Music Review: Danity Kane & Yung Joc "Show Stopper"

Danity Kane & Yung Joc

Show Stopper

Album: Danity Kane

Year: 2006

              Shannon Bex and her girlfriends cruise in their fancy cars in the lethargic                 “Show Stopper.”

             A droning beat opens the single, setting a deficient tone.  The pre-chorus starts the single. Bex says they are quite a sight. The men in their lawn chairs observing the scene gawk at them. They wave back. They are an anomaly. Most of the women are either older and with their husbands. Otherwise, the young women hang by their boyfriends, bored out of their minds. (“We in the car, we ride slow/We doin' things that the girls don't do/The boys stare, we smile back/All my girls in the rainbow Cadillacs, yeah!”)

          Aubrey O’Day says she found out about the car show. They have the top down. Their lay back in the seat, their arms swinging out the sides. The car is running smoothly. They can relax and enjoy being the stars of the event. (“Show stoppin' at the latest spot/The ride shinin' with the open top/Hydraulics make our heads go nod/Hair blowin' in the breeze, yo we superstars.”)

           D.Woods laughs as Bex revs the engine. The purposely move slowly to get noticed. They are getting winks and whistles from almost every guy they pass. (“Put in the keys, make that engine purr/3 in the back, one in the passenger/Slow creepin' 'cause we look that fly/All the boys tryin' taste our candy pie.”)

            Bex repeats the pre-chorus again.

           In the chorus, Bex says they are not just rich pretty girls. They actually know cars and have an interest in them. It has surprised so many people. It’s become a game in and of itself. (“Bet you ain't never seen chicks ridin' this clean/Louis Vuitton seats, we do it daily/That how we keep it poppin', make sure that bass knockin'/So when you see us ridin' we call it show stoppin'/We show stoppin', we show, show stoppin'/We show stoppin', we show, show stoppin'/That's how we keep it poppin', make sure that bass knockin'/So when you see us ridin' we call it show stoppin'”)

        Aundrea Fimbres say they like their cars classic as well as modern. Their cars stand out with its bright colors and designer detail. They can handle themselves among the men who dominate the event. To better show off the car, they match their outfits to it.  (“We sittin' on 22's plus 2/Mink bucket seats, neon blueColor coordinate with them shoes/Yeah, we divas but we ride like big boys do.”)

            Woods says they are proud of their car. They’ve worked hard on it. (“Black tinted with a white stripe interstate/Lookin' in the mirror at my bad boy fitted, yup/Show stoppin' till they lose they breath/Turn the wheel to the right, turn the wheel to the left.”)

         Bex sings the pre-chorus and chorus again.

          In the bridge, Dawn Richards and  O’Day namecheck luxury cars. (“This is for my ladies in the 280's Mercedes/In the H3, Baby Ranges, Bentley Coups, my Escaladies/Say oh (Oh!)/Oh oh/(Oh oh!)/Break 'em off somethin' proper like a real show stopper/This is for my chicas with the Beamers, A6's/67 Chevys, Maserati or a Lexus/Ay oh/(Oh!)/Oh oh/(Oh oh!)/Break 'em off somethin' proper like a real show stopper.”)

            Yung Joc is impressed by them. He tells one of his girl friends that he has to go. They are dressed in couture, young and rich. They keep to themselves and if they have dated anyone in the circuit, no one really knows.  He would like to have them in his group and really turn them into stars. (“Hey shawty, please believe, you ain't never seen chicks like this before/Thousand dollar jeans with them candy 6 4'/Louis V sneaks, matchin' Louis V seats/See a swagger like no other, so them other's can't compete/Independent and discrete, check her VDS piece/Melt in ya mouth like M&Ms, capish/She do whatever she wanna do, money out the ying yang/Blowin’ a dollar and the change, in the Rover switchin’ lanes/I'ma take her under my wings, I'ma teach her things/She say she got paper cuts from countin’ all this change/Tell her meet the parents, like Ben Stiller/Baby say she want them karats and them chinchillas.”)

          Bex sings the pre-chorus and chorus again to end the single.

           Danity Kane’s breathy vocals rather look sexy and cool. They are uncomfortable with the car talk and repeat it, hoping no one will ask them questions beyond it. The premise is interesting and turns the stereotype on its head. Usually, it’s the men bragging about their cars and the women they get. However, without Danity Kane being confident and into it, it goes back to being the stereotype, despite the lyrics.

         Yung Joc’s bumping rap is a relief. He isn’t threatened by their individuality. He wants to hang around them and be a part of their allure. They are deftinely girls he could introduce to his parents. He also gets everyone to keep everyone from nodding off.

      The    faulty   “Show Stopper” has a great twist but doesn’t ever pick up speed.