Army of Me (Christina Aguilera song)
"Army of Me" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Christina Aguilera for her seventh studio album, Lotus (2012). It was co-written by Aguilera with Jamie Hartman, David Glass and Phil Bentley, with production done by Hartman and Tracklacers. Described by Aguilera as part two to her 2003 single "Fighter", she decided to record the song so that her newer, younger fans would have an empowering song to listen in case they were unfamiliar with her previous work. The song combines dance-pop and Eurodance genres; its instrumentation incorporates drum beats and rock guitars. "Army of Me" garnered mixed reviews from music critics. Many praised Aguilera's strong delivery of the song's message and branded it a potential single, while others criticized it for being too similar to "Fighter". Upon the release of Lotus, the song debuted on the South Korea international singles chart at number 103 with digital download sales of 2,689. Aguilera has performed the song at the 40th American Music Awards in the United States.
"Army of Me"
2012
Henson Recording Studios, Radley Studios
3:26
- Christina Aguilera
- Jamie Hartman
- David Glass
- Phil Bentley
Critical reception[edit]
"Army of Me" garnered mixed reviews from music critics. Diane Anderson-Minshall of Pride Media noted that the song "makes a great LGBT anthem."[9] Andrew Hampp for Billboard and Chris Younie for 4Music both thought that "Army of Me" could have been a potential single, the latter of whom writing "This track must be a future single."[11][13] Younie continued to write that the song "captivates and excites right from the very start", has a "euphoric" energy and is the type of "angry" pop song that Kelly Clarkson "would give her right arm for".[13] Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe described it as a "Gloria Gaynor-meets-Depeche Mode dance of anger."[17] Mike Wass for Idolator wrote that although "Army of Me" is a "quality" song, it is an album filler.[14] Writing that it sounds as though it would have been a good song to include on her previous studio album, Bionic, Wass thought that Aguilera was "not exaggerating" when she refers to it as "Fighter 2.0".[14] He concluded his review by saying that although her vocals are sparse, it is a "quirky" addition to Lotus.[14] The A.V. Club's Annie Zaleski described Aguilera as a "playful" and "sassy techno diva" on "Army of Me".[18]
Kitty Empire of The Observer also thought that it shares similarities with "Fighter". She cited the Björk song of the same name as another influence, due to its "emotional territory"[19] Robert Copsey for Digital Spy described the song as "nothing we haven't heard from her before, but there's an urgency to it that suggests Christina needed to get it out of her system",[15] while Matthew Horton of Virgin Media wrote that Aguilera sounds as though she is declaring war.[10] Michael Gallucci for PopCrush was critical of the song, writing that it sounds like a Cher disco song which features Aguilera "overworking" her vocal cords.[20] Melissa Maerz of Entertainment Weekly found the song's lyrics to be defensive and bitter. Responding to the lyrics "And we're gonna rise up.../ For every time you wronged me/ Well, you're gonna face an army, army of me.' Maerz writes "Rise up against whom? Is the whole world really out to get her, or is this just an excuse to wear camouflage hot pants?"[21]
Live performances[edit]
Aguilera performed "Army of Me" for the first time at the 40th American Music Awards as part of a medley with two other tracks: "Lotus Intro" and "Let There Be Love" on November 18, 2012, held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California.[22] Bruna Nessif for E! Online described the performance as "interesting," and noted that the theme "to celebrate everyone for who they are" was similar to the moral content presented on Gaga's album Born This Way (2011).[23]
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Lotus, RCA Records.[7]
"Army of Me"
Merwan Rim version[edit]
French singer-songwriter and artist Merwan Rim included a French version of the song, Tous Les Hommes En Un, on his debut album, L'échappée, released in 2012 by Mercury Records. His first performance and release of the song took place several months before Aguilera's.[27]