You thought he went away in 2014? Nope, he's back, baby! And yes, just as stupid as ever. But that's why we like Pitbull, right? He's the loud, obnoxious party guy that you wouldn't mind listening to for a few seconds, but give him three minutes and your brain turns to oatmeal. This video gives him almost five.
Well, that's not entirely true. There's an opening to the video and Ne-Yo takes up a chunk of the song as well. Say, have these two met before?
Oh yeah, "Give Me Everything"! If you weren't party rocking or rolling in the deep, you were probably listening to this song in the summer of 2011. And for decent reasons, too. For all of Pitbull's faults, he does know how to have a good time. And I admit that even I found myself calling this my summer jam of that year. It's a good song to party to.
So, you know, if you have a song this successful, doing it again can't do much harm, can it? How similar are these songs, anyway?
Well, I'm fairly certain that you can take any Pitbull rap and switch it around with another Pitbull rap and you'd scarcely be able to tell the difference, so before we get to him, let's go to Ne-Yo, who actually gets equal billing on the credits this time around. Does he do anything extraordinary to liven up the track?
Look, the track needs an Usher for this chorus. Ne-Yo doesn't do too bad, but when he sings that he's having the time of his life, it takes a little suspension of disbelief to make that true in my head. Despite the music, he just sounds so dreary. This was a huge problem in "Give Me Everything" as well. Party just doesn't seem to fit Ne-Yo very well.
But I'll tell you who it does fit. On second thought, why doesn't he tell you himself?
MR. WORLDWIDE
There it is.
Okay, let's see if there's anything worth parsing out in Pitbull's stuff.
This is the last $20 I got
But I'ma have a good time ballin' or not
Now see, this is where this song does have its high points, and it's similar to "Give Me Everything" in this way as well. Pitbull's not just partying in this song, he's partying despite hardships. And it's actually done better here, because while "Give Me Everything" just had this vague "hey, bone me because tomorrow never comes" message, this is actually a real problem that Pitbull is choosing to ignore for the time being and just enjoy himself. That's admirable, in a shortsighted kind of way.
Okay, blah blah blah girls drinks and stuff, and then...
This is for anybody going through tough times
Believe me, been there, done that
But everyday above ground is a great day, remember that
In theory, I should hate this set of lines because at first glance it's another vague "look, I had da struggle but I'm not gonna tell you about it" thing that "Started from the Bottom", one of my least favourite songs of 2013, had. But the thing is, Pitbull isn't trying to convince us that he has "street cred" or whatever through his tough times. He's just showing how grateful he is to be alive, despite the tough times that he's been through. And he's gonna enjoy every second of it. Now that's admirable in a genuine way.
Hmm... so, I guess I like this song a little.
As far as "Give Me Everything" clones could go, this one actually supersedes the original, being about real, tangible topics and still managing to capture the spirit of enjoying life in some parts. Is it still flawed? Sure. Is it still stupid? Absolutely. But you know what? Screw it, it's fun, and it does have elements that work.
Perhaps my Pitbull expectations have just been significantly lowered over the years, but I do think this is one of his best. Just a great party anthem that you can throw on without thinking too hard about it. Good job, Pitbull. You worked your ass off, and it paid off.
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