It’s been said, “Without music, life would be a mistake”. Music expresses that which you cannot put into words. With ListenOnRepeat, you can put a pause to your life while listening to the most amazing soundtracks with their exclusive latest music reviews. We have gathered the latest reviews of the trending songs of week Feb. 24 to March 1, 2020, below. Happy Reading!
Kenny Chesney – Here And Now
“Life is what happens when you’re making other plans” – so goes the quote, often attributed to John Lennon, which sums the thrust of this song’s message. Appropriately, “Here And Now” is a track that seeks to place the listener within the present moment, within a space that is not governed by dreams of “one-day-some-days” or by any notion of saving things for a perfect moment in the future. The man delivering this pearl of wisdom is Kenny Chesney, a veteran country music singer whose twenty albums have all been certified gold or beyond. He’s been there and done it all, as the lyrics suggest, so listen up.
The song debuted just after Chesney received a very special honor: the Country Radio Broadcasters’ Humanitarian of the Year Award, and in his speech Chesney gave off a sense of humility, as well as the swagger that comes from being a veritable star of the genre. “I am embarrassed and uncomfortable, but God has given me the gift of communicating with people through music,” he said. However this reads on paper, Chesney is right – his new music is climbing through the charts once more, laying the groundwork for what is sure to be the successful release of his upcoming unnamed album, which will be available via Warner Bros Nashville later this year.
“Here And Now” was penned while Chesney was enjoying a Malibu retreat, and the lyrics reflect that environment. He sings of various holiday destinations, romantic flings, and moments on the beach where everything alines with the tranquility of glowing sunsets and tequila sunrises. Yet, held fast in the song’s message is the idea that no matter where he is, whether it is New York, Tennessee or Mexico, there is no place quite like the here and now.
Watch Kenney Chesney – Here And Now
Selena Gomez – Feel Me
It is a busy time for Selena Gomez. Since releasing her third studio album, Rare, in January 2020, she has been making headlines for all sorts of reasons: acoustic performances, hitting the number one spot yet again, doing voiceovers for films, and even solving cold murder cases in her spare time. It seems as if nothing is holding the singer back, and that is the whole point. Her fame has been intertwined with that of Justin Bieber’s for years, their stars crossed beautifully and painfully for all fans to witness. Rare, and songs like “Feel Me” are her way of saying that she is finally moving on. But as a breakup, or closure-focused, albums go, Rare is laced through with a strain of painful memories: Selena is trying to forget what happened, and she certainly hasn’t forgiven it. “Lose You To Love Me” was an expression of closure in which she realizes that self-love is the saving grace after a relationship fails. “Look At Her Now” was a pumping ode to that same self-love, with hints of “Single Ladies” by Beyoncé in terms of the themes it used. “Feel Me,” the latest big release, is a snapshot of a particular rush of feelings: the kinds we experience when we want an ex to feel what we feel, to hurt like we do.
For all of these songs, the central message is one of moving on, and of re-discovering our own true callings in a brighter future. Yet the lyrics can’t resist straying into ruminations on the past. Whether its “You promised the world and I fell for it” (Lose You To Love Me), “but now she’s glad she dodged a bullet” (Look At Her Now), or “I never cheated, never lied/ I put no one above you” (Feel Me), Selena’s path to self-confidence is never removed from the pain of bygone years that is still felt today.
Watch Salena Gomez – feel Me
SZA, Justin Timberlake – The Other Side (From Trolls World Tour)
For animation soundtracks to work well, they need to do two things. Firstly, they need to evoke the spirit of the story, to tease out motifs and to help viewers connect to the narrative in a way that transports them to the heart of the moment on screen. Secondly, these tracks need to be able to grab attention outside of the film, to have a lifespan and an attraction that converts in the charts, beyond the remit of the movies they serve. The Trolls franchise has always been a very good example of how these twin goals can be achieved: the films utilize stars of the pop industry, commissioning them to create bouncy songs that are both chart-friendly and engaging in terms of a cinematic experience. The latest to have received the call-up is a partnership made up of Justin Timberlake and SZA. It seems that Justin understood the magic formula from the beginning – in a recent statement he said the following: “Creating something that serves the movie while still being able to exist apart from it has been a fun challenge.”
