‘Music of my twenties’ will be a 10-part series, each post about one year between 2009-2018. It is 100% my reflection. It will showcase the music I listened to and my memories. I hope it triggers great memories and feelings of your own.
To kick this off, let’s travel way back to the year 2009!
When I think of all the parties I went to at the age of 20, one artist comes to mind… David Guetta! Is it all coming back to you? David Guetta was already a highly-respected DJ/Producer in Europe before he broke into the US market and achieved global success. He teamed up with massive artists like Black Eyed Peas and Akon to give us “I Gotta Feeling” and “Sexy Bitch” respectively. My favourite though, is “Memories” featuring Kid Cudi. How fitting the song title is! When I hear this song, it’s like I’m transported to a music festival, surrounded by party people. David Guetta was a massive contributor, if not the one person, to open the gateway for house music to reach commercial airwaves. This was the beginning of EDM, and even more house/R&B collaborations followed, becoming the pop sound for the next few years.
Going back to Black Eyed Peas, their sound REALLY CHANGED in 2009 when they released their third studio album with Fergie, called The E.N.D. It stands for “energy never dies.” Or perhaps the album title reflected the end of their funk sound that B.E.P used to have (they released two studio albums before Fergie joined. Behind The Front (1998) is the best!). Nevertheless, this album catapulted them into a new level of fame.
Someone else who completely changed their style in 2009 was Pitbull! Once upon a time, Pitbull was a leader in the reggaeton scene. That all changed with the release of “I Know You Want Me.” Gone were the cornrow braids and in came Mr Worldwide!
Towards the end of 2008, a young, fresh and mega-talented 22 year old stepped into the limelight, rapidly rising to stardom in 2009. I’m talking about the one and only Lady Gaga! In November 2009, Lady Gaga released The Fame Monster, a deluxe version, double-disc album including tracks from her debut album (The Fame), such as “Just Dance,” and “Poker Face” but also some of the hugest hits of the decade, accompanied by extraordinary video clips, from “Bad Romance” to “Telephone.” Lady Gaga disrupted the pop world from day one and continues to dominate.
Lady Gaga’s early work was produced by the most-wanted producer at the time, RedOne. Almost every pop song in the first half of this decade started with the artist singing out “RedOne!” Just check out this list of songs from 2009 produced by RedOne.
On the other end of the fame spectrum, I was obsessed with Melbourne singer/songwriter Daniel Merriweather! For several years, he featured on various Mark Ronson tracks (“Stop Me,” “She’s Got Me“), and collaborated with hip-hop artists from Australia and New Zealand, including best buddy Phrase. Merriweather finally released his debut album Love & War in mid 2009. An underrated modern classic! This album spawned the singles “Change” featuring Wale, “Red” and “Water & A Flame” featuring Adele, who at the time, had not reached the level of super stardom we see now.
The UK was buzzing with artists bringing their own sound. La Roux, Little Boots, Lady Sovereign, Lily Allen, Pixie Lott and Cheryl (from Girls Aloud) were dominating pop music. Brit rock/alternative was still going strong with Kaiser Chiefs’ – Off With Their Heads and Arctic Monkeys – Humbug. Calvin Harris held the fort for house music with his second album (and my fave of his) Ready For The Weekend. The grime scene was also surfacing with Dizzee Rascal, Wiley and many others. 2009 was a fantastic year for the Brits!
But who could forget Kanye West cutting Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV VMAs? I can’t believe it’s been almost a decade since that happened!
Although I don’t want to end on a sad note, we must pay our respects to the greatest, most innovative entertainers to ever exist! 2009 was the year we tragically lost the king of pop, Michael Jackson. His music will live on forever.
There’s so much more I could say about the year 2009. But for the sake of not writing a thesis, here’s a list of 2009 music that you can listen to. Keep a lookout for 2010!
Songs:
- Spotify – 2009 Hits Throwbacks
- Billboard – Hot 100 Songs/Year end charts
- UK charts – Top 100 2009
Notable mentions:
- You & I (Deadmau5 remix) – Medina
- Empire State of Mind – Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
- Parlez vous Francais (Hey Now Remix) – Art vs Science
More albums I listened to:
- This Is Us – Backstreet Boys
- All Or Nothing – Jay Sean
- Colour Me Free! – Joss Stone
- Outta Here – Esmee Denters
- Fight For Love – Elliott Yamin
The Music Vault 