Britney Spears - (You Drive Me) Crazy


This music video turned up on the music channels today, and it's been stuck in my head ever since, so I thought I might as well review it, and yes I am aware that it is yet another Britney song that I'm reviewing, but she just has to stop appearing on the music channels in the morning. This song was released as her third single from her first studio album "...Baby One More Time", and it became a big international hit, gaining number 5 here in the UK (compared with the charting of her most recent songs, that is an incredible charting position). The single version differs slightly to the original album version. Britney re-recorded the vocals for a remix version called "The Stop! Remix". The remix was then included in the film "Drive Me Crazy" and so this song was released under the remixed version. There has only been a few cover versions, one by a nu metal band called SugarComa, and a jazz styled version by Richard Cleese. Selena Gomez and The Scene also sung this song on a tour of theirs for a tribute to Britney.

This song was written by Max Martin, Jörgen Elofsson, Per Magnusson and David Kreuger. Again we see Max Martin as the head writer and again shows how well known and big he is and how good his songs are because they pop up here there and everywhere. The song is a teen-dance sort of song, and is really catchy, it is about Britney falling in love with someone and he's constantly on her mind and at times she can't fall asleep because "I just can't sleep" and "keeps me up all night". Her voice is really nice to listen to in this song and she has that quirkiness that most of the female pop stars had back in the 90s. And Although this song is late 90s it is probably one of the last songs people classed as cheesy-pop. But to be honest, everyone still loves cheesy-pop, but are embarrassed to admit it.

This music video was created because of the film "Drive Me Crazy" who wanted this song to be released as part of the soundtrack. Two main stars from the film also appear in this music video, these stars are Melissa Joan Hart (most known for playing Sabrina in "Sabrina the Teenage Witch") and Adrian Grenier (most known for playing Vincent Chase in "Entourage"). So in theory this music video is definitely a soundtrack video, although clips from the film are not included, and a whole new spin on things are created, which is really interesting.

Again Britney has a big choreography scene, and it is pretty reminiscent of the 90's sort of dance styles, and if you compare the dance moves she's doing there to the ones that can be seen in "Hold It Against Me" or "Till The World Ends" then you can tell that she isn't really doing that much in this music video, and that it is just really hyped up. I like the fact that she isn't the lead character in this music video, and although it looks like it's going to be that way at the start when she is in her waitress outfit, I'm surprised that other characters take a more lead role, which then shows off Britney's choreographed moves and scenes, which is definitely different to her other music videos. Also they've made her look even younger here, which is good I suppose as it suggests vulnerability, and therefore can suggest that the person Britney is in love with doesn't know that she likes him, only she can't stop thinking about him.

Overall I like the song, it's so catchy that even if it was released today, I could still see it getting into the top 20 at least, and there's still a market for this type of music. I like the music video, I like the fact that it has linked up the film with the music video and used two people who star in the film. However, I still feel like it's lacking something, it's not as big as a production as the others and doesn't really stand out that much. So that is the reason why I have gone with this rating.

Jennifer Lopez - Papi

A lot of people have been talking about this video lately, so I thought I had no choice but to write this review, since it is quite impressive and really good. Jennifer Lopez, or J Lo depending on which name you prefer, is a world wide star, she is an actress and singer amongst other things, and this video really does show her acting skills off amazingly. She has released lots of singles and albums, and this single is taken from her seventh studio album, however she has yet to release a greatest hits album, which is quite surprising, as I don't think any artist has released more than 7 albums without releasing a collection album.

This song is really good and very catchy, I can definitely see a lot of DJ's remixing this song for the clubs, and I really hope it'll be another number 1 for her as I can definitely see that happening with this song here in the UK. The song is about being with someone and expressing that, however I don't understand this bit "Dance for your papi", if it's all about being with someone then why do you want to dance for your dad? That doesn't make any sense to me, because the translation from the Spanish word "papi" means "dad" in English, so that's the only bit I don't understand. I still like the meaning of the song and the catchy beat behind it.

Now the music video is definitely top class, I like how the song has been used, turned upside down and inside out and some great person thought up this amazing idea for the music video, and I am shocked that this was even thought of. I have to admit, I forced myself not to watch it on YouTube when I heard everyone talking about it, because I thought it would spoil the effect, so I kept using the music channels and it came on, I was so happy and I was surprised because this music video is definitely one I can watch again and again. People have mentioned that it is similar to an advert and people have mistaken it for an advert without actually realising.

