Gabrielle Bruney

Alright: time to get physical and also musical. Contrary to what the very ripped personal trainer at the gym keeps screaming at you, sometimes the best motivation for working up a sweat isn’t the grunting encouragement of a stranger clutching a protein shake. Often, you just need the right song to get your blood pumping, your body moving and you mind in the zone. The perfect workout song is, to some extent, an elusive beast that heavily depends on what type of music you’re into: presumably there are people out there who work out to showtunes, and good for them. The unifying factor is enough energy to power the national grid, and a decently fast beat to help you keep the pace up. Beyond that, all bets are off,  To help you on your fitness journey, we tapped our stable of music geeks – some of which are in much better shape than others – to scour their knowledge of hip-hop, pop, classic rock and for 55 high-energy motivators. Some may seem like pretty leftfield choices, but all of them should get your pulse racing. Strap on the sweatband and get ready to move.  Written by Kristen Zwicker, Marley Lynch, Hank Shteamer, Gabrielle Bruney, Brent DiCrescenzo, Sophie Harris, Andy Kryza, Andrew Frisicano, Nick Leftley, Tim Lowery, Carla Sosenko, Kate Wertheimer, Steve Smith and Andrzej Łukowski. RECOMMENDED:🏃 The best running songs💪 The best motivational songs🤩 The best inspirational songs🎸 The best classic rock songs⚡️ The best songs about power

Another of New York's summer institutions is finally back with three free concerts. Previous RiverRocks series have offered indie-rock luminaries like Ted Leo and Deerhunter, and this year's lineup doesn't disappoint, with a trio of big-name British bands heading the bill. RECOMMENDED: Full coverage of concerts in NYC Wild Beasts + Mutual Benefit + DJ Bill Pearis (July 10) Four records deep into a remarkably solid career, the Mercury Prize–nominated Wild Beasts will headline tonight's show. Their last two albums have inspired Brits to hitch themselves to the electro bandwagon, and their latest LP, Present Tense, is laden with dark, uneasy synths. Tender indie-folk collective Mutual Benefit opens, and the night starts with a DJ set by BrooklynVegan editor Bill Pearis. Teenage Fanclub + Honeyblood + Saint Rich (July 24) Teenage Fanclub may go down in history as a perfect example of music writers' folly: in 1991, Spin named their album, Bandwagonesque, the magazine's pick for album of the year, ahead of a little record called Nevermind (spoiler alert: Nirvana got the last laugh). Teenage Fanclub's moment at the top was short, and the Seattle grunge wave swept the Scottish rockers away. But the underrated Big Star sound-alikes have persevered, releasing their ninth album in 2010. They are supported here by jangly, lo-fi duo Honeyblood and Jersey's Southern-fried Saint Rich. Temples + Here We Go Magic + Spires (Aug 7) English psych-rock quartet Temples formed only two years ago, b

Because Times Square was just too sedate and quiet, it's getting a 28,000-square-foot Guitar Center (218 W 44th St between Seventh and Eighth Aves), perfect for teenage tourists who want to keep practicing "Smoke on the Water" while on vacation. To celebrate the store's August 7 grand opening, Tonight Show house band the Roots are playing a free concert at the Best Buy Theater the same night. Aside from providing the soundtrack to pretty much every viral late night clip, including "Slow Jam the News" and "The History of Rap," the Roots have eleven great albums to their name and a reputation as one of the best live acts in hip-hop, and drummer Questlove has rightfully assumed his place as one of the genre's elder statesmen.  RECOMMENDED: Full coverage of concerts in NYC Though it's a free concert, you still have to get tickets before the show. They're available on Tuesday, August 5 at noon at metro area Guitar Centers, with a limited number at the brand-new Times Square store just before the concert. So go snag your tickets to see the Roots—cackling Jimmy Fallon sold separately.  Here's a handy guide to local Guitar Center locations:  Union Square: 25 West 14th St (between Fifth and Sixth Aves) Atlantic Terminal: 139 Flatbush Ave (between Atlantic Ave and Hanson Pl ), Brooklyn Long Island City: 34-17 48th St (between 37th Ave and Northern Blvd), Queens  

