Despite being an unlikely collaboration, Steve Aoki has a ‘bop’ on his hands with “Pretender” featuring AJR and Lil Yachty.

Hmm, talk about an unlikely cast! DJ and producer Steve Aoki has definitely went the unexpected route with the featured guests on his new single, “Pretender.” One doesn’t expect to see brother trio AJR and Lil Yachty on the same record, right? Right.  Does this unique union actually work out?  Yes, believe it or not.

“Oh, I’m insecure, I’m insecure…” First and foremost, Steve Aoki provides superb inspiration for his guests – fuel for their creative fires. The production is sleek and incredibly appealing from the jump.  This isn’t surprising – Aoki is awesome at what he does and doesn’t receive enough notoriety.  Moving on, AJR (Jack Met being the lead vocalist) pops right out of the brilliant, major-key mix, excelling on the verse and the pre-chorus, excerpted above.  His falsetto shines on the catchy, lyrically-simplistic chorus.  Naturally, the sound of the record is robust here.

“I’m a good pretender

I’m not really cool

I’m a good pretender

‘Cause I’m just like you

I do not belong here

You all clearly do

But I’m a good pretender

So I’m just like…”

Lil Yachty arrives on the second verse, approaching things from a melodic perspective.  Many times, he’s criticized for being off-beat and plum strange – Teenage Emotions. Here, he delivers the goods, and plays into the theme of the record.

“In high school, I was tryna figure myself out

I was tryna be just like him

Tryna do things I don’t usually do

I’m pretending to be too cool…”

What is that theme exactly? Pretending despite having your fair share of issues.  Beyond more choruses, there’s a bridge between the final two choruses, performed by AJR, that basically encompasses more of the same – pretend central.

Final Thoughts

As aforementioned, Steve Aoki manages to make “Pretender” work.  AJR and Lil Yachty coexist successfully, only joining forces for a line on the chorus – that works. Separately, both acts compel, which is all you can ask for. “Pretender” has a good message, if a bit corny when it’s all said and done.  All in all, “Pretender” clearly more BOP than FLOP. No pretending about that!

Steve Aoki • Pretender (Ft. AJR & Lil Yachty) – Single • Ultra • Release: 5.18.18

Photo Credit: Ultra