There are a few continuity errors, such as at the very start. Clearly that cookie is magic because it disappears straight out of her hand, when the camera is looking at "Lisa". Also people have noticed that when J Lo's dancing, her shoes automatically changes so that she's wearing dancing shoes, however I totally understand why they've done it, because J Lo is generally quite small, and so she is seen wearing platform heels which makes her roughly average height, however could she seriously dance in those shoes? So they definitely edited and filmed this perfectly.

I love the story line of this. Her "Papi", as she calls him, is the guy she's going out with and she's waiting for his return from army. She talks about him to Lisa, who is the mail attendant, and Lisa offers her a cookie which claims to bring her love back, Lisa tells her to take a small bite, however the cookie breaks and J Lo ends up taking a big bite. The next day every single guy she walks past has a spell put on him, and they end up running after her, trying to give her a rose, or a bag, or even a puppy. She gains the interest of many people, from a horseman, to a motorcyclist, to a gardener and many others. I love the guy who she hits with the car, because he ends up on the bonnet (or hood, if you live in America), of her car, and through the front window he does a "rock on" sign with his hand and mouths "I love you", and then she puts the brakes on and he goes flying. I also like it when she gets out the car and she's being passed around and prevented from escaping. When she shouts "STOP", everyone stops and then it goes into a choreographed dance scene, where she dances with all her love interests. At the end her "Papi" comes to save her, he's dressed in uniform, so he obviously just came back. Then the video finishes with J Lo saying "The craziest thing happened," trying to tell him about her day. The ending reminds me of Miley Cyrus' "Fly on the Wall" as it is quite similar.

Overall I really like the song and it's music video, I bet you tonnes of people want to find this "Lisa" persona and take a "small bite" of the cookie, including me. I really like the concept of the video, only I'm surprised she only realises when she gets into the car, did she not hear that car crash behind her and the window breaking and the many fights that are just behind her? Anyway, I think this video certainly deserves this rating, and I hope you all agree with it.

Jessie J - Who's Laughing Now

I've had to think long and hard about how I'm going to write about this music video... This song means a lot to me and probably to the dozen of others too who also got bullied at school. However I'm still young, I haven't even started what I want to do so I can't even start laughing just yet, but I so hope I do at some point and I hope I'll be able to say "who's laughing now?". I also bet it was a little difficult for Jessie J to write, especially bringing up all that emotion of her first few years in the music industry. However she explained that this song always makes her laugh as she said she's had "so many supporters but also many non-believers and this track is 'ha-ha' to them. As I say: 'Let the haters hate, they're like way too late!'" This song gets stuck in my head, and also makes me believe I can actually become something like so many others have. I hope for the younger audience who are probably being bullied right at this moment, or got bullied a few days, months, years ago, can listen to this song and totally believe that if they stride hard enough they can achieve anything and that when they're ready they can start laughing too.

Jessie J, real name being Jessica Cornish, is a very talented singer. I really like her songs and sometimes there is one song from her that I end up disliking but after constant playing on the radio and other music sources, it ends up getting really catchy and I can't help but like it. I'll never become a big fan of her purely because I'm not usually a fan of her songs first off, however I will be following her career and can definitely see her becoming a world-wide star in the next couple of years. She said she'd always been a good singer whereas her older sisters were more into sums and other academic intelligence. She joined the school choir but some of the parents complained that their child was upset because she was too good, and she was only 11 at the time. She also has an irregular heart beat and so she doesn't take anything for granted and looks after herself. Before releasing her album she wrote songs for many famous stars such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus. Her most well-known single she wrote for another star was Miley Cyrus' "Party in the USA".

This song, as I have already mentioned is about Jessie J's music and when she first started. There was a lot of haters and critics who didn't like her, however she turned things around and now have dedicated a song to them to tell them that they were wrong. It was written by a number of people, mainly by Jessie J, but with the help of Kyle Abrahams, George Astasio, Peter Ighile, Jason Pebworth and Jon Shave. I really like how this song is constructed and it tells a story right from the beginning. It's extremely catchy and I don't think there is any other song out there that expresses similar thoughts and opinions, thank God Jessie J came onto the scene. It's extremely catchy and I'm surprised it has yet to make the Top 10 of the UK chart yet, maybe there's just too many haters that hate...

