Well,
@Maki turned in the rest of his commentary, so let's get this show on the road!
But first, I forgot to mention in the 7 Things write-up that it has received the most 10s so far, with 11 of them. Anyway, moving on.
#5 fought a hard battle, but it's time has come.
I'm so proud of y'all for getting this to the top 5.
Who Owns My Heart was written by Miley, Antonina Armato, Tim James and Devrim Karaoglu, and produced by Rock Mafia - all familiar names - for Miley's third studio album Can't Be Tamed. The song was released as the second and final single from the album on October 22, 2010 - 5 months after the lead, and 4 months after the album. Hollywood Records
sucks. It didn't chart in most countries, including the U.S. and the U.K., but it did peak at #15 in Portugal, #24 in Germany, #34 in Bulgaria and #35 in Austria, so those are the only four countries with taste. The song deserved to be another top 10. Hell, it should've been #1 for 30 weeks straight, and iinthe top 10 of the end-of-year Billboard chart, but noooooo. America fucking sucked in 2010 - and of course, sucks now. But I'm being a little aggressive, and not focusing on the song like I should. Now, I always try to pick my 11s for a certain reason - I can relate to them on a personal level, they had a impact on my life/childhood, or maybe a combination of the two. Sometimes I pick a random song I love to give it a push and extra support - like Let's Do This in here, or Getaway Car in the Taylor rate. I went with Who Owns My Heart for pretty much none of those reasons, but for something more important. It's not something I thought would need my help - I was sure it was well-regarded as simply a great song by the fan-base and this forum. It didn't have an impact on my childhood - like with Can't Be Tamed, due to lack of promotion on the Disney Channel, I wasn't aware of the song's existence until 4-5 years after it's release. And I can't explicitly relate to the lyrics - I've only ever been out dancing at a club once, and I was way too awkward an nervous to hang with anyone but my friends. However, there is something in them that resonates with me on a deeper level, that isn't clearly stated in the song. Lyrically, this song's focus is about how Miley is confused about her attraction to this person she's dancing with - is it a real attraction, something she wants to explore, or is it simply the music their dancing to, and the atmosphere that they're in? And that confusion is an extremely queer one. The song has always struck me as having a queer vibe and theme, and I once told my cousin as much. We were watching the music video, and I said "I think this song is about a girl." She replied that it could be about either one, and I agreed, because it could. Miley doesn't use any pronouns in the song. But I can't shake the fact that I'm right. The confusion of being attracted to someone you don't expect is something most - if not all - LGBT+ people experience. When you first realize you might be attracted to the same sex, it' can be a very hard thing to come to grips with, and you might find yourself trying to come up with any other possible reason for it. Miley's other reason in this song is the music, the dancing. Hell, she even sings "The way you got your body movin's got me confused." That confusion that a queer person experiences when they notice something - anything - about a person of the same sex I think is very common. I'm not saying this can't happen to straight people - though I'm not sure why they might be confuse about being attracted to someone of the opposite sex. But the chorus evokes some serious queer subjects and themes, which brings in a certain sadness, that's hidden by her confident vocals and the dance-ready production. In the end though, she expresses that she wants to believe she is interested in this person, with "You know I wanna believe that we're a masterpiece...". Hell, it's not just in the chorus. There's a queerness in the fact that she's unsure if this person feels the same "Are you feeling me or is the music to blame?" expressing a nervousness that she thinks her partner is dealing with the same confusion and uncertainty. Hell, the video almost completely confirm this, as the club she's dancing in is almost entirely women, with a few guys her and there, and at
1:49 and
2:04, among others, she's shown dancing with girls. Okay, yes, she's dancing with guys at points too BUT STILL. So yeah. The very queer message in the lyrics resonates with me deeply, and that is why I gave it my 11. So who's up for some speculation? Now, we know Miley came out as either bi or pan to her mom when she was 14, and she confirmed she was pan in 2015 to the world. Since I think this song is about a girl, I don't believe it's about Liam, like most of the album, but she also has said that her first relationship was with a girl. I assume she means her first serious or her first sexual relationship, which discounts Nick. Now, there's a whole like, year and a half between dating Nick and dating Liam where we don't really know much about who she was with. Which is fine - we do not need to know every single detail. But the lack of knowledge, combined with the fact that Miley recently
hinted at a hook-up/relationship with Demi Lovato - who came out as queer in 2017 - during their Disney days, makes me think that maybe the song is about her. The time-line fits - Miley was apparently dating a guy named Justin for 9 months from 2008-2009, and broke up before she started to film The Last Song, and she started dating Liam soon after that. But there was still periods of time when she was single. And Demi was in an on/off relationship with Joe Jonas from 2008-2010, after which she started dating Wilmer Valderrama for 6 years. So anytime from 2008-2010 when they were both single, something probably happened, and I think Miley wrote this song about it. Not gonna lie, that kinda makes me love the song even more. Like I said, this is all speculation, but that doesn't mean it's not possible. Now, apart from any queer themes and connections, it's just a great fucking song. I love that she holds on to the music and art metaphors throughout the entire song while she figures out her attraction, it doesn't seem over-used, and it always feels well-written. The melodies are catchy pop-perfection - the way second part of the chorus lines - "Cause the way you got
your body movin's got me confused" and "You know I
wanna believe that we're a masterpiece" just roll off the tongue, especially the bolded parts, as well as the way Miley emphasizes certain words: body, me, wanna and master in masterpiece, the stutter in "ya-ya-ya-ya you know I wanna..." - fuck I just can't get enough. And honestly, the production is euro-dance, ready-to-fill-the-floor gay catnip, with it's intense beat pulses, synth handclaps, the chorus pounding in your ear that contains an almost operatic synth, which is buried deep, but rises in prominence during the bridge and then goes back down in for the final chorus, all of which creates a feeling of anxiety - kind of like the feeling you get when you pursue a same-sex attraction. All of this adds up to an amazing song, absolutely one of her best, especially of this time in her career, and I'm so so happy it made the top 5, and was correctly crowned as the best song from the album.