We got sticker shock when we heard about the prices for the for upcoming xx gig at the Guggenheim (just $250 general admission—no biggie). So here are a few other options for all you big-spender types.  RECOMMENDED: Full coverage of concerts in NYC Global Citizen Festival: The Great Lawn at Central Park; Sept 27Jay Z,  No Doubt and Carrie Underwood? Not to mention The Roots, Tiësto and fun.? You can't miss this one. Sure, you could register online, watch videos featuring antipoverty quotes from Nelson Mandela scored to uplifting power pop, sign some petitions and Tweet at the Prime Minister of Norway just to be entered in a drawing for tickets to this gathering of Top 40 titans. Or you can do it the old-fashioned way—buy your way in for a cool $100 or for as much as $675. Why mess with tradition? Fleetwood Mac: Madison Square Garden; Oct 6, 7. The Prudential Center; Oct 11.To be fair, the low end of the price range for these shows is $50, but who wants to be in the pleb seats? Instead, you can shell out $800 for Ticketmaster's Official Platinum Seats. Or you can snag the third-row-center seats currently reselling for $1,800. That price presumably includes the chance for you to personally break Stevie Nicks's heart and be immortalized in a future adult-contemporary radio staple.  Eagles at the Prudential Center; Sept 10. Madison Square Garden; Sept 13 and 18. Fun fact: The Eagles are the best-selling American band ever. So it makes sense that the higher end of their ticket-pri

The Afropunk Fest started in ’05 as a showcase for the marginalized black punk scene, but these days it's an edgy multigenre blowout. This year's installment (going down this Saturday and Sunday at Commodore Barry Park in Fort Greene) is free, but a $40 "donation" earns you guaranteed entry and line-skipping privileges. The only problem is that with 60 acts playing four stages over two days, the whole thing can seem a little overwhelming. So to help you plan your pilgrimage, here are our picks for ten can't-miss sets—as well as a Spotify playlist to check out while you browse. RECOMMENDED: Full coverage of the Afropunk Festival Saturday, August 23 Shabazz Palaces; 5:15pm; Red Stage This Sub Pop–signed and deservingly hyped Seattle alt-rap group just released Lese Majesty, the follow-up to their much lauded debut, with no sign of a sophomore slump. The Palaces' stop at Afropunk is part of the first leg of a North American and European tour, so this'll be your last chance to see ’em in NYC for a while. THEESatisfaction; 6pm; Gold Stage"Leave your face at the door," opens the endlessly danceable "QueenS." "Turn off your swag and check your bag / From your limbs to your Tims, get down." Was there ever a better invitation to hit the floor? You have to check out the electrosoul duo of Stasia Iron and Catherine Harris White for that much, at the very least. Lianne La Havas; 7pm; Green StageIn a voice that alternates between being lullaby-gentle and surprisingly robust, Lianne La Ha

Who can say they've never fallen to their knees howling out Boyz II Men's "End of the Road" at karaoke? We're guessing relatively few of you. So you'll be as delighted as we are to hear that the mega-selling ‘90s R&B survivors are taking the baseball field after the Mets-Cubs game this Saturday, August 16. The best boyfriends in pop history—recently spotted singing Tweets in a Wendy's commercial—will renew their promise to make love to you, proving that after 20-plus years together there's still more bended-knee wooing in store. (The Philly group's 12th album, Collide, comes out in the fall.) Baritone Nathan Morris talked to Time Out New York about baseball and the importance of a good love song in today's mean ol' world. Are you a baseball fan?Yeah, I am, unfortunately. Phillies?You guessed it. So I guess you don't have too much of a horse in this race…I have a horse in the race, but he ain't winning. Are you rooting for the Mets or the Cubs in this game?I have to root for the Mets, I'm not a Chicago anything fan. How are the Phillies doing this season?They need Jesus, and he's not around right now. Hopefully things will pick up.Yeah, maybe he'll be in the draft next year. [Laughs] I feel like a lot of people don't really associate Boyz II Men with being really funny, and that's part of the great surprise with your recent Wendy's commercial.I mean, for years people have just heard us sing, you know what I'm saying? We tried for a long time to kind of fight through that, but

