WHAT makes a hit? Is it the lyrics, the artiste, the hype at the time? Is it “something special” about the voice or rhythm?

The TEENage Hitlist pinpoints the hits and the misses as soon as we hear them both local and international releases.

Local Hit Of The Week

Stronger (Remix) by Cham featuring Mykal Rose & Rodney Price

CHAM has never been an artiste to flood the market with singles, and this may be one of the reasons for his continued success, as quality over quantity is always the way to go. His latest single is entitled Stronger and is produced by his long-time collaborator Dave Kelly for Mad House Records.

Stronger is a song about perseverance. In the first verse Cham highlights the obstacles he had to overcome in his youth to be the successful man he is today. In his second verse this theme continues but with a different focus. Cham conveys adamantly that he won’t waiver his morals and values for anyone or anything.

The single currently has a remix that features a verse from Cham’s former nemesis Bounty Killer, who goes by his government name Rodney Price on this track.

In his verse, Rodney Price highlights that he’ll continue to strive despite his critics and shortcomings.

The strength of Cham’s verses lies in the clarity of his vocal delivery. This enables Stronger, much like his past singles, to have the potential to cross over, an ability that most dancehall artistes lack.

Former Black Uhuru frontman and Grammy winner Mykal Rose, complements the song well with a melodious chorus that’s relevant to the song’s verses.

TEENage Hitlist believes that Stronger is the perfect re-entrance for Cham in the dancehall marketplace that has lacked aspects of his lyricism and ingenuity.

International Hit Of The Week

Get Back Up by TI featuring Chris Brown

EARLIER this year TI was released from prison after serving nine months of his one year sentence. He then hurriedly tried to make his way back into the music scene by releasing the singles I’m Back, Yeah Ya Know (Takers) and Get Your Back in quick succession, all of which received mediocre support both critically and commercially in comparison to his previous works. His career suffered another setback on September 1, 2010 he and his wife were charged with possession of drugs.

TI was sentenced on October 15, 2010 for violating the terms of his probation. On November 1, 2010 he reported himself to an Arkansas federal facility to begin his 11-month prison sentence.

Get Back Up is the latest single released by TI and features Chris Brown. The message of Get Back Up, as the title suggests, is to always get back up when you’ve been knocked down. The song’s theme shares similarity to No Matter What, a single he released before his last prison sentence.

Get Back Up is produced by the Neptunes, who provided a subtle drum-driven instrumentation for the song.

TI executes the song’s message perfectly through his meticulously constructed verses. The song strategically features a heartfelt Chris Brown on the chorus, an artiste who , like TI, has had legal troubles and has been on the road to successfully repairing his image.

The dilemma with Get Back Up is that, his action after the recording of the track means that TI hasn’t lived up to his lyrics.

TEENage Hitlist hopes that TI’s current prison sentence is the last lesson he’ll have to learn on his road to redemption.

— Dominic Bell