Katy Perry is back with this uplifting track, that is definitely a grower. Dropped at the same time as Britney Spears' "Make Me...", this song took a prominent push back on my listening scale as I repeatedly fell in love with Britney Spears' "Make Me...", hearing this occasionally though has made me love this song too, definitely a grower. It more than describes the situation I'm in, I'm fighting for my career and I'm determined to rise, to become who I'm meant to me, regardless of what others may be saying. Katy Perry proves that you have to fight, you have to keep going, achieve your dreams because you will rise, hard work pays off.
An inspiration to us all, Katy Perry, real name Katheryn Hudson, has really made herself one of the biggest female singers in the world. This single is a non-album single and will be heavily featured during the US viewing of the 2016 Summer Olympics. It has charted worldwide and has been well received. It was written by Katy Perry, Max Martin, Ali Payami and Savan Kotecha.
Directed by Paul Gore, the video features a parachute much like Christina Milian's "Rebel", only Katy Perry adds a much better narrative and performance piece.
Accompanying the music video perfectly, Katy Perry battles with the parachute, trains herself to use it properly so in the end she will rise, rise high into the sky.
During the drama, she almost falls off a cliff, cuts herself on the parachute wires and gets caught up in a rain storm.
But in the end, as we all know she's a fighter, she flies up into the sky. She defeats all the doubts and proves that she can do this. Such an inspiration, we need more music videos like this.
However this video doesn't have much going on, and although it's showing a full story, it's quite slow and gradual and although rising in the real world is gradual, there's just something missing overall.
Another X Factor star, this time a winner, who has just released her first song away from Syco, Simon Cowell's record label. The song is weak, it's slightly catchy but doesn't display Sam Bailey's amazing vocal ability the way we know certain songs can. She was a worthy winner of The X Factor, but I feel that she hasn't had a song that shows her off as a worthy winner. This one tries but it just doesn't work. Sam Bailey performs on a stage while scenes of her family life are shown, the "Sing My Heart Out" video is cute and lovely but nothing more.
Winner of the tenth series of The X Factor, Sam Bailey released just one album under Syco before parting ways with that record label. Now free from Simon Cowell, she released this single under Tiger Drum record label. She's an inspiration to a lot of people, proving that you are never too old to make your dreams a reality, and yet she isn't doing so well on the iTunes chart. This song is too weak, I've seen her sing so many better songs whilst watching The X Factor, that's it's kind of disappointing this has been released. However I can't deny that her vocals are strong and although it seems held back, I know she has more to give. I just hope she releases a second single that is much better before dropping the album.
This music video is mainly performance based with snapshots of her home life. It's really cute that she has included her family in this video, although exposing children to the media is a little worrying, but it works well and expresses how happy she is.
The home videos doesn't really go with the meaning of the song, apart from the fact that it proves she is a mother and that she is singing her heart out to inspire them.
As for the performance side, she gives it her all, and yet she looks completely nervous up on that stage, in front of an empty audience. The song is not the best but Sam Bailey gives it her best shot.
Overall an average music video that isn't engaging or interesting, along with a song that fails to impress... What does is her vocals, we know what they are like and even if this song doesn't show them enough you can tell that her vocals are strong. Now please release a follow-up that is something we'd put on repeat any day!
Thursday Revisit, so I chose this song from Lindsay Lohan's small collection purely because it's the only single that has charted in the UK to date. It's such a catchy ballad song that it doesn't surprise me that it charted, although I much preferred her debut "Rumours". Lindsay Lohan pines for a guy who she loves across the street, yet his parents are stopping them from seeing one another, she looks like a bad influence, but with a shocking ending, is it really "Over"?
Lindsay Lohan may be known for her film career, but she has dipped into music in the past, and actually did a good job of contributing to the music industry. Weirdly, this song is the only one that charted in the UK, although it's probably the weakest of her singles she released. A powerful song about an on-off relationship the music video twists the meaning which makes it slightly confusing. It was written by Lindsay Lohan, Kara DioGuardi and John Shanks.
Jake Nava directed this music video which contains both a narrative and a performance. It was inspired by the 1999 film American Beauty. Her love interest is played by the actor Drew Fuller.
The narrative is interesting but so bitty, it's hard to follow because there is more focus on Drew Fuller's relationship with his parents, it's a complicated plot line that would probably work much better in a film or a longer music video, but the restraints on the amount of time for this video really impacts the story line, However, Lindsay Lohan's acting skills definitely come natural and Drew Fuller makes this just as good, it's so believable that it's easy to get caught up in this music video.
The performance side of things is cut through the narrative with a series of snapshots and scenes, Lindsay Lohan puts on an acting performance and it's clear this song means a lot to her, you can definitely tell she wrote some of it. She has a clear connection to the song, and has so much energy whilst singing, I'm totally seeing her live if she does a concert in the UK!
