Home

[Lazarus]

When Christina Aguilera released ?Bionic? in 2010, she was coming off a string of albums that placed her atop the pack of former teen pop stars.

Her self-titled debut introduced her in 1999 amid a crew that included Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and Mandy Moore. Three years later her follow-up ?Stripped? shattered the Disney image and established Aguilera as a potent pop hitmaker. The ?Back to Basics? double album further separated her from the pack, echoing old-school divas in its sound and image. She was even far ahead of the current Latin wave with 2000?s ?Mi Reflejo? album, which included a duet with ?Despacito? singer Luis Fonsi.

?Bionic? should have further cemented Aguilera?s superstar status. Instead, it derailed her career. As we prepare for her first Houston concert in quite some time it?s worth asking, what went wrong?

Looking back, and quite simply, ?Bionic? was ahead of its time, a forward-thinking assertion of independence like Madonna?s ?Erotica? and Janet Jackson?s ?The Velvet Rope.? Fans and critics didn?t know what to make of the aggressive electro-pop elements laced throughout the album. It was an unfamiliar sound to top 40 radio programmers who were used to Aguilera?s gut-busting ballads and pop/R&B anthems. Her miraculous voice, often compared to those of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, was masked with effects and production.


The album?s first single, ?Not Myself Tonight,? didn?t help commercial matters. It was a perfectly serviceable bit of dance-pop, but the risqu? music video with Aguilera in bondage gear and pouring black goo on herself suffered from unfair comparisons to Lady Gaga. In truth, ?Not Myself Tonight? was an homage to Madonna?s ?Express Yourself? and even included scene-by-scene re-creations of that iconic video. (It also referenced Madonna?s ?Human Nature? and ?Like a Prayer.?) The album cover to ?Bionic? was a reference to the 1927 film ?Metropolis,? itself a reference point for Madonna?s video.

Gaga, whose star was on the rise in 2010, was credited as the inventor of all things pop at the time. Nevermind that her own ?Born This Way? would later, and rightfully, be labeled a ripoff of Madonna?s ? surprise! ? ?Express Yourself.? At that moment, Aguilera was labeled a Gaga imitator.

Aguilera took bigger chances throughout the rest of the album, working with Le Tigre, Tricky Stewart and Switch, known for his work with M.I.A. and Santigold. Aguilera also collaborated with Sia on gorgeous ballads ?All I Need,? ?I Am? and ?You Lost Me.? This was long before Sia became an in-demand collaborator for the likes of Beyonc?, Kelly Clarkson and Katy Perry, or earned a Grammy nomination for her hit ?Chandelier.?

The best moments on "Bionic" marry Aguilera's soulful vibe with indie and electro elements. The title track's industrial stomp sets the tone for the rest of the album. "Elastic Love," co-written by M.I.A., could be a huge hit today; just add a Cardi B cameo. "My Girls" boasts a riot-girl spirit, features electropunk icon Peaches and shouts out the album's edgy collaborators. The midtempo "Monday Morning" is a synthy bop that has become a fan favorite.


And I?ve still never heard anything quite like the rapid-fire ?Bobblehead? and the droning, ominous ?Birds of Prey? from any other female pop star. They?re easily among the best of Aguilera?s work.

It?s too bad, then, that it fell on mostly deaf ears at the time. None of its singles cracked the top 20, and the album was just certified gold for sales of 500,00 copies in June of this year. By comparison, all of Aguilera?s previous studio albums sold well into the millions and generated several top 10 hits.

Aguilera?s post-?Bionic? career has been uneven, to say the least. She bounced back, somewhat, with a star turn in the 2010 film ?Burlesque? but followed it with a mangled ?Star-Spangled Banner? at Super Bowl XLV. Her multiseason stint on ?The Voice? muzzled her personality, and she struggled to connect with her stable of singers.

[Gilgamesh.]

?You Lost Me? was beautiful.

[African Queen]

The album was garbage but these singles slayed:

[Nine]

n

This album was just not very good.

There were a few standout tracks though.

Bionic, Sex For Breakfast, Desnudate, Prima Donna, Vanity, You Lost Me, Woohoo >>>

[MelMel]

deserved to flop

[Rxxf]

?You Lost Me? was beautiful.

[.betterwiseup]

Monday Morning was my shit

[Lazarus]

Speaking of her.

She teased a new song and video called Wondaland

https://twitter.com/xtina/status/1057922232259829760

[Hatsumomo]

Bionic is everything all of her albums are .. Except Lotus

[Hatsumomo]

?You Lost Me? was beautiful.

Stunning actually

[GRAND ETERNAL SUPREME]

it was NOT ahead of its time

some XTINCT stan wrote this

those songs were CHEAP pop and not current with 2010 or ahead to 2014

hell, the first single (accelerate) she released with this last album could be considered ahead of its time

but NOT Not myself tonight

they tried that shit

[GRAND ETERNAL SUPREME]

It was an unfamiliar sound to top 40 radio programmers who were used to Aguilera?s gut-busting ballads and pop/R&B anthems. Her miraculous voice, often compared to those of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, was masked with effects and production.

:KSDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Im gonna BEAT this author

[GRAND ETERNAL SUPREME]

The album?s first single, ?Not Myself Tonight,? didn?t help commercial matters. It was a perfectly serviceable bit of dance-pop, but the risqu? music video with Aguilera in bondage gear and pouring black goo on herself suffered from unfair comparisons to Lady Gaga. In truth, ?Not Myself Tonight? was an homage to Madonna?s ?Express Yourself? and even included scene-by-scene re-creations of that iconic video. (It also referenced Madonna?s ?Human Nature? and ?Like a Prayer.?) The album cover to ?Bionic? was a reference to the 1927 film ?Metropolis,? itself a reference point for Madonna?s video.

im shaking

this wasnt about Madonna

this was about OUTDOING Gaga who she called a man when she wasnt AS popular at the time

The girl who wrote this is delusional so I KNOW theyre a xtinct

[GRAND ETERNAL SUPREME]

Gaga, whose star was on the rise in 2010, was credited as the inventor of all things pop at the time. Nevermind that her own ?Born This Way? would later, and rightfully, be labeled a ripoff of Madonna?s ? surprise! ? ?Express Yourself.? At that moment, Aguilera was labeled a Gaga imitator.

oh, of course the next paragraph is about gag



yep this article is TRASH

[GRAND ETERNAL SUPREME]

the entire 3rd section of the article is a kii

it says

CHRISTINA WORKED WITH THESE ARTIST FIRST AND TODAY THESE SONGS WOULD HAVE BEEN A HIT

yeah. ok. then why has her most recent album not done SHIT

I cant stand stans who cant be honest with shit in publications