In a music video that harks back to the early 2000s pop style, with a fisheye lens and eye-catching costumes, the pair demonstrate what it feels like when musicians get it right. “The Other Side” is a funky ode to how “losing your shine” might make you yearn for new experiences. Yet, as the lyrics tell us: “The grass ain’t always greener on the other side.” Anyone who knows the Trolls narrative will connect to these words, and quickly see how they slot into the story.
Part of the song’s success in terms of the musicality is surely down to producer Ludwig Göransson, who recently earned himself an Oscar for his soundtrack to the immensely successful Black Panther.
Watch Justin Timberlake – The Other Side
EVERGLOW (에버글로우) – DUN DUN MV
If you take the iTunes charts as being an example of a track’s success, which is a reasonable barometer for any pop music fan, then you would have to assume that no K-pop outfit is doing well for themselves apart from the huge BTS. There is some truth in this: BTS is clearly a giant in the pop world. However, of the top 27 spots in terms of downloads and listens on Apple’s streaming platform, there is one group that is in the mix: EVERGLOW. Though the other 26 spots are occupied by BTS songs, EVERGLOW’s latest release, “Dun Dun” has garnered nearly 80 million views on Youtube since the start of February. If that doesn’t amount to success, then I don’t know what does.EVERGLOW is an act that operates under Yuehua Entertainment. The girl group is comprised of six members: E: U, Sihyeon, Mia, Onda, Aisha, and Yiren. Like many pop groups in Korea, its members rose to fame via various reality competition shows. Now they are front and center at the top of the K-pop world, with only heavyweights like BTS able to knock them off the top spots. They produce songs that are high-voltage, catchy and essential to K-pop fans, always accompanied by exciting visuals to match their style. The lyrics of “Dun Dun” are both Korean and English, which is the standard format used in South Korean smash hits. Yet, their sentiments don’t correspond to either language in any clear sense. Instead, the group sing in tongues, delivering vocals that are more about sounds and feelings as opposed to the particular language in question. The tightly choreographed dance routines and the equally staccato production leads to a drop that is not what we might expect: all music cuts for a few moments of relative quietness before the inevitable bouncing synths eventually kicks in.
Watch EVERGLOW (에버글로우) – DUN DUN MV
Restless Road, Kane Brown – Take Me Home
“Take me home, take me home, to the place that I belong” – these lyrics are sure to stir memories in all listeners. The original, written by Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert and John Denver, evokes the character of West Virginia, and the nostalgia it can hold for natives who have since left the region. Released in 1971, the track was an immediate hit, and it has been covered about as many times as “Jolene” and other country classics in the years since. Now it is the turn of Restless Road, the all-American trio whose original incarnation finished 4th place in the third series of the X Factor USA. Judging by their name, they were always destined to take on exactly this project and has already achieved the top 10 of the iTunes charts, the people certainly agree. They have been joined by Kane Brown, a singer from Tennessee who saw their work online, and invited them to work with him on material for his new, as yet unnamed, label. Restless Road members originally auditioned for the X Factor USA as individuals, and they were thrown together in a manner similar to One Direction after it became clear that they would not have advanced further on their own. Time will tell if they can achieve the same kind of success as their English counterparts.
“Take Me Home” opens with the melody that we are all familiar with, but the lyrics have been given a modern, boy-band lilt. Soon though, Kane Brown’s voice comes in and the listener realizes that verses have been added, the emphasis has been changed, and that this will make for an altogether different version, rather than just a cover. The official video features backstage footage, on-stage performances that the group has done, and a lot of wandering through the epic Virginia mountains.
