Celine Dion Cavorts With Deadpool, Nicki Minaj Seems Bored, and Bhad Bhabie Does the '50s
EntertainmentMusicMaybe I will like this one day. Maybe I will wrap my head around what seem to be competing intentions here via Celine giving the ballad a straight read, the powers that be at Deadpool who commissioned such a song for their superhero movie that they will push mostly to people outside of Celine’s demo, and Ryan Reynolds whose Deadpool character does an interpretive dance routine in the video as Celine’s song swells and then performs an extended comedy bit with her at the end. (Note: It’s not Reynolds you see dancing in the video—it’s professional dancer Yanis Marshall.) I think this is supposed to overload me into submission or maybe it’s just a mess that doesn’t even know what it’s doing. Reserving judgement until I hear it blaring in Bushwick. –Rich Juzwiak
Yes, the guilty pleasure continues: Bhad Bhabie feat. Lil Yachty, “Gucci Flip Flops” — I don’t know who’s producing beats for Bhad Bhabie, aka Danielle Bregoli of “Cash Me Outside” fame, but ever since the “Hi Bich” remix dropped, I’ve been impressed with how quickly her songs make me start booty poppin’ in my seat. I could clown her, her blaccent, her rise to fame and fortune, thanks to our culture’s ability to make white memes turn into profit while black memes don’t receive a dime…but I’m not gonna lie, Bhad Bhabie got some flow in her.
The “Gucci Flip Flops” video gives us two Bhad Bhabies: 2018 Bhabie in her signature skinny jeans, hoodie, and tight ponytail and a 1950’s Cleaver-esque Bhabie who actually looks really cute kitten heels, long pleated skirt, and pearl necklace. Cleaver! Bhabie is watching television with her family and becomes so transfixed by her futurist doppleganger that she starts spitting bars herself, to her parents’s horror. It’s like Pleasantville with acrylics. The video is fun, short, and harmless, though the random celebrity cameo toward the end will definitely throw you off. Still, his appearance is (almost) worth it to hear Danielle yell, “BITCH I AM MY OWN MOMMY, THE FUCK?” -Ashley Reese
Yes, but I’m not crying, you’re crying: Kacey Musgraves, “Space Cowboy” — Musgraves is no stranger to writing entire songs around clever phrasing. Here, it’s the devastating “You can have your space, cowboy” lyricism, heightened in a visual that actually shows that damn space. In the video for “Space Cowboy,” Musgraves wanders around in soft lighting, visiting places once occupied by both her and her former partner. It’s nothing revelatory, but it certainly hits you right where it hurts. –Maria Sherman
Desperately, irrationally, yes: The Goon Sax, “She Knows” — The Goon Sax, Aussie slang for “wine bag,” is a Brisbane indiepop teen trio of such brilliant songwriting ability, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. “She Knows,” the bands’ first single from their upcoming sophomore LP, We’re Not Talking, is possibly their fastest song to date—an anxious, insecure track chuck full of cowbells and sweeping violins, not unlike the work of guitarist Louis Forster’s father, Robert Forster, of the beloved indie rock band the Go-Betweens. I will certainly sing, “I never knew what love meant/And I still don’t” quietly to myself for the next week—or, more accurately—until the next single drops. –MS
Yeah, I’ll take it: Lauryn Hill, “Nice For What (Remix)” — During a show at the Apollo in New York, She Who Is Never There When You Call or Ever On Time, Lauryn Hill, reclaimed and remixed her classic record, “Ex-Factor,” which Drake recently reimagined into his own anthem for women. Seeing as how this is a live rendition, the raps get choppy in parts, but at the least, it’s nice to hear Lauryn go hard with bars about being a “Balenciaga mama.” –Clover Hope
Okay, all right, I don’t know: Nicki Minaj, “Chun Li” — It’s becoming abundantly clear that Onika maybe doesn’t want to be a rapper anymore, as evidenced by this track, which is my favorite of the two she’s released since Cardi B’s ascension. Is she tired? Is she doing a Nicki Minaj impersonation? Many more questions linger, but most will go unanswered. I suppose we should relish the return of Nicki, but I don’t know how much there is to celebrate. The gong in the beginning is unnecessary, as is the Chinese subtitles that feel like more of a questionable aesthetic choice than a necessity, and I’m not sure that Nicki knows that Chun-Li isn’t the villain, but you know what….fine. Let me catch this song blaring out of a passing car on a not-too-warm night, and I tell you, I will love it. –Megan Reynolds
Y: Beach House, “Black Car” — I’ve pretty much loved everything Beach House has put out in their career. They could have easily lingered too long in the buzz band dream pop of their first few records and quickly fizzled out, but instead they’ve released record after record that builds on their signature sound in ways that haven’t left me bored once. If you love one Beach House album, you probably love all of them, basically. And this creepy track off their excellent forthcoming album 7, with its xylophone dinging on repeat like a broken record, is a hypnotic treasure of a song. – Hazel Cills
I’m okay, thanks: Labrinth, Sia, Diplo (aka LSD), “Genius” — The premise of this song is that Sia is a difficult woman to love, because only a genius could do it. This basic premise is reiterated in the chorus and each of Sia and Labrinth’s verses (they like to draw it out, pronounce it “gee-nee-us”), but never once explained. Call me exhausted, but given the Kanye tweet-storm last week, I’m tired of misunderstood men being described as the greatest masterminds of our time. The hook on this, when Labrinth intones, “Oh my god, baby baby can’t you see-ee-ee?” I like! But the rest of the song didn’t do it for me. It doesn’t take a genius to realize these two can do way better than this. –Frida Garza