Ke$ha is the pop singer you love to hate…or hate to love. As much as I don’t want to admit this, I actually like Cannibal, Ke$ha’s sophomore extended play (EP). I like it a lot more than I expected to. I pressed play with extremely low expectations, totally expecting more of repetitive pop anthems. However, although it is undeniable that what we have here is some typical dance music, Ke$ha has come out of her shell. If you thought rough and sexual lyrics from “Blah, Blah, Blah” were blunt, you haven’t heard anything yet. In “Grow a Pear” she exclaims: “I signed up for a man/but you are just a bitch/I just can’t date a dude with a vag.”
Although Slant Magazine’s music critic, Sal Cinqueman, says “Putting a dollar sign in your name is a great way to guarantee that you’ll probably never be taken seriously.” Does he think Ke$ha really wants to be taken seriously? With lyrics like “do you really think that you can get my rocks off/get my top and socks off/ from showing me the dollars in your drop box?” I don’t think being seen as a mature and responsible woman is among Ke$ha’s priorities. It’s this style of rap/singing and her clever and memorable lyrics that make Ke$ha the super star she is today. Cannibal has impossibly catchy with lyrics and beats. It’s also hard not to appreciate her shocking honesty when her lyrics occasionally make me laugh out loud.
Although it’s her pop infused songs like “Blow” and “We R Who We R” that make her popular, it’s Ke$ha’s unconventional tunes that set her apart from every other pop singer. “Cannibal” compares Ke$ha’s desire to break the hearts of boys to cannibalism making your stomach churn. “Sleazy” epitomizes the trashiness Ke$ha represents by stating Ke$ha’s desire to go back to her basement and get sleazy…whatever that means.
Is Cannibal a must have? I have to say that’s up to your discretion. I’ve found that Ke$ha is very much an acquired taste and unless you’ve learned to love the trashy superstar I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s not legendary. It’s not great music. But, damn, this girl knows how to write a song with addicting beats and lyrics.
Quality. The article and album, that is.