It's a triple attack of dance power in this amazingly catchy song. First we've got European DJ, David Guetta, at the wheel and he's already proved that he's able to come with incredibly infectious beats; then there's Flo Rida who's been topping charts with other similar club/dance songs; and finally the cherry on top, Nicki Minaj, one of today's best rappers. Altogether it comes up as a massive attack of a dance song.
The song immediately opens with a powerful drawing verse from Flo Rida, and explodes into rap verse from him. All of that will probably sound familiar to you, but then there's the surprise of hearing Nicki Minaj's voice come in. Similarily she sings a verse, but then builds into perfect rap; it flows wonderfully and is defintely one of her best acts. Then the songs brings it altogether into a great super dancy ending.
The structure of the song itself isn't too unique though, you may notice some similarities to Guetta's previous hit, "Sexy Chick." And Flo Rida isn't doing anything new, just he's usual rap/song style. That's fine since both those have proved to gain success and would still work as another great dance song. But what really puts this song above average is the appearance from Nicki Minaj. She's worked into the song seemlessly with Flo Rida and the two sound perfect together. Her rap verse is very well done and is another wonderful addition to the song.
Lyrically the song isn't anything special. Flo Rida is just rapping about girls and a club which we've all heard before, and you can't understand a word Nicki says when she's rapping. But really, when a song is this strongly dance based do you expect the lyrics to be any more than that?
I'd say that overall this song is definetly potenial to be a summer topper. It's chief competition as a party anthem would be Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night," but that's more of a out on the town theme, while this is a club tune; so they are different. Whether it's enough to keep them from clashing, we'll see. And if the two do come head to head for #1 of the summer, I really can't say who will come out on top.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Beyonce - Best Thing I Never Had
So we all remember the failure that was, "Run the World" and it seems Beyonce is trying to fix that slip up by copying one of her biggest hits, "Irreplaceable." However she went a little overboard and "Best Thing I Never Had" is pretty much an exact repeat of "Irreplaceable" and that's boring. The piano driven break up idea is the same, the lyrics that talk about being superior to her ex is the same, everything is exactly the same.
"Irreplaceable" was special since it was a little more real than this; you can't expect to say the exact same thing and it will have the same effect. The song is somewhat pretty in the emotional sense, but that's not really enough to redeem it from its banality. There's actually very little reason why this song should garner any attention at all. It's no different from "Irreplaceable," she just had a fail with "Run the World," and with mundane lyrics like "Best Thing I Never Had" there's no way of drawing listeners.
So on the one hand it is nice that Beyonce is returning to the style that works for her as that shows that she's learning from some mistakes, but just doing an outright repeat isn't exactly the best solution. Considering that Beyonce is also competing with Gaga's "Born this Way" album she is going to have to seriously kick it up so that she can return to center spotlight.
"Irreplaceable" was special since it was a little more real than this; you can't expect to say the exact same thing and it will have the same effect. The song is somewhat pretty in the emotional sense, but that's not really enough to redeem it from its banality. There's actually very little reason why this song should garner any attention at all. It's no different from "Irreplaceable," she just had a fail with "Run the World," and with mundane lyrics like "Best Thing I Never Had" there's no way of drawing listeners.
So on the one hand it is nice that Beyonce is returning to the style that works for her as that shows that she's learning from some mistakes, but just doing an outright repeat isn't exactly the best solution. Considering that Beyonce is also competing with Gaga's "Born this Way" album she is going to have to seriously kick it up so that she can return to center spotlight.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Nicki Minaj - Super Bass
This chick has just about been everywhere, and with her talent I'm surprised that she hasn't been able to get massive hit yet. She's come close before, on her own or with a collaboration, but maybe "Super Bass" will put her over. Nicki Minaj is an awesome rapper and can make any song sound great with her rhythmic bouncy verses.
In this song she switches back and forth between two of her signature styles, her flowing bouncy one, and a rougher one. Personally I think that she should just stick to the flowing style to give the whole song a connected feeling, but having two does offer more variety. Lyrically this song isn't as deep as her last one, "Moment 4 Life," but is more about just having fun, which Nicki pulls off very well. I go party song is just as possible for her as a deep emotional song so she can make both sound great. The chorus is really no more than, "Boom boom ba boom" repeated but like I said the song is just fun and Nicki Minaj can get away with random lyrics.
