Cher Lloyd‘s latest single, “
Want U Back” is hands down my favorite
Cher Lloyd single released to date. In fact, it might even be her best single released to date…granted, she’s only released a total of 3 singles, but never mind that. I can also definitively say that my reasons for liking “
Want U Back” so much have absolutely nothing to do with the last minute addition of U.S.
X-Factor contestant
Astro onto track. N-O-T-H-I-N-G! On the contrary, what I like about this single has everything to do with
Cher Lloyd. “
Want You Back” is a lot of fun, especially when you throw in remixes from
Cahill and
Pete Phantom. Delicious! In the corresponding
Parris-directed video, Cher’s personality and quirky sense of humor both come bubbling to the surface. How refreshing.
This mid-tempo pure pop gem was produced by
Shellback (
P!nk,
Britney Spears) and co-written by
Shellback,
Savan Kotecha (
Adam Lambert,
Leona Lewis) and
The Astronomical Kid (AKA
Astro). Set to be released
February 19th, “
Want U Back” is the third single lifted off of Lloyd’s debut Top 5 album,
Sticks & Stones which came out last November via
Syco/
Epic Records. Preceding the album’s release was the release of Cher’s first single, the incessantly irritating “
Swagger Jagger,” which surprisingly was a #1 hit. The song was voted the “
Most Annoying Song” in all of 2011 by the
BBC‘s ‘
Most Annoying of 2011‘ list. Not exactly the honor Lloyd was looking for.
Follow up single, “
With Ur Love” featured Lloyd alongside U.S. hip-pop star
Mike Posner and rose all the way to #4 on the
UK Singles Chart. Now that the album has been out for a while, I’m hoping that Lloyd can maintain her Top 5 status with “
Want U Back.” Things are looking promising, given the fact that the song entered the UK Singles Chart shortly after the premiere of the music video, peaking at #26. My guess is that the actual release of the single propels it into at least the Top 10. Fingers crossed. For her debut album, Lloyd really brought out all of the stops, collaborating with the likes of hit songwriter
Autumn Rowe, mega-producer
RedOne,
Busta Rhymes, Mike Posner,
Ghetts,
Mic Righteous and
Dot Rotten. Quite an impressive lineup for a newcomer like Lloyd.
Back in December, it was
announced that
Cher Lloyd had been signed to
Epic Records in the U.S., which helps explain why her label would add a no-name U.S. rapper to the radio version of her single. Chairman and CEO of
Epic Records (and
X-Factor USA judge),
L.A. Reid signed
Cher Lloyd to his label. He’s also responsible for “discovering” and ultimately signing
Brian “Astro” Bradley to his label as well,
alongside fellow contestants
Marcus Canty and
Chris Rene. Connection made. Turns out they’re hoping that “
Want U Back” is the vehicle in which Lloyd launches her U.S. career, or at least that’s the plan anyway. Lloyd is keeping things real with regards to her future as a U.S. pop star, telling
Metro:
“It’s a bit crazy because I don’t expect anyone to know who I am because I live in the UK. I’m from The X Factor and I came fourth. It’s crazy and it gives me a lot of hope. With the USA, I’m not going to run before I can walk but you never know what’s going to happen.”
“Want U Back” is a solid pop song that you can’t help but shake-it to. There’s no real reason why it shouldn’t do well in the States, and with mainstream publications like The New York Times already dubbing her “the future,” it’s a good sign. At this point…it’s all about promotion. Here’s hoping L.A. Reid does his job and promotes the hell out of this girl! U.S. fans can download “Swagger Jagger” on U.S. iTunes HERE.