Album review: Rita Ora takes inspiration from Fatboy Slim on You & I
Rita Ora's new album is You And I. (Photo by Jack Hall/Getty Images)
- Rita Ora
- You & I
- ★★★★☆
Rita Ora’s third album had its genesis in a random meeting with DJ and producer Norman Cook, aka Fatboy Slim, at Glastonbury. They struck up what Cook described as an “unlikely” friendship, resulting in Ora covering Fatboy Slim’s 'Praise You', with production from Cook.
Her version, 'Praising You', isn’t the most radical reworking ever – and is an anomaly on a project that Ora describes as her most personal yet. Elsewhere the record revolves around themes of fame and the high price paid by those in the spotlight.
“That girl wants to party all the time,” she sings on 'That Girl', a mid-tempo number in which Ora sings about her reputation as a party girl. She isn’t ashamed of that image – and with That Girl pushes back against the idea that being engaging company on a night out is something about which she should be ashamed.
A threat of melancholy continues through the LP, co-producers by Oak Felder, who has worked with Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande and Alicia Keys.
She delivers a raw power ballad on 'Shape of Me', singing, “I lost a part of me, trying so hard to please”. And on 'Girl In The Mirror', Ora delivers a frank assessment of her strengths and flaws (“Held onto my angels by giving the devil a break”). It isn’t all downbeat. Whilst recording You & I, Ora married director Taika Watiti and an air of newly-wed bliss rises off the disco-fuelled 'Don’t Think Twice'.
Still, Ora’s willingness to bare her soul set her apart at a time when many pop stars are all about building their brand and presenting themselves as untouchable icons. That honesty is poured into an affecting and vulnerable album. The only real weakness it is that several songs fall into generic mid-tempo pop. That’s a shame, as, in her lyrics, Ora isn’t holding back.
