Hey You Guys
So, it looks like we're well into the Summer o' 07 and a consensus has not been reached regarding what song will define this Summer for posterity. In an increasingly fragmented and niche-oriented pop world a true Summer Song brings us together. Its infectious melody burrows deep into our collective subconscious through brutal repetition. You can't escape a true Summer Song. It blares out of passing cars. It pops up every few minutes on the radio. It haunts us at night as we drift off to sleep. It stalks us in our nightmares. A true Summer Song achieves a surreal state of cultural over-saturation.
Though it was released in Spring, for me the ultimate Summer song of this decade is 50 Cent's "In Da Club". In the Summer of 2003 you'd have to move to a cave in Afghanistan in order to avoid it. Even then you'd probably still hear it blasting out of the armored SUV of a passing American serviceman. "In Da Club"'s gloomy martial beat was downright Fascist in its insatiable will to power. You could resist it, you could run away, but it was going to have its way with you all the same. "In Da Club" sent out an unmistakable warning that 50 Cent was coming for the hearts, minds and wallets of your children and taking over your mineral water and laptop while he was at it. In the Summer o' 03, 50 didn't just rule the streets and the radio: he was damn near ubiquitous in commercials and movie trailers as well. Even people who hated the song ended up knowing all its words by heart.
Last year's Summer Song was undeniably Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy", an infectious anthem that never reached "In Da Club"-level dominance but was impossible to miss all the same. At Lollapalooza no less than three acts performed it in a single day.
So here is my question for you, dear reader: what is the Summer Song of 2007? Is it Rhianna's maddeningly infectious, infectiously maddening "Umbrella"? Maybe something from R. Kelly? Perhaps that clattering monstrosity of a T.I single? Or is this a Summer without a Summer song? Or is it a song too obnoxious and insufferable to even contemplate (I'm looking at you, Avril)? I am now accepting any and all nominees for the official Summer Song of 2007.