mya: it's all about me.

dl: MYA f/ SISQO - It's All About Me (alt)

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Take It Back Thursday...uh, is a little late this week. I suppose since this is the first time I've done this, I could have just called it Take It Back Friday, but let's not get into that. In this series of posts, I will be covering songs of the past, which I will loosely define as anything from the 1930s to last year. Because sometimes it just gets damn boring writing about new shit. When possible, I will try to give updates on where the artist's career is now.

Mya's voice first reached our ears on the chorus of the 1998 single "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)", but her first proper release as a solo artist was the Sisqo-assisted bedroom jam "It's All About Me". I'll never forget the tone which she delivers the opening lines, "I cook your dinner, I wash your clothes. Baby hell no, that's not the way it goes. It's all about me tonight." When paired with the video's visuals of that red mini-skirt and Ms. Harrison's seductive dance moves, it was enough to make any 13 year-old boy's mind wander. I mean, she was basically making love to the air around her in a way that makes the phrase "making love" not sound revolting.

As far as vocals go, Mya's most memorable moments are her sexiest--"It's All About Me", "My Love Is Like...Wo!". Of the three singers featured on 2001's "Lady Marmalade", Mya blatantly has the weakest voice after Pink and Christina Aguilera, but she naturally slips into the burlesque role by playing up her sex kitten image. None of the three singles ("Ayo", "Lock U Down", "Ridin") released to promote Mya's 2007 album Liberation managed to recapture this carnal magic, and I indirectly consider this the reason the album was shelved in the US.

After severing her ties with Motown, Mya has signed to Manhattan Records and recently released Sugar & Spice in Japan. The new album finds Mya destroying Diana King's "Shy Guy", relying far too much on cheesy dance tracks and trying to bring her sexy back with the Ne-Yo penned "Paradise". It leaves me wondering what would have happened if Sisqo had never gone solo and made the "Thong Song", leaving him more time to produce sultry songs for Mya and less time to host Sisqo's Shakedown.

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BONER TRACK: MYA - Shy Guy (Diana King cover) (alt)

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- BUY IT - SITE IT - SPACE IT - WIK IT - HYPE IT -

totally michael: casual satisfaction.

dl: TOTALLY MICHAEL - Casual Satisfaction (YSI)
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I like to think that the story behind this song is that Totally Michael decided to recreate Snoop Dogg's "Sensual Seduction" in the whitest way possible. It's a really romantic song! Check the lyrics:

Damn girl, you make my dick erect, my dick erect
Damn girl, you make my dick erect, my dick erect
Ooh boy, you make my pussy wet, my pussy wet
Ooh boy, you make my pussy wet, my pussy wet

Now if that's not deep and interesting, I don't know what is. I wonder if when he performs this song live, he divides the room into penises and vaginas. You know, like he did with "Cheerleaders Vs. Drill Team"? That would be so awesome, and it'd kind of remind me of this.

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- SPACE IT - HYPE IT -

scream club: fine as fuck.

dl: SCREAM CLUB f/ PEACHES - Fine As Fuck (YSI)

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A friend of mine was just telling me of plans to play a show with Scream Club. I had never heard of them, but was immediately sold upon hearing their collaboration with Peaches, "Fine As Fuck" (featuring the lyric "Wanna put it down like Trina and Trick Daddy.")

According to the space, their influences range from Morrissey to No Limit Records. These are tunes strictly for the kids today. You know which kids I'm talking about! The ones that say, "Do or do not, there is no try? Doing it or doing it, there is no doing not it." Okay, so that didn't make much sense. Let the tunes speak for themselves. Speak from the VAG.

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BONER TRACK: SCREAM CLUB - Life Of A Heartbreaker (YSI)
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- buy it - site it - space it - hype it -

leif: little bit.

d/l: LEIF - Little Bit (Lykke Li cover) (YSI)

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Leif has been mentioned on this blog plenty of times, but it was mainly for his mash-ups and remixes. For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of his voice tenderly colliding with your earbuds, the time has now come. "Little Bit" is a cover by Swedish songstress Lykke Li, who you may have heard of on some blog that one time.

I'm not about to go make some big claims that Lykke Li will be the "next big thing" to come out of Sweden, and I'm not about to compare her to Feist or some crap like that. Homey don't play that. I have one single thing to say about this song. And I am going to say it with hesitation, because this isn't the sort of thing you should admit to the internet. I'm not really even sure if I've ever felt this way about a song ever. It's kind of inapprop...THIS SONG MAKES ME WANT TO TAKE MY CLOTHES OFF. Now I said it. There's no looking back.

Consider Lykke Li's version the foreplay. Leif's version falls somewhere before or after that depending on how you go about in your freaky ways. It still retains the vulnerability that makes the original so drawers-dropping, yet brings the song to the CLUBZ in the most delicious way possible.

Predictable blogger pun: I think I'm more than a little bit in love with this jam! LOLcat.

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bonus track: LEIF - Electric Feel My Cool (MGMT edit) (YSI)
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- space it -

superlover shania d: it's u.

SUPERLOVER SHANIA D's "It's U" is a dash of Kelis, a sprinkle of Sade, and 100% Shania D.*

In fact, this song could pass as an unreleased slow-jam by Kelis. I don't say this to imply that it is unoriginal, given that one of the sole characteristics of Kelis is her originality and the fact that she just doesn't give a fuck about fitting into genres or expectations. In fact, this general attitude seems to propel Shania D forward herself-- "Her influences include Nina Simone, Sade, Bob Marley, Santana, Frida Kahlo, Esthero, Tricky, and Missy Elliott. All artists who did it their way with no apologies."

Similarities to other artists seem to be by mere coincidence. Her song "Brighter Hue" may have a vibe reminiscent of Sly & The Family Stone, but I don't get the impression that she sat down and said to herself, "I am going to write, sing, and produce a song that is reminiscent of Sly & The Family Stone!" There's something so incredibly genuine and likable about her. When asked for more details about her tunes, she states-- "My music is inspired by life, love, and the belief that we as artists have a voice and can use that voice and power to promote love, peace, fun, joy, and good times."

Going back to "It's U"...I don't know if it was intentional or not, but this song is pure bedroom-babymakin' music. It's the type of song that could have you humping your pillow in the absence of your lover. Hypothetically (I swear). "Underwater2U", a purely instrumental track, has a similar effect...as does "Geneva", which (for some reason) reminds me of Me'shell Ndegeocello's "Andromeda and the Milky Way" in a very positive way.

But it's not all just sexy, sultry shit. This girl raps, speaks poetry, and did I mention that she produces all of this herself? Because she does. She's also scoring (scored?) a documentary on the life of John Woo.

Long story short, I totally wish we were friends.

dl: SUPERLOVER SHANIA D - It's U (YSI)
dl: SUPERLOVER SHANIA D - Underwater2U (YSI)
(sexy jams)
- buy it - site it - space it -

* In retrospect, I've realized that this doesn't quite make sense, but I like the way it sounds. Perhaps there are trace elements of Kelis and Sade that weren't quite significant to include? Or I'm stupid.