Beyoncé - BEYONCÉ

by: Golden

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Tracklist

1. Haunted
2. Blow
3. Pretty Hurts
4. Partition
5. ***Flawless
6. Drunk In Love
7. Mine
8. XO

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BEYONCÉ to many is an album that was driven by a surprise release that has visuals as its main focal point. The 14 track album with its accompanying 17 music videos came to the world as a shock and it is no surprise that the album managed to prompt a new global release schedule. However, beyond its impact and success lies a far more important story. It is the fact that BEYONCÉ managed to showcase a musical triumph unlike any other. Musical and personal growth are key aspects within the album as well as its underlying message about beauty and body shaming, love, feminism, sexuality, marriage, motherhood and pride.

That being said, handpicking just 8 songs for an album that was critically acclaimed and shifted millions upon millions of copy was extremely difficult when each song tells its own story and has its own sound. I tried to focus on picking songs that maintained Beyoncé’s personal agenda but also implementing songs that flow well into each other. I shifted from serious songs with important messages to more lighthearted and less serious songs. You could say my theme for this EP is, ironically, Beyoncé - songs with statements and messages she cares strongly about and songs that are so personal and have that distinctive Beyoncé sound we all adore.

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The track that opens the EP is a two-part song: Ghost and Haunted. The first part is Ghost, that begins with an audio file that symbolizes the start of Beyoncé’s journey and story as a worldwide famous superstar. Ghost mostly touches on how Beyoncé runs her business and her lack of trust in record labels. (‘’I don’t trust these record labels, I’m tourin’’ / ‘’All the **** I do is boring / All these record labels.. boring.’’) Haunted on the other side speaks about sexual desires and being haunted in love. Overall, Haunted/Ghost offer a completely different musical side of Beyoncé whose robotic and eerie vocals completely mesmerize you and swallow you into the song, which makes it the perfect fit as the opener for the EP. The song is as effortlessly non-commercial as it is endlessly listenable.


The second track Blow is oozing, filled with sexy vocals and a surefire club banger. The song is sexual and lyrically speaks about giving head. The reason I picked this for my tracklist is because it has Beyoncé written all over it. It holds firmly to her roots; R&B and Hip-Hop sounds. Blow feels like it could fit on B’Day right next to Green Light or Kitty Kat. It brilliantly describes the pleasures of oral sex. (‘’Can you eat my skittles, it’s the sweetest in the middle / Pink is the flavor, solve the riddle’’) Blow is an extremely fun song that will move you the instant you hear it.


The third track is Pretty Hurts. The song is a must on the EP as it is a beautiful powerhouse empowerment anthem. The song speaks about self-acceptance and feeling comfortable in your own skin. Beyoncé makes it clear that the key to happiness is choosing your life path on your own terms. (‘’What is your aspiration in life?’’ / ‘’To be happy’’). It is not to be missed on the album and that is exactly why it was chosen as a single at one point in the SELF-TITELD era.

The fourth track is Yoncé/Partition. A rather sexual song with a thrusting baseline and a heavy drumbeat. I chose this song because although lyrically it is quite raunchy, it carries a great message. It represents sexual liberty and confidence. The song also gave birth to another alter ago - a sassier, more care-free and more sexual version of Sasha Fierce.

The fifth track is the feminist empowerment song ***Flawless heavily carried by trap-beats and flawlessly (!) completed with an extended speech from feminist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. ***Flawless not only gave us the iconic catchphrase (‘’You wake up, flawless’’) but later also a terrific collaboration between Queen B and the Queen of Rap. The reason I picked ***Flawless is because it’s Beyoncé perfectly embracing feminism. She gets heavily criticised and judged as a feminist, but this song is a staple for feminist movements and acknowledges Beyoncé’s transition from a shy to a full-blown powerful feminist.

The sixth track is Drunk in Love. A carefree, light song and an ode to obscene drunk sex. I chose this song to be on my EP because, although the collab is not a Crazy in Love or a Deja Vu, it does have the unmissable Bey/Jay stamp on it. It combines heavy trap beats and hip-hop elements and with its amazingly catchy chorus and iconic lyrics, Drunk In Love is already one of Beyoncé's most recognizable and memorable songs.

The second to last track on the EP is Mine. Despite being a whopping 6 minutes long, it is most definitely one of the highlights on SELF-TITLED. Sonically, it is unlike any other Beyoncé song before. Lyrically, it is about love and all its highs and lows. It speaks about relationships going against rumours and stories and overcoming them. Jay and Beyoncé combined are seen as a huge power couple, but at the end of the day they’re lovers. I picked this for my EP because it is different, shares a great message and it is beautiful work done by Dreezy and Queen B. 



The last track on the EP is XO. I deliberately chose this song as the closer for my EP because it is a magical song that puts you in a euphoric trance. The song is dedicated to tragedy and reminds us to appreciate and love every second in life that you share with your loved ones. The chorus is pure pop-delight and amazingly captivating. XO is a song for a sold out crowd in a stadium to sing their heart outs with.

