Feel This Moment
"Feel This Moment" is a song by American rapper Pitbull featuring American singer Christina Aguilera. The song was released on February 21, 2013[2] by Mr. 305, Polo Grounds Music and RCA Records, as the fourth single from the album Global Warming, which was released in 2012. It is a dance-pop number that talks about stopping to take a moment to appreciate life. "Feel This Moment" was written by the artists alongside Chantal Kreviazuk and producers Nasri Atweh, Adam Messinger, Sir Nolan, and DJ Buddha. The song interpolates "Take On Me" by a-ha, written and composed by Morten Harket, Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, and Magne Furuholmen.
"Feel This Moment"
February 22, 2013
2012
- 3:49 (album version)
- 3:19 (radio edit)
- Mr. 305
- Polo Grounds
- RCA
- Adam Messinger
- Nasri Atweh
- Sir Nolan
- DJ Buddha
"Feel This Moment" received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised Aguilera's appearance and the "Take On Me" interpolation used on the song. "Feel This Moment" was a commercial success, peaking at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified quadruple platinum in October 2020. Outside of the United States, "Feel This Moment" peaked within the top ten of the charts in many countries including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. It garnered multiple certifications in many regions, including by the Australian Recording Industry Association and the British Phonographic Industry.
An accompanying music video for "Feel This Moment" was directed by David Rousseau and was released on March 15, 2013. The video was shot in a black and white scene, featuring several shots from Pitbull's Planet Pit World Tour and Aguilera with big curly hair. The clip garnered positive feedback, who praised Aguilera's new figure in it. At the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards, the video was nominated for Best Collaboration. The duo performed "Feel This Moment" on a number of occasions, including at the 2012 American Music Awards, 2013 Kids' Choice Awards, and the 2013 Billboard Music Awards; in this last, Harket was featured as a guest star.
Composition[edit]
"Feel This Moment" was written by Nasri Atweh, Chantal Kreviazuk, Adam Messinger, Sir Nolan, DJ Buddha, Pitbull and Aguilera,[8] while production was handled by Adam Messinger, Nasri Atweh, Sir Nolan and DJ Buddha.[9] It interpolates the hook from Norwegian synthpop band a-ha's 1985 hit "Take On Me,"[10] and the band members themselves (Morten Harket, Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, and Magne Furuholmen), who wrote "Take On Me," received writing credits for "Feel This Moment."[10]
The song is a dance-pop song about stopping to take a moment to appreciate life.[1][5] Set to a thumping club beat, the rapper spits, "Let's stop time and enjoy this moment,"[5] followed by Aguilera belting, "One day when my light is glowing, I'll be in my castle golden; But until the gates are open, I just wanna feel this moment."[4] Pitbull makes reference to E.L. James's best-selling erotic novel, 50 Shades of Grey, when he raps, "She read books, especially about red rooms and tie-ups."[4] According to Jason Lipshut of Billboard, "Feel This Moment" is structured much like Pitbull's "Get It Started," which in turn featured Shakira.[10] With the chord progression of Am—D—G—C—G/B, the song is written in the key of G major.[11] According to the sheet music at musicnotes.com, the song is written in common time with a tempo of 136 beats per minute.
Critical reception[edit]
"Feel This Moment" received generally positive reviews from music critics. David Jeffries of AllMusic picked the song as one of the album's standout tracks, calling it a "glorious disco explosion."[9] Entertainment Weekly's journalist Ray Rahman thought that "Feel This Moment" was "the best song on the album," writing that "it whisks a 'Take On Me' sample to places it's never been before."[12] Sarah Godfrey of The Washington Post agreed, recommending the track, as one of the three best tracks on the album.[13] Mikael Wood of Los Angeles Times wrote that "it turns A-ha's '80s synth-pop curio 'Take On Me' into the stuff of a Las Vegas bachelorette bash."[14] Jeremy Thomas of 411 Mania praised Aguilera's appearance, writing that she "adds some musical substance to Pitbull's style and makes for a track that, if not necessarily good, at least is very listenable."[15]
Sam Lanksy of Idolator called it a "doozy," praising Aguilera's part, calling it a "memorable chorus," adding that the song "fares better than her yowling on Chris Mann's cover of 'The Blower's Daughter.'"[4] Jason Lipshut of Billboard also praised her vocals, calling it "gorgeous pipes."[10] Rick Florino of Artistdirect also praised her part, writing that "Aguilera delivers a shimmering refrain as Pitbull's flow drives the verses smoothly."[16] Nicolle Weeks of 4Music also enjoyed, writing: "This is actually quite a catchy tune to dance to and it boasts a sick hook. It doesn't feature any misogyny, which is nice."[17]
Julianne Escobedo Shepherd of Spin wrote a mixed review, stating that "the Christina Aguilera collab should be a major crossover situation — she chips in a slightly cheesy, Selena-alluding diva vocal combined with Miami-worthy sub-bass, but a-ha's 'Take On Me' hook played on a handsy techno synth overrides both vocalists."[18] But an editorial writer from Popjustice was negative towards both "Feel This Moment" and will.i.am's song "Scream & Shout" (2012), stating that what the "two songs represent is pop music writhing around in its own shit."[19]
Use in media[edit]
Since its release, "Feel This Moment" has been used several times throughout various medias. It was used in the promos for Australian reality show So You Think You Can Dance Australia, for Chilean reality show Salta si puedes. It was also used in the first trailer for The LEGO Movie which was released on February 7, 2014, a couple of scenes in the 2017 animated movie, The Emoji Movie[37] and was used in trailers for Go Jetters on CBeebies in 2020. The song is also featured in the rhythm game Just Dance 2014[38] and was featured as the fourth main track on Now That's What I Call Music 46 in the United States.[39]
The song was used for the opening number of Miss Universe 2020.
Music video[edit]
The music video was first released onto Pitbull's official VEVO channel on March 15, 2013. It was directed by David Rousseau.[40] It was shot in black and white scene.[41] The video is centered on the rapper's 2012 Planet Pit World Tour. In the video, the tour hit several big cities including Paris, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Los Angeles and Miami.[42] Aguilera is also featured in the video, with big curly hair and black outfit.[40] The video has received over 749 million views on YouTube, making it 5x Vevo certified.[43]
The video for "Feel This Moment" received mainly positive reviews. Rap-Up wrote, "Mr. Worldwide [Pitbull] reflects on his journey to the top, performing shows across the globe, while the pop diva looks gorgeous as she vamps for the camera in the black-and-white clip."[41] Trent Fitzgerald from PopCrush wrote that "Aguilera is looking rather svelte in her all-black leather outfit as she flirts for the camera."[42]
Live performances[edit]
Pitbull and Aguilera first performed "Feel This Moment" on November 18, 2012, at the 2012 American Music Awards ceremony with a medley of the song "Don't Stop the Party."[44] On March 23, 2013, the pair performed the song at the 2013 Kids' Choice Awards.[45] Pitbull also performed the song himself at the opening ceremony of the 2013 Indian Premier League.[46]
Aguilera and Pitbull performed the song live during the 2013 Billboard Music Awards, which ended with a surprise appearance from Morten Harket of A-ha, who then performed a portion of "Take On Me".[47] Pitbull and Aguilera performed the song at the season finale of the fourth season of the talent show The Voice on June 18, 2013.
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