Following on from the previous 'Rihanna vs. Nicki Minaj' faceoff, I have decided to continue this feature. This faceoff will be between 'Best Rapper Alive' Lil Wayne, 'Previously Troubled, But Now Recovered' actress-come-singer Demi Lovato, and 'Little-Known Singer Of Songs' Justin Bieber (trust me, this kid is going to be huge).
When Weezy released 'How To Love' last year, as the third single from his ninth studio album, Tha Carter IV, a lot of hip-hop heads were wondering what on earth was happening to the Wayne they knew and loved. We had had Rapper Wayne, Rockstar Wayne, and now ... Crooner Wayne? 'How To Love' is the closest Lil Wayne has ever come to releasing a ballad. Something I, and many others, had never thought they would see. Fans of Rapper Wayne were quick to label 'How To Love' "the worst Lil Wayne song OF ALL TIME!!!1!!". While fans of Rockstar Wayne saw this move as further evolution of the personality Wayne had created for himself. However, all parties agreed that 'How To Love' was nothing more than an album filler, after all, it's definitely no 'Lollipop' or 'A Milli'.
What's that? 'How To Love' went to number five on the Billboard Hot 100?! Unbelievably, 'How To Love' was only Weezy's second solo single, in his twelve year career, to chart in the top five of the Hot 100. 'How To Love' was a hit! Because Wayne had made a radio-friendly, accessible record, allowing the song to crossover onto mainstream radio play, allowing more people to become familiar with the song. People that perhaps weren't even rap fans were singing Wayne's praises. It looks like taking a leaf out of Drake's book, and showing your emotions on a rap record, pays off. Listen to 'How To Love' below.
Lovely.
Obviously, going into rehab is never a good thing, but if it results in the creation of songs like the unbelievably moving 'Skyscraper', then maybe that little trip was pretty worthwhile. I like Demi Lovato, she just real. When I saw this GIF, it made me want to give her a hug because she just seems so vulnerable, and such a different person to the annoying characters she plays in Camp Rock and Sonny with a Chance. God, I hate those films/programme. Demi's third solo album, Unbroken, was alright, but it didn't really deliver in regards to the potential that 'Skyscraper' hinted at.
However, when Demi started to tour her latest album, she had a little surprise for the attendees. The singer dropped a cover of Lil Wayne's 'How To Love' into her set. Before singing 'How To Love' during her show at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, Lovato said, "I am going to cover a song right now. It is by a rap artist, not a rap song, and it's on the radio right now", showing the popularity that the song had garnered since it's release. While a studio version of Demi's cover doesn't exist, as far as I'm aware, she has performed the song on radio shows and TV performances, so we can enjoy the song without having to listen to pre-pubescent teens screaming their way through the performance. You can listen to the cover below.
Lovely.
There is something about Justin Bieber that I find fascinating. As much as many people will not like to hear this, Bieber has swag in abundance. The kid is seventeen years old and has sold over eight million albums, he has more than seventeen million followers on Twitter and, most importantly, he's getting it on with Selena Gomez. #SWAG. If it wasn't for the detestable 'Beliebers' (how is creating trending topics like 'Justin Loves My Cat' productive in any way?) then perhaps it wouldn't be such a hard thing for people to admit to liking the Biebz. I don't see any valid reasons for people to hate Justin Bieber. When I say 'hate' I mean, there are people out there who claim to genuinely hate Bieber. Why? Fair enough if you don't like his music, you don't have too, but commenting 'Die Bieber' on his Youtube videos is ridiculous. Have more respect for yourself. I like Justin Bieber. I don't care who knows it, 'Runaway' is my jam. Kanye likes Justin Bieber. Tyler, The Creator likes Justin Bieber. It's just not cool to hate on Bieber for no reason any more.
Another reason why Justin Bieber is to be celebrated is that he raps. Rapping over 'Otis' and dropping some 'freestyles', despite being ridiculed by the rap world, shows Justin's determination to do whatever he wants to do. To be fair, his raps haven't been too bad, and, while I believe that Justin wrote them himself, if they were written by Ludacris, or by anyone else, it wouldn't bother me in the slightest. Before Justin started rapping during his radio appearances, he performed a couple of covers songs, covering Drake's 'Trust Issues' and Wayne's 'How To Love'. While he left the rapping to Drake in 'Trust Issues', he decided to drop a couple of bars into his rendition of 'How To Love', giving many people their first taste of Beiber's flow (that sounds so wrong). (Sidenote: Check 'Ladies Love Me' from Chris Brown's Boy In Detention mixtape for some more Bieber bars.) Listen to Justin Bieber's version of 'How To Love' below.
#SWAG
So, who conquered in their quest to *CLICHÉ SIREN* make 'How To Love' their own? While it is often thought that the original version of a song is always the best, I'm going to give this one to Miss Lovato. There is just something about women singing ballads that really appeals to me, and I think she really manages to carry the emotion of the song across, into her performance. Kudos to Justin and Wayne though, valiant efforts, I'm sure you'll agree. Let me know which version you prefer, in the comments section below.
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