The original song I chose for this blog is “Monsters” by artist Katie Sky. Katie Sky is a singer from the United Kingdom, and her genre of music is dance/electronic. Her song “Monsters” was released in 2014. “Monsters” was also performed by Chinese singer Zhou Shen in 2020 on the show Singer 2020 in China. Zhou Shen, also known as Charlie Zhou, is well known for his wide vocal range. In the song “Monsters,” the message that is being conveyed is that there is always someone there for you when you’re facing something troublesome, and that you are not alone in your fears and problems. It gives the listener a sense of encouragement to keep on going.

Two similarities between the 2 performances is the form and the melody. Both performances have a verse-chorus form, which parts of the lyrics repeating (chorus) and some of the lyrics being different (verse). The melody of both performances are also generally the same, with the same notes and pitches. Two differences between the 2 performances is the different use of instruments (timbre) in some parts of the song, and the rhythm. In Katie Sky’s recording of the song, instruments that are mainly heard are the guitar, drums/percussion, and piano, while in Zhou Shen’s performance, there was a noticable addition of the electric guitar (ex: 1:50-2:06, and throughout the performance). Zhou Shen’s voice can also be described as fuller and smoother compared to Katie’s rapsy voice, hense a difference in the timbre in the 2 performances. There is also a difference in rhythm, although not as noticeable. In Zhou Shen’s performance, there are pauses in the performances, compared to Katie’s recording where the song is continuous with no pauses. Zhou Shen also adds his own touch to the song at 3:07-3:55. The setting of these 2 performances also made a difference in the quality, because Katie’s seems to be recorded, while Zhou Shen’s was live on stage. In Zhou Shen’s live performances, you can feel his emotions from his facial expressions, and his version of the song also feels like there is more of a climax, with the rise and fall of volume.

    Cyndi Lauper is an American singer, songwriter and actress whose mostly known for her song “Girls Just want to have fun” in the 1980s. She grew up in Queens, NY and dropped out of High school to ended up singing in nightclubs and working random jobs. She co-formed the band Blue Angel with another musician but the band later dissolved once it took off. “Girls Just want to have fun” was her first single as a solo artist and the sing became a huge part of 80’s culture. Due to the music video coming out, it set a fashion trend for bold, bright, outrageous clothes. Miley Cyrus is and American singer and actress who was born to a country singer named Billy Ray Cyrus and whose godmother was Dolly Parton. Miley Cyrus had begun acting from a young age and eventually ended up on a show called Hannah Montana where she also ended up having a singing career. The two had actually mey at the 1008 grammy awards where Lauper suggested to Cyrus to cover the song. Although originally written by a man, Lauper had changed up the lyrics a little and the song became a female empowerment anthem to show the world that no matter what a woman looked like, they do whatever they want. The second verse of the song gives that exact feeling saying: 

“The phone rings, in the middle of the night 
My father yells, “What you gonna do with your life?” 
Oh daddy dear, you know you’re still number one 
But girls, they wanna have fun 
Oh girls just wanna have” 

      Right from the beginning of the song, there’s a clear difference between the two versions. While Lauper’s version begins with what sounds like a glissando, a funky sounding guitar, bass, a snare drum for the down beat and the and a synth ( maybe Im not too sure) playing on the offbeat. Miley begins with a faster tempo, a guitar repeating a note, string instruments in the background, some toms playing and another guitar playing a higher version of the chorus. At 1:15 in Mileys version, the song break before the next verse is filled with all the instruments that were originally playing with the guitar soloing and some vocals in the back. But at 1:25 in Lauper’s version, theres a instrument that solos and the synth, snare and bass In the background. The lyrics and the melody are essentially the same, Miley’s version is louder, faster, incorporated some strings and is more guitar driven. Due to Miley’s tempo being faster the song is almost a minute shorter than Lauper’s. However at the end of both songs, they decrescendo and end with a fade out. Cyndi Lapuers version of the song sounds more fit for the 80’s and reminds the listener to have fun. Miley Cyrus’s version is more rock /pop punk driven and, since she was a child star, could be considered a song she sang because she had the desire to have fun with her friends instead of being overworked.