Critic Jonni

Rizzle Kicks has been popular on my blog for quite sometime now, especially after I wrote the review of "Mama Do The Hump", which is still getting views to this day. Rizzle Kicks are a duo made up of Rizzle and Sylvester, but their real names are Jordan Stephens and Harley Alexander-Sule respectively. They have had a number of hit songs, that keep appearing on the charts, this is one duo we are going to see a lot more of. However they have never had a number one, will that change in the future? Or will they be stuck, just like The Saturdays, keeping an eye on the chart and always hoping for that hit song that makes it to the top.

"Dreamers" was written by Harley Alexander-Sule, Emily Phillips, Jordan Stephens, Ant Whiting, Patrick Lyons and Alex Spyropoulos. There are two versions of this song that has been released, the one that you can hear in the music video and the Epic Remix (which is currently charting a lot higher than this one). The reason why the second one is charting better is because it is a collaboration with Pharoahe Monch, Hines, Professor Green, Ed Sheeran, Dappy, Foreign Beggars and Chali 2na. A big collaboration and I can see this charting high by Sunday! I'm not sure what to think of this song, it's good it's catchy but a bit on the repetitive side, so much so that I got bored at the end.

This music video isn't as good as I expected it to be, Rizzle Kicks are the duo that are leading the way on how to make good music videos, but this one is just not up to scratch. It's more of a performance piece than anything else, with various hip hop dancing included. There is also a cameo appearance from Dappy which shows him playing tennis on his own, that's one way to win I suppose. Personally I would've made the video as the Epic Remix featuring everyone in the song, although there are a few stars that are quite a bit busy, but they still should've done it.

My favourite bit of this video is the various messages that pop up. The one at the start and at the end says "You can check-in. But you can never check-out", which I think goes for dreaming, as once you come up with something you're guaranteed to come back to it. The next one is "Keep calm and carry on" which has been hitting the UK hard recently. Near the end "No accredited sheep beyond this point" and "It's not over until the fat lady sings", which could relate to the song since dreams do send you weird messages sometimes.

The whole video has an Alice in Wonderland feel, it reminds me of Avril Lavigne's "Alice" and Daisy Dares You Featuring Chipmunk's "Number One Enemy". What Rizzle Kicks are showing us is that Alice in Wonderland could have been a dream that Alice stepped into, or fell into, and they aren't the only ones who think that. However that is the only link I can think up of.

Overall a catchy song that is a bit on the repetitive side, it's accompanying music video isn't up to standards we expect from these guys, although it is technically great and has everything you expect, along with hidden references that become more clear when you watch it.

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Dizzee Rascal, real name Dylan Mills, has had a few number ones and I'm sure he'll be getting a few more. However I never find his songs not that memorable, I'll remember it when I hear it but I couldn't work out the song off the top of my head. In this one he has collaborated with Calvin Harris (which links us back to the start of my Collaboration Special), his real name is Adam Wiles, and is probably the main reason why this song got to number one as he is a DJ so he came up with the music which makes this song very catchy, his vocals is great to listen to and I can't help but sing-a-long to them. As for Chrome, there isn't a lot about him, I've heard that he has featured on quite a few songs, but there's no profile to be found...

"Dace Wiv Me" was written by Calvin Harris, Dizzee Rascal, Nick Detnon and Tyrone Paul. Again another possible reason why this song did good was because it was written by the artists who sings the song. It's catchy because of the music, in my opinion, if it wasn't a collaboration with Calvin Harris and it was left to someone else, I doubt this song would have charted as well as it did.

The music video is a typical rap/R&B music video, there's nothing special about it in my opinion, just a couple of guys singing in this place with a lot of girls. It links in well with the song, however it is more of a performance video over a narrative video.

I think a lot is missing to make this video better, they could've been singing to a couple of girls, but instead they were more focused on the camera, which could link in a way if you considered the camera to be a girl in who they are singing to, however Dizzee Rascal spoils all ideas of that as he walks away with a girl leaving the camera all alone.

Overall, you can tell I haven't got anything more to say about this video, I'm seriously grasping at straws here. I'm glad that it's typical of this genre of music, it could've been a lot worse, the song is catchy especially after a few listens but I would put it down to Calvin Harris' music. So I haven't got a clue what to rate this, so I'm going with my gut, and I'm sorry if people think the video is better than this.

Shakira, real name Shakira Ripoll, has never made it on my blog before I decided to do this Collaboration Special., guess she just isn't as big over in the UK as she is everywhere else, especially since this catchy little song failed to chart in the UK, or maybe it wasn't even released... She has a very unique voice, one that if you hear it on the radio you'd be able to identify it within seconds. She released 2 versions of "Loca" one being a Spanish version featuring El Cata, and an English version featuring Dizzee Rascal. Since I live in the UK and only speak English I have decided to review the English version. The Spanish version can be found below. Dizzee Rascal, real name Dylan Mills, is one of those British rappers who has had quite a few number ones for songs that are easily forgettable, in my opinion, which seems a little disappointing, but he is coming back soon with new songs that are definitely going to be chart worthy, let's hope they're memorable too.

"Loca" was written by Shakira, Edward Bello (El Cata), Armando Pérez (Pitbull) and Dylan Mills (Dizzee Rascal). Which is definitely quite a collaboration, and I'm surprised to see Pitbull once again. Again the artist has written the song, hence why she sings it so well, I also like how it shows us a bit of her personality as she is singing about being crazy, which she is from various news reports we have heard about in the last 1-3 years that has had me surprised and laughing.

