Single Review: Little Mix – ‘Power feat. Stormzy’
2 min read
Before listening to Power, I wouldn’t have been able to pick the women of Little Mix out of a line-up. As far as musical introductions go, Power – the fourth single from the quartet’s successful fourth album, Glory Days – makes a strong first impression.
The funky opening riff certainly piqued my interest and, in many ways, it acted as a feint for Perrie Edwards’ powerhouse vocals, which draw the audience into the track whilst also demanding the listener’s full attention for the song’s empowerment message.
Throughout the song, the four women share lead vocal duties with mixed success. Jesy Nelson’s strong, yet smooth, delivery – although she also gets stuck singing the tracks most inane lyrics for the outro – wonderfully counterpoints Perrie’s rawer style, while Jade Thirwall’s voice is thin and insubstantial by comparison. Leigh-Anne Pinnock’s turn singing the chorus is easily the song’s weakest moment, with pitch-correction clearly applied to her performance.
But, where Little Mix truly brings the song together is when they are all singing together, which demonstrates the complementary nature of their voices. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts, a fact which was first recognised when they individually competed on the X-Factor UK.
Unlike the album cut, this version of Power features British hip-hop artist Stormzy, and the inclusion of a male voice sonically rounds out the song, while his lyrics are supportive of Little Mix’s “girl power” message by recognising the importance of equality and respect between partners in a relationship. Power is a scorching pop song with a message and is a captivating listen.