The ending is shocking and although it could be a lot worse, it's quite surprising. Honestly, I'm glad I have a family who supports me and I can rely on. They may not agree with all the decisions I make, but they know that it's my life. It's always been like that, and I don't know how I'd have been able to cope if I had parents like he did.
This video is relatable, intriguing and totally engaging. The story is developed too quickly, there's clearly more to this than what we have seen, and it would totally work as a much longer video, maybe as a short film.... But apart from that it has a great interesting narrative and a cracking performance that Lindsay Lohan smashes!
Back to my Eurovision posts, since the 2017 contest isn't so far away now. This is Italy's entry into the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, Emma scored 33 points placing her 21st in the contest. "La Mia Città" means 'In My City' in English. A strong vocal for this song, the video doesn't accompany it that well. Emma goes all out for this performance-based music video for "La Mia Città", with different fashion styles.
Emma, full name Emma Marrone, is a prolific Italian singer, with many singles and albums to her name. She has made such a massive career for herself in her own country, it's surprising she hasn't tried to become internationally known, although I guess you could say she gave it a try by competing in the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest. Since then, she hasn't done much, but I'm guessing she is working on a new album. The song was written by Emma Marrone.
Directed by Leandro Manuel Emede and Nicolo' Cerioni, this video is a visual performance piece with very little going on. Styling by Nicolo' Cerioni, the outfits that Emma wears are eccentric including a Minnie or Mickey Mouse costume that is totally over the top and yet Emma pulls it off perfectly.
Totally eccentric but you know Emma could give the perfect performance on a stage, you'd totally want to see her live and this is exactly what this music video does.
Yet it has no substance, flavour and nothing to keep the viewers interested. This music video is way too simple considering the strong song and vocal that goes with it.
So Saturday night, S Club, along with Booty Luv and Big Brovaz, performed at the hottest gay nightclub in Birmingham, The Nightgale for their 00's themed party. Believe it or not, but this was the song that blew up the club, it was FIRE and Jo O'Meara's vocals were perfection. It may not be my favourite S Club 7 song, and I may have my annoyances in Jo O'Meara singing every verse in it's entirety, and therefore making the other members backing vocalists; I can't deny that this is just a pure ballad banger of a song. S Club 7 go for a wintry performance piece for this video, Jo O'Meara takes lead vocals and lead scenes as she shows off her technical vocal ability.
The seven piece group S Club 7 had a string of hits and successes. They consisted of Jo O'Meara, Bradley McIntosh, Paul Cattermole, Tina Barrett, Hannah Spearritt, Rachel Stevens and Jon Lee. This song was a turning point for me with this group, I didn't appreciate having a solo vocalist with the other group members harmonising during the chorus, it's not how a group should sing songs, and although Jo O'Meara may have had the strongest voice, it shouldn't have meant she got the whole song to herself. The song was sung as a solo in Seeing Double, so in theory it is Jo O'Meara's song and not really an S Club song. It was written by Cathy Dennis and Simon Ellis.
Directed by Andy Morahan, the video has a wintry feel for this break-up song. A full performance piece with Jo O'Meara taking centre stage as she sings most of the song, whilst the other group members offer harmonies and support.
There is very little substance to this music video, Jo O'Meara does her best with the song, but it's a clear separation between her and the rest of the group. The girls and the boys are separated and the wintry scene makes it feel like a Christmas song.
This ballad is one of their iconic songs, and yet the music video is slow and not interesting enough, it looks a bit like Atomic Kitten's "Eternal Flame". Overall, there's not much to comment on, amazing song but probably better as a solo song, with an unengaging accompanying music video.
Drake's "One Dance" has finally been knocked off the top spot after 15 weeks. Of course, it just had to be Justin Bieber that did it, he features on the number one song from Major Lazer called "Cold Water" which also has vocals from MØ. Yet trust it to be another song without a music video, and therefore opening the top 10 of the UK singles chart to my Chart Mondays. This song stayed at number two for a few weeks, and rivalled Drake's "One Dance", grabbing number one during the mid-weeks only to officially hit number two. The song is the number one that never was, but totally should've been, which reminds me of Maroon 5's "Moves Like Jagger". Focusing purely on the girl in a relationship, Kungs Vs Cookin' On 3 Burner's video for "This Girl" is slow but mesmerising,
Kungs, real name Valentin Brunel, is a French DJ who will definitely be releasing hit after hit. His exotic sounds takes us all back to a different time period in the sunshine, yet he is just 19. I am extremely excited to see how bright his future will be, because music like this is very popular, so he definitely won't be disappearing anywhere soon. Featuring is Cookin' On 3 Burners, an R&B, soul and funk trio consisting of Jake Mason, Dan West and Ivan Khatchoyan. This is originally their song with vocals from Kylie Auldist, which was then mixed by Kungs to create this awesome song, it's not the first time a remix has boosted a song's popularity and I'm sure it won't be the last time. The song was written by Jake Mason, Lance Ferguson and Ivan Khatchoyan.
