Baby, she’s coming for us so we must ready ourselves. Yes, it’s right. Christina Aguilera, in full display of her vocal brilliance, releases “The Real Thing” as a single off her appearance in the TV show Nashville. Amplified by an electric guitar and energizing beats, Aguilera’s stratospheric vocal range demonstrates not just power but also the passion on why, after so many years in the business, she still has one of the best pipes in the industry.
Since 2012’s severely underrated Lotus, “The Real Thing” is the first time Aguilera released her own track. Though she had high profile collaborations like “Feel This Moment” with Pitbull and “Say Something” with A Great Big World, it took a while before the “Beautiful” songstress graced music with her superior presence. However, her new track ultimately is worth the wait.
With Aguilera’s strong vocals and fast verses, “The Real Thing” could be a culmination of the singer’s musicality all throughout the years. It has the urgency of “Show Me How You Burlesque,” the captivating verses of “Your Body,” the playful lyrics of “Dirrty” and the elegance of “Ain’t No Other Man.” With all these great qualities, “The Real Thing” could arguably be Aguilera’s return to chart prominence. It is also an in-your-face vengeance to bashers who have said that Aguilera has already lost her voice and sparkle along the way.
Lyrically, “The Real Thing” is authentically Aguilera with the teasing lines that elevate the addictive quality of the melody. Of course, she has to sing it live before it can be canonized alongside her greatest hits. Conversely, with the melody, lyrics and vocals working well for the song’s advantage, it could nonetheless be one of Aguilera’s trademark songs. Truthfully, it contains all the right elements if Back to Basics merges with Lotus to be friends with the Burlesque Original Soundtrack. “The Real Thing” is definitely that good.
Meanwhile, other than the perpetually beautiful riffs, runs and melismas Aguilera show in the song, it also has quote-worthy verses. If “Your Body” has “I think you already my name,” “The Real Thing” has “be looking for me ’cause I’m the real thing.” Truly, with the release of this song, things only get exciting for music today. It also is a great way to continue the momentum of the predicted 2015 Aguilera domination. And yes, she fully embraces her Jade St. John persona with this superiorly produced track. It also feels sweet to claim that “The Real Thing” is a song that shows what the world loves and misses in Aguilera.