At first glance, you might not recognize John Legend in those tight bell bottoms and suede vest, but the 70s soul attire is integral to the superstar’s new music video, featuring The Roots, Melanie Fiona, and Common. The bass-heavy “Wake Up Everybody” is the kickoff for Wake Up!” a new collection of jams by Legend and the Late Night house band. Inspired by the socially conscious soul of the 60s and 70s, the album is due Sept. 21.
The video was recently shot in Brooklyn by director Gil Green and the video’s ’70s vibe (with a little Do The Right Thing kick) fits perfectly with this cover of the Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes classic. Check out this exclusive behind the scenes look at “Wake Up Everybody” in the making. Just how will this throwback clip all tie together? We’ll just have to wait till the music video’s released on iTunes tomorrow to see. And for even more on set pics click here and here. More »
Yesterday Chris Molanphy and I were talking about the relative stasis of the pop charts, and the lack of any summer jam contenders right now despite the season rapidly approaching. Well, I’d like to throw one contender in there: Melanie Fiona’s “Give It To Me Right,” which is based around an admittedly undeniable sample (the pounding bass line from the Zombies’ “Time Of The Season”) but which also sails along on the strength of the Canadian singer’s pipes, and which will probably sound really great in big open gatherings. The video also gets points for having a shot of a game of solitaire–a clever nod to the lyrics in which Melanie intimates that she can do a much better job satisfying herself than the emotional klutz at whom this song seems to be directed. [MySpace] More »