Out of all the options for my Thursday Revisit; of course, I was going to choose RuPaul's debut single which definitely inspired many people and charted in the US, the UK, and Canada. This song is totally iconic because so many of the phrases that we hear RuPaul say on his TV show "RuPaul's Drag Race" are ones he says in this song. The song was released in 1992 and had pretty good success. Personally, I always identify the 90's as a decade with influential drag queens. From what I remember, there was many of them on TV, making a name for themselves. Nowadays, it's not so easy to find drag queens on mainstream TV shows. They clearly left an impression on me, as I remember asking my Mom all about them. RuPaul has totally been an influential person for the LGBT+ community and this drag queen will go down in history. Watch RuPaul play a little black girl and become supermodel of the world, based on his own young life within the gay community and the culture he grew up with in this music video for "Supermodel (You Better Work)".
RuPaul, real name RuPaul Charles, has definitely come straight back into the limelight with his very popular American TV show RuPaul's Drag Race, which has seen him crown a number of drag queens as America's Next Drag Superstar. Yet, this is the song that really started RuPaul's music career - which has certainly been lengthy. It's inspiringly catchy and definitely was a surprising hit for the era that it was released. It managed to chart at number 39 on the UK Singles Chart and number 45 on the US Billboard Hot 100; as well as number two on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs Chart, and number four on the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban Singles Chart. The song was written by RuPaul, Jimmy Harry, and Larry Tee.
The music video was directed by Randy Barbato, and it continues to prove how current RuPaul is. The visual has a performance piece based within a narrative and is completely flawless. This concept and the way they have managed to pull it off is certainly ahead of its time. Was this really filmed in 1993? Throughout the video, actress LaWanda Page talks; she has several lines in the song, but does not appear in the music video; although she does appear in RuPaul's following videos.
During the narrative, we watch a little black girl get spotted by an "Ebony Fashion Fair" talent scout who then grows up to become the supermodel of the world. This is all announced by LaWanda Page as RuPaul looks at old photos. The video continues to show RuPaul as the supermodel of the world, prancing down the road like it's a runway.
She continues to do model things, like photo shoots and signing magazines with her face on. She uses the song to teach others that they have to work. As the video progresses, we see that this life is getting too much for her - and we all know how that feels. Stressed and overworked, RuPaul cracks under pressure; but. at the end, she laughs it off as if it was all a bit of fun.
It's totally not surprising that MTV loved this video, we all love this video. Clearly, the music channels played a key part in creating a hit song; and, to be fair, they still play a major part in the charts, especially considering people like Shawn Mendes with "Stitches" launched up the UK chart with his song, after the music channels played it often (as well as radio, obviously). This is complete in every way; and, to be fair, if it were released in today, it'll get a similar rating, because it's strong, it's effective, and it's relatable to the song in every way.
Couldn't decide what music video to review, so chose this one since I am currently playing Nickelback's latest album; which has the same title as this single. The album is pure fire throughout, and this music video is just as powerful. Nickelback are truly back, putting their stamp on rock music and proving how great they truly are. Watch Nickelback become freedom-fighting revolutionaries as they rescue imprisoned humans from machines in a post-apocalyptic world in this music video for "Feed The Machine".
Nickelback are a Canadian rock band consisting of Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger, and Daniel Adair. They are one of the most successful rock groups of all time and continue to keep to their sound whilst keeping it current and mainstream. We all like a little bit of Nickelback, whether we like to admit to it or not. This latest album is complete fire from start to finish. It has certainly proved that they can continue as a band without changing their music genre. This song is their first single from the album, and it is one of those songs you never forget. It was written by Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger, and Daniel Adair.
Directed by Kyle Cogan, this music video is fully in-depth, easily relating to the lyrics. There is a slight performance piece, but it's mainly narrative; easily relating to the concept of the lyrics, transforming them into this perfect visual.
We watch as these robots come after two girls, one of which gets captured outside, whilst the other manages to escape and finds a place to hide. Then, the one who survived was taken to a village by a woman and given some water, and then they make a plan to free the humans that have been captured by the monsters, who are clearly just feeding the machine.
The concept is great and very relatable to many people in the world at the moment. There's not much inclusion of Nickelback as a whole; their scenes are more profile shots than anything else. I like the ending which sees the machine shut down once the humans are all rescued. Such an iconic music video, and yet there's just something missing as a whole.
Here is Kiesza, once again, proving she is a vocal powerhouse and determined not to go down as the "Hideaway" girl; I just know there is another hit on the horizon, for sure! This song deserved to be one, but we'll keep it amongst our treasures; one we'll sing along to every time we hear it; one we'll request to play at every party; and, one that we will never forget; just like all the other treasures we have. Bakermat has really proven his ability to create a hit, and although it may not have chart success, it's one I absolutely love. Watch Kiesza inspire everyone to dance in this ode of a music video to the past, whilst still keeping it modern and with a comedic effect, for Bakermat's "Don't Want You Back".
Bakermat, real name Lodewijk Fluttert, is a Dutch DJ and music producer, who has had a few successful songs, but most of which have been solid hits that haven't got the recognition they deserved. Only two of his songs have hit the UK Chart, these are "One Day (Vandaag)" and "Teach Me". It's a shame this one hasn't made it, especially since the collaboration is with Kiesza, real name Kiesa Ellestad, who may be a Canadian singer, but she's had massive success in the UK. Her hit, "Hideaway" peaked at number one, and she followed that with "Giant In My Heart" which got to number four; and, even her third single, "No Enemiez", peaked at number 30, inside the top 40! Yet, she hasn't been able to chart since, but promotion of this artist isn't as high as it was when "Hideaway" dropped; but, with a voice like Kiesza's, you'll always be a fundamental part of the music industry. This song was written by Lodewijk Fluttert, Clifford Goilo, Janée Bennett, Komi Al-Hakam, and Tamera Foster.
