The art of great pop is that it plays on the artist's personality. For example, Mis-teeq had an in your face attitude, and their music slapped you about the face for 3 minutes, making you pay attention. Sugababes' back catalogue is based on the fact that they're fairly good looking girls who might be sexual deviants, and their music is the equivalent of a bondage session with Jessica Alba. Which brings us to the topic of Robbie (the cheeky chappie of British pop) and Kylie (the sexy antipodean minx).
And that's where Kids is truly brilliant. Originally written by Robbie and Guy Chambers for Kylie, and then turned into a duet on Robbie's request, it works for both these two characters. Robbie gets his rocky, anthemic chorus and (if you have the extended version) his funny, cheeky boy persona on the rap at the end. Kylie makes teenage boys across the land feel funny in their pants with the line 'I couldn't do what I wanted to do when my lips were dry' and gets her seduction on throughout. It almost, almost shouldn't work, but somehow it does, and two of the biggest popstars of the decade collided to produce pure pop perfection.
Oliver Billenness
[Spotify]
[YouTube]
[Album: Sing When You're Winning]
1 comment:
And number 2 for Kylie in this list ! Hurrah !
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