Eighties icons Culture Club, who scored big with hits like "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" and "Karma Chameleon," just announced a mini-U.S. tour and are working on a new album that's set to be released in 2015. In honor of the band's reunion, which includes a show at the Beacon Theatre, here are three videos that showcase exactly why we fell in love with them way back when. "It's A Miracle" This surreal video finds the band cast as life-sized monopoly pieces on a gigantic board game of their career that features squares such as "Form Pop Group," "First Hit" and "Gender Bender Outrage." It all comes very close to making sense, but then drummer John Moss and bassist Mikey Craig start playing patty-cake in American football uniforms. George looks immaculate as always, serving Designing Women realness with teased locks and one of his signature shoulder-padded smocks.   "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" This clip seemingly takes place at the dress rehearsal for a talent show at a performing arts middle school, and between the pubescent troupe and overall clad tap dancers it's all very Dexy's Midnight Dance Moms. Fun fact: One of the many blank-eyed and frozen-smiled child performers is a twelve-year-old Naomi Campbell.   Grammy Win, 1984 At the height of its popularity, Culture Club won the Grammy for Best New Artist: The ceremony clip is pure '80s gold. Rodney Dangerfield and a particularly boop boop de doop-voiced Cyndi Lauper presented the award, and Culture Club's competition included l

Karen O: September 9–12 at Manderly Bar at the McKittrick Hotel The Yeah Yeah Yeahs only release albums every three years or so, and that's a long time to go without a Karen O fix. Luckily, the incandescent frontwoman's solo debut, Crush Songs, is out next month on Julian Casablancas's Cult Records. She's playing four intimate hometown shows the week of the album's release, so be sure to get your tickets to see one of NYC's rock idols up close and personal. Tickets go on sale Friday, August 15 at 3pm.  Shonen Knife: Sept 12 at the Wick The Japanese pop-punk group has been active for more than 30 years, but they've still got the charmingly simple lyrics and infectiously basic chord progressions that made the sometimes-Ramones cover band '90s alt-rock darlings. They've toured with the likes of Nirvana and Sonic Youth, now snag your tickets to see them live in Brooklyn. Tickets on sale now.  Iggy Azalea: Sept 26 at JBL Live at Pier 97 The Summer of 2014 may have another month to go, but there's no debating that it belonged to Iggy Azalea. With "Problem" hitting number two while "Fancy" was still at the summit, she became the first artist since the Beatles to have her first charting singles simultaneously in Billboard's top slots. Striking while the iron's still very hot, she's announced a gig at Hudson River Park. Tickets go on sale Friday, August 15 at 10am.  FKA twigs: Nov 8 at Terminal 5 London's Tahliah Barnett has just released her debut, LP1, to rave reviews, and after a f

When fashion and music meet, it's usually in the guise of an egomaniacal pop star's ill-advised clothing line—yeah, we mean you, Kanye. Luckily, that's not the case with Fashion Rocks, the concert/runway show that was held annually for a good chunk of the 2000s, but has been resurrected as a live TV event (what, did you think last year's Sound of Music revival was going to be a one-off?). This year, the show's coming to Brooklyn's Barclays Center, hosted by Ryan Seacrest and featuring performances by Jennifer Lopez, Usher, Pitbull, Miranda Lambert, and pop vets Duran Duran and Kiss. Info on presenting designers isn't yet available, but as previous Fashion Rocks showcased the likes of Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood and Giorgio Armani, we can expect to see some household names on the runway.   For those of you not content to settle down in front of the tube and fall asleep drooling on the collar of your bathrobe somewhere around the time Seacrest makes a joke about Pitbull taking a bite out of the charts, tickets to the concert (which range from the doable $75 to the stratospheric $650) go on sale tomorrow at noon.