Beyonce - Run the World

Beyonce wasn't present during the massive attack of female pop earlier this year, but "Run the World" has been released just in time for the summer race; one problem though, the song doesn't stand a chance. I may be a bit biased since I prefer pop over this urban style, but I can still say that there's very little to respect about this song.

You will soon find the song very boring, and that's at best, with it's repitive chorus and same old lyrics. The chorus is an incredibly annoying chant that drills into your skull, the sampling from "Pon the Floor" does not help in the least. The repitive chorus will easily get stuck in your head, and for this song it's not a good thing since it's just annoying sounds and painful vocals.

Moving onto the verse you may be slightly relieved that the pounding chorus has ended, but the verses don't offer much more. The lyrics would be a little creative if Beyonce hadn't used them a billion times before. We've heard the same girl-empowering message in "Single Ladies" and many other songs before; so that's boring.

So the song has no tune and no creativity in its lyrics, really it's got nothing going for it. I'll give Beyonce points for doing an urban song and not just going with the pop flow, but if you want to do something different it needs to actually sound good. I'll also give a thumbs up for not another, "You're fine just the way you are," song which I'm sick of, but again the lyrics are nothing new.

As a major powerhouse in the world of music, Beyonce cannot afford to start off her next album with such a failure of a song. Furthermore she's going to be competing with "Judas" and many other summer smashes which will really make "Run the World" look bad in comparison. Hopefully Beyonce has better songs for store for us because I seriously expected better from her.

Lady Gaga - Judas

Let me start by saying, this song is weird, it's even more shocking than the first time you heard "Bad Romance." This really should have been her first single off of Born this Way because unlike the song, "Born this Way" it really is something that will shock people into believing that Gaga could own the decade. Whether it's the blatant religious reference or the startling cry, "Juda-ah-ah-ah!" this song is certainly something that will stick in your mind, which could be good or bad.

Gaga delivers a very powerful sound in this very unique song. It's clear that she's putting her all into making this a strong emotional song for her and not just some moneymaking dance track. Still, like I said it's sure to get stuck in your head with its repitive chant that will have you humming it all day, and yes, she did use the same tactic on "Bad Romance."

Referencing Judas might be a bit begging for attention, but at least it's something different. Gaga seems to have some explanation for the song saying that it's a metaphor for falling in love with the wrong guy, which I guess makes sense. But I'd like to remind you of a song called, "Russian Roulette" which Rihanna claimed was about a relationship, but I didn't see it; "Judas" might be the same thing. People can say a song is about anything, but in the end if the listeners don't see then it's just a grab for a attention. We'll have to see what the people think once it's more popular to have a better idea though.

There's no doubt that this song will be a hit. Whether you love it, hate it, or are just plained confused by it, it is going to stick in your memory as a major song of 2011. Much improvement from "Born this Way" this song is incredibly interesting in sound, lyrics, and voice. So far it's my pick for 2011's song of the summer.

Keshia Chante - Set U Free

I will be going on vacation over next week so I'm throwing out my schedule for this week and am just going to post as much as I can before I leave to make up for it.

Anyways, Keshia Chante isn't exactly my favorite singer out there, but I really respect her for her experimental unique sound and not being afraid to try something different (unlike some artists out there.) "Set U Free" defintely proves this point as it is a very creative mix of sounds. Starting with a rough, dark electronic sound that it can easily get you hooked, the song then has a sudden change into a very dancy chorus. Throughout the song it switches between the two seemlessly; making the song a perfect combination to dance to.

Lyrically Keshia takes on the role of the Muse of the dance as she encourages that she can "Set your body free." It's a new way of saying the usual dance message, but it still sounds good. Plus it does make some sense and isn't just some nonsensical attempt at being unique. Both during a dark rap or during the explosive, catchy chorus Keshia is able to sound sexy and original. Overall her voice completes the unique lyrics.

I certainly see this as a hit in Canada, Keshia last song, "Table Dancer" was also a little experimental but didn't exactly make an impact. "Set U Free" though seems like an improvement and hopefully people will notice the catchy sound.