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SELF-TITLED, in my opinion, is the perfect mixture of Beyoncé's own personal experiences combined with political statements. The album grabs you 66 minutes long and in that short hour you delve into bits of Beyoncé's private life as it allows you to experience her world and the things she’s passionate about.

Taylor Swift - 'Enchanted'

By: Jorge (graphics also by me)



Tracklist:
1. Enchanted
2. Sparks Fly
3. Mine
4. Ours
5. The Story Of Us
6. Last Kiss
7. Dear John
8. Haunted

Taylor Swift is really known for writing about love and break-ups. She's also known for the story-telling in her songs, so I thought, why not combine them both?

I revised the Speak Now tracklist into a 8-tracks EP called 'Enchanted'. The theme of this EP is a love story with a tragic ending, something Taylor is great at writing about. The first half is about love, and the second one about a break up.

The first track is 'Enchanted', a fan favorite track, and also the title-track of this EP. I chose 'Enchanted' as the first track because it talks about how Taylor met a boy and fell in love with him, as she sings, "she was enchanted to met him". This track is the start of this love story.

Then, the next track is 'Sparks Fly', a song Taylor wrote when she was 16. This is also a love song. In this track, Taylor and the boy are already in a relationship, and Taylor just asks him to leave everything behind so he can meet her, because she feels something special when he smiles, as she tells us in the chorus.

The third track is 'Mine', the lead single of the original album; a love song too. In this track, they've already been in a relationship for a long time, and Taylor remembers some of the best moments they've lived together. "Do you remember, we were sitting there by the water?" And she also says her lover is one of her best things ever.

The fourth track is 'Ours', a track from the deluxe edition. In this track, Taylor shows that she'll love her lover even though the people that surround her try to change her opinion of him; but Taylor's opinion is more important than the others'. "Don't you worry your pretty little mind, people throw rocks at things that shine but they can't take what's ours".

After the first four tracks about the evolution of their love story, the story starts to get darker.

The fifth track is 'The Story Of Us', a quite underrated track, in my opinion. In this song, Taylor talks about how she used to think she would tell to everyone her love story, and it has some throwbacks to other tracks in the EP ["How we met and the sparks flew instantly," reminds us of Enchanted and Sparks Fly]. But even though they had a great relationship, everything went wrong, and now they try to avoid each other. In this track, Taylor talks about the topic with a more 'upbeat' tone.

The sixth track is 'Last Kiss', another fan favorite. In this song, we can notice Taylor's sadness perfectly. This track can remind us of 'Mine', because in these two songs, Taylor remembers moments with her lover, but in this one, Taylor talks with a sad tone, since she has lost him. This is like the follow-up to 'The Story Of Us' (in this EP), since their topic is similar, but this one is much sadder because she has finally realized they broke up, it isn't a story/fairy tale anymore.

The seventh track is 'Dear John', in this almost 7 minute track, Taylor blames everything on her lover. She names herself the victim, and we can notice the same emotion we hear in 'Last Kiss'. The song is just Taylor talking about how her lover used her, but she was too young to notice. In the bridge, Taylor talks about how she isn't the only one her lover has used, but she could escape before it was too late.

The last track, 'Haunted', is another break-up song. In this song, Taylor also talks about how she didn't expect to end like this "But I never thought I'd live to see it break". After 'Dear John', this song shows us how, even Taylor escaped from her lover, she's never going to forget about him, he'll always haunt her. This song is the most dramatic one on the EP, and it perfectly closes the album.

A tragic ending to the perfect love story.

1989 Reconstructed


1989’s mission statement is to cement Taylor as a fullblown pop artist free of all country roots. Her music has crossed the divide between the cool and commercial, bursting with both infectious energy and instant likability. With that in mind, Taylor decided to rid this EP of any acoustic ballad-esque tracks (sorry Clean stans) that might hinder the consumer from receiving the all-encompassing pop experience. However, as 1989 is a drastic departure from Taylor’s original sound, the lyrical terrain meticulously maintained throughout her career thus far has remained in order to avoid alienating her fanbase. The EP chronologically represents the 3 phases of a relationship: the intoxication phase (the first 3 tracks), the breakdown/break-up phase (the following 2 tracks), and the flashback phase (the final 3 tracks).

Tracklist
1. Blank Space
2. Style
3. Wildest Dreams
4. All You Had To Do Was Stay
5. Bad Blood (Feat. Kendrick Lamar)
6. Out Of The Woods
7. I Wish You Would
8. Wonderland

The Pinkprint EP by: Arés



1. All Things Go -- Final Single (Not meant to be a hit, but a way to close the era.)
2. The Crying Game -- 2nd Single
3. Bed of Lies
4. Grand Piano
5. The Night is Still Young -- 3rd Pop Single
6. Anaconda -- 1st Single
7. Feeling Myself -- 4th Single (Crossover potential)
8. Want Some More - 5th Urban Single
9. Shanghai
10. Truffle Butter -- 3rd Urban Single (Crossover potential)

Reasoning

I chose this track listing because I feel in this particular order, the album/tracks flow better. So to start it off, All Things Go. Arguably one of Nicki's most personal tracks. And gives you an idea of where she is right now in her life. It's also good album open. ("THIS is the Pinkprint.")

