THE REVIEW

Have no fear. 2017 is here.

Happy New Year from us and who could have illustrated it better than one of our favorite luxury brands, Porsche?

The year started off strong with some new bob and weaves on the political front and in other news-straight punches to the face starting with "Out with Obamacare!"

This year should be interesting to say the least and we're covering it all one blog post at a time.

Here's our January so far:

MUSIC

For fans of Ed Sheeran, 2017 has already outdone 2016 tenfold.

Just over 10 hours into the new year and the ginger haired troubadour posted a 10-second video to Twitter revealing new music will be released today and it was!

Check out our twitter page @ilyseterri to take a listen.

FILM AND TELEVISION

Jan 7: BAFTA is back starting with the Tea Party – Los Angeles, CA

A staple fixture in the Los Angeles awards season calendar, the Awards Season Tea Party welcomes nominees, members and guests for a uniquely elegant gathering.

The party has a long tradition of recognizing the very best filmmaking talent and is hugely popular with nominees seeking a respite from the hectic and demanding Awards season.

Jan 8: Golden Globe Awards hosted by Jimmy Fallon – Los Angeles, CA

There will be Viewing Parties and After Parties and of course, Awards!

Billy Bob Thornton is currently nominated for Goliath. Billy has played lawyers before but not the one that he plays in this new Amazon series.

His character, William McBride, is a seedy, washed-up version, drinking to excess, ambulance-chasing to make a living. Then he is forced to take a wrongful death case that pits him against the biggest law firm in Los Angeles, ironically the one he himself founded. “Lawyers and actors are very similar,” he told us. “A lawyer is putting on a show for the jury. They prepare for the role, they are coached. So it’s interesting for an actor to play a lawyer. I always wanted to.” His turn has won him a sixth Golden Globe nomination; he won Best Actor in Limited Series for Fargo two years ago.

Jan 18: People’s Choice Awards – Los Angeles, CA

With a whopping 64 categories, People’s Choice Awards 2017 promises to be one for the books — and in the case of Ellen DeGeneres, it could be one for the record books. DeGeneres is nominated in three categories, including “Favorite Animated Movie Voice,” “Favorite Daytime TV Host” and “Favorite Comedic Collaboration.” If she wins even one of those categories, she would become the most-decorated People’s Choice Awards winner in history.

Though DeGeneres could set a People’s Choice Awards record, Kevin Hart may just be the one to watch. The actor leads the list of nominees for People’s Choice Awards 2017 with five total nods. Meanwhile, with four nods each, Drake and Rihanna are going to have to “work, work, work” to race ahead of each other before voting closes. They’re both tied for the most nominations in music. The biggest music showdown, however, might end up being between former One Direction bandmates Zayn Malik and Niall Horan. The singers are both in the running for “Favorite Breakout Artist.” (As if it wasn’t hard to enough picking your favorite 1D member, right?) Zayn is also up for “Favorite Song” with Pillowtalk.

Captain America: Civil War dominates movies with seven noms across the board, while Grey’s Anatomy makes a strong showing in TV with five nods.

Speaking of TV, fans can now vote in the Favorite TV Comedy and Favorite New TV Drama categories, sponsored by Werther’s Original Caramel Popcorn. Voting in these categories will remain open until the night of show.

Jan 19-29: Sundance Film Festival – Park City, Utah

Jan 29: SAG Awards – Los Angeles

WATCH THIS SPACE for more on each event this month and visit our e-store to buy your #Deadpool thermometers today! All products under the #film category will receive a 10% discount in January only.

FOOD meets ART

Behold: a Life-Size Mosaic of Daniel Boulud at Second Avenue Subway in New York City.

If you make it up to the 72nd Street station of the long-awaited Second Avenue subway, you will see a celebrity from the restaurant world: French chef and restaurateur Daniel Boulud.

The life-size mosaic was created by Brazilian artist Vik Muniz, who created a bunch of portraits in the station in a series called “Perfect Strangers.” All of them are based on people that Muniz knows, with the idea being that they could be regular people waiting for the train. In Boulud’s portrait, the chef looks at his watch as he carries a bag of vegetables and fish.

HOSPITALITY

Technology was one of the biggest stories and trends of 2016, and that won't change as we move into 2017. In fact, many industry experts are saying that they expect technologies role to increase this year. One trend to watch in particular is the increasingly prevalent usage of mobile apps. The global hospitality industry has already seen shifts in the willingness to cater to tech savvy guests, including providing complementary WiFi, but in 2017, industry experts say that they expect hotels will have to find even more effective ways of meeting customer expectations. For example, mobile applications are going to be expected to provide an increasing number of services and options for hotel guests.

Yared Kifle, head of revenue management for Jumia Travel East Africa, recently told hospitalitynet.org as much in an interview. Kifle is quoted as saying, "this will require constant study and analysis of the market, for hotels to adapt accordingly in an ever-changing marketplace. For instance, Jumia Travel provides all its hotel partners with modern day tools such as the extra net app which gives them real time access to any price change and inventory at any given time. The changes are updated and displayed constantly and consistently under full discretion of the hotelier."

Other technology developments that experts say will become more prevalent is the use of smart phones as room keys, television remotes, and thermostat controls.

CONSUMER PRODUCTS

Fueling growth will be tech products and digital assistant devices and 4K TV's. Digital assistant products are expected to generate $608 million in revenue this year, up 36% from the previous year. Ultra high-def panels that feature significantly improved picture quality will generate $14.6 billion in 2017, up 38% year-over-year. Here are a few worth mentioning:

Kuri (kuri.com) is an adorable robot that looks after your pets

Razer Project Valerie

A portable laptop with 3 screens displaying video

LG and Sony's Oled TV's

With a screen as thin as a credit card!

Sensorwake Oria

Awakes you (literally) and your senses via scents that are dispersed via a device that sits on a side table.

Smartan Smart Underwear

Men will lose sperm no more with these smart phone radiation combative under pants.

Hover Camera passport

A drone that allows you to shoot from above. It's the size of a hard cover book and follows you while shooting 4k video.

FASHION

Fashion Week starts next month so we'll save your strength and ours for then!

That's all for now folks!

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As always, many thanks for your continued support and don't hesitate to contact us in 2017 for all of your App, Video, Web, Graphics, Design, Marketing, Branding, Events, Creative Direction, Fine Art, Content and Social Media Management needs.