Monday, September 06, 2010

How in the Hell is this Going to Make it on the Radio?

It's been a while, maybe since Buckcherry's Crazy Bitch, that I've heard a track so perfectly crafted for contemporary radio consumption, but be waaay too vulgar lyrically to meet "radio standards". First off, Cee-Lo Green is in fact The Soul Machine and if you weren't a fan of his work prior to his headfirst dive into contemporary music with Gnarles Barkley, you missed out on some great southern Hip Hop he did with the Goodie Mob. Most notably this classic album that didn't get near the credit it should have, both sales and respect wise from Hip Hop fans.

The premise for the song below has to do with Cee-Lo playing the role of spurned lover who was left for another man with more money. It's an unenviable position and you could understand why there would be anger associated with getting the short end of the stick. The fact that the song is so well executed, layering the soul on so heavy that it's impossible not to chuckle a little bit when the backup singers bring the church-style harmony in singing "Oh she's a gooold digga, just thought you should know n***a". Put it this way, you know your song has been an internet sensation when CNN takes the time to comment about your expletive laden track. Check out the video below:

When asked about why the expletive laden track, Cee-Lo backed up his creation saying:
"What I've tried to accomplish, like, is making art products ... so I still believe that (the song) can be classified as art because it's an original piece and the edge and alternative is there, and the integrity is intact" - Cee-Lo (AP)
What's unfortunate is that it's become so popular that a "Forget You!" clean version will soon be floating across the radio waves, in essence stripping the "artistic expressionism" on the track. What I absolutely love about the track is that is was written by Bruno Mars and produced by his production group The Smeezingtons, marrying their catchyuplifting sound with one of the south's most uniquely soulful voices. My guess is the song will probably end up being the lead single off his upcoming album, The Lady Killa due out in December as it is now skyrocketing sales wise.

My advice on the song below is to keep an open mind about the song, don't let the strong language dissuade you from seeing the humor and intention of the song. Everybody has gotten the urge to tell someone eff off at some point and the fact that @theladykilla was able to spin the negativity into a soulful sing along is creative and he should be given credit for his "artistry." There's good reason why 5 million people made this an internet sensation the past month, so allow yourself to laugh a little bit and enjoy the talents of one of the more eccentric cats to come out of the ATL...

Cee-Lo - Fuck You!
| Download

1 comments:

Anonymous September 14, 2010 at 6:18 AM  

I've been loving FU - Cee Lo's got that whole 60s soul thing going on ... with a sense of humour!

And it's on fairly high rotation on TripleJ. Guess you have to go to Aus to get your swear words on the radio :)

eXTReMe Tracker