Nothin' on You Up Top

    I personally think of Rihanna's "Rude Boy" as a club smash rather than a month-long Number-one. Its simple, repetitive nature lends to dance halls instead of everyday listens. Billboard has proven me wrong there, but say hello to the next chart-topper:

"Nothin' on You" by B.o.B.
    Thus far, I find this to be the most appropriate number one hit of the year. It blends a mellow rap with smooth crooning. The overall effect creates an easy-on-the-ears mood-lifter. Instead of a stereotype of the genre where some guy sings about his proficiency with loose yet beautiful women, the lyrics instead describe the opposite: no other woman around the world could be better than "you," assumedly the girl of his current affection. Besides the occasional odd lyric ("Baby, you the whole package, plus you pay your taxes"), the overall message sits positively. If you ignore the music video, that is. B.o.B. actually raps/sings these lyrics (about the girl being the only one for him) to multiple ladies, making it seem more like some hollow pick-up line than an honest expression of love. Message-changing aside though, the cut-out visuals in the clip look nice.
    The track features Bruno Mars; based upon the success of it, he's bound to start getting his own albums out soon. More power to him! He carries the song quite a bit considering how he only gets "featuring" credit. Listening to some of his solo work as well, it's a wonder why I haven't heard anything about him 'til now.
    I haven't heard of B.o.B. until this either, but a peek around the web introduces one to some unique stuff, including a track featuring Hayley Williams from Paramore. He seems to have a lightheartedness about his rapping, where even the more intense stuff has a lining of humor. The videos especially. In this one, he apparently crashes into Earth as some meteorite, only to hitch a ride on some UFO at the end. That's a few lanes down the hall from the usual rap video cliches where cars and revealing women often take the spotlight.
    I hope this stint at the top gives these two some face-time. I find them enjoyable, even if the genre isn't my usual bag. It deserves the position more than what we've previously seen so far on the charts this year. Though I suppose that's not saying much...