It began with "Low," which soon blossomed into "Right Round." It was here that we realized two things: one, Flo Rida is one of the best in the business at working samples of fairly popular songs into his own songs, and two, he will be featured in the soundtracks of Todd Phillips movies until the end of time.
Flo Rida's newest effort, propped up by his coolest sample yet, is "Good Feeling," off his newest (and still unreleased) record.
Credit should be given where credit is due. Tim Bergling, also known as Avicii, was behind the song, and his song "Levels" provides the basis on which "Good Feeling" is built. Have a minute? Check out the song, and compare and contrast.
The aforementioned sample comes from one of the most unexpected of places -- Etta James. Give these guys credit here -- just as Jay and Kanye showed their love of the classics by sampling Otis Redding this year, Flo Rida and company dug deep into the archives to drag this one out. The sample comes from James' song "Something's Got a Hold On Me" -- but only its opening line.
That's what makes this sample even better to me. It's not like the songwriters took a big chorus from one of James' classic songs. Instead, they lifted the opening line, a line not even meant to be repeated -- because in the song, it's never referenced again.
The result is great because let's face it: who expected to hear Etta James on pop radio again? Again, props to Flo Rida, Avicii and the others involved. Regardless of what you think of the rest of the song's facets, at least we have Etta. Oh, and get well soon, Ms. James. Respect.
Luckily, the rest of the song is strong as ever. Grant it that Flo Rida gives in to the trend of writing songs about getting in the club and/or having a good time pretty much constantly, but he simply does them so well. This is the kind of song about a club that I really wouldn't mind hearing at a club -- in fact, I'd scream it at the top of my lungs at said club. But I don't go to clubs, so that's a moot point. But still.
Strange of course is the random, we-did-it-because-we-can/because-it's-the-big-thing dubstep break about two-thirds in. The production on the breakdown is actually not bad, though it feels slightly forced -- though not as much as Watch the Throne's "Niggas in Paris" break. What the fuck was that? WHY the fuck was that?
Make no mistake, my love for "Good Feeling" likely stems from the fact that I tend to be a fan of a lot of what Flo Rida puts out. But sometimes I can't help it -- the dude knows what he's doing when it comes to the current state of American pop music. Like so many others, I'm powerless to resist.
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