Loving Me 4 Me... (A 'Stripped' remembrance)

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It is almost incredible that, after almost 14 years, "Stripped" still gives me goosebumps.

And it's not rare feat. After all, this is the follow-up of that self titled album that sold more than 7 million copies only in the US. Expectations were high for this one.

We can say this was the "coming of age" album from her. Tired of her conscious and careful image of her first album, Christina decided to give an 180 degrees change, and boy, for many it was too much.

"Dirrty", the first single, was met with derision and disapproval for the people who thought this was extreme for a former Disney girl (this was pre-Miley and everything, but is a recurring theme in pop music). And the video offended many sensibilities, accustomed to watch little Christina being flirty in an innocent kind of way, not in a straight-forward, come-on imagery, and very sexualized.





In an attempt to demonstrate she still had that thing that make her famous in the first place (her tremendous and skillful voice), she released her behemoth ballad, "Beautiful", and a classic was born. Sung until the end of times in every karaoke competition and "The Voice" blind auditions held, she had the opportunity to recover from the 'failure' of her first single, and made herself immortal with this, well, beautiful ballad about love and acceptance.




One of the recurrent themes from "Stripped" was a desire to be loved for who you are, and self-acceptance. She made raw confessions about family abuse in themes like "I'm OK", the problems she had with her father and how she overcame them in "Fighter", and made self-esteem anthems with "The Voice Within", "Soar" and "Keep On Singin' My Song". Very personal themes, that made us discover a very fragile and vulnerable Christina, that fought all of her youth life to find a voice and found an escape in music, which ultimately saved her and made her the person she was at that moment.



Of course, this album was full of bangers, too. Songs as the rhythmic female-anthem "Can't Hold Us Down" featuring former "Marmalade" collaborator Lil' Kim; "Infatuation" with its latin-infused beat; the pen-assisted Alicia Keys semi-duet "Impossible"; sultry come-on "Get Mine, Get Yours"; or the Sugababes rip-off "Make Over", this album had a little of everything for everyone.



But definitely what made Christina a Legend was definitely THE BALLADS. The aforementioned "Beautiful", "Cruz", my all-time favorite "Loving Me 4 Me" (channeling the Mariah-whistle register, sounds crazy and beautiful), and of course "The Voice Within". She definitely had this thing going on, where she can bare her soul in one note, and she was amazing for that.

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Ultimately, this album was all about empowerment, confidence, feminism, being able to stand up for yourself, and love all around. "Dirrty" may have been a misleading single because it was all about sexiness, dirtiness, and little to no clothes, but perhaps she found suitable to shock the world to be heard, and boy she succeeded at that.

That is why, 14 years later, this is one of my favorite albums of all time. Listening to it today, many memories came to mind, and I appreciate the effort Christina put in this material, working with many great producers and making an album very long (almost 74 minutes), but very rewarding in the end.

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What do you think about this album? Do you feel it is a classic, or way overrated? Sound off on the comments, I'd love to hear from you!

Album Review: Katy Perry, "PRISM"

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One of the most anticipated albums of this fall must have been this one. Katy Perry has been omnipresent on pop since "One of The Boys", circa 2007, and we have never looked back. This is the case of the church-girl-going-to-superstar we have witnessed several times (Whitney, Beyoncé, et al), but in this case, she decided to strip away of that persona (sometimes, on a literal way), and embrace her pop roots and become the brand that we all now love.

And then, "Teenage Dream" came, and boy we never saw that one coming. Five number one songs, more than 5 million copies sold worldwide, and a great great world tour (which I've attended, luckily), the stakes were so high that she needed to deliver. Did she do it?

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Well, first off: this is no "Teenage Dream" 2.0. While that album was goofy, unpretentious and straight-to-the-head pop, this album actually conveys a lot of styles and genres, all well crafted and bottled into tiny pieces, especially designed to stuck in the mind of the listeners and oblige them to stuck on repeat, until the lyrics acquire some meaning and you're able to sing along on your house, your car or whatever place you are listening to them.

But then, was that Katy's intention? She said about this album that she wanted to go to a "darker place", definitely inspired by the failed marriage she had with Rusell Brand. But then, love struck again in the form of Mr. John Mayer, and clearly influence part of this record.

Songs like "Legendary Lovers", with its bhangra style, or "Double Rainbow", a Sia-assisted collaboration, approaches the subject of her new found happiness, while adding some elements of new age and introspection into its lyrics. Meanwhile, "Ghost" recalls the infamous breakup with Rusell, turning this song into some cathartic experience for her, in a mid-tempo ballad that sounds both haunting and reassuring.

I have to say, "Roar" as a first single, as much derided that has been because the similarity with Sara Bareilles' "Brave", and its really, really goofy video, disappointed me at first. But then, as formulaic as it seems, it grown on me until it became my personal anthem for empowerment and self-assurance. Which I believe it was the smartest plan, because Katy seems to be aware, more than anyone, what kind of artist she is and her limitations, but most of all, her strenghts.



This album could be viewed as a double feature: for the first part, a string of sure-to-be hits, including two promotional singles that have my heart (and my replay button) stuck on repeat: the 90's Ce-Ce Peniston-like throwback "Walking on Air" (please, view the iTunes Festival presentation for maximum effect) and the trappy, strip-club-ready "Dark Horse" that is indeed the dark horse of the album, and I think it would be a potential hit, a-la "E.T." of "Teenage...", despite the atrocious rap of Juicy J. Minus that, this song is  a pop tiny masterpiece.

The second part is more ballad-oriented, with the themes of breaking up and empowerment hinted in the first part, going full in this second one. Katy is not very proficient delivering heartfelt ballads, but "Love Me" and "This Moment" feel more on her wheel, and definitely made a case for her, being this stablishing her as a more mature artist.

There are hints of the bubbly persona of "Teenage..." era, like "Birthday" with its anthemic vibe, and "International Smile", which it could very well have fit into "Teenage..." tracklist. And then, you got "This is How We Do", another 90's revival that flirts with lite hip-hop and have the goofiest and most certainly truest line of all: "Mariah Karaoke-y". Because, you know, Mariah and karaoke are certainly a match made in heaven. And props to "International Smile", an ode to all traveling people and the one that mentions Mexico, of all places. (Thanks for that, Katy). And of course, the Daft-Punk-y bridge that it certainly made me smile.

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While "PRISM" IS a great pop album, it certainly falls short to live up to Katy standards. Now she is a pop tour-de-forcé, and we certainly expected more from her. But then again, she has always been very humble and clear of what to expect of her. She is very aware of her pop persona, and she has never intended to find the Holy Grail of pop, whatever that is. And we appreciate that: that despite all of her flaws and misconceptions, Katy is very down to earth and relatable. And that's why we are very happy for her success.

My rate: 8 out of 10. What's yours?