The song doesn't really build at all. It starts at a bouncy fun level, but doesn't go anywhere from there. So in that sense it could get a little boring soon. I think that overall it is a great song to listen to for now, but can soon can repitive and uninteresting. A little work could have been done to fix this, but its too late now.
Also, another update on summer songs: I never realized how huge this summer is going to be. Added to the mix are a ton of dance songs, which might not make it to the top but will certainly be summer smashes, from Enrique, Jason Derulo, David Guetta, and Pitbull. Looks like my prediction for NKOTBSB was a little off since their song hasn't really been soaring up the charts. "Judas" looks like it's going to be replaced with "Edge of Glory" as Gaga's summer song, but I still hold firm that Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" will be the song of this summer. A couple other hard hitters coming up are Britney Spear's "I Wanna Go" and the Black Eyed Peas' "Don't Stop the Party."
In this song she switches back and forth between two of her signature styles, her flowing bouncy one, and a rougher one. Personally I think that she should just stick to the flowing style to give the whole song a connected feeling, but having two does offer more variety. Lyrically this song isn't as deep as her last one, "Moment 4 Life," but is more about just having fun, which Nicki pulls off very well. I go party song is just as possible for her as a deep emotional song so she can make both sound great. The chorus is really no more than, "Boom boom ba boom" repeated but like I said the song is just fun and Nicki Minaj can get away with random lyrics.
The song doesn't really build at all. It starts at a bouncy fun level, but doesn't go anywhere from there. So in that sense it could get a little boring soon. I think that overall it is a great song to listen to for now, but can soon can repitive and uninteresting. A little work could have been done to fix this, but its too late now.
Also, another update on summer songs: I never realized how huge this summer is going to be. Added to the mix are a ton of dance songs, which might not make it to the top but will certainly be summer smashes, from Enrique, Jason Derulo, David Guetta, and Pitbull. Looks like my prediction for NKOTBSB was a little off since their song hasn't really been soaring up the charts. "Judas" looks like it's going to be replaced with "Edge of Glory" as Gaga's summer song, but I still hold firm that Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" will be the song of this summer. A couple other hard hitters coming up are Britney Spear's "I Wanna Go" and the Black Eyed Peas' "Don't Stop the Party."
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Lady Gaga - The Edge of Glory
So far all three of Gaga's "Born this Way" singles have made it to my blog and that's no coincidence, they're all incredibly remarkable in their own ways. Sadly, "The Edge of Glory" is a bit of a miss in this case. Overall it's another awesome song from Lady Gaga, but the timing of its release creates a few issues.
Lady Gaga almost always has something shocking and surprising, "The Edge of Glory" is good but not super; and since we just had the really unusual "Judas" it doesn't look so good in contrast. However "The Edge of Glory" is now going to take attention away from "Judas" which deserved a full run. Now though people will me interested in "The Edge of Glory" and "Judas" will lose its momentum, while "The Edge of Glory" probably won't be a super smash hit.
But with that aside I'll now look at the actual song. Like I said before it's not exactly anything particularily exciting, however it is a little something different from Gaga. She's showing us now that she's not just a dance-pop diva as has a little rockier and edgier sound. The chorus is sung with a rough sound which is also a little different from Lady Gaga's normal smooth vocals. The song builds after a big start to a bridge featuring a blasting saxophone. So it might not knock your socks off but there's still quite a lot of quality in it.
Lyrically the song isn't perfectly clear, but Gaga seems to be speaking to a lover. Judging by the line "I'm on the edge of glory with you" I get the idea of sharing a special moment with a special moment, I could be wrong but the important thing is that there is a meaning behind the song and it isn't a cliche or nonsensical. Ironically Gaga recently announced that she is now single, so maybe it wasn't the best time to release a love song.
Overall I can see that this could be another one of Gaga's many hits. There are many of reasons to love it, but we may have been expecting something a little more surprising from Gaga. But then again I guess not all her songs can be shocking since that would defeat the service.
Lady Gaga almost always has something shocking and surprising, "The Edge of Glory" is good but not super; and since we just had the really unusual "Judas" it doesn't look so good in contrast. However "The Edge of Glory" is now going to take attention away from "Judas" which deserved a full run. Now though people will me interested in "The Edge of Glory" and "Judas" will lose its momentum, while "The Edge of Glory" probably won't be a super smash hit.
