Upon release, "Roar" received generally
positive reviews from critics. Gerrick D.
Kennedy of the Los Angeles Times called the
track a "sweet, poppy confection with a bit of
bite"; he also praised Perry's vocals.[23] Rolling
Stone also gave the song a positive review,
saying, "With its easy poppy beat and repeated
refrains of 'You held me down but I got up,'
and 'You're gonna hear me roar,' the lead
single strikes a determined note for the new
album."[2] James Montgomery of MTV
described it as "undeniably genuine", writing:
"It is personal, it is powerful, and, with its
combination of sonorous hooks and searing
sentiment, it is certainly one of the more
perfect pop songs to come down the pipeline
in quite a while.[19]
Michael Cragg of The Guardian called it "a
massive single from a massive pop star who
knows exactly what she's doing".[24] Andrew
Hampp from Billboard had a positive response
to "Roar", claiming it was a "stylistic return to
the arena-sized singer-songwriter formula that
made her debut on One of the Boys", but
criticized the lyrics, saying they "rarely rise
above easy clichés and rhymes and that the
stomping mid-tempo beat leaves a little to be
desired in the BPM department".[1] Melinda
Newman of HitFix called the song a "fierce, fun
anthem" and complimented the song as a
"great change of pace" for Perry.[25]
Charley Rogulewski of Vibe called the track a
"sure-to-be radio hit with an empowering
theme similar to her track "Firework".[3] Katie
Aktinson from Entertainment Weekly also
compared it to "Firework", claiming that its
lyrics "will likely make the song a fall-football
anthem", and jokingly said that "the Bengals
should send her a check now".[26] Chiderah
Monde from New York Daily News referred to
the chorus as "catchy" and said the song was
"another certified anthem" for Perry.[27]
James Shotwell from Under the Gun Review
said the song takes a "more powerful
approach" than Perry's previous material.
The "homegirls with the big butts" part sounded so awkward in an acoustic setting though I would have changed it to: to all the lost souls here with the full cups/lying on the ground tryin'-a get up. Or something like that.
The music video for Britney Spears' "Work, Bitch" dropped yesterday and was received by the citizens of the world with the applause Lady Gaga is still waiting for.
