Once a pop star is firmly established, we know her persona inside and out. Rihanna is DGAF personified, Katy Perry is the queen of pinup kitsch, Lady Gaga is our resident reverse Warholian artist-in-residence and Beyoncé — hallowed be her name — reigns benevolently from above like the ***flawless goddess that she is.
But, what about before each of these pop ladies had gotten the public’s attention? By flipping back to the earliest days of their respective catalogs, we can see the very beginnings of their now-ubiquitous identities taking root. This is especially true when you listen to their earlier features, where they, as young artists just starting out, might have had even less say over their overall look, sound and feel.
So without further ado, let’s check out nine of these “Forgotten Features.” It will be fun, weird and kinda mind-blowing in places, but most of all it’s not work. Happy Labor Day!
1.) Wale’s “Chillin” featuring Lady Gaga
This video from 2009 shows Gaga at her earliest: enigmatic, mysterious, perhaps more wig than woman. She’s also affecting some kind of M.I.A. circa “Paper Planes” attitude — all cool, calm and collected. It’s a far cry from the outspoken “Applause” singer we know today.
2.) 3OH!3′s “Starstrukk” featuring Katy Perry
Back before we heard Katy “Roar,” she was just One Of The Boys — in this case Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte of 3OH!3. (They were kind of like the party-anthem Hardy Boys to Kesha’s Nancy Drew back in 2009.) Katy’s almighty powers of babeliness were unmatched even then, but it is pretty weird to see her not running the show in a music video.
3.) Flo Rida’s “Right Round”
OK, so because the vocals provided by Kesha — still known as Ke$ha in 2009 — technically went uncredited, this doesn’t count as an official feature. But, you know what? My listicle, my rules — I’ll allow it.
4.) Amil’s “I Got That” featuring Beyoncé
Everything about this 2000 throwback is pretty consistent with where Bey was at with Destiny’s Child at the time, from the “I depend on me” message of female empowerment to the penchant for cowboy hats. But much like Katy Perry on “Starstrukk,” watching the “Partition” singer relegated to the sidelines kind of makes you question everything you know about reality.
5.) Diddy’s “Tell Me” featuring Christina Aguilera
So, “Tell Me” doesn’t exactly fall in line with the rest of the features on this list — Xtina was already two singles into her third studio album by the time this (P.) Diddy song was released in 2006. But because she temporarily ditched the retro styling found on all her Back To Basics material, the track seems to get lost in her legendary oeuvre.
6.) Memphis Bleek’s “The One” featuring Rihanna
Oh my god, listen to this bb. “The One” was actually the “Diamonds” singer’s first-ever major-label recording, preceding debut solo single “Pon De Replay” by a matter of weeks. And the rest, as they say, is histo-Rih.
7.) Borgore’s “Decisions” featuring Miley Cyrus
This dubstep track was released in late 2012 at a time when Cyrus was busy recording her identity-redefining fourth album, Bangerz, and expanding what “just being Miley” could truly mean in this world. Speaking of forgotten features, it’s worth noting that the unicorn in the video is played by none other than her ex-fiancé, Liam Hemsworth. Simpler times…
8.) MIKA’s “Popular Song” featuring Ariana Grande
This is [beat] the part where we touch on one of Ariana Grande’s lesser known contributions to music — though no doubt a fan favorite among Arianators. Originally released sans Ariana in 2012 and remixed with the “Break Free” singer’s vocals a year later, the “Wicked”-interpolating tune is all about rising up and taking revenge on those who wronged you. Ummmmm, hope you and Ariana got along on set, MIKA!
9.) Jeffree Star’s “Lollipop Luxury” featuring Nicki Minaj
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I honestly didn’t see that one coming.
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