Could Mika be music's next big thing?
Dec 28, 2006, 08:01 AM | by Michael Slezak
Categories: Music
Earlier this month, I asked all of you to share your 10 Most Played Songs of 2006 with your fellow PopWatchers -- which made for some interesting reading, to say the least. One post that caught my attention was from a reader named cyberghandi, who listed Mika's "Relax, Take It Easy" at No. 3, with the declaration that "this guy will BLOW UP in 2007, mark my words."
The next day, Billboard.com ran a story about -- yep, you guessed it -- Mika, pegged to "Relax" entering the Hot Dance Club Play chart at No. 44; the article also noted that the singer's Web site was home to a "secret society" of cartoon characters (!) that tied in to the title of his forthcoming CD, Life in Cartoon Motion, due March 30.
Needless to say, I headed to Mika's MySpace page to ch-ch-check him out, and found myself grooving to "Relax, Take It Easy" the way Teletubbies enjoy their daily videoclips: Again! Again! Again! But not all my coworkers shared my enthusiasm for the tune -- or at least not for me playing it 17 times in a row. One editor sent me an IM asking, "What's that 'waaah-waaa-weee-waaah-wooo' noise coming from your office?" Minutes later, I looked up to find another standing in my office doorway, giving me a pained look. Thus, I decided to relax, take it easy, and take a couple weeks off from Mika.
Yesterday, I went back and listened to "Relax, Take It Easy" with fresh ears -- and what they heard was a decidedly tasty confection. That skittish little synth line gets under my skin like too much caffeine, and Mika's falsetto certainly gives Mr. Timberlake a run for his money. But I'm just one man. One man with a penchant for hitting the "repeat" button and drinking too much Diet Dr. Pepper. So I need you to tell me, PopWatchers: Is Mika music's next big thing, or its next big irritant? I know you've got something to say, so click here, listen to "Relax," then do your thing in the comments section below.
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