We R in Need of a Musical Revolution
"We R in Need of a Musical Revolution" is a song by Canadian singer/songwriter Esthero. It was released as part of a six-song EP in November 2004 and was also featured on her 2005 album Wikked Lil' Grrrls. The song lyrically explores the lack of originality in current popular music, decrying several popular performers, including Ashanti and Britney Spears.
Upon its release, the song received almost unanimous praise from critics, who compared Esthero's vocal performance to Björk's and praised the track's outspokenness and production. An accompanying music video was shot in Toronto and released, receiving play on MuchMusic.
The eponymous EP featured collaborations with Sean Lennon and CeeLo Green, which would later be featured on Wikked Lil' Grrrls. These tracks garnered unanimous praise from critics, who praised the release's eclecticism and regarded the title track as a highlight.
Background and writing
Esthero had been dropped from WORK in 1999, when it was absorbed into Epic Records. She subsequently signed with Reprise Records and worked on a number of collaborations and soundtrack contributions before commencing recording for her second album in the early 2000s. Due to a series of delays, "We R In Need of a Musical Revolution" wasn't released until late 2004, making some of the lyrics sound dated. In an interview with The Washington Post, she stated that "When I wrote it, the Ashanti comment was relevant," but that "by the time we mixed, I was secretly hoping she would resurface with something so that my statement would be relevant!" Ashanti returned to the spotlight as a spokeswoman for Herbal Essence, and Esthero admits that "Secretly I was going, 'Yes, now my song makes sense!'"Esthero told Billboard that she chose to have the song as the opening track on Wikked Lil' Grrrls because it "made everything make sense. I felt that if I make it the first track on the record, people would understand why I do so much genre-hopping and why the album is so manic. It just puts a nice little bow on the record."
Composition
Lyrically, the song explores the lack of originality in current popular music. Esthero references a number of musicians and pop-culture events in the song. Some of these include:Critical reception
The song garnered mostly favorable reviews from music critics, with many comparing the song to Björk's music. Johnny Loftus, writing for AllMusic, felt that the song was a highlight of both the EP and the album and stated that the song "updates the sound of Esthero's 1998 debut with propulsive programming and more Björk in her vocal than ever before." Mark Saleski, writing for Blog Critics, was similarly-positive, calling the song "sassy" and "funny". Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani likewise praised the track, commenting that its lyrics "justly lambaste radio for its repetitive playlists and MTV for what they're now calling the 'Big 10.'"However, Annie Zaleski, writing for the Cleveland Scene, held the opposite view. She felt that the song was the weakest track on the EP, calling it "weak" and "whiny".