SYTYCDC 2 Top 16 Performance Music Review

Hi guys. This is a new segment devoted to the music used on the show. I know we’ve posted up the song titles but we haven’t really got in depth as to how the music contributes (or not) to the choreography and how important the music is to So You Think You Can Dance Canada. I am going to go one-by-one through each of the routines and comment on the music used. This is for all you huge music lovers out there. 🙂

Kim & Emanuel – Jazz
Ciara ft. Justin Timberlake – Love, Sex, & Magic Ciara - Love Sex Magic (feat. Justin Timberlake) - Single - Love Sex Magic
Wow! Let me just start by saying – what an exhilarating piece. Blake was right when he said it was going to be sexy and hard-hitting. I felt the boom’s and the ka’s and the sha’s – they were all hit in the right place. I love that Blake actually incorporated magic into the number. Since the song’s debut, it has been a song used in dances related to sexiness and just showing off what you got. It has got a nice, steady jazzy beat, perfect for the dance style. Also, the lyrics are quite simple – they are enough to show what the song is talking about – and it isn’t that hard to figure out. My favourite part was when Emanuel had to lick Kim’s boots when the song was actually talking about boots! It surely got the crowd going – perfect for an opening number. Ciara herself is a great performer. I loved that they used this song for a jazz routine but I can also see it used as a hip hop routine, as Ciara is an R&B singer.

Amy & Vincent – Hip Hop
Black Eyed Peas – Boom Boom Pow Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D. (The Energy Never Dies) - Boom Boom Pow
Personally, I am not a huge fan of BEP’s newest album, The E.N.D. Their older songs like “Where Is The Love?”, “Don’t Phunk With My Heart”, & “Dum Diddley” were used greatly on past SYTYCD America seasons. The BEP seem to be a big hit with SYTYCD. However, their new songs have a good beat but I don’t think they are as developed and mature as I’ve seen their music in the past. Now it all seems to be about making singles or “great” tracks with great beats. If you turn off the music and just watch them two dance, the whole thing seems a bit mediocre, and a little childish. Amy also seems to be hitting the moves harder than Vincent, but still not as hard as I’d like them to hit it. The music really helps a lot.

Corynne & Austin – Contemporary
The Fray – Never Say Never The Fray - The Fray - Never Say Never
I am going to be a little biased here because I absolutely LOVE this song and The Fray. I do feel like this is the perfect song to be used for the piece. It always gets me during the “Don’t let me go, don’t let me go…” chorus because the repetition and emphasis is just so powerful – especially when the story of the piece actually relates to the lyrics. I must say – it somewhat disappointed me. There did not seem to be enough synchronization, fluidity and chemistry that I’d like to have seen. Corynne’s expression also seemed very forced and fake. The song calls for a mellow and desperate mood, but due to the dancers’ expressions and the choreography, I don’t think the song’s melody and tempo was used to it’s full potential. However, it was still very good.

Melanie & Cody – Mambo
Michi Sarmiento – Suena Ahora Michi Sarmiento - Salsa Latin Party, Vol. 1 - Suena Ahora
This was a good song to use for the beach setting. However, I don’t think it had enough energy to carry off the repetitive and very juvenile choreography that was set for the two. Quite frankly, I thought this was the weakest of the performances that night, as much as I LOVE this duo. For the music, I would’ve used something funkier and something with more personality. “Jungle Drum” by Emiliana Torrini seems like a good song. It may not be your typical mambo music but it does have some tropical feel to it.

TJ & Everett – Quickstep
Hot Rolls Ragtime Band – Chicago Overture
Why have they been given 3 ballroom dances in a row?! I am surprised that they haven’t been in the bottom 3 couples yet! I have a feeling that Tara-Jean will go far, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, I was surprised when they said the song was originally used for a certain brutal violent time that happened in Chicago in the past? The song was just so uplifting. The repeated Charleston’s that they did actually fit the trumpets in the song. Not a huge fan, but it fit well, I guess.

Jayme Rae & Daniel – Hip Hop
Ciara – Pucker Up Ciara - Fantasy Ride (Deluxe Version) - Pucker Up
I don’t know this song very well but I feel like the choreography was pretty funky, just like the song. I actually would’ve preferred “Sweet Dreams” by Beyoncé in one of their hip hop dances. Sweet Dreams just has such a catchy upbeat rhythm and intense vocals. It drives your soul, literally. This was danced and choreography actually more fluid than I would’ve preferred it. Using Sweet Dreams would’ve fit it more, and the tempo and beat also seems to fit too.

Jenna Lynn & Nicolas – Hustle
Jamiroquai – Canned Heat Jamiroquai - Center Stage - Canned Heat
When I imagined a one last dance for the end of the world, this is actually a song I would love to dance to. It fit the style and it fit the mood. More importantly, the choreography fit well with the song altogether. One of the songs that was better used.

Natalie & Danny – Rhumba
Perez Prado – Historia de un Amor Perez Prado Orchestra - King of Mambo - Historia de un Amor
You lost me here. Was I supposed to believe that they were in love since the song is called “History of a Loved One”? It seemed like two nervous dancers forced to dance the rhumba to me! It was not passionate and it seemed like Danny wanted to eat Natalie. Anyway, enough with the dancers themselves. If this was supposed to be a dance of love and that rhumba is considered the “ballet of ballroom”, should it not be more technical, precise, elegant, and slower? I am not a huge expert on rhumba, but this to me looked so much better and had much better music than the one they used.

From the time Natalie started doing her little wiggles on stage, I was wondering…corny. When they broke apart from each other back-to-back and the beat started coming in, it did not seem to follow the music at all. The song’s cymbals and horns were also just so annoying. 🙁

There’s my first ever take on the show’s music! What did you think of the music used?