New lease on life for Sia’s beguiling musical ‘rejects’
For Sia, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
What would you do if the songs you wrote were rejected by their intended singers? In Sia’s case, there’s no point crying over spilled milk—because, as they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
Look what happened to “Chandelier” after it was rejected by Rihanna and Beyoncé: The Aussie singer-songwriter decided to record it herself. Before she knew it, the electropop tune about giving in to peer pressure became her first Top 10 hit as a solo artist, and has since become one of the most viewed videos ever posted on YouTube—with more than a billion hits!
Queen B and Rihanna are also among the big names who rejected the songs in Sia’s seventh album, “This Is Acting.” Another significant “naysayer” of her compositions is Adele, arguably pop music’s biggest star this season—and, we’re not talking about her girth.
Sia wrote the songs for other people, so she treated them as an “experiment.” As she recently explained, “I called it ‘This Is Acting’ because it contains songs I wrote for other people. I didn’t go in thinking, ‘This is something I would say.’ It was more like play-acting—and it’s fun! I felt like they were hits, but nobody wanted them!”
Truth is, it’s hard not to get smitten by the stirring soulfulness of the album’s beguiling tracks, whether they’re meant for singing or dancing. If you listen to the metaphor-heavy “Bird Set Free” and “Alive,” the contemplative carrier song about Adele’s life, it isn’t hard to imagine the British songstress scaling their soaring melodies herself.
Sia cleverly elevates “Footprints,” the hit-bound ballad that didn’t get Beyonce’s nod, beyond its cookie-cutter sound by imbuing it with sensitivity and vocal panache.
Also hard to ignore is the empowerment theme championed by “Unstoppable,” about keeping up appearances while surviving in a take-no-prisoners environment.
If you’re going through self-esteem issues, this is the song to listen to: “All smiles/ I know what it takes to fool this town/ I’ll do it till the sun goes down and all through the night time/ I’ll tell you what you wanna hear/ Leave my sunglasses on while I shed a tear/ I put my armor on/ Show you how strong I am!”
Partial to songs that you can groove to? The hard-hitting “Sweet Design,” the reggae-tinged “Cheap Thrills” and the Kanye West-penned “Reaper” will keep you shaking that booty with their popping froth and easygoing swagger.
“One Million Bullets,” the only tune Sia wrote for herself, may not be as catchy, but it grows on you as she sings about loyalty—and how she feels when her affection for others isn’t reciprocated!
