Review:'k-os' '"I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman" [Single]'
- Label: 'Last Gang Records'
- Genre: 'Hip-Hop'
- Release Date: '19th April, 2010'
Our Rating:
You sometimes have to feel sorry for these A-list types. As if earning millions upon millions of dollars for doing (relatively) little wasn't hard enough, they occasionally feature unwittingly in arch (The Teenagers' "Starlett Johannson"), wry or plain unkind (CSS' "Meeting Paris Hilton") songs at their expense. To that list can be added "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman", although the American actress' presence on the song is strictly limited to the title. Indeed, k-os has recently admitted that almost no thought went into the title, and that it was selected while hung-over and being pushed by his publisher to give the song a name.
So aside from the title, what do we have? Well, "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman" began life as a collaboration between Nelly Furtado and Saukrates (then named "On The Run" and destined for a spot on Saukrates' delayed next album), and as such is positively bursting with Canadian musical talent. It's also likely to be real live hit, particularly when the hotter weather arrives. It certainly ticks all the right boxes: a well-known pop tune? Check (and let's face it, Phantom Planet's theme for The OC could hardly be more well-known). "Positive message" hip-hop? Check. Platinum-selling female pop star? Check. But perhaps that's being a little unfair. The production has successfully removed most of the cloyingly awful, FM-friendly tween-pop-rock of Phantom Planet's "California" and the whole shimmering package gleams. The vocals are soulful if a little lightweight (although Saukrates earns a tip of the hat for the line "I'm haunted on overseas.../played them like Ebenezer/I made them see a ghost") but the song should be enjoyed simply for its smooth, laid-back sense of cool, and the chorus has all the right components to become this year's "ohrwurm" par excellence. Hip-pop for the Pimm's-sipping sun worshippers? Roll on summer is all I can say.