Directed by Matt Larson, the music video features models Louïs Rault Watanabe and Irina Martynenko.
Not a lot goes on in the music video, just mainly focusing on the developing relationship between these two lovers. The camera focuses more on Irina Martynenko, understandably since the song is about a girl.
However they have totally sexed her up and included more visuals of her being sexy than even attempting to make Louïs Rault Watanabe comparably similar in his visuals.
They could be a model couple, and yet they fail to focus on the guy in the relationship as much as they have with the girl.
On the other hand it's sweet, and fills me with jealousy since I want that one day, to escape with someone and be in love, even if we never truly escape to a remote place to ourselves. This is sweet, innocent, well maybe not so innocent in one of the scenes, and definitely loving. It goes well with the bright upbeat song, definitely one of the summer anthems of 2016, and one that never quite reached the UK top spot.
YouTube suggested this music video on the home page, so why not include Lindsay Lohan into my blog? She is working on new music material, according to an announcement which she made, but since she doesn't want to clash with her younger sister Ali Lohan, she can't confirm whether a third album will materialise. It was supposed to be released back in 2008, when most recent single "Bossy" was released, but work on that album ceased. Starting from scratch, we might see Lindsay Lohan make a great return to the music industry, or it might just not work out yet again. The paparazzi are once again at blame in this video, as Lindsay Lohan fights back against the media in this music video for debut single Rumours.
Lindsay Lohan is mostly known for her acting roles rather than her music. However her music career isn't as bad as you might think and it is certainly nothing to be snubbed about. She's hit charts around the world, including the UK with single "Over". Most recently, she collaborated with Duran Duran on "Danceophobia" for their 2015 album Paper Gods. Whether her comeback to music will make an impact, is something we may never find out about, but as long as she releases the music she wants, all will be fine. She currently owes her record label one more album, which is why she is recording new music. This song was her debut single and was written by Cory Rooney, Lindsay Lohan, Taryll Jackson and TJ Jackson. It feels like two Britney Spears songs combined together: "My Prerogative" and "Piece of Me".
As for the music video, it was directed by Jake Nava, and must definitely have been the inspiration for Miley Cyrus' "Fly On The Wall" and "Can't Be Tamed" as many scenes and features look and feel too similar.
It relates to the song as it revolves around the media's attention of Lindsay Lohan at the time. This has been done plenty of times, and it proves how much paparazzi was a problem back then for these stars, and to this day it still is a massive problem that isn't really dealt with, and I don't think it will be, which means singers will keep releasing these types of singles and music videos for years to come.
Lindsay Lohan looks completely stylish, as she avoids paparazzi in this video. She also gets with a very gorgeous guy, who happens to be her on-screen boyfriend. At the end there is photos of them kissing on a camera which she later drops out of the helicopter.
There's many different scenes, including Lindsay Lohan being trapped in a bird cage, I wonder who copied this later for their music video... Miley Cyrus' "Can't Be Tamed" anyone?
The dance scene has great choreography that is performed to perfection, Lindsay Lohan proves she's more than just an actress and she really can perform.
Overall, this music video deserves to be watched, it's more than what everyone first expected and it's not surprising since back then she was an amazing actress. Nowadays people are rating her badly because of her problems, yet I will forever support her like I did as a child. I hope Lindsay Lohan makes an astonishing comeback to the music industry, because I shall be backing her corner every step of the way.
Here comes a prolific ballad sure to melt our hearts, not quite the pop ballad we expect to hear from Shawn Mendes, and one that is totally a different direction. It manages to show versatility, becoming a possible stand-out track on his new album (something we won't be able to be sure of until it drops in it's entirety later on in the year). Flooding it with emotion in both the song and the performance-based music video, Shawn Mendes releases frustration in Ruin.
Shawn Mendes, the Canadian superstar we just keep hearing about again and again, and for all the right reasons. He previously climbed the UK chart with "Stitches" finally grabbing number one, weeks after it was released. Now he just launches right into the chart and yet still climbs later on, just like he has done with "Treat You Better". This album is set to be one I won't be able to stop listening to, and as each new track is dropped I fall in love with his vocals more and more. This song was written by Shawn Mendes, Ido Zmishlany, Scott Harris and Geoffrey Warburton.
The music video was directed by Ryan Pallotta and was set in Madison Square Garden.
There is very little going on in the video, since it is a pure performance piece in this empty arena, although I bet it would be packed if Shawn Mendes' fans could've got tickets to see the filming of this music video.
