If females in British pop have of late been enjoying a peak time in their careers, then one artist they should be thankful for is Lily Allen. She is young, smart, pretty, fearless and has lots of attitude. Of course, those words can also be used to describe her peers like Duffy or Amy Winehouse but Allen has this unique way of looking at things that puts her in a class by herself. Singing to pulsating electropop, she gets boys and girls just out of their teens relate easily to what she says. She often shocks parents but they also agree that although she may need detention most of the time, her music is always fun.
Allen is the daughter of one of Britain’s esteemed comedians Keith Allen. Like Colbie Caillat in the US, she made her recording debut on the Net by posting her demos in MySpace four years ago. Regal-Parlophone noticed and a short while later her first album Alright Still was released. Acclaim, first in the UK and later all over the world soon followed in 2006. The CD went on to sell nearly three million copies and the NO. 1 single Smile, remains a big favorite up to now. That is not all that Allen did. I do believe that she influenced a lot of often irreverent new artists. Among them is the current pop sensation Katy Perry, who sounds a lot like Allen but without the distinctive British sense of humor.
Allen is back in the charts with a new CD titled It’s Not Me, It’s You. It is the crucial sophomore release, the one which will prove that Alright Still was no fluke and Allen a mere flash in the pan. This one is rife with social commentary. The language is more brutal and the topics are as shocking as before. Get rid of the CD cover or keep it in a place where elders and puddie-duddies are not likely to get a glimpse of the lyrics. It might just blow them off to kingdom come. You can allow them to listen to the music though. That is the best thing that It’s Not Me, It’s You has going for it. Allen took on a wide spectrum of pop music types and came out with a winning album.
The sound of It’s Not Me, It’s You is the sort of pop that sparkles and is thoroughly danceable. Watch out for some Grammy or Brit nominations for this one next year. The Fear, with the hip-hop vibe and which pokes fun at crass materialism, you know, today’s popular high maintenance lifestyle, is the first single release. It is already a big hit in the UK and Europe. My money for the long run though is on the ballad Who’d Have Known which has the catchiest hook in the package and on the amusing Chinese. The title refers to food, not the Chinese people. Other great finds are the anthemic 22 and the bouncing Not Fair.
UK’s top hits
And while we are on the subject of Allen, who is surely one of the leading lights of British pop today let us take a look at the hit lists in that part of the world. The Top 10 selling albums in the UK this week are: Invaders Must Die by The Prodigy; Only By The Night by the Kings of Leon; It’s Not Me, It’s You by Allen; Rockferry by Duffy; The Fame by Lady GaGa; The Seldom Seen Kid by Elbow; We Started Nothing by The Ting Tings; The Circus by Take That; Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes; and Day & Age by The Killers.
Now take a look at the Top 10 singles list, which, I just noticed is dominated by female acts. The songs are My Life Would Suck Without You by Kelly Clarkson; Love Story by Taylor Swift; Poker Face by Lady GaGa; Dead and Gone by T.I. featuring Justin Timberlake; The Fear by Allen; Just Dance by Lady GaGa again featuring Colby O’Donis; Use Somebody by the Kings of Leon; T-Shirt by Shontelle; Whatcha Think About That by The Pussy Cat Dolls featuring Missy Elliot; and Breathe Slow by Alesha Dixon.