC Family.

Number 5

The gymnastics – Much like the classic Stick It, real gymnasts are used for the majority of the stunts which gives it the true touch of realism, and everyone knows that gymnastics is one of those sports we can’t keep our eyes off of. I think everyone, male or female, wishes they had a little bit of that gymnastics magic in them, whether as simple as the ability to do a handstand or the ability to do a bar routine like Nastia Liukin. The scenes in the gym and at the competitions come off as real enough to keep this from becoming farcical as a sports show, and lets the drama stay where it belongs in the personal lives of the girls. As a former gymnast says, it would be fun to see more of the actual gymnastics, but it might bore the average person. She also says the show really chose good stunt doubles that don’t stand out when covering for the girls, so she appreciates that as well.

Number 4

Lauren Tanner as played by Cassie Scerbo – Lauren is that girl who anyone watching can see is trouble, but of course no one inside the show can. Let us see, she has been shown to be a thief often stealing for her own benefit, a louse of a best friend who continuously promises her loyalty and friendship, a opportunist who slept with her best friend’s secret boyfriend, and a conniving diva who uses this information to betray her friend to her father and try to steal the boyfriend away. And this was all just in the first season. She is the character that you love to hate and hate to watch, but you can’t turn your eyes away from the show. It will be interesting to see what happens as the show goes on.

Number 3

Working class – Emily Kmetko (played by Chelsea Hobbs) has to have a job to help the family pay the bills and continue in her gymnastics dream. Her mom Chloe (Susan Ward) jumps from job to job trying to keep her family together as a single mom. Mark Keeler (Brett Cullen) loses his higher paying job and ends up running a delivery truck to try to make ends meet. His wife Kim (Peri Gilpin) takes a job managing the gym to help out the coach, but also now to help her family. Gymnastics is one of those sports that costs a lot of money as well as the blood, sweat, and tears the girls donate. It gives Make It or Break It some more realism to show the families sacrificing to keep the girls dreams alive.

Number 2

The parents – Besides the Keelers and the Kmetkos mentioned above, the parents on the show are intriguing. The Tanners are an interesting family that lives a double life in order to protect a long gone mother. Originally telling the other girls that she is gone on a mission, it comes out that the last time she was seen was in rehab somewhere, and she never made her way back. Steve Tanner (Anthony Starke) is ready to move on with his life as he has begun to romance Summer Van Horne (Candace Cameron Bure), but Lauren of course wants to keep the roost to herself as daddy’s little girl. Then the Cruzs are another pair, with a former pro athlete father who tries to shield his little princess from too much and a mother who has cheated with a former coach from the gym. It is an interesting web that has been woven. Just as a little aside, Candace Cameron Bure has gone from playing a Tanner on Full House to romancing one in Make It or Break It.

Number 1

The gym – It has almost become its own character during the show, rather than just scenery. Gymnasts spend so much time training that the gym is really a second home, and it is interesting how the gymnasts treat it. Whether cleaning for punishment to bring the team together, being a place where people are offering up cortisone shots around parents’ backs, or broken into to continue broken dreams, the gym becomes more than just scenery as we see it hold power over the girls and their families throughout the show.

And now for the official Make It or Break It press release from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment… How far will they go to achieve their ultimate dream? Experience the rivalry and romance of four teenage girls on their path to Olympic gold in the original ABC Family series that has fans and critics cheering all across the nation. “You’ll flip for…Make It Or Break It,” raves David Hinkley of the New York Daily News. Who will rank #1 at Nationals and what will it take to get there? Viewers will flip for this engaging series chronicling the triumphs and heartbreaks as close friends balance their lives as high school students with the intense world of competitive gymnastics. Fans can relive the series that raises the bar on family drama, complete with a never-before-seen extended episode, and go behind the scenes to discover what it takes to perform such amazing stunts—only on DVD!

Bonus Features
• Never-Before-Seen Extended Finale
• Making It—Watch How These Stars Balance Acting With Difficult Stunts (This was an especially awesome extra with how it detailed the startup of the show along with a discussion on how much the girls had to train to look legit and how the transition between actress and stunt double stays so seemless)
• Deleted Scenes

Make It or Break It: Season One will be available on DVD for purchase here at Amazon.com and other fine retail establishments starting January 12th. Make It or Break It, a perfect 10 for anyone looking for gymnastics drama!

Make sure to visit www.hollywoodteenzine.com for this review and more!