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Photo credit: Carly Rae Jepsen's Instagram
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To some, it has
become the basis of why they "stan" Carly Rae Jepsen. But for an unlucky
few, it has become annoying to be reminded of the songs, which were heavily
overplayed on radio stations. It has become a joke that whenever Carly Rae
announces a concert, there's going to be someone who will post "I bet she
just has Call Me Maybe on loop, if not countless versions of the song for 2
hours". Unfortunately, there are a lot of things this unlucky few are
missing out when it comes to the Canadian singer who deserves more attention
but is currently beautifully underrated.
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Photo credit: Google Images
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Call Me Maybe x I
Really Like You
In addition, these two songs are sure-fire hits from Carly. Call Me Maybe alone was certified Diamond in the US; which means it reached the 10 million mark in terms of units sold. It was even nominated for TWO Grammys. On another note, "I Really Like You" sounds very reminiscent to "Call Me Maybe". According to Mike Nied of Idolator, Carly's label was hungry for another hit, hence they used the same formula. Justin Bieber even did the same move of lip-syncing to the song in a YouTube video to further promote it featuring friends, Ariana Grande, CL of 2NE1, and more.
Failing to reach the same success of the
previous hit, the GP simply saw Carly as a pop star who
"attempts" to create just catchy songs. Hence making them less
interested in who she is as an artist. But this whole experience contributed to
something bigger for Carly Rae.
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Photo credit: Carly Rae Jepsen Instagram
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From Chart-topping
pop star to indie pop icon
Indeed, her 2nd album E•MO•TION
has been considered as holy as a bible by critics and fans. It now belongs to
that set of albums you listen to which are of quality but not commercially
successful. Could it be because of the lead single "I Really Like
You"? Sam Murphy of Junkee believes people would rather hear "Runaway
With Me" than "Call Me Maybe", and possibly its follow-up
"I Really Like You". Emotion explores Carly Rae's ability to write
better songs with 80s infused sounds. If you listen to the album, you will see
how different the rest of the songs are compared to its lead single (when lead
singles are supposed to give listeners an overview of one's sound in a certain
album/era). If only "Run Away With Me" was chosen as the lead single,
and if it received the same amount of promo the lead single got, the general
public might have seen her more seriously. And maybe they could've embraced her
better. However, there seems to be nothing wrong with Carly's underrated
success. She may not be charting as well as before BUT she has achieved this
cult success and it solidified her being an icon in indie pop.
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Photo credit: Carly Rae Jepsen Instagram
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Dedicated is Carly at her genuine sound
After two albums, Carly finally found her real sound without
having to force any certain sound to sell music. We believe she learned from
her past singles that people would appreciate her music this way. We really
cannot see "Call Me Maybe" and "I Really Like You" the same
way now after realizing that without those songs, Carly will not reach this
certain concrete sound featured on Dedicated; so we're not completely negative towards those moments in Carly's career.
Simply put, Dedicated shows who Carly Rae truly is without having to create
another chart-topping pop song. She can save pop music just by doing what she
does best- which is transporting us to discos with her music.
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Photo credit: Carly Rae Jepsen Instagram
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With all that said, Carly's cult success is something interesting. The music industry today isn't all about chart success and a huge fan base. In the case of Carly Rae, she has successfully escaped being called a "flop". Instead, her loyal fanbase and listeners embraced her music. At least we know now that what we hear from Carly is her in solid form. She simply deserves more listeners without having to force something in their ears because people will come to her no matter what; especially if they need pop music. She is here to deliver quality music no matter how underrated she is. Most of the time people would say "she deserves to be more famous!" or "she needs to be more successful!". For Carly Rae Jepsen, being underrated is beautiful and better enjoyed.
See her perform her hits at The Dedicated Tour in Manila on October 23rd at the New Frontier Theater. Limited VIP Standing tickets are available at ticketnet.com.ph. Presented by Wilbros Live.