So I figured for the next tracks #2 - #4, I could take the very best "heartbreak" songs from the album and put them in the order chronicling the eventual break up. TCG with realizing the arguing and domestic violence have become a vicious cycle. BOL calling her boyfriend out on his lies and betrayal, and realzing there's something broken that can't be fixed. GP with acceptance. The Nicki/SB break up was a prominent part of most of the album and promo so leaving these songs out is a no.

The center tracks, #5 - #7, are just feel good fun songs, the best of the album. After listening through all though sad/serious songs the particular section allows the listener and Nicki to have fun and just enjoy the music. These tracks are all good club songs people could just go off to when they come on.


#8 - #10 are Nicki's best urban/hip-hop tracks from TPP. These are tracks where the production just knocks and Nicki and her guest features are allowed to go off and talk their ****. This is something most of her fans love, her bragging and dragging. (in small doses)It's also something to remind the fans of where she came from, sound wise, and that she hasn't forgotten about her mixtape days. Especially Shanghai and Want Some More.

I included single availability in the tracklist, as you requested us to take that into consideration as well.

1. Government Hooker: I think the "Gaga, ga oh-ah" and the "Io ritorne" (coming back/returning) are the perfect lines to open the EP. The song is about female sexual empowerment and it flows perfect with the "be proud of who you are" theme.

2. Born This Way: This song is basically the epitome of what Gaga has been preaching since day one. It is the essence of the EP. You have to be proud of who you are (no matter your gender, sexuality, race).

3. Judas: We already talked about loving yourself. but what about loving others? even if it's someone that is not the best one, but you can't deny that the choice is not a part of you and who you are.

4. Bloody Mary: I decided to put the two songs with the most obvious biblical references right next to each other. This song is basically about staying true to yourself. Even if that person who you loved a lot is not here with you anymore, you are still as amazing as you were when (s)he was with you.

5. Scheiße: Being yourself can sometimes bring you problems, but you can take all of that ******** and become stronger.

6. Heavy Metal Lover: This song is about celebrating who you are. She even makes a reference to Born This Way.

7. Black Jesus † Amen Fashion: This song is about recognising your past, but accepting that it is not the only thing that can define you. You can learn a lot of things from new experiences too.

8. The Edge Of Glory: This song is about your last moment on earth. It is about living your life to the fullest like you were going to die tomorrow. I think you can only reach that glory when you die, if you stayed true to yourself through your whole life. and that's why is my closing song for the EP.

Lady Gaga - ARTPOP EP

Directed By: Bloomers



Tracklist:

1. Applause
2. ARTPOP
3. Sexxx Dreams
4. Venus
5. G.U.Y.
6. Jewels N' Drugs (feat. T.I., Too $hort, & Twista)
7. Do What U Want (feat. Christina Aguilera)
8. Gypsy

Designed to be as cinematic and entertaining as possible, the ARTPOP EP tells the story of, and celebrates, the love affair and eventual marriage of the pop musician and her art. The cover references Lichtenstein and his brand of pop art while also showing Gaga front-and-center ready for the show, both part of the art, and the one making the art. The tracklists's story is a big extended metaphor to describe the creative process and artistic process behind creating a record.

The EP kicks off with the lead single and a round of A-P-P-L-A-U-S-E!!! A round of applause is the best way to open any entertaining show and the song also nicely introduces the lady and her mission statement for the EP: to entertain, and to melt art and pop culture and her. After, Applause spells out the mission statement for A-R-T-P-O-P, the title track bubbles up. The cool glide of ARTPOP (the song) finds Gaga longing, in the conditional tense, for the hybrid between pop and her work as an artist. The next track finds Gaga lusting after the vision in her Sexxx Dreams and gradually becoming more inspired and infatuated before requesting to be taken off to the planet of love – Venus. Venus, takes off after Sexxx Dreams and builds off it sonically. G.U.Y. finds Gaga at her best, when she’s in love and submitting to her art while trying to maintain the power in the relationship. Jewels N’ Drugs maintains the frantic energy level of G.U.Y. and leads into the finale of the EP. Jewels N Drugs finds Gaga benefitting from the relationship financially: red carpet events, money, and pancakes aplenty! Do What U Want (feat. Christina Aguilera) continues the relationship outlined in G.U.Y. and JND and serves as a bit of a comedown from those tracks. This Do What U Want finds Gaga a bit worn out from her relationship with art, admitting being tired from her shows (through the Legend of The United States), but still giving herself over to the relationship she chose. Finally, the conclusion. Gypsy closes the EP in a somewhat bittersweet but rousing and triumphant way. Gypsy is a song about touring life, a necessity for the pop artist; Gaga leaves her love of creation behind to travel the world and spread her music. The story here has no end, she has to leave, despite everything. She can leave it there and more on or possibly return, invigorated, to a fresh round of applause only to restart the creative process and rekindle her relationship with her music.