Lady Gaga singing the chorus on Kendrick Lamar’s Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe demo – how could the two ever go together? But have a listen: it’s like sense smacks you in the face saying, “How could you ever doubt me?” So in honour of leftfield musical pairings, we run down our best and worst of unexpected collabs.
BEST
1. Lady Gaga ft Beyonce – Telephone
Gaga has a bit of a talent for spotting potential collab opportunities, and this one is a no-brainer. Both artists might be from two completely different ends of the music spectrum, but somehow the queen of pop and the queen of RnB find a Jeff Koons-esque, bubblegum-bright middle ground that displayed both their strengths and gained Beyonce some Gaga followers (and vice versa).
2. Connor Maynard ft Ne-Yo – Turn Around
Hitmaker Ne-Yo seems to have a knack for always guaranteeing a spot in the number one slot, but this bewildering collaboration initially left people uncertain – but in our opinion, it’s one of the best UK summer songs (well, as summer-y as Britain gets).
3. Katy Perry ft Kanye West – ET
It’s almost unfathomable to imagine what kind of melody results from Katy Perry and Kanye West sitting in a studio together. But by tying the alien idea into a far-out E.T. concept, something pretty out of this space happens.
WORST
1. Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj – Beauty And A Beat
Your initial reaction: “Why is this happening? Why is this HAPPENING?” And sure enough, after listening to the song you discover it’s perfectly fine with only Justin Bieber on the track – but then it’s promptly ruined by a sub-Daft Punk breakdown, their random pointless grinding at 3:26 and Nicki’s pink meringue outfit.
2. The Jonas Brothers ft Common – Don’t Charge Me For The Crime
This is one of those songs that nobody knows about, because its existence doesn’t make sense – the song isn’t bad, but it’s not good, and it’s just plain odd. Common rapping about the death of the American dream, combined with the Jonas Brothers’ doing their best Mick Jagger impressions: just incredibly awkward.
3. David Bowie & Mick Jagger – Dancing In The Street
Dancing On The Street is one of those unforgettable music videos that people either loved, or shunned as soon as they saw it – even Family Guy poked fun of it for being the most unnecessary collaborations in music history. It’s a funny video nonetheless and the song is dreadfully catchy, but I’m sure we could all do without. Cheers, Mick and David.
Words: Tracy Kiryango