This music video's theme is bullying, as you probably guessed. I think it is a brilliant revengeful song on all the past bullies people have had and I can't help liking it even if some critics have said that they don't like it.. I really like Jessie J's mini-me's performance, Adrianna Bertola. She is very talented and definitely looks like a young Jessie J, and I think she'll be one of those big young actresses and I hope to see her sometime in the future, and definitely in more of Jessie J's music videos, as it shows a side of Jessie J that is difficult to display. For those of you who is wondering, a different Mini-Jessie was used in the music video for "Price Tag" so don't go about mixing them two up.

Jessie J gives us a great inside into her acting, especially since she appears as four different people in this music video, which I have only just found out. First you have her sitting in the chair that Adrianna sits in during some of the shots, then you have her dressed up as the teacher behind the desk, which doesn't at all look like Jessie J, then you have the janitor who I still question whether or not it's actually her because she really looks totally different dressed up as the janitor. And then finally she is dressed up as the dinner lady. I like how she has different characters and it's really funny to see how they change within the music video. I have to admit I thought they were all extras and until now didn't realise that they were Jessie J.

Overall I love this song and its music video. I like Adrianna's slow walking when she's stomping down the hall in her angry outburst, I sometimes wish that when I'm walking I could go in slow motion, I don't really know why it just looks amazing on-screen and I really want that to happen to me, I can still dream, right? I also like the ending with the fire extinguisher which is really funny and I'd love to do that too. Adrianna must have had the best time on set while filming this music video. I also like her T-Shirt "U R Boring", however I do not feel inclined to buy one, like I did for Room 94's music video "The End" where I bought the "I'd Do Me" T-Shirt that Dean Lemon is wearing. Anyway this is probably my favourite Jessie J video so far, and I am really hoping she uses Adrianna a bit more to show the younger side of her, and if she gets to act out different people I'd definitely say go for it! She is becoming really big so watch out for her.

Inna - Un Momento

After a week out because I've been ill, I am NOW back and I'm ready to give my opinions on music videos. First up is Inna, real name Elena Apostoleanu. Inna has made me like club/dance music a lot more, and has managed to open this whole new genre to me. Her first single "Hot" was a chart topper hitting number 6 here in the UK, since then she has dipped in and out of the charts some cracking the top 20 and others not even making the top 100. After some playing in the car I have managed to make my cousin also enjoy Inna's songs, and although she has yet to hear the 2 most recent songs, I'm sure she'll enjoy them just as much as I do. So Inna is now back with a new single "Un Momento" which gets stuck in my head and although it is a simple song and isn't as good as some of her other songs, it's very catchy and I hope that it gets high on the charts especially since the music channels are definitely in favour of this song. Inna is from Romania, and she is quite big over there, and I guarantee most people in the UK knows who she is, and so she is definitely becoming a world-wide star. People have referenced her as Romania's answer to Cheryl Cole, even though Inna has no idea of who that is (as she confirmed on an interview with Radio 1's Chart Show). Romania is hitting out some big stars lately from "Inna" to "Alexandra Stan" to "Edward Maya", with new and up-coming stars such as "Akcent" and "Radio Killer" set to hit our charts real soon.

This song has quite a few different versions out. Here in the UK they have shortened it so that we understand what is being said, they have cut "Juan Magan"'s featured lyrics out which is a shame, but I presume they couldn't translate them for the British audience, however some of Inna's lyrics aren't translated such as "No quiero que tu pienses que esto es normal", I can just about follow that bit when she's singing it, and no way can I sing a long, a lot more practice is definitely needed. Un Momento is Spanish for "In a moment" or "Give me a second", however I thought it meant "one moment" as in, a moment in someone's life sort of thing, and although that is probably the direct translation, we'd probably say "one moment please" during a phone conversation or something more formal, however un momento sounds like a phrase that the Spanish say. Anyway, the song sounds like she is singing to a specific person and I think it is a nice direct link from "Sun is up", which ended up being in the UK chart for ages, and so could this song potentially do the same? We'll just have to see.

What to say about the music video..... Well let's start off with what others have said, some have mentioned that it's boring, it's different to her other music videos. And I have to agree, I like how it references Inna in a total different lime-light, a fun and totally friendly sort of light. Here in the UK people automatically think of Sun Is Up's music video whenever someone mentions her name, and although the music video is good, I'm sure Inna isn't the sort of person who wants attention purely because of her looks, if that was the case then all her music videos would be similar, and I also very much doubt she would be in the music industry.

