★★★☆☆
Ariana Grande kicked off the summer with a collaboration with Iggy Azaela on the infectious bop "Problem," and is now ending the summer with a bang... literally. Grande and rapper Nicki Minaj were roped into a collaboration with Jessie J, who is well-known on this side of the pond for her hits "Price Tag" and "Domino." After those hits, she disappeared from the American music market, as her second studio album, Alive, wasn't even released in the country due to fears of poor sales. Leaving Alive in the dusk, she's re-appearing with a new lead single and signature black hair, with these two heavyweights in American music, to re-penetrate the charts again.
"Bang Bang" follows the newest musical trend by blending R&B, urban, and pop influences, while these three divas spit out lyrics with such sass that not even Beyoncé would dare touch them. Jessie J's vocals are great, as they usually are, but I'm afraid that Grande shows her up with her second verse portion of the song. The song's style is just begging for Grande's style of voice, while Jessie J is definitely suited for a more traditional pop song. Meanwhile, Minaj's flow really isn't all that bad as she kicks the song into overdrive: "Queen Nicki dominant, prominent / It's me, Jessie, and Ari / If they test me, they sorry."
The final product crafted by the three divas doesn't disappoint, but its crafting is disappointing to those of us pay attention to writing and production credits. Jessie J has had a co-writing spot on all of the tracks on Who You Are and Alive... but not on "Bang Bang." The head of writing and production on this track? Max Martin, who is known for his works with Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys. Luckily, Martin usually churns out some catchy hits, although a handful seem to be disposable. It almost feels like Jessie J is now using this song as a reach for a newfound following in the United States... but it may actually work.
"Bang Bang" will be released digitally tomorrow under Republic Records. The song will be featured on Jessie J's upcoming untitled album, as well as on the deluxe edition of Ariana Grande's My Everything.
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