Well, right, that's what I'm saying: it doesn't have any great significance, it's just a really good song. Those do tend to come along every once in a while, and sometimes the temptation to read too much into them is overwhelming. Hell, I've been known in moments of argumentativeness to claim that it will singlehandedly save the album format.
RANDOM SIDENOTE: I know an inexplicably large number of women who completely hate this song and, by extension, any man who enjoys it. I've heard multiple suggestions that guys "only like it because of the video" (haven't seen it yet, but judging by tone of the song, I wouldn't exactly expect a Pussycat Dolls-style skank-o-rama -- am I way off base here?); one woman I work with actually said she "lost respect for [me]", and I got the feeling she was only half joking. Beyonce for Mariah of the oughties?
― Goodtime Slim, Uncle Doobie, and the Great Frisco Freakout (bernard snowy), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 23:22 (seventeen years ago) link
02/02/07http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2007/02/02/beyonce_still_irreplaceable_on_top_of_th
"Beyonce Knowles' Irreplaceable has notched up a ninth week at the top of the US singles chart.
The hit, which first hit number one in early December, has kept Fall Out Boy's This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race at number two and Nelly Furtado's Say It Right at number three for a second successive week.
The highest debut on the new Billboard chart belongs to Brit Lily Allen, whose Smile enters the countdown at number 83."
― curmudgeon (DC Steve), Monday, 12 February 2007 22:27 (seventeen years ago) link
Basically all this song has shown me is that Beyonce sometimes says some stupid shit when she gets mad; "Ring The Alarm" is a much more coherent take in terms of narrative sense as well as being much more successful in making me identify with the protagonist. Also, the transition into the chorus of "Irreplaceable" is a big pile of unimaginative shit.
― Jesus Dan (dan perry), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 04:08 (seventeen years ago) link
― deej (deej), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 06:00 (seventeen years ago) link
― Not For Use as Infant Nog (A-Ron Hubbard), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 06:20 (seventeen years ago) link
still, in spite of or because of all that, a 100 percent pop classic. (which "ring the alarm" is not quite, despite being a better song.)
― tipsy mothra (tipsy mothra), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 07:17 (seventeen years ago) link
― Tim F (Tim F), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 10:19 (seventeen years ago) link
this isn't what she says at all. she mentions the car because it's an insult-to-injury thing, like he's slept with another girl in HER BED.
Also, if this is an "empowerment song", why is she so hell-bent on picking up another meaningless boytoy whom she can disdain into cheating on her?
well it's not a straight-up empowerment song, is it? it's an expression of all the confusion/pride/conflict one feels when a relationship ends, and this totally includes meaningless casual sex as revenge on yr ex.
Finally, exactly what is the point of telling someone "don't think you are irreplaceable" as you're kicking them out? Isn't it kind of obvious at that point that you think they're replaceable?
well, no, not at all, not if you’ve been left no other option than to kick them out after you discovered that they were being unfaithful! beyonce is underlining, to him, that she’s not simply doing this to save her pride, but she really will get over him just like that. (of course, she’s lying to herself, which is what makes the song so effective.)
Basically all this song has shown me is that Beyonce sometimes says some stupid shit when she gets mad; "Ring The Alarm" is a much more coherent take in terms of narrative sense as well as being much more successful in making me identify with the protagonist.
this is true, and it’s exactly why ‘irreplaceable’ is the more emotionally affecting song (though ‘ring the alarm’ is fabulous’ as well). incoherent stupid shit when you’ve just been emotionally shattered? EXACTLY.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 10:34 (seventeen years ago) link
'telling me / i ain't going to find another man like you'man clearly does not think he's irreplacaeble! presumably he thinks she'll come crawling back, but she's never going to do that, she's too strong, she never needed him anyway, he was just some man, etc etc etc.
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 12:57 (seventeen years ago) link
― Jesus Dan (dan perry), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:04 (seventeen years ago) link
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:08 (seventeen years ago) link
keep trying to formulate response along the lines of - the fact that it's a ballad in the first place creates this fundamental disjoint between the words and the music, the independent-woman braggadocio fronting which comes out of beyoncé's mouth (inc the inevitable focus on the economics of it all) at complete odds with not just her overtly emotional delivery but also with the sappy acoustic guitar and predictable ballad chord changes. it hasn't come out right though.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:12 (seventeen years ago) link
also: she has built up very effectively, that exact image many, many times before! it's virtually her default persona. so we know what beyoncé sounds like when she's being empowering, we know she's very good at it, and we know that this is not it.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:18 (seventeen years ago) link
It really makes me wonder, though: I think Beyonce puts in a really great performance on the song, she knows how to sing it - and then she goes around acting like she can't see any of the subtlety, and I start to think 'maybe she has to believe in its literal truth to sing it as well as she does...' so that, I don't know, every performance is at the emotional point before you realise you're lying to yourself, or something.
yes to recognisable signifiers of ballad form affecting perception etc.