Filmed purely in black and white, which fails to add any texture to the music video apart from heightening the emotion of the song, it feels like an insight in to Shawn Mendes' life.
This is the sort of arena he would play at, it's like it's being filmed before a big show and something has got under Shawn Mendes' skin, something that makes him want to release his frustrations by singing this song. Something that will calm him down before the show, and it's obvious that that is what this song does for him.
Although basic, this music video is inclusive and feels more like a gift to his fans, something to keep them going. This song is clearly personal to him, and he portrays that perfectly in his performance of the song. Yet there is so much they could have done with this video, only there's no point since it is just a promotional instant grat single, just like Fifth Harmony's "Write On Me" was. So mainly we can be thankful that this actually has a music video, because his other promotional singles might not get one.
This is my new banger and I am so glad that it has a music video for me to review too. It is a timeless anthem that will definitely be something I'd constantly listen to even if I am actually sorry for something I've done. This marks the return of JoJo, especially with her new album on the way, which will be called Mad Love, and will include this song as it is the first single from the said album. JoJo performs with her natural flair, she isn't apologising for no reason and especially when she doesn't mean it.
JoJo, real name Joanna Levesque, has been finally making her comeback in the music industry, after a legal battle with her now previous record label. Finally out of her contract, she signed a new one and has been releasing new music since last year, including the incredible tringle of singles "When Love Hurts", "Say Love" and "Save My Soul". She's back and it's looks like it's going to be a solid return! Featured star is Wiz Khalifa, real name Cameron Thomaz, has dipped in and out of hits, most notable for number one single "See You Again", he will always be a prominent rapper. This song was written by Joanna Levesque, Taylor Parks and Cameron Thomaz.
Directed by Francesco Carrozzini, this music video is a pure performance visual with snapshots of extras who have nothing to apologise for, although society might think otherwise.
It easily relates to the song, removing shade and highlighting pride. Everyone is different in their own ways and they have nothing to apologise for, being different is not wrong whatsoever.
JoJo really takes a stance on this overall, working with the video and even getting into a pool naked. To do so is completely brave, and yet she has nothing to apologise for. She does what she wants now, especially after being released from her previous contract. She has freedom, and her fans are following her more than ever, helping to promote her any way we can.
As for Wiz Khalifa, he's rap shines in the song, and the visual does the exact same thing. Smoky and hazy, he puts on a performance that stuns, he means every word of that rap just like JoJo means every word of the song. This is why he will always have a career.
Overall, it's a great performance piece from JoJo, which is totally nothing new from her. As for the side clips, it's freeing to see so many people not caring and not apologising for who they are and what they do. Everyone should have the freedom to be themselves, to be able to show themselves to the world without hatred, without criticism and without apologies.
Not an easy decision to pick between this and "Never Had A Dream Come True", but this was another favourite of mine and rolls nicely on from "Don't Stop Movin'" for my Thursday Revisit. This wasn't my initial plan but I didn't realise how much Reach meant to me, looking back on this song, I thought it was complete cheese with extra on top, but it really isn't, it's still a banger even if it isn't in my head. S Club 7 takes the party bus on the road, living it up large and dancing away on top of it, the group members have a blast as they Reach for the stars.
S Club 7 is a fond memory of nearly every 20-30 year old's childhood, they hit the charts hard in the UK, and their popularity never stopped, creating hit TV shows and TV movies as well as spawning a junior band. Yet all good things come to an end, and they ended up going their separate ways. The group consisted of Jo O'Meara, Bradley McIntosh, Hannah Spearritt, Tina Barrett, Jon Lee, Paul Cattermole and Rachel Stevens. This song didn't quite reach number one and had to settle for peaking at number two, behind Sonique's "It Feels So Good". It was written by Cathy Dennis and Andrew Todd.
The music video is a simple performance piece, the song served as the theme tune for L.A. 7, the next instalment series of the group's TV shows.
The video doesn't link back to the TV series, this time around like "Bring It All Back" did. Instead settling purely on the performance side of things.
There's a few possible narratives, especially with all the extras used in the video, where they have a sweet with the letter 's' on (which definitely reminds me of Skittles), which turns them into loving the group too.
The extras follow the party bus, which kind of copies the Vengaboys bus in "We Like To Party! (The Vengabus)", yet explodes it much more. It looks quite dangerous.
As for performance wise, they are on form as always, although no grouped dancing, all members are pretty apart meaning it's difficult to see any mishaps and so it looks more of a collective in-sync production.
Overall, there really isn't anything to this music video, it's pretty bland and totally simple with no narrative or an outstanding performance visual. It's remembered because of the party bus, yet it's easily forgettable compared to their other music videos.
