"The Envelope Please" The International Dance Music Awards were recently held down in Miami during the annual Winter Music Conference with some interesting winners of note. Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack" picked up two awards (Best Pop Dance and Best Urban Dance) while Madonna was honored as Best Solo Dance Artist and with Best Video for "Jump.' Depeche Mode earned Best Group title while newcomer Fedde Le Grande went to the podium twice: for Best Breakthrough Solo Artist and for his "Put Your Hands Up For Detroit," which won Best Electro Track. Finally, Junior Vasquez won Best Remixer. Musical Potpourri ­ X Chromosomes First up is Macy Gray's 12-tracker called BIG (Geffen), the first full-length effort for the Grammy winner in nearly four years. Filled with impressive and interesting collaborations, credits on BIG include will.i.am, Justin Timberlake, Natalie Cole, and Fergie. They all serve to enhance the most distinctive voice in pop music that will most likely lead to a sure-fire hit album for Gray. If you aren't familiar with Amy Winehouse, you need to be. She's a young Brit with a fantastic voice and a recently released sophomore effort, a 10-track CD called BACK TO BLACK (Universal). Inspired by the strong yet simplistic music produced by girl groups of the 1950s and 1960s, Winehouse hits a home run with this album that showcases her impressive songwriting abilities, and even more impressive abilities to deliver noteworthy and memorable vocal performances. Winehouse is the real deal! Out & About ­ A recent weekend in Chicago felt like the good old days on North Halsted Street with partying at its finest. On March 31st, superstar DJ Peter Rauhofer spun his magic for a capacity crowd at Circuit for the monthly Nitro party. The line outside to get in stretched to the end of the block as early as 11:30pm and the club stayed jammed packed until closing. Many thought it was one of the best nights in Chicago in recent memory as Rauhofer was in his typical fine form, continuing to prove why he is one of the most gifted and talented DJs around. The next day, there was no April Fool's Day joke at Minibar as the uber-cool watering hole launched its new Sunday T Party. Minibar owner John Dalton was celebrating his 30th birthday and wave after wave of folks packed into the tight space for the soiree, which included DJ Oskar's musical soundscape. While it won't be John's birthday every Sunday, I expect that the crowds will return for the very fun weekly T Party. Musical Potpourri ­ Compilations The boys at Centaur are back at again with another continuous mix offering from DJ David Knapp called GLOBAL GROOVE: LIVE. It's a typical solid effort from Knapp that starts off with a snappy dance remake of The Dixie Chick's "Not Ready To Make Nice" and includes recent songs by Suzanne Palmer, Pepper Mashay, Sonique, Joi Cardwell. Also in the mix on this fun upbeat CD is the Freemason-ish sounding remake of "It's Not Right, But It's Okay," one of Whitney Houston's biggest hits. Looking to be successors to the likes of progressive house music kings Sasha & Digweed and the Pauls - van Dyk and Oakenfold ­ are James Zabiela and Nic Fanciulli, arguably the two most creative talents on the progressive scene today. Showcasing this talent is a brand new double-CD package produced by Ministry of Sound called ONE+ONE. This release is equal parts "sit back and listen" electronica - great for solo contemplation and intimate after-hours bonding with friends ­ as well as "dance your ass off" prog house. The reigning kings should probably prepare to have Zabiela and Fanciulli join their ranks.