New N-Dubz video for Strong Again

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

They've gone pop! It sounds very dated to me but I like it all the same, and that's not often a barrier for success anyway.

Only this weird coloured version is embeddable, so here's a link to the proper one. Opinions please?

Edit to add: Just discovered that this song has the same writer as Broken Strings. Explains why I like it, but also loses any coolness they might have had. Have they sold out?

Comments

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

I saw this on the telly the other day - this is their most Black Eyed Peas-ish single to date (the girl in particular is doing her best to sound like Fergie-Ferg), not sure if this is a good or a bad thing! Good chorus, stupid hats: not bad but a bit forgettable.

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it reminded me of BEPs as well, obviously trying to be the UK version. I think it's nice to have a bit of cheap, unambitious UK r'n'b-pop around. It can't compete with the American stuff but I have found quite a few nice things that fit into that mini-genre over the years.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Agree that it's very BEPs and that Fergie is clearly an inspiration to Tulisa, but those "ah-ah" bits are straight out of Jamelia's 'Money'. Which is a good thing obv! I really like this.

N-Dubz are a strange case generally, their route to success and overall aesthetic seem...curious. They're really hard to hate but there is some terrible stuff on the album - stuff like 'Strong Again', and the tracks which come off like amateur theatre productions, are great, but the boy really can't rap at all.

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

Are there any other poppy ones like this?

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Not really, though most of the songs are a slightly confused mishmash of styles so it's kind of hard to tell what they're going for at any point. 'Don't Get Nine' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeWE3Af5AlI) is the most poppy one apart from 'Strong Again' but I'm not sure you'll like it!

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

i love 'Don't Get Nine' on the album, and 'Feva Las Vegas' of course

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

'but the boy really can't rap at all'

disagree - not amazing but does it pretty well factoring in the accent and the 'singing'. any glaring examples of badness?

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

The song called 'Sex' :o

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

oh fair enough ha

[lockedintheatti.livejournal.com]

This is great.

I'm amazed at how well they are doing - according to Popjustice their album has sold 300,000, which is loads for an act like this (and considering none of their singles has set the world alight). This deserves to be a big hit.

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

People underestimate these 'chav' acts, because they don't have a strong voice in the media. Not just urban music but dance music too - who expected Scooter or Darren Styles to sell so many albums in 2008? There is a whole culture hardly noticed by mainstream magazines and TV shows. Channel U and Clubland TV are an insight into that world. With a song like Strong Again, written by a very mainstream songwriter, N Dubz could have a crossover hit, but if they don't there's no loss because they have a steady fanbase already. They don't actually need the mainstream media support, and that's really refreshing.

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

Tick VG. Hope it's a monster hit for them. I must get their LP.

[koganbot]

Didn't like their last single, but this is pleasing - is charming, the way they rap about being happy to be famous. Not extreme enough to be the BEPs, though.