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:21 (seventeen years ago) link
unless the song is about pride rather than enpowerment. perhaps you might say they are the same thing. but i'm not sure about that.
― Subtractive Synthesis (Subtractive Synthesis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:24 (seventeen years ago) link
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:24 (seventeen years ago) link
― Subtractive Synthesis (Subtractive Synthesis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:25 (seventeen years ago) link
?
― Subtractive Synthesis (Subtractive Synthesis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:26 (seventeen years ago) link
or maybe she is STILL lying to herself, and still in denial!
or: sometimes, even after you've admitted to yourself that you're lying to yourself, and have come to terms with that...you're still not going to give the other party the pleasure of seeing it, so you carry on with your public face at all times.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:26 (seventeen years ago) link
precisely! especially as it's the kind of song where you hope by repeating its words to yourself enough times, you will eventually believe them. any public concession to their untruth would SHATTER YR FRAGILE EMOTIONAL WORLD, etc.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:28 (seventeen years ago) link
it's virtually her default personabut you can't mesh it with the buckwild crazy needy mad-eyes persona (cf deja vu etc), or the service-your-man one (cf cater 2 u, naughty girl, etc).
lex you sound like you're implying it's based in real life, watch it. :(
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:37 (seventeen years ago) link
― temporary enrique (temporary enrique), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:42 (seventeen years ago) link
every time Beyonce opens her mouth to talk about this song, I think she gets dumber
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:42 (seventeen years ago) link
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:43 (seventeen years ago) link
but you can't mesh it with the buckwild crazy needy mad-eyes persona (cf deja vu etc), or the service-your-man one (cf cater 2 u, naughty girl, etc).
indeed, though for whatever reason submissive/needy solo beyoncé hasn't stuck as a persona in the way that shark-eyed businesswoman DC beyoncé did. i guess until now she's backed it up with some pretty no-nonsense beats.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:43 (seventeen years ago) link
no, dan's completely wrong, we have established exactly why it would be a bad idea for beyoncé (or any pop star doing a similar song) to openly talk about how it's a lie! it doesn't matter what she says in interviews, anyway.
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:44 (seventeen years ago) link
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:45 (seventeen years ago) link
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:50 (seventeen years ago) link
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:51 (seventeen years ago) link
xpost
― temporary enrique (temporary enrique), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:52 (seventeen years ago) link
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 13:55 (seventeen years ago) link
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:08 (seventeen years ago) link
― Al (Alex In Baltimore), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:09 (seventeen years ago) link
― cis boom bah (cis), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:10 (seventeen years ago) link
― Al (Alex In Baltimore), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:12 (seventeen years ago) link
What she says in interviews is irrelevant.
― sw00ds (sw00ds), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:13 (seventeen years ago) link
I'd love Dan's take.
― Alfred Soto (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:14 (seventeen years ago) link
― temporary enrique (temporary enrique), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― sw00ds (sw00ds), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:30 (seventeen years ago) link
― sw00ds (sw00ds), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:33 (seventeen years ago) link
― sw00ds (sw00ds), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:36 (seventeen years ago) link
― temporary enrique (temporary enrique), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:38 (seventeen years ago) link
― sw00ds (sw00ds), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 14:51 (seventeen years ago) link
This remark should be posted atop every rock critic's computer. It's probably the most compelling statement regarding a critic's obligation to delineate why an artist is or isn't worth his/her time.
― Alfred Soto (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 15:42 (seventeen years ago) link
― temporary enrique (temporary enrique), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 15:49 (seventeen years ago) link
― steve schneeberg (steve go1dberg), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 15:56 (seventeen years ago) link
What complete and utter horseshit. Has this idiot NEVER heard other people's renditions of "And I Am Telling You" (including the one they all rip off, Jennifer Holliday's) and seen the glaring interpretive contrast between what every random screamer does (YELL YELL YELL YELL YELL MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE) and what Jennifer Hudson does (tender start, build in emotion, out of control bridge leading to a massively impressive phrase that shows breath control that Beyonce has never once exhibited in any of her singing)? This is completely setting aside differences in timbre; Jennifer Hudson has a darker, richer, rounder sound than Beyonce does. Also, Jennifer doesn't belt "Love You I Do" and she doesn't belt the verses of "Move"; that is saved for the coda. That nonsense was written by someone who is too busy jizzing over Beyonce's weave to give anyone else a fair shake (Anika Noni Rose could easily have outsung both of them had her big number not been cut from the movie, BTW, so this is not just the same argument from the "RAH RAH JENNIFER" perspective).
no, dan's completely wrong, we have established exactly why it would be a bad idea for beyoncé (or any pop star doing a similar song) to openly talk about how it's a lie!
Petulantly stamping your foot and shouting "I DECREE THIS, THEREFORE IT IS TRUE" is not a universally-accepted way of establishing a point, Lex.
― Jesus Dan (dan perry), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 16:00 (seventeen years ago) link
― lexpretend (lexpretend), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 16:06 (seventeen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 16:13 (seventeen years ago) link