Meanwhile, your editor has yet to beat Smithy in a single-character challenge. With Mario. Happy Thanksgiving.
[Video][Website]
[3.00]
Will Adams: It takes someone as maximalist as RedOne to create something with so much going on that it took me at least a minute to realize he was singing the chorus from Modjo’s “Lady (Hear Me Tonight).” But a four-minute fireworks finale doesn’t make for engaging listening. “Boom Boom” is the same global pop template as last year’s “Don’t You Need Somebody,” even more stuffed with look-at-me sections, stitched together about as carelessly as “Starships,” and without the fun.
[4]
Stephen Eisermann: To all of our gamer readers out there: you ever play that RPG where you refuse to grind, so you keep showing up to boss fights underleveled, and when you finally reach the final boss fight your only option is to throw every possible attack/item/special at the boss? RedOne is the player, and pop radio is the final boss.
[0]
Ryo Miyauchi: RedOne haphazardly collects the best bits of pop in 2017 well after they’ve outlasted their shelf life, and he spits out a bland highlight reel that flatters neither “Despacito,” “Unforgettable,” nor Dinah of Fifth Harmony. Worse, he borrows the hook from Modjo’s classic “Lady (Hear Me Tonight)” but ignores the original’s private intimacy to appease everyone he possibly can, while appealing to no one in particular.
[3]
Alfred Soto: More like “Thunk Thunk”: a flopsweat-drenched anonymity that does nothing with Modjo’s “Lady (Hear Me Tonight).”
[1]
Nortey Dowuona: RedOne delivers triumphant synth horns, clattering synths, surprisingly less average bass, and a swiped “Despacito” drum beat. Daddy Yankee delivers an average verse. French Montana proves that he’s a boring writer except for hooks, and Dinah Jane is really good.
[4]
Anjy Ou: One of my favorite memories of Morocco is the night I went clubbing in Marrakech. The $10 I paid at the door included a free drink, and the music was a mix of Arabic pop, afrobeats, hip-hop and EDM. It was a perfect club experience, and I didn’t leave until 5am. This song feels like a semi-successful attempt to replicate that vibe. French Montana is a drag, and Dinah Jane fails to distinguish herself, sticking to her bridge instead of giving us hella ad libs. But RedOne and Daddy Yankee know how to deliver on a dance track, and sometimes that’s all you need.
[6]