This music video was set in Barcelona, Spain. It shows her being crazy as we have all come to expect, and we sure do like it. She roller skates, she rides a motorcycle and she dances in a public fountain. However being crazy doesn't mean you have to throw all safety aside, she ended up going on a motorcycle with no helmet (which is against the law in Spain), and she didn't get any permits to film or to jump in the fountain, hence law suits was probably going to happen, but as far as I know nothing really came of it. But then again it does come from being crazy, however doesn't that encourage people to do the same?

Overall I haven't got much to say about this video, the song is catchy, and the video matches the song, but I don't believe in teaching kids to disregard rules, at the end of the day she should've been fined for what she did and we as the public should have known about it, on the other hand it may not have been Shakira's fault at all, maybe it was the director or someone else entirely, she's crazy, we like it but don't throw safety out the window!

My Collaboration Special continues, luckily, this was the one I was worried that might not be released in time, luckily it happened. Pitbull, who's real name is Armando Pérez, is definitely an international star, some even call him "Mr. Worldwide" as everyone wants to collaborate with him, hence why in nearly every song of his he calls himself Mr. Worldwide. Now it's Shakira's turn to properly collaborate with him. In the past they have made remixes, so officially it's their third time collaborating together. Shakira, real name Shakira Ripoll, has become very well-known around the world, but recently she has disappeared, but she's back with an amazing collaboration with Pitbull, this could possibly be what brings her back.

"Get It Started" was written by a number of song writers, I dread typing them all, but here I go... Armando Pérez, Bigram Zayas, Durrell Babbs, Kris Stephens, Marc Kinchen, Sidney Samson, Urales Vargas and Shakira. It would be interesting to know who wrote what, but that would be difficult to find as they may have came up with the lyrics together, or the music together and so therefore they can't claim certain parts. However this song I wasn't too sure about after first listen, I really didn't think Pitbull's rapping and Shakira's voice fit well, and I didn't like how much the song changes when the next person sings, it's like they've matched up two songs together, but extremely poorly. On the other hand, after hearing it a couple of times it's grown on me and now it's stuck in my head.

A lot of people are currently talking about this music video, on first watch I thought it was not good at all, but on the second time I looked more closely and saw the hidden narrative that you don't see the first time around. This is a new music video, it was released yesterday, it could have been delayed, and if it were, I wouldn't be sure what music video I would be reviewing as my Collaboration Special would have been a disaster. So thank you Pitbull and Shakira and Vevo for releasing the music video on time.

It's both a performance and a narrative piece, and the performance is included in the narrative which is quite clever. It took me a while to realise there was a storyline, but I've worked it out. This woman has fallen out of love with her husband, and has fallen in love with Pitbull, she wants to leave her husband, but it's not as simple as just walking away. He is a high-profiled person with lots of money, he gets his work-force to find her and bring her back, she keeps running away until Pitbull comes along and drives her away, but they are still after her and chases Pitbull in their car, after a few manoeuvres he evades the people after them. He takes her to his concert where she's safe back-stage. What would have made this interesting if someone stole her right at the end, leaving a cliff-hanger ending, but I guess a fairytale ending is perfectly fine too.

There's a few surprising things such as references to Pitbull and his lover having sex. Which is totally a reference in the title, especially since "It" is a generally used term. I like how we hear him whisper to her "don't start what you can't finish", which is usually spoken by a woman to a man... What would've made this that little bit better would be if Shakira had been the woman who fell in love with Pitbull as she is singing the song, however I totally understand that these are two very busy artists and getting them to film together would be very difficult.

Overall they have done an amazing job, the song is catchy after a few listens, and the accompanying music video is amazing, it's one of those videos that every time you watch it you see something new and it excites you even more. I haven't got a bad thing to say about this, so I have no choice but give to this video the rating it clearly deserves.

Continuing my Collaboration Special, Pharrell collaborates with Pitbull. Pharrell, real name Pharrell Williams, keeps out of the limelight a lot which is quite different as artists tend to try and be well-known, however he is one who stays back and although he is well-known it takes a while for people to recognise the name. He was also a member of the band N.E.R.D. in which they have had a lot of high charting singles. Pitbull, on the other hand, is the total opposite, a lot of people know who he is and he is definitely going to attempt to keep his celebrity lifestyle. His real name is Armando Pérez, he came up with Pitbull because his life has been difficult and a constant fight, much like a pitbull dog's life.

"Blanco" is a song written for the Fast & Furious soundtrack. It was written by Pharrell Williams, Chad Hugo, Armando Pérez, Valentino Khan and Maxine Ashley. Pharrell and Chad are also known as the duo "The Neptunes" who have produced and co-written a lot of well-known songs. However personally I think this song isn't quite right at all, it doesn't stick in my head, and it's over the top for Fast & Furious. Not only that but they keep the song in Spanish, making it difficult for us to work out the lyrics until we translate them and get a shocked surprise.

This music video is not a performance piece, it is not a narrative piece, and there are very little scenes from Fast & Furious so I wouldn't even call it a soundtrack piece. If this was for the film Cloverfield I could understand the use of the camera, or the more recent film Chronicle, but the use of the camera is just absurd and doesn't link in with anything at all.

I don't like this video, I don't exactly know how to word this, but why does it show half-naked girls? I don't quite know why they decided to do it, I don't see the link in with Fast & Furious and it's not boiling hot otherwise others would have done the same, personally there's no need for it, and this video could've been amazing with the use of a narrative storyline to fit in with the cut-scenes from Fast & Furious. This seems rushed, out of control and not that great to watch.

Overall I dislike the song, and I really don't like the translated verses. It's accompanying music video does link in with the song, but that is all it does, it fails to link in with the film that this is a soundtrack to, and it also fails to interest the people watching, furthermore there is no need for the use of the camera as it has nothing to do with the film or the song.