Monday, September 19, 2011

Review: My World 2.0 Single #1 - "Baby"

Song: "Baby" (Single #1)
From Album: My World 2.0
Release Date: January 18, 2010
During these past several weeks, I have been reviewing songs from Justin's My World EP. Last week, I capped it off with an overall review of the entire EP. Now it's time to venture into My World 2.0, his full-length album. And it's only fitting to start with the first single from the album - "Baby."

"Baby" is the song that put him on the scene. It's his signature song, his highest charting song to date, and the song that got people to pay attention to him. This is when he really hit it big. Before "Baby," he certainly had a huge following already. But "Baby," in a way, introduced Justin to the masses, a wider audience. If you didn't know about Justin Bieber before this song, you certainly did after. And I would include myself in that statement. I didn't know who he was. But all of a sudden, "Baby" was playing everywhere on TV, and I got introduced to him as an artist that way.

And of his three official singles so far ("One Time," "One Less Lonely Girl," and "Baby"), "Baby" is by far the best. The storyline of the song is that a girl has left him. And Ludacris makes a cameo near the end with some rapping.

Is the song catchy? Oh sure, you betcha! It's extremely memorable, can get stuck in your head, and has a catchy hook: "baby, baby, baby, ohhhh (I thought you'd always be mine)." It's not just the repetition of the word "baby," but in the way it's repeated, the beat, the tone, and the addition of his voice going into a high register for "ohhhh." On a related note, I read that when Justin's voice began changing, he had to start singing these parts of the song in a lower register. Yeah, I can imagine he would have to, considering how high his voice would have to go there.

Whenever I have heard this song on TV or wherever, I don't think I've ever heard the Ludacris interlude. And I hate to say this, but I wish I hadn't now. So hear me out first. When it comes to rapping, I'm not the biggest fan. But having said that, I'm not always against it, depending on how it's included in a song. And Ludacris' rapping in "Baby" wasn't the best use of it, in my opinion. But I can certainly see why it's included. In fact, they were smart by putting it in the song. And why is that, you might ask? Well, it's because the inclusion of this R&B/Hip Hop gives the song more "street cred," for lack of a better term. It's not that the song was bad before the rapping, but people might take Justin more seriously after listening to a song like this, that it's not just teen pop; there's R&B and Hip Hop influences in his music.

"Baby" received great reviews from the critics, saying it surpasses his previous work. And they also said that having Ludacris featured props the song up to a new level.
In the UK, "Baby" was released as a remix featuring Chipmunk (That's Chipmunk the rapper, not to be confused with the animated animal characters). Check out the remix here...
...Actually, on second thought, I think I prefer the Ludacris cameo. But, hey, that's just me.

The music video for "Baby," released February 19, 2010, plays out the storyline in the lyrics of the song. Justin is trying to get the girl back after they split up. It takes place at a bowling alley. The girl and her friends are bowling. Justin and his friends show up and are bowling a few lanes down from them. They notice each other, and try to one up each other by bowling strikes. Did they eventually get back together? You'll have to watch the video to find out; as if you haven't already, right? And I'm sure teen girls everywhere were thinking, "how could she leave him? Who would ever want to break up with Justin Bieber?" Am I right? Well, am I?
Speaking of this vid, the Guinness World Records 2012 book was recently released, and Justin Bieber's "Baby" music video broke the world record for the most popular online video. Bieber Guy reported on the news last week.

I've said in previous reviews that singles are important, because they should be an indicator of what the album as a whole will sound like. And just as important are lead singles, because it's our first ever taste of the new music. Now, I may have only heard a few of the songs from My World 2.0 over the past year or so, but even so, "Baby" is a perfect single to lead the album off with for promotion.

To find out the latest TV, movie and entertainment news, visit Bieber Guy's partner sites, TV Watch Online and the TV Watch Online BLOG (follow T.W.O. on Twitter @TVWatchOnline).

The next review will be for the first promotional single from My World 2.0, "Never Let You Go." So stay tuned for that next week.

On a final, closing note: If you are a Bieber fan and would like to share your story of why you're a fan of Justin Bieber, your thoughts on his music, have you ever met him in person or been to a concert?, etc., I want to hear from you. And you just might have your story featured here on Bieber Guy. Also, I particularly want to hear from male Bieber fans, aka other Bieber Guys. Click HERE to contact me (and put Bieber somewhere in the subject line so I know what it's about).

To stay updated on everything related to Bieber Guy and when the next blog will be online, follow me on Twitter @Bieber_Guy.

Bieber Guy My World Reviews: "One Time" (Updated) / "One Less Lonely Girl" / "Love Me" & "Favorite Girl" / My World

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