Directed by Adam Madrzyk, this music video is tongue-in-cheek as Kiesza encourages everyone to stop what they're doing and to dance their way through this song. Her vocals are on point throughout as she brings some fun to this brightly-themed music video.
The whole concept reminds me of Jigglypuff from Pokémon because everyone is asleep by the time she stops singing, probably from the exhaustion of dancing to the song. The opening scene sees a child go downstairs to watch TV and eat breakfast; it's clear that this is a children's TV programme that Kiesza is performing on.
She inspires fitness, wrapping it all around dance choreography, which she totally nails next to her backing dancers. The song is catchy, and Bakermat is looking super handsome in the visual. I also love how the people behind-the-scenes all start to dance too, and we also have an annoyed director who then ends up dancing too.
It totally works, but does it really relate to the song? It feels that the music video is a comical visual that doesn't really reflect the song. However, it's one I could watch over and over again; one that you'll see something new every time you watch.
This song is the current number one in the UK, which isn't all that surprising since it is a charity single. Many artists came together to sing this heart-warming song after the tragic news about the Grenfell Tower. The music video for this charity single showcases the devastation caused by the fire that erupted in London at the Grenfell Tower. It also showcases the many artists that came together to record this version of the song. It just shows how much they can all pull together when there's a time of need. The song has charted in many countries around the world. Watch the devastation that was caused by the Grenfell Tower fire, while we see many artists come together in this music video for charity single "Bridge Over Troubled Water".
Artists For Grenfell consists of many artists, all of whom came together for this single. The following artists sang on the song: Stormzy, Robbie Williams, James Blunt, Rita Ora, Craig David, Bastille, Liam Payne, Emily Sandé, Kelly Jones, Paloma Faith, Louis Tomlinson, Labrinth, Jorja Smith, WSTRN, Leona Lewis, Jessie J, James Arthur, Roger Daltrey, Ella Eyre, Anne-Marie, Ella Henderson, Louisa Johnson, 5 After Midnight, Angel, Carl Barât, Deno, Donae'o, Dua Lipa, Fleur East, Gareth Malone & The Choir for Grenfell, Geri Halliwell, Gregory Porter, Jessie Ware, John Newman, Jon McClure, London Community Gospel Choir, Matt Goss, Matt Terry, Mr Eazi, Nathan Sykes, Omar, Pixie Lott, Ray BLK, Raye, Shakka, Shane Filan, Tom Grennan, Tony Hadley, and Tulisa. Musicians also recorded parts of the song: Brian May - on guitar, Nile Rogers - on guitar, Tokio Myers - on piano, and Pete Townsend - on guitar. This was a brilliant collaborative effort, and the song shot to the top of the UK charts. There are a few outshining vocals, to me Rita Ora and Ella Eyre shine out above them all, with James Arthur bringing his usual raspy voice. The song was originally sung by Simon & Garfunkel where their "Bridge Over Troubled Water" also hit number one in the UK. The song has been covered by many, my favourite being Hear'Say. The song was written by Paul Simon. All proceeds of this version of the song that Syco Music and Sony Music receive will be donated to the London Community Foundation and distributed by them to those affected by the fire.
The music video is a typical charity single music video, that showcases the Artists For Grenfell in the studio, recording the song; whilst clips of the devastating events after the fire are shown in segments. This is really nothing new and, as usual, the artists are shown in black and white, which doesn't add anything to this music video, apart from contrast.
Stormzy fully encompasses the song at the start, clearly adding something new to this song and making it unique. The sights we watch are completely saddening, and something like this could've happened to any one of us or one of our family members.
Overall, the video captures the devastation of the Grenfell Tower fire. I'm not so keen on the studio visuals of the artists as we've seen this sort of thing a thousand times before. As a whole, it totally deserves to be number one, and I'm glad that the public has done their part by buying the charity single to help all these sufferers.
I haven't seen this music video before today because I was waiting to write it up for my Chart Mondays review; however, it looks like this song isn't going to return to the UK's top ten anytime soon, even though this visual has been released. So I thought I might as well review this today, since I am obsessed with Shawn Mendes, and not just because of his beautiful voice and emotional songs. This track has me singing along whenever I hear it, although I don't think it's as good as many of his other songs. Watch Shawn Mendes be free travelling with his love-interest, Ellie Bamber, throughout Europe, as well as showing his gigs in those respective cities in this music video for "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back".
Shawn Mendes is the Canadian superstar who is bringing out hit after hit after hit. Thanks to the music channels, I was aware of "Stitches" before it blew up in the UK. He is quite the climber on the UK chart, usually charting low to start off with and then zooming straight up. This has happened often with his singles; but, he's quickly becoming a male artist everyone is talking about, so he definitely has a bright future ahead of him. This song was released as part of the reissue of his second studio album. It was written by Shawn Mendes, John Theodore Geiger II, Geoff Warburton, and Scott Harris.
The music video is directed by Jay Martin. It was filmed in Paris, Amsterdam, and Isle of Thanet, Kent. The visual also features actress Ellie Bamber as Shawn Mendes' love-interest and on-screen girlfriend.
They travel around together, just like the opening lyric suggests. They are clearly having a lot of fun together travelling on trains, trekking along the coastline, and running through transportation hubs. They clearly get along great, and their acting skills really come into play as they easily showcase a relationship that we are all jealous of.
That's about all that goes on in this music video. There's a slight performance piece which sees Shawn Mendes performing on stage, with his guitar. He displays his emotion just like he does in every other performance we've seen. You definitely won't be disappointed at one of his gigs. Overall the video is good, but it just feels like it's missing something; it might be that the visuals don't showcase their on-screen relationship all that well.
