Charice, the Filipina singer who is making waves in the United States, thanks to her magnificent voice and a little help from industry giants David Foster and Oprah Winfrey, debuted at #8 this week on the Billboard 200, with 43,000 copies of her self-titled debut. She was #1 last week on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts with the Dave Aude/Barry Harris remixes of her second single, Pyramid; a few months before that, she topped the iTunes charts with her debut single, Note to God. My wife bought me a copy of Charice yesterday, and I have to admit that David Foster has done it once again. Charice is a gem of a CD, full of enough contemporary-sounding tracks to please the young’uns but with enough power ballads to hit the mommy set that Charice seems to be popular with, thanks to the Oprah demographic. (My only sore point is with Charice’s diction. I can’t understand much of the lyrics because she can’t seem to overcome her heavy Filipino accent; take track #6, I Love You, as an example.)
While I really do enjoy Pyramid, Charice’s song with singer/rapper Iyaz (the song debuted at #3 on my personal Top 10), the real winner on Charice is a track titled Reset. Produced by a production team known as Mr. Fantastic, Reset has all the ingredients of a perfect pop hit: the memorable melodies, the staccato lyrics that sing of trying love a second time around, the power note at the end of the bridge, and a rap portion that will take Filipinos by surprise – it’s in Tagalog! It’s an irresistible pop song that I’m sure will catch on if American radio programmers are open to becoming a little more progressive. (And why shouldn’t they be? It’s about time we had an Asian pop star hit it big in America!)
Don’t take my word for it. Listen to Charice’s Reset mp3 and gauge for yourself why I think Reset will be her biggest hit to date if ever released as a single to American radio.
[audio:http://gannsdeen.com/audio2/Charice Reset.mp3]
Charice Reset mp3
(And here’s a bonus, the Dave Aude remix of Charice’s Pyramid.)
[audio:http://gannsdeen.com/audio2/Pyramid (Dave Aude Remix).mp3]
RESET Lyrics
Charice
Oooh yeah woahhhh
My pulse is getting fast
My heart is gonna crash
Hey, I got something to say to you
We’ve been on overdrive
Maybe we should take some time apart
I’m always on the road and putting on a show
I know you’re really trying to keep up with me
Baby, we’re compatible
But you must be sick of all the bull I pull on you
Now, I’m having second thoughts about us
I think I like it like it was
I know I shut the system down
But now I wanna bring it back up
We need a reset, don’t wanna regret
Not making it up with you
You and I are fading from the screen
Can we prevent a freeze?
We’re losing power, and we’re spinning down
Suddenly back up
Dedicated now
We crashed, but we can turn it
Around and around and around
After a reset
‘Ey start it up again yeah oh
Start it up, yeah
I’m tired of the nights without you by my side
We only seem to text and e-mail
So you come on the road
Maybe we don’t have to fall apart
It’s working for a while
But I see through your smile
This isn’t the life you signed up for
You tell me it’ll be okay
As you board a different plane back to where you were
Now, are you having second thoughts about us
I know that I’m still in love
I know I shut the system down
But don’t you wanna bring it back up?
We need a reset, don’t wanna regret
Not making it up with you
You and I are fading from the screen
Can we prevent a freeze?
We’re losing power, and we’re spinning down
Suddenly back up
Dedicated now
We crashed, but we can turn it
Around and around and around
After a reset
Rap
Hey hey! Pakinggan mo naman ako (please listen to me)
Hey hey! I think this is the way na dapat gawin (the way it should be done)
Reset! Sana naman ika’y sang-ayon din (I hope you also agree)
To all the things that I’m gonna say
I wish ika’y pumayag din (hope you will agree)
Mag-aagree ka ba? (will you agree?)
If I tell you that –
Magsimula tayo para tayo’y sobrang happy na (Let’s start over again, so we can really be happy)
We should reset all this
Ibalik ang nakaraan (Let’s go back to the past)
Start it up
Start it up
Oh baby
Start it up again
Ohhh
Start it up
We need a reset
Fading from the screen
Can we prevent a freeze?
We’re losing power, and we’re spinning down
Suddenly back up
Dedicated now
We crashed but we can turn it
Around and around and around
After a reset
Not making up with you
You and I are fading from the screen
Can we prevent a freeze?
We’re losing power, and we’re spinning down
Suddenly back up, dedicated now
We crashed but we can turn it
Around and around and around
After a reset
Start it up again
Start it up
Start it up
Wooohhhh
Don’t want to fall apart again