And it's the first song with a 9+ average.
And it's the first Miley song to receive more then one 11. Thank you, all of you. Except you
@Entropy xx. Also, how fitting that we say goodbye to the album's final song on the day of it's anniversary. The song was only ever performed on the Gypsy Heart Tour, but it was the encore, so at least it will always have that. Oh, and of course, it was included in her set the House Of Blues,a nd perfromed on the German show,
Wetten, dass...?. Now, it's time for the critics to have their say. Unfortunately, almost none of them had anything interesting to say about it, the
Entertainment Weekly did comment that "This song is a pulsy, possibly club-ready jam that deserves single status.",
The Arizona Republic said the song, with its "bubbling disco synths and cheesy ABBA-worthy chorus" is one of the best on the album, and
The New York Times remarked "Instead, the most exciting songs on this album are club-oriented dance-pop, a genre Ms. Cyrus hasn’t previously shown any affinity for and may never again. Still, it’s a timely and sharp sound. “Who Owns My Heart” — produced, like many of the album’s best tracks, by the pop impresarios Rock Mafia — is full of rubbery synths and swooning choruses in the vein of Cascada." A couple other reviewers compared it to Gaga - because everyone was compared to Gaga - but at least this song makes a little more sense, though I don't think it's terribly Fame-esque.
On to the wonderful voters who put this song in the top 5. Oh wait we have
@Entropy (5):
I never had strong feelings about this song. I’ll listen to it if I had the whole album on, but I’ll skip it if it comes on shuffle. This makes you tasteless. Sorry, but it's the truth. Don't worry. We still accept you for who you are. Everyone else is mostly tasteful.
@phily693 (8.5) is right and wrong:
Good song, bad single choice especially following Can’t Be Tamed. It was a perfect choice so I don't know what you're talking about. it just should've been released sooner.
@iheartpoptarts (9) says absolutely nothing about this song: T
he best Rock Mafia shout-out is still the one at the start of that BG5 song. I don't know what you're talking about, so please link it in the thread, but I love the one at the beginning of this. Despite giving it a pretty high score,
@M24 (9) doesn't seem to like it that much (which sounds like me teebs. or at least, old me):
I know it's a fan favorite, but it doesn't do that much for me. The chorus is missing some spark. I know it'll be an unpopular opinion xD. Well a) the chorus is amazing, b) you need to re-evaluate your opinion and c) please tell me that pun was on purpose. Now, on to all the people with the best taste.
@Sprockrooster (10) answers the question:
My dear boyfriend. Awww that's adorable (he said in his lonely voice.) Noted Can't Be Tamed-hater
@savilizabeths (10) loves this one:
I love the way this one feels so dramatic. It feels a bit Gaga-esque. It’s a very electric feeling song. Definitely one of the highlights of the album. Another layer to it's queerness, cause we all know how dramatic gay people are. Also, you pulled a critic. Straight-king
@DJHazey (10) makes a different (and in my opinion, more accurate) comparison:
This works because the soundscape really pushes forward that feeling of some isolated dancefloor where only the uninhibited are allowed. The kind of places Kesha was frequenting on her debut album, for example. I often overlook this one because I gravitated towards my Top 3 songs almost instantly, but this really isn't much less of a bop. The littles pauses at 'heart, art, sparks' own my heart and the way the whole chorus just glides along perfectly is inescapably affecting. Thank you for pointing out another thing about the chorus that I love. Just perfection. Last but not least, my co-11, the other straight-King
@Maki apparently...ignored this song at first? What?:
My 11 choice for this rate was quite obvious. Can't believe I haven't heard this song until a few years ago, despite it being a hit and constantly popping up on my YouTube recommendations. A pop perfection that sums up this era in an amazing way. I love the production, even though it's a bit of its time, and the instrumentation really adds to the power. The melody is magnificent from the beginning to the end, and honestly one of her best ever - incredibly catchy yet with a sad edge. So happy to see it being the winning "Can't Be Tamed" track and I'm rooting for it. So very happy I wasn't alone in championing this. Thank you so much for joining me, and ensuring I can never be too mad at you for poor taste in the future. Also - it was a hit? Where? It charted in four countries. Granted it was top 40 in all of them, and top 20 in one, but still. I wish it was a hit where I lived.
The wonderfully gay music video. I forget how sexy this is. Man, I wanna get laid. Wait, was that TMI?:
The demo, titled Did You make My Night, featuring slightly different vocals and production, as well as new lyrics:
Live at the House Of Blues:
Live on Wetten, dass...?:
Live on the Gypsy Heart Tour:
