The Singles Jukebox

It’s not what you think! We have no idea what to think…

[Video][Website]
[5.00]

Anthony Easton: Considering she has released both “Lemonade” and “Lollipop”, I think that she understands the food-as-sex metaphor, and this claim toward novelty is disingenuous. Plus, the verses after the false ending suggest that this is just about kissing, and, well, that also seems disingenuous. But the production, lit like Christmas lights on tinsel and chintz, is so popluxe we can forgive the lyrics. 
[8]

Iain Mew: “Cherry Pop” appears to be an attempt to extrapolate an entire song from the dubstep bridge to HyunA’s “Bubble Pop!”, several years past that song’s zeitgeist moment. Only without any dubstep. And where that task proves too difficult, there’s enough spare from her “Ice Cream” to fill in the gaps. The song doesn’t even work in practice as well as that concept, but maybe it will make for a useful audition for producer Erik Lidbom, whose extensive career producing Asian pop hasn’t yet reached the top division that a HyunA lead single would represent.
[4]

Alfred Soto: If it’s got something else in mind besides retrofitting Joan Jett’s stutter I haven’t figured it out after several plays.
[3]

Will Adams: It takes a certain degree of willful ignorance to convince oneself that Alexandra Stan and the songwriters have no idea what the expression actually means (the video’s choreography only undermines this), but “Cherry Pop” is more fun under that interpretation. Reading the “cherry pop” as a soda or popsicle bolsters the sweetness of a lyric like, “my fantasy fell into something true,” and production so sugary. And while there are several better options for a stutter hook, it’s nice to see Alexandra get better pop songwriting on her side, not to mention music that shows exactly what the bridge between Circus and Femme Fatale would sound like.
[7]

Katherine St Asaph: “If U Seek Amy” — still the “gold” standard of malformed innuendo — didn’t work because the clean meaning wasn’t there: “all the boys and all the girls are begging to if you seek Amy.” “Cherry Pop” doesn’t work because the dirty meaning isn’t there, or rather it sort of is: “tasted like a cherry pop.” Stephenie Meyer would be proud.
[2]

Megan Harrington: Though this song is only about 75% of where it needs to be, I like Stan and even when I wish she’d dig deeper than singing the song’s title ad infinitum as though repetition itself added meaning in layers, I always appreciate how game she sounds. In a world where a very safe-sounding throwback single can net an Ariana Grande a hit, it’s exciting to hear Alexandra Stan take a chance on something slightly weird. To that end, however, I hope there’s an appropriate amount of outrage directed toward Stan’s culture jack and I’m lighting a candle that Nadia Oh might consider tutoring Stan in the art of being truly outré.
[7]

Brad Shoup: The “stars in the sky” bit puts a window in the roof, but the rest of the track refuses liftoff. The way Stan says “pop” — like maybe it’s drugs? — is, inadvisedly, the hook. In teasing out a couple dozen variations on the title, the track grinds to a halt. I mean, I’m not even sure she sang on “Mr. Saxobeat,” you know?
[5]

Andy Hutchins: Given the 23 ideas competing for airspace here, a better title might have been “Dr. Pepper”.
[4]