But with that aside I'll now look at the actual song. Like I said before it's not exactly anything particularily exciting, however it is a little something different from Gaga. She's showing us now that she's not just a dance-pop diva as has a little rockier and edgier sound. The chorus is sung with a rough sound which is also a little different from Lady Gaga's normal smooth vocals. The song builds after a big start to a bridge featuring a blasting saxophone. So it might not knock your socks off but there's still quite a lot of quality in it.
Lyrically the song isn't perfectly clear, but Gaga seems to be speaking to a lover. Judging by the line "I'm on the edge of glory with you" I get the idea of sharing a special moment with a special moment, I could be wrong but the important thing is that there is a meaning behind the song and it isn't a cliche or nonsensical. Ironically Gaga recently announced that she is now single, so maybe it wasn't the best time to release a love song.
Overall I can see that this could be another one of Gaga's many hits. There are many of reasons to love it, but we may have been expecting something a little more surprising from Gaga. But then again I guess not all her songs can be shocking since that would defeat the service.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Rihanna - California King Bed
It's taken three singles from "Loud" for Rihanna to finally achieve a song that really gives us something special. So far her last three songs have had success yet they lack anything new aside from typical Rihanna sound, but "California King Bed" truly goes out with something different. It brings us back to "Take a Bow" another slower, pretty song from Rihanna.
"California King Bed" starts with a tender sound, almost a lulling whisper. Already that's something that we don't see from Rihanna too much, but the greatest thing about the song is that it builds gradually throughout the song. By the first chorus Rihanna has already picked up the pace into something a little more intense, which then continues to longing lament and always growing into an explosive ending.
This song is not a dance track, but it still has a way to get stuck in your mind. No longer is Rihanna singing about getting on the floor or sex, but just a relationship that's hit struggles. It's really much more true and heartfelt than most of her other work. It combines beautiful sounds with Rihanna's signature blaring sound, but it works incredibly well to make a pleading love song. Experimenting with a new sound can be a little risky but we've already seen that Rihanna can slow things down with "Take a Bow" and I don't see any reason why this song shouldn't have any less success.
The lyrics are sweet and loving, but there is small flaw to be found here. The repition of the word "California," seems a little out of place and unnecessary. I don't know what a California King Bed is, but I can accept that; however when you add in California King, California Wishing, California Dreaming, it gets a little weird. I'm not sure what the idea behind this was as California really has no connection to a dying relationship. This song will be at its peak during the summer which does have a common theme of California, but this is far from a summer anthem.
Over all I'm really glad that Rihanna finally got it right and gave us somthing a little different. "California King Bed" is incredibly beautiful and has a lot more emotion than a generic dance song. I don't think it has a shot at song of the summer though since people want something a little more upbeat and dancy. Still I think it will be a big hit.
"California King Bed" starts with a tender sound, almost a lulling whisper. Already that's something that we don't see from Rihanna too much, but the greatest thing about the song is that it builds gradually throughout the song. By the first chorus Rihanna has already picked up the pace into something a little more intense, which then continues to longing lament and always growing into an explosive ending.
This song is not a dance track, but it still has a way to get stuck in your mind. No longer is Rihanna singing about getting on the floor or sex, but just a relationship that's hit struggles. It's really much more true and heartfelt than most of her other work. It combines beautiful sounds with Rihanna's signature blaring sound, but it works incredibly well to make a pleading love song. Experimenting with a new sound can be a little risky but we've already seen that Rihanna can slow things down with "Take a Bow" and I don't see any reason why this song shouldn't have any less success.
The lyrics are sweet and loving, but there is small flaw to be found here. The repition of the word "California," seems a little out of place and unnecessary. I don't know what a California King Bed is, but I can accept that; however when you add in California King, California Wishing, California Dreaming, it gets a little weird. I'm not sure what the idea behind this was as California really has no connection to a dying relationship. This song will be at its peak during the summer which does have a common theme of California, but this is far from a summer anthem.
Over all I'm really glad that Rihanna finally got it right and gave us somthing a little different. "California King Bed" is incredibly beautiful and has a lot more emotion than a generic dance song. I don't think it has a shot at song of the summer though since people want something a little more upbeat and dancy. Still I think it will be a big hit.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Emily Osment - Hush
I was going to post about Wynter Gordon's new single "Till Death" but Blogger was down for some reason and it deleted my saved post, so I don't feel like rewriting it. The most of it was that it was a good dance song and would have done good if it had been sung by Ke$ha or Britney, but will go unnoticed with Wynter.
