Aaliyah, forgive me in advance for defiling the anniversary of your death. Back in your day, there were honorable collabos — Timbaland, Missy Elliot and DMX. Well, we'll forgive you that one because the song was hot! But, seriously, what happened to the days of quality vocals and dynamic beats? All we have now are catchy tunes and corny artists. Enter Asher Roth.
Yup, the man behind "I Love College" has managed to rope in another hit-making (BLACK) artist to validate himself as a rapper. And Cee-lo's offense was already bad enough.
Now, Mr. Roth has paired up with Keri "Knock Me Down" Hilson, the Queen of Collabos, herself, for the single "She Don't Wanna Man." Something doesn't sit right with me about this song. Maybe it's the cheezy chorus: "Know you want my body, body. I just wanna party, party." Maybe it's the incessant way that Asher flails his arms (Chill, man! We get it! You're down!). Or maybe it's the fact that the curvy, boob-flashing buddy next to Keri is quickly labeled as "the Fat Friend." Whatever the reason, "She Don't Wanna Man" seems more of a parody than a performance. Another lame club jam riding to the top of the charts with the help of two big names (Read: Mediocre artists.) See for yourself:
(Sigh)
I dare say that Aaliyah's memory deserves better … much better.
But it sure is catchy, huh? "Ain't lookin' for no man, I just came dance!" A pseudo-feminist proclamation that empowers you "on the dance floor, on the dance floor." Dang, they get me everytime.
Sorry, Aaliyah! You sure are missed, though!
— SAARET E. YOSEPH
Saaret Yoseph is a writer and Assistant Editor at TheRoot.com. She manages and blogs for \"Their Eyes Were Watching …\"