I may be biased because MKTO follows me on Twitter (along with 51.9k other people, but I’m still special, okay?!) and because one-half of the duo was on one of my all-time favorite shows, ABC’s Lost, but man, I love MKTO’s self-titled album! Judge me all you want for having a soft spot for Pop music, but when I hear a catchy beat and a pretty voice, I turn into a 13-year-old fan girl. I can still remember binging on N*Sync’s music when I was in middle school and my heart still breaks knowing they said Bye, Bye, Bye to being the best band on the planet. (Yes, I went there).
I am a self-proclaimed music fanatic. My taste in music is all over the place, but I am no snob. I often sing my lungs out and dance my booty off to some over-played top 40 songs. I will brag about it to anyone who will listen and even shrug off the haters who are too fucking cool to listen to Pop music. (Those “cool” people are so annoying. More annoying than the worst of the worst pop songs — they’re more annoying than *gag* Call Me Maybe.)
What’s awesome about MKTO is that they are funny, along with being perfectly perfect pop goodness. My favorite on the album is Goodbye Song. Tony Oller, the singer of the duo, belts out some smooth vocals, and Malcolm David Kelley raps about a girl who cheats and — you got it — they’re saying Goodbye! The beat and vocals are great, but the best part are lyrics such as: “Imma leave your shit on the lawn, leave my heart and take your bong” and “I’ve called every single person I know and I guess I don’t know the one that you boning” and “I’m gonna hook up with your Mom”.
MKTO doesn’t follow the same formula as other Pop artists, they curse in their songs and talk about banging an ex’s Mom. It doesn’t come off like they’re trying too hard; they just are who they are and I dig it. They had a hit with Classic… for a while, you couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing them belt out “I wanna thrill ya’ like Michael. I wanna kiss ya’ like Prince!” and the rest of their album continues with catchy hooks and choruses, such as Heartbreak Holiday, American Dream, and Forever Until Tomorrow (a wonderful ballad).
The only part of the album I don’t like is the first line of American Dream where they say boldly: “Do something with your life” and I’m like, “Okay MKTO, I’m trying to do something with my life. Get off my case!” They’re so judgmental.
Everyone should add this album to their secret playlist that they name “hardcore rap music” and rename each song, so you can indulge in some awesome Pop music without anyone finding out. It’s worth the chance of getting caught. (I promise, I won’t judge).