Anyways onto today's main event, "Hush." Emily Osment may be a little overshadowed by the much more famous "Hannah Montana" star, Miley Cyrus, but she's defintely talented enough to deserve her own hits. Emily's sound isn't necessarily unique, but it is her own sound and not a rip off of someone else. The song's not another dance track which is also nice; it's bouncy and danceable, but it's more than just replay of dance beats. Emily immediately opens up with a perky sound that builds into something that is strong, yet not explosive. But then we get to the real heart and soul of the song, Josh Ramsay.
The song continues in the same style, but Josh is a thousand times stronger, more exciting, and more interesting. His pressence alone improves the already good song by that much. But Emily isn't pushed to the side completely, she and Josh trade lines through the always growing song which also adds to the song since it takes to two voices to put it all together. Using Josh is actually a really smart move since Emily hasn't had much success in the U.S. but with a familar Canadian voice she's presenting herself to Canada.
The song doesn't stop though, after the catchy duet between the two the song enters a Britney-esque electronic switchup while continuing the same vocal sound still present. The song clearly is well-written using many different techniques to keep you interested and it really works. It's too bad Emily isn't attracting too much attention, but maybe Josh's fame will allow her some success in Canada.
Anyways onto today's main event, "Hush." Emily Osment may be a little overshadowed by the much more famous "Hannah Montana" star, Miley Cyrus, but she's defintely talented enough to deserve her own hits. Emily's sound isn't necessarily unique, but it is her own sound and not a rip off of someone else. The song's not another dance track which is also nice; it's bouncy and danceable, but it's more than just replay of dance beats. Emily immediately opens up with a perky sound that builds into something that is strong, yet not explosive. But then we get to the real heart and soul of the song, Josh Ramsay.
The song continues in the same style, but Josh is a thousand times stronger, more exciting, and more interesting. His pressence alone improves the already good song by that much. But Emily isn't pushed to the side completely, she and Josh trade lines through the always growing song which also adds to the song since it takes to two voices to put it all together. Using Josh is actually a really smart move since Emily hasn't had much success in the U.S. but with a familar Canadian voice she's presenting herself to Canada.
The song doesn't stop though, after the catchy duet between the two the song enters a Britney-esque electronic switchup while continuing the same vocal sound still present. The song clearly is well-written using many different techniques to keep you interested and it really works. It's too bad Emily isn't attracting too much attention, but maybe Josh's fame will allow her some success in Canada.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Pitbull - Give me Everything
Pitbull's been having a lot of success lately helping out everyone else like Jennifer Lopez, Usher, and Enrique Iglesias, but he's got another hit of his own and it's one of his best works. "Give me Everything" combines a little bit of..well, everything that's popular today to make a great dance smash. With catchy verses in the signature Pitbull style and a smooth dance chorus from Ne-yo combined with the interesting sounds of DJ Afrojack and Nayer, the song covers a vast variety of dance styles.
The rap verses feature clever lyrics, my personal favorite, "I'm not locked up like Linday Lohan." While Ne-yo's part takes on the more dance-centric theme of dance like there's no tomorrow. So whether you prefer catchy rap or dancy pop you'll be dancing all the way through this song. The song is a guaranteed hit since Pitbull has always had success with this style and, of course, dancy pop songs are all the rage.
It's certainly one of the best songs this year, but the question now is, is it a candidate for song of the summer? I think it will definitely be a huge summer smash, but it's going to competing with "Judas" and Katy Perry's new single, "Last Friday Night." While we're on the topic I'd like to say that I think Katy has a very good chance at earning this honour, "Last Friday Night" is a perfect summer song, and she's working on remixes with Dr. Luke to make it even more dancy. I may or may not give a more in depth review later.
The rap verses feature clever lyrics, my personal favorite, "I'm not locked up like Linday Lohan." While Ne-yo's part takes on the more dance-centric theme of dance like there's no tomorrow. So whether you prefer catchy rap or dancy pop you'll be dancing all the way through this song. The song is a guaranteed hit since Pitbull has always had success with this style and, of course, dancy pop songs are all the rage.
It's certainly one of the best songs this year, but the question now is, is it a candidate for song of the summer? I think it will definitely be a huge summer smash, but it's going to competing with "Judas" and Katy Perry's new single, "Last Friday Night." While we're on the topic I'd like to say that I think Katy has a very good chance at earning this honour, "Last Friday Night" is a perfect summer song, and she's working on remixes with Dr. Luke to make it even more dancy. I may or may not give a more in depth review later.
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