Way before she was a judge on ‘American Idol’, the ‘X Factor’ and the Australian edition of ‘So You Think You Can Dance?’ and not long after blessing Janet Jackson with a few signature moves, Paula Abdul was a popstar in her own right. This week, From The Vault is celebrating one of Ms. Abdul’s finest visual works – the magnificent ‘Cold Hearted’
Pulled from Paula’s blockbuster debut ‘Forever Your Girl’ as its fifth single, ‘Cold’ is a Pop number with sprinkles of New Jack Swing wherein the singer warns a fellow female about a heartless, womanizing man that she compares to a “cold hearted snake “.
It was produced by Elliot Wolff – who was also responsible for the entertainer’s breakout single ‘Straight Up’ – and was one of her six Billboard chart-toppers. Unfortunately, its home soil success never translated into an overseas one.
As many of you would know, we love ourselves an epic video here at TGJ. Therefore you’ll understand why this one has a very special place in our vault. The work of Academy Award-nominated director David Fincher, the visual serves as Abdul’s homage to legendary choreographer Bob Fosse, most particularly his work on classic musical ‘All That Jazz’. The all-dance affair perfectly embodies Paula’s proposition as a “Popstar”: hook-heavy edgy Pop music, enchanting choreography, and high-octane music videos.
With Paula waving goodbye to her singing career almost two decades ago, we feel it is a shame that the current generation only knows her as a TV figure and not the award-winning stage blazer she once was. Just to express how inspiring and trend-setting she and this video have been, here’s a few well-known visuals which take inspiration from ‘Cold Hearted’: Janet Jackson’s ‘If’, Christina Aguilera’s ‘What A Girl Wants’, Britney Spears’ ‘Slave 4 U’, Ciara’s ‘Promise’.
Can you name more?
