Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Cher Lloyd gets all American in the new video for 'Want You Back'

America, meet your newest pop star.
With the sudden and unexpected success of The Wanted (mmmm sexy) and One Direction (eh, we'll have a few drinks first) in the US, other British teen-pop artists are trying to get in on the action.  The latest is X Factor non-winner Cher Lloyd, with her single 'Want You Back.'  It already came and went in the UK, but for some reason her handlers think that this could be the song to break her in America.  BECAUSE IT IS PROPERLY TREMENDOUS.

We already went on and on about how brilliant it was as a tune back when it was originally released, so we'll save you all that nonsense and on that score just say that the "rap" bit by something called an Astro has been taken out and the song is a billion times better because of it.  The weird thing is that Astro is actually an American rapper, so they've removed the one thing US audiences might recognize.  Having said that, the rap was the kind of cringe-worthy "featuring" nightmare that makes us want to sit on a knife, so regardless of how it may hurt the track's chart prospects this has to be considered a win all around.

As for the video, it's a lot like the UK version, in that it involves Cher DOING FACES and BEING SEXY and also dumping edible things on people she doesn't like but of course in this version everything takes place in a diner because what could be possibly more "America In 2012" than a 50's diner..

The key here is that as much as the whole thing is just an HD version of Mandy Moore's 'Candy,' it works (and works rather spectacularly) solely on the back of Cher's undeniable charisma.  She comes off as more authentic and committed than any of the Jojos or Jessica Simpsons or Avril Lavignes, because even though we know she's faking every second of this bullshit, we can also see how much she enjoys it.  She's making those faces because that's what Cher Lloyd does, not because someone told her to.  Never mind the fact that someone obviously told her to.

'Want You Back' (US VERSION) is, in sum, a cute little video that serves as a neat introduction of Cher to American audiences, which is probably exactly the point.  So, well done everyone, cheap champagne all around.

Oh and also there's a puppy.  A really cute puppy.