NKOTBSB - Don't Turn Out the Lights

Had a little trouble with this title since it's not just New Kids on the Block, it's not just Backstreet Boys, it's both boys in a super group! They seem to be calling themselves NKOTBSB so that's what I went with. We haven't heard too much in the way of new music from both of these groups, but this song shows that they truly aren't ready to turn off the lights.

Clearly effort shows instantly as the song starts, it's very dancy and starts very powerfully. The song continues to grow to the strong chorus that is completely irrestible to the beat of dance. The song sounds familiar to some other dance hits like Enrique Iglesias, Jason Derulo, and Taio Cruz; but still manages to sound great in its own way. This is a dance track that actually had the effort put into it to make an orignal hit and not just some duplicate.

Another common downside to major dance tracks are predictable lyrics, but this song defintely has something more unique. Instead of the usual, get on the floor and dance, or, beautiful sexy shawty, this song features more on a relationship. The speaker of the song asks his girl to not give up as there could be more to them. Again the lyrics clearly had time and effort put into writing them and it sound quite good in the song.

Just by pure fact that this song contains two major boybands is sure to garauntee it success, but it is also a very well written song with strong vocal, so that's probably gonna help too. I'm guessing we'll be seeing this song topping charts soon.

And one last thing, we're in Mid-April now so it's time to start looking out for possible songs of the summer. This one might be a teensy bit early, but I'm not counting it out. My money is on Lady Gaga's "Judas" which was just released this week; Gaga has been hugh with almost everything she does, and I doubt this will be any exception. The other person who has a big chance is Katy Perry, she's working with Dr. Luke on a single for the re-issue of Teenage Dream, it's obvious that she's only doing this so she can make another summer smash. Other possibilities include Britney, Black Eyed Peas, Bruno Mars, and new to the American scene, the stunning Adele.

Natalia Kills - Wonderland

Remember that song "Mirrors" that I mentioned earlier this year? No? I didn't think so; Natalia Kills is grossly underrated internationally. It's quite annoying that big stars that are sounding really fake, and someone who actually sounds good can't get her big break. But I've come to accept that there is some talent that will just go unnoticed; that doesn't mean that I won't notice it though.

The amazing thing about "Wonderland" is that it can sound incredibly edgy and sexy without even trying. We've got singers saying things like "If I told you I wanted your body would you hold it against me?" or "Chains and whips excite me" trying to sound dark, but Natalia just has to chant "Take me to Wonderland" and it sounds incredibly edgy. The song has creative sexy lyrics referencing several fairytales with a super catchy dance chorus.

The song has a unique sound that also adds to the darkness, but also keeps it very intriguing. The song also has a nice variety of sounds, starting with a singsongy flowing verse that soon builds into a thumping chorus chant. Everything about the song is near perfection just as "Mirrors" was. It's a shame that Natalia has gotten any attention yet, but "Wonderland" was in the movie, Beastly, so maybe that'll help. I've got my fingers crossed.

Jay Sean -- Hit the Lights

I was defintely disappointed with Jay Sean's last song, "2012," the good news is that "Hit the Lights" is a step up, the bad news is that it's not much of a step. Once again it's a dance track and it's quite catchy; but it's really not that special. With dancy sounds and beats the song can easily get you dancing, like I it's a step up from "2012" so that means it can be a dance song without sounding incredibly annoying. But this kind of dance music is not why we love Jay Sean, it's his cute songs like "Down" and "Do You Remember" that we're yearning.

The lyrics don't offer anything different from any other dance song. The music itself has some effort put into with interesting effects that makes the song sound a better more unique, but really that's not enough to make this stand out. A verse from Lil Wayne (this guy's just been everywhere lately) also doesn't add anything to the song and just further proves the point that this is nothing but a manufactured track to make quick money. Overall, this song won't stick in your memory and won't last.

Jay Sean had amazing success in 2009 with his break out in American, I don't understand why he's changing up his style so much. Change and evolution is good, but he really downgraded to nothing but cheap dance tracks. "Hit the Lights" isn't number one hit material like Jay Sean's older music and I hope he realizes this soon so that he can go back to the style that we love.