Drake ft. Rihanna - Take Care

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     Well... It's been a while... Again. Crazy, crazy year.




   This time, just because I am kind of tired of ranting about everything, all the time, I decided to pick something nice to talk about. So, ladies and gentlemen, today I shall be presenting you: Drake ft. Rihanna - Take Care  

    Lets jump right in, and talk about the video clip. 

    The colours, the images, their movement and arrangement, it's all beautiful. Simplistic, yet beautiful, especially the movement. I know that most of the symbolism, if any, eludes me, but the way the sound and visuals combine is pretty.  It is also emotionally charged. Looking at the two performers, their positions, motions, gestures, expressions, how the camera zooms in and out, and that secret look Rihanna gives us, we can feel it, we can really see their emotions. I also feel the need to praise the choreography. It might seem simple at first glance, but the fluidity of motion, the movements that compliment the emotion of the song, that is not easy to pull off.


    The music is also beautiful. The eerie sound of the piano and the guitar create a unique atmosphere, a calm and relaxed feeling, few club songs can impose. Furthermore the combination between the visuals and the music is stunning. For example towards the end when the tone and melody change, the image of fire flashes, then we get the scene with the bull and the arrows. As the tone changes, becomes somewhat more urgent, more tense, so do the visuals, becoming a little bit more rapid, more threatening.

    And now to, perhaps my favourite part: the lyrics. They actually mean something. Can you believe it? There was thinking process behind the combination of words in a song. What sorcery is this? Have we reached a new stage in our evolution? God I hope so, even if some other examples of modern media cause me to seriously doubt that.
     True, some of the lyrics were sampled. Still, the combination, execution and composition are good. Furthermore, the people seem to like the song. Not that the majority particularly care or notice the lyrics, but, still, it's nice to know the masses like something decent for once.
    So what do the lyrics actually tell us? Do they really paint us a picture?

    Yes, they do.


    Amazing isn't it? The tale is of a troubled, complicated love story, between two people who clearly care about each other, but need to go over some inner turmoil before they are able to have a real, healthy relationship. And they are willing to take the steps.

    But that is my general reading. Lyrics can be read in many, more detailed, ways depending on the viewer, and that precisely is the beauty of good lyrics.
    Overall, it's a gentle and thoughtful song. What I like most about it is the performers, and especially Rihanna who has been looking particularly blank eyed and robotic in most of her recent songs. I mean, really, is this the expression of someone who is thrilled to have found the love of their life? ->

In Take Care you can really feel the emotion in her voice, really see it on her face. It resonates with the song. That's how singers, dedicated to their craft, should be. If they really are invested in their craft, it will show. Even if its just acting. It is still effort.
    Granted, the song samples/borrows from an older, original, song (by Bobby Bland), and its remix (by Jamie xx), but I think, the composition of this one is much better. The way the music compliments the voices, and how the instruments are executed and combine is much more fluid and melodic.
In the end, I still find it kind of funny. How a lot of modern pop songs often sample, borrow or are remakes from older songs... I do hope creativity can pick itself up rather than remaking things from the past, even if it has decades of innovations and greatness to surpass.

    Take Care did not become as popular for as long and was not as marketed as some other chart songs out there, but it was still pretty high up. So then, now that we have proven it can be done, why can't pop songs be more like this? What is their excuse?
   
    What excuses: Robin Thicke ft. T.I., Pharrell - Blurred Lines  or its unrated version?

I just love how bothered and uncomfortable they look, don't you?

    Whatever they paid those models... It really wasn't worth it.

So lets pray, the future brings us more of Take Care and less of Blurred Lines.
And finally, just for laughs because I found this reverse hilarious, enjoy: Sexy Boys, Parody by Mod Carousel