Electrifying soul food from the modern Method Man. He kills it and The Knocks bring us life. The forward moving rhythm pulls us along the track. These creators make an incredible team. Definitely a bop — play this for your friends and they’ll think you have great taste in music. This one is for you. #issabop
Satisfying, relaxing, chill, predictable, a little boring but like, ten points for featuring Miquela, our favorite digital chanteuse. #issaight
“Keep in Touch” sounds like a song that didn’t make Chris Brown’s latest 40-track album… it’s that forgettable. Tory Lanez and Bryson Tiller have both done better, but maybe their strengths lie in being featured with a more heavyweight artist. #issaflop
You’ve been waiting for it: Ariana Grande dropped sweetener — the musical
crystallization of her transition from pop star to human cloud. Let’s talk about it: Ariana dropped the notable lower case ‘no tears left to cry’ months ago as a paradigm-shifting big-business magnanimous bop of the ages. This we know. She continues boldly, imbuing her forward sensibility through vocal dominance: stripping the bass from her album allowing her once-in-a-generation vocal ability room to shine — herein we find the albums strengths and weaknesses. Our two favorite songs (excluding God Is A Woman and no tears — which we could write essays about) are “successful” and “breathe.” Ari lets us in on the pros and cons of being a petit baller. She’s hot; she comes out swinging with a big boss beauty baseball bat. “Successful” is so heart-warming and honest; an anthem, no doubt. “Breathe” motivates and we expect to hear it in soul cycle forever to come. Much of the album reflects on what it’s like to be at the peak of the game, rich, beautiful, coveted. Ari is feeling herself and so are we! Her album welcomes this fantastic wave of female empowerment across the board. Some of Sweetener’s songs leave a little to be desired when it comes to groove, as she leads with lyrics and emotion. Her causal and sensitive delivery give preference to the material content of the songs, leaving her pop star superpower to give her hype real backing. She doesn’t need the heavy bass to be a pop star. If anything, she’s utilizing perfect mid-highs and subtle-lows to distance herself from legions of up and coming artists who rely on a low-end bonus vibes to push their tracks though. Instead, Ariana floats like a soap bubble in a spotlight.
P.S. Stoked to see these music videos roll out.
Celoso (jealous in Spanish) celebrates the mild musical debut for social media star Lele Pons. Can Lele sing? Who cares — she’s a wildly talented entertainer and this is another stage. That said, we need that fuego, Lele! That spicy red hot salsa, baby! We understand this is what we should expect from a new musician with a dynamite production team. We understand enough Spanish to get that this song is about romantic tension between attractive people, too. Lele, with her built-in fan base, will no doubt find success with this move. That said, she’s been popular long enough that she knows what good is and debuting with a song called jealous is below her. Please don’t be a yodel kid. We’re rooting for you, Lele. Keep it up. #issabop
Stop the presses. This song broke Issabop and led to our first mutiny in history with discussion involving opinions:
“I honestly couldn’t w/ that song.”
“This fool is a dog.”
“What are you doing, Paul?”
“When old people who think they’re the shit do songs…”
“I don’t wanna hear about Paul McCartney fuh’ing anyone.”
and finally, “If u want to do a review for it we will consider posting.” Thus, here we are… Continue reading “Review: “Fuh You” – Paul McCartney”
Kid Ink’s got a good thing going on, but we’re getting a little tired of his lack of effort to reinvent the wheel. Rap is ever-changing and if he doesn’t change, we think we’re gonna lose him. Flexing that bev(erage) is nice and all, but at a certain point it’s time to say something interesting. A little overzealous on the autotune this time around. #issaflop
Sam Smith and Calvin Harris…did Christmas come early? Sam’s ghostly voice stands out, as it often does. Calvin again demonstrates his ability to wrap a voice in dance. He plays up when we need it and plays down when we don’t. “Promises” is a solid track, one of our favorites from Sam Smith. Calvin is on top of his game and this remains consistent. We can tell he’s having a great time. Right in the pocket, just mainstream enough, casual bop okay. #issabop
Considering the least original title ever, Bishop actually brings some lo-fi heat in her latest. The vibe reminds us of BØRNS. Let’s jump in an old car and finally have that Bonnie and Clyde life in the fast lane we’ve always wanted. #issaight
This one doesn’t go very far for us. Not buying it — if she’s making a point, we’re too distracted by her otherworldly vocals and blurry lyrics. You’ve got something to say! Let it be heard. Issa flop. Commit, lady. #issaflop
