nbtb

Fuck those Now compilations, David Guetta is where it’s at when it comes to popular artists banding together on one album. Let’s see the line-up on Nothing But The Beat, his 5th: Snoop Dogg, Akon, Jessie J, Flo Rida, Nicki Minaj, Will.I.Am, Lil Wayne, Usher….and that’s just off the top of my head.

Speaking of the man, I am a sucker for Flo Rida. I don’t know what it is but I love everything he does. Pleas don’t ask me to explain this. Opening Nothing But The Beat  with “Where Them Girls At” featuring Flo Rida and Nicki Minaj (also the first single) is pure genius. The song is highly addictive as Flo and Nicki trade verses throughout. Later, Minaj shows up on her own and gives a (surprisingly) straight forward vocal performance on “Turn Me On”. I had to keep checking the tracklisting  on this one because it is so out of character for her but it works. If “Turn Me On” isn’t the next big club anthem, I’ll be surprised. The eurohouse club magic that Guetta wields continues on the bouncy “Little Bad Girl” featuring Taio Cruz and Ludacris as well as on the naughty “Sweat” with a smooth as silk Snoop Dogg on lead vox. If you know Swedish House Mafia at all, theses ones are for you.

If he wasn’t such an asshole, I would probably love Chris Brown. Lucky for him, he doesn’t seem to need the extra fan. The fact that he ended up on “I Can Only Imagine” with ‘Lil Wayne (He of the declining hip-hop God status) is just the strangest of strange coincidences. If I’m not looking at the computer to see who this is when it’s on, it’s an ok song. Luckily, it’s followed by Akon’s “Crank It Up” which is somewhere between a Sean Paul (He’s not actually on this…)  reggae joint and an Akon classic. And then Timbaland shows up to get filthy on “I Just Wanna Fuck” featuring Dev.

Elsewhere on Nothing…, you get some more standouts from the likes of Sia, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, and the 2011 VMA’s lone saving grace Jessie J (The girl in the white chair who sang her ass off all night.). When you listen to something concocted by David Guetta, it’s a celebration. That’s a guarantee. Nothing But The Beat is a cool mix of everything cool in the world of hip-hop and pop music. If you were expecting something else, you’re at the wrong party.

Grade: B+