“No Air” by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown

I don’t follow pop music much these days, but every now and then I stumble onto something.  In this case, it’s this ballad by American Idol winner Jordin Sparks and R&B singer Chris Brown.

 

Part of the reason I like the song so much was my first impression: I first heard it used on the reality show “So You Think You Can Dance”, one of the few reality shows that showcases talented people.  It was used as a modern dance number; the premise was a soldier being called off to war and leaving his girl behind.  The dancing was fantastic, very expressive, and really brought out the heartbreak of the song.  It was a stunning performance by Katee Shean and Joshua Allen.

 

One of my favourite bits is a little detail in the bridge – a nice chugging guitar riff worthy of Dokken, played softly in the background.  It was a nice bit of texture that makes the bridge a little more aggressive, a little more raw, and coincides nicely with the increased drama of Sparks’ singing.  Another great moment is the line, “leaving me with just me”, a simple, direct, nicely written punch.

 

The song loses its focus a little with some excessive wailing when the chorus outro hits, but then it settles back into place and fades out nicely.  I’ve got it on my iPod and I listen to it a lot.

 

On a cynical side note: nice bit of cross-promotion there, Simon Cowell.  The song from a contestant on one Cowell-produced show gets used in a dance routine on another Simon Cowell show!