"Blow" is a song performed by Ke$ha. It serves as the second single and fourth track on Ke$ha's debut extended play, Cannibal.
Background[]
"Blow" was written by Ke$ha alongside Klas Åhlund, Lukasz Gottwald, Alan Grigg, Benjamin Levin and Max Martin. Production of the song was completed by Dr. Luke, Max Martin, Benny Blanco, and Kool Kojak. According to Ke$ha, the line, "We're taking over" is representative of herself and her fans, which she explained during an interview with Beatweek Magazine, "I love that I say ‘we’re taking over’ in it because my fans and me have started a cult. We’re misfits of society but we’ve banded together and we’re starting a revolution. We are taking over. So get used to it."[1]
Official versions[]
- Album version - 3:39
- Instrumental version - 3:39
- Acapella version - 3:39
- Cirkut Remix - 4:05
- B.o.B remix - 4:32
- Deconstructed version - 3:12
Music Video[]
Music video | Information | |
---|---|---|
Released | February 25, 2011 | |
Length | 4:13 | |
Director | Chris Marrs Piliero | |
Producer | ||
Filmed | January, 2011 | |
Location | Los Angeles, California | |
Vevo views | +78,046,665 |
Ke$ha wanted the video to be "different, a video that was cool and random". The director, Piliero, came up with the idea for the video's mythological aspect saying, "I had this idea running in my head with just the idea of unicorns, If I massacred unicorns, they could bleed rainbows. I'm a fan of violence and I'm always trying to find a way to make it OK." While being interviewed Piliero spoke of the collaboration with Ke$ha, explaining her point of view on the video, "Before we started filming, we had quite a few talks. She was adamant you can't back away from the crazy; everything about the idea she loved and she enforced the fact that she wanted to embrace every aspect of it and really go for it, Onset, she was having fun. She was like, 'I want to lick a unicorn.' It was rad working with her because there definitely wasn't a sense of her feeling awkward about stuff or detached; no ego. It felt like we had worked together before."
Opening with the disclaimer "No mythological creatures were harmed in the making of this video", Ke$ha appears sitting next to two unicorns pouring champagne while having a conversation on how she was elected to the parliament of Uzbekistan, "So I grabbed the bear by the throat and I looked him right in the eyes, and I said, 'Bear, you have till the count of zero to put some pants on and apologize to the president. The music begins and Ke$ha makes eyes at James Van Der Beek. After the eye contact Ke$ha grabs one of the unicorns and kisses him then removes her bra and throws it across the room, Van Der Beek then does the same with his bra, puzzling Ke$ha as to why he was wearing a bra. The music fades in the background as the two then make their way to the center of the dance floor and exchange words ("Well, well, well. If it isn't James Van Der Douche." "I don't appreciate you slander-Beeking my name, Ke dollar sign ha.") before engaging in a gunfight. They begin shooting lasers at one another, killing multiple unicorns. Van Der Beek gets hit in the shoulder and falls. Ke$ha steps on his arm to stop him from reaching for his gun, as he begs for mercy, which Ke$ha denies. At the end of the video, it is revealed that Ke$ha killed Van Der Beek and that she has mounted his head on her wall with the plaque reading, "James Van Der Dead", as she sits with two unicorns laughing. She then frowns at the camera and it switches to Van Der Beek one more time before the screen goes black.
Willa Paskin from New York Magazine opened her review of the video writing, "Maybe it’s exhaustion, maybe it’s acquiescence, maybe it's just time, but Ke$ha and her whole glam-wasted shtick are starting to charm us." Paskin felt that Ke$ha had a great "functioning sense of humor" writing that she "enjoyed her new video". Peter Gaston from Spin, referring to Ke$ha, wrote that he was able to "continually find something massively entertaining about this tartlet" and wrote that the video was "provocative". Rolling Stone's Matthew Perpetua wrote "You know you're in for a great video when the very first thing you see is a disclaimer reading "No mythological creatures were harmed in the making of this video." Perpetua wrote that "Blow" had it all, from unicorns to James Van der Beek and laser gun battles. Becky Bain of Idolator said the video included "the best mid-video dialogue scene in all of music video history."
Live versions[]
The arrangement of the song has been changed several times when performing it live. For the Warrior Tour, the song starts off as normal until the bridge where it changes into the Cirkut remix, then transitions into a short portion of the Deconstructed mix and then back into the Cirkut remix. On the Kesha and the Creepies: Fuck the World Tour, the song is slowed down and turned into a more punk version, with Kesha belting screams and higher notes. The song was redone again on the Rainbow Tour, this time a more fast-paced rock arrangement.
Videos[]
Audio videos[]
Live performances[]
Lyrics[]
Dance
Backdoor cracked we don't need a key
We get in for free no V.I.P. sleaze
Drink that Koolaid follow my lead
Now you're one of us you're comin' with me
It's time to kill the lights and shut the DJ down
Tonight we're taking over no one's getting out
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to
Now what we're takin' control
We get what we want we do whatcha don't
Dirt and glitter cover the floor
We're pretty and sick we're young and we're bored
It's time to lose your mind and let the crazy out
Tonight we're takin' names 'cause we don't mess around
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow
Go, go, go, go insane go insane
Throw some glitter make it rain
Now and let me see them hands
Let me, let me see them hands
Go insane, go insane
Throw some glitter make it rain
Now and let me see them hands
Let me, let me see them hands c'mon
We're taking over
Get used to it
Okay
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow
Blow, blow
Just while then shades on my face
Eyes on my kicks lights on my face
Speakers gon' blow speakers got bass
Bottles on ice haters gon' hate
Baller don't care baller's so straight
Baller from the hood so Baller don't play
Baller burn good what they prolly gon' say
Sicker than the stuff like raviole
So bon appetite just got a sipper
Blow like a missile white clef cush
I've been going to November
Where the grand gripper
Word to Manila
You better remember I'm from the city
Where the shortys and players live
Nice stars out at the ATL
And prolly won't end 'til 8am
Yeah I'm an ATLien
An extraterrestrial asses with the vegetable
Up in the air and no parachute
I ain't contested the best in the area
Even the vision of pair one can tell
Tha you can see Where I'm coming from
And leave all when I'm done
Haters miss me with a bunch joke
'Cause this place's about to blow
I can push stroke here
And ninety feet like a bunch of drunk
Let's go
We're taking over
Dance
Backdoor cracked we don't need a key
We get in for free no V.I.P. sleaze
Drink that Koolaid follow my lead
Now you're one of us you're comin' with me
It's time to kill the lights and shut the DJ down
Tonight we're taking over no one's getting out
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to
Now what we're takin' control
We get what we want we do whatcha don't
Dirt and glitter cover the floor
We're pretty and sick we're young and we're bored
It's time to lose your mind and let the crazy out
Tonight we're takin' names 'cause we don't mess around
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow
Go, go, go, go insane, go insane
Throw some glitter make it rain
Now and let me see them hands
Let me, let me see them hands
Go insane, go insane
Throw some glitter make it rain
Now and let me see them hands
Let me, let me see them hands c'mon
We're taking over
Get used to it
Okay
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow, blow
This place about to blow
Trivia[]
- This song was performed on the Nickelodeon series, Victorious.
- For an unknown reason, starting from the Kesha and the Creepies: Fuck the World Tour, Kesha has a hard time remembering the words in the second pre-chorus, starting from the lines "It's time to lose your minds". This has occurred in almost all of the performances seen since then.
- Kesha named an eyeshadow shade from her make-up line, Kesha Rose Beauty, after this song. The shade "Blow" is an indigo color.
References[]
[]
|