A nod to New Edition's classic boy band moves is just one of the reasons we can't wait for B's next clip.
By Rebecca Thomas
Beyoncé in the "Love on Top" music video teaser
Photo: Columbia
It's only been a week since Beyoncé dropped her frenetic "Countdown" video, but she's already gearing up to hit the eject button on another clip from her 4 album. Some fans got their first taste of "Love on Top" when B debuted it (along with that baby bump!) at the 2011 MTV VMAs. But while she gave the retro-leaning track the doo-wop treatment, sporting a sequined Dolce & Gabbana blazer at the show, she'll revisit another musical era for the video.
New Edition's '80s smash "If It Isn't Love" is the clear inspiration in the 82-second tease of Beyoncé's video. And although the superstar has been doing damage control over claims she referenced another artist's work too liberally in her "Countdown" clip, we only want to see more of how B recharged the Boston boy band's classic choreography.
Check out how the "Countdown" director dealt with B's "special arrival."
Check out our five favorite things from the wisp of a preview, and share yours in the comments section!
If It Isn't 'Love on Top'
N.E.'s 1988 hit from their album Heart Break is a crazy melodic uptempo ballad with singer Ralph Tresvant tackling the lead. In the super spare clip, casually dressed bandmates Tresvant, Ricky Bell, Ronnie DeVoe, Michael Bivins and — taking over for the newly solo Bobby Brown — Johnny Gill turn a dance rehearsal into a stage-worthy triumph. In the sneak peek, B is backed by five T-shirt-rocking male dancers who help her recreate the quintet's smokin' steps. Even her studio, with its multiple window views, looks like it was shot in the exact same spot.
All Hail, King B
While B's head gear may call to mind a certain Ugandan dictator among kids who paid attention in AP History, there's only one power this diva exercises in the land of Beyoncéstan: forcing you to dance.
If the Shoe Fits
Not even pregnancy can keep Beyoncé out of her towering Brian Atwoods. Still, after peeping her in '60s-style ballet flats in the "Countdown" visual, we were just gushing over how the singer paired black nylons and a bodysuit with sneakers. The Ash footwear line's white-soled Biba shoe, to be specific. A new look for B, and we like!
Brook Payne, Bring the Pain
B and her longtime choreographer Frank Gatson Jr. have traveled far and wide when it comes to seeking dance inspiration for her visuals. For "Run the World (Girls)," for instance, the pair famously sent a search team to Mozambique to track down the African Tofo Tofo dancers whose hard-to-replicate steps (captured in YouTube videos) had hypnotized them. But for "Top," B's team turns to the work of Brook Payne, veteran choreographer for New Edition. Payne makes a cameo and delivers the monologue at the top of the N.E. clip — maybe Gatson will too?
When we caught up with the re-formed, six-strong group at the Essence Festival in June, Bobby Brown spoke to MTV News about Payne's mastery and why that footwork has been so often imitated. "It's a lot of things that I'm capable of doing, but New Edition steps, whether you think so or not, they're probably one of the hardest things in dance that you could do," Brown said.
The Diva Fan
Ahh, the diva fan: From "Crazy in Love" to "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," B seldom hits a video set without it, and it always blows to the left, to the left.
What are you hoping for from B's "Love on Top" video? Tell us in the comments!
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