Good Songs Ruined by a Bad Feature

Story posted April 24, 2022 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by CommRadio Arts & Entertainment Department

Many good songs have been created by artists and then ruined by its feature. The Arts & Entertainment department call out those songs here.

“Endgame”- Taylor Swift [feat Future and Ed Sheeran]

The second track and third single off Taylor Swift's 2017 album “reputation” contains features from Future and Ed Sheeran.

While Swift and Sheeran seem to be a more compatible duo, considering they had collaborated in the past, Sheeran's feature on “Endgame” is a bizarre and unwelcome part of this track.

During Swift's “reputation” era, she utilized more dark electropop sounds, drawing clear inspiration from genres like EDM and hip-hop. Thus, Future having a rap verse on this track was a fun addition that elevated this song.

However, giving Sheeran a verse in which he raps in his British accent is a very confusing decision.

All of the features have great lyrics, but it's genuinely hard to enjoy anything Sheeran raps due to the sheer absurdity that Sheeran, of all people, is rapping.

Otherwise, “Endgame” is an overall good song. It’s catchy, well written, and Swift and Future give great performances. However, it’s hard to take this song seriously with Sheeran's obscure rap verse that feels thrown into the middle of this track. - Sophia D’Ovidio

“Caterpillar (Remix)” - Royce Da 5'9" [feat. Logic, King Green]

This song was a bonus track on Royce da 5’9’s album “Book of Ryan”.

Well, this version of “Caterpillar” was. The original album contained a version of the track where Eminem has the final verse instead of Logic. The original version of “Caterpillar” was a critically acclaimed single — the remix was not.

The only difference between the two tracks is the final verse, but Logic’s rambling mess of a feature overshadows the whole song and not in a positive manner.

Logic spends his verse rambling about how he is the only rapper willing to talk about social issues and mental health. This was the same as almost every Logic track around the time and had become tiring among listeners.

The whole thing falls to pieces when his rap turns into a screaming rant about his biraciality. He pretends to be a troll and breaks the entire flow of the song, before immediately turning all impact of his verse by ending this moment with “that’s how they be” before immediately moving on.

Logic’s verse has been universally laughed at and scoffed at since “Caterpillar (Remix)’s release. - Evan Smith

“Holy” - Justin Bieber [feat. Chance the Rapper]

This song starts with such a sweet sentiment, which gets lost in some of the lyrics of Chance the Rapper’s feature.

In the transition into Chance’s part, everythings is off. “The first step pleases the Father”  sounds a bit out of tune from the song, however, this issue is resolved fairly quickly.

Aside from the production faux pas, the first couple of Chance’s lines are actually pretty sweet.

It is in the following lyrics where things get fuzzy. 

“Life is short with a temper like Joe Pesci/
They always come and sing your praises, your name is catchy/
But they don't see you how I see you, Parlay and Desi/
Cross, Tween, Tween, Hesi' hit the jet speed/
When they get messy, go lefty, like Lionel Messi/”

Less is more, a detail forgotten by writers who created this verse. These lines are a true example of what trying to be “too clever” looks like.

The intent of allusions Chance brings into the song are clear when looking at the lyrics, however, when simply listening to these lines, it is so easy to get lost in the names, ironically dissolving the meaning. - Abigail Chachoute

Sophia D’Ovidio is a first-year majoring in communications. To contact her, email sgd5184@psu.edu.

Evan Smith is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ers5828@psu.edu.

Abigail Chachoute is a first-year majoring in journalism. To contact her, email axc6070@psu.edu.