Music review: Fifth Harmony gets like Michelle Obama on "Bo$$"

Jul 09, 2014

James Dinh is a twentysomething full-time music junkie, living in New York City. In his spare time, he enjoys endless debates about pop stars, eating pepperoni pizza and anything that Britney Spears touches. Apart from his work at She Kn...

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Fifth Harmony gets grown on new single, Bo$$

Fifth Harmony is ready to show off their grown and sexy side or, at least, their record company is. Just like many girl groups that have come before them, the product of 2012's X Factor is back with their new single, "Bo$$," and an image that is just a bit more feisty than when they released last year's Better Together EP.

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On the Wallpaper-produced track, our five tweens take on a catchy beat with fist pounds that recall Pharrell's signature production and make sure to name-drop one of the most important female bosses in the country: Michelle Obama. "You say that you a baller/And I see you tryna holla/But that ain't how I was brought up," the group sings collectively atop a blaring trumpet, before a chant to the first lady ("Boss... Michelle Obama/Purse so heavy gettin' Oprah dollas"). Think of a teen version of Danity Kane's "Lemonade."

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Fifth Harmony also dropped the video for "Bo$$" just a few days after the track was released and their transition into pop star adulthood is ever so clear. In the three-minute visual, the group shows a little skin, walks a little catwalk and takes on some arm-wrestling matches. It's a typical day for Dinah Jane Hansen, Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, Normani Kordei and Camila Cabello, but the video also comes with an inspiration message at the beginning: "Think like a boss. Dreams don't work unless you do. Find yourself, and be that."

In a world with very few girl groups, working female anthems are always welcomed and the song is catchy, but Fifth Harmony's transition from the female One Direction to commanding sirens is a pill a little too hard to swallow.