I like the start especially the "hand job" as people have started called it and I can't help but laugh, however on a more natural tone it links in perfectly with the opening verse, which is what I sort of expected. The first verse is also my favourite bit of the song, it sort of shows Inna's voice off a bit and I really do like it, maybe there will be a few more vocal tracks on her new album maybe? The other bits of the music video are okay, I like the use of the Polaroid camera, although I don't like the fact that we don't get to see the photos, which could suggest that they were all rubbish, or they couldn't be bothered to edit them in, the closest we get to them is the transition between the videos, although I really think they were asked to hold up any of the photos and they'd edit it in, and although I like the technique they could have done it more often.

I really like how the cameraman is taken into account as a real person, which is quite a different idea and could be showing Inna's friendly side, I especially like it when she passes that cup towards the cameraman. I also laugh at the fact that when she's trying to grab the camera she loses control of her bike and she has to look away and control it again. I like how at the house party they all hold up one finger which references "un momento", and I do like the ending, although I don't understand what it has to do with anything.

Overall I'm obsessed with the song and it's nice for Inna to show who she is personality wise, however it doesn't seek to impress and is considered "boring" to quite a few people. I hope the song does well on the chart when it is released, but I definitely don't see the music channels playing this music video much more.
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New Release: Nicola Roberts - Lucky Day

To be honest I am really unsure what to think of this video, I really like the song even though it is about a certain something, but it's so catchy I can't help it. Anyway.... Nicola Roberts auditioned for Popstars: The Rivals, in which she won to form a band called Girls Aloud who have scored several top ten hits and have done amazing here in the UK chart. They are currently on hiatus, and 3 out of the 5 members have gone solo, who are Nicola, Cheryl Cole and Nadine Coyle. Apparently the other 2 members: Sarah Harding and Kimberley Walsh are rumoured to be recording their solo albums. This song is Nicola Roberts 2nd single from her 1st album "Cinderella Eyes" which is out next week.

This song represents Nicola in a different way, her first single "Beat of my Drum" showed people that she isn't vulnerable and she deserves to be where she is. This single blasts everyone who disregarded her, and proved that once again she isn't that little innocent girl from almost 10 years ago, and that shows in the song and the music video. The song is about sex, which is very difficult to express in a song and many different people go out of their way to try and enter it into the charts. This single is very interesting and I really like how she sings about the fact that this could be her "lucky day". I think it would be difficult to create a music video for these lyrics, but I think they have done a good job, even though some bits are a little over the top for some people's liking. This song has recently been compared to Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)", the song was produced by "Dragonette" who are an electro band who are attempting to get into the UK chart. I can definitely see this song entering the charts.

The start shows a coin spinning, this is a really good idea as it suggests that it's a 50/50 split on whether it will be her lucky day. We see Nicola walking down the road in a really, really short dress, that many critics have commented on being too short, however I think it shows what the song is all about and that she can be bold, and can show that she's no longer in the background. Then the music video takes a turn for the worse, with the use of neon lights to distort the picture, I think it makes the video look really cheap and makes it seem surprisingly different, this could be both a bad thing and a good thing. On the off chance that music channels allow this music video to be played during daylight hours, it will attract the attention of children who like pretty colours. But adults just detest it and it really doesn't make me want to watch the music video over and over again. Once is enough in my case.

Controversy on this music video is all about the wall with the worm like creatures on it, those of us who are old enough know exactly what they are and could be the reason why I have not yet seen the music video on any of the channels, and although it references the song in the light it ought to, I feel it is wrong to try to appeal to the younger audience but at the same time put something up that could uncoincidentally make adults write in complaints. Therefore this music video is a difficult one, on one hand it appeals to the younger generation, but then on the other hand, they go and do something to this wall which totally ruins the music video for me.

Overall, I don't understand this music video, and although I totally get why certain bits are done here and there, it just makes it look cheap, low-budget, and just totally not right. I feel bad for Nicola as I think this isn't how she is meant to be displayed to the public, whereas all her band mates are referenced a lot better. It'll be a shame, but I totally see her career going downhill, and although I do like her songs and I am kind of a fan, I still see that she will not get enough people behind her to make her a big artist.
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