Cher Lloyd (born July 28, 1993) is an English singer who came fourth in the UK's The X Factor back in 2010. Like fellow finalists from her season One Direction, Rebecca Ferguson and Aiden Grimshaw, she has achieved great success following her series, despite not actually winning the show.
Like other modern popstars such as Kesha and Nicki Minaj, Lloyd often combines singing with rapping in her music. She's also known for her urban-styled image, with partially-shaved hair, loads of makeup and ripped clothes.
She garnered some controversy with her debut single "Swagger Jagger" due to it "coming across like a sink estate answer to The Black Eyed Peas" and its questionable sampling of "Oh My Darling Clementine". Despite its negative reception, the single debuted at number one on the UK singles chart and number two on the Irish charts. The song's success paved the way for two more successful singles, the Mike Posner-assisted "With Ur Love" and the international hit "Want U Back". This lead to her debut album Sticks + Stones charting at number four on the UK albums chart, and number nine on the US albums chart.
In 2013, she married her boyfriend of two years, Craig Monk. Not to be confused with Cher.
Discography
- Sticks + Stones (2011)
- Sticks + Stones: US Edition (2012)
- Sorry I'm Late (2014)
Cher Lloyd provides examples of:
- Adrenaline Makeover: Briefly, for her supposed comeback single “Activated”.
- A Friend in Need: "Oath" (featuring Becky G) is all about this.
- Angrish Grunt: Cher lets out an amazing grunt throughout "Want U Back" and it almost serves as a hook unto itself. Cher explained in an interview that the grunt heard on the song was the product of actual frustration over not getting it to sound just right in the first place.
- Boastful Rap / Badass Boast:
- "Swagger Jagger". That whole song is one big boast (even during the sung parts).
- "Talkin' That" and "Dub on the Track" also qualify.
- Bratty Teenage Popstar: Plays up this trope within her image a lot. So much so she even calls her fans "Brats".
- Cover Version: Some notable ones include Keri Hilson's "Turn My Swag On" and Shakespeare's Sister's "Stay" (the latter was included as a bonus track on her debut album).
- Crossover: Astro, a contestant from the first season of the American X Factor appears on the (
UK) single version of "Want U Back". - Darker and Edgier: "Sirens".
- Drinking Game: Take a sip every time she gives off a constipated grunt in "Want U Back".
- Fair-Weather Ex: In "Want U Back," part of the reason why the protagonist wants her ex-boyfriend back is because she expected him to be desperate to get her back, and felt insulted that he moved on with another girl.
- Green-Eyed Monster: "Want U Back". Though it's self-inflicted since she broke up with the song's subject in the first place.
- Idol Singer: Among young girls, definitely.
And even some who aren't… - Large Ham: Especially with all the gurning she does.
- Lyrical Cold Open: "Swagger Jagger", "With Ur Love" ("Dadadadadum, dum, da dum dum..."), "Want U Back" ("UNNNGH!"), "Grow Up", "Playa Boi".
- Lyrical Tic: Throughout "Want U Back" she makes a sound that can only be described as a cross between a grunt and a scream through gritted teeth.
- Mistaken Identity: Her resemblance to former X Factor mentor Cheryl Cole is so uncanny that she's been mistaken for her quite a few times.
- Motor Mouth: Employs this within her music. "Dub on the Track" is a prime example.
- Ms. Fanservice: Plays up this image in her music videos.
- Named After Somebody Famous: Isn't it obvious?
- Offended by an Enemy's Indifference: The song "Want U Back" is about a girl who broke up with her boyfriend wanting to get back with him because she feels upset that he not only didn't try to win her back, but he also moved on and found a new girlfriend.
- One-Mario Limit: Averted - she effectively ended a long-standing One Mario Limit on the name "Cher". Of course, the Cher who married Sonny Bono still has a limit on her name used alone.
- Retraux: "Over The Moon" (or its chorus, at least) is meant to sound like some kind of lost Motown track, as produced by RedOne.
- The Runner-Up Takes It All: Although far, far below the popularity of One Direction, she has become much more successful than Matt Cardle.
- Sampling: Apart from "Swagger Jagger" sampling "Oh My Darling Clementine", "Playa Boi" interpolates the chorus of Neneh Cherry's "Buffalo Stance". "Superhero" even samples the "Buy Mode" music from The Sims. Yes, you read that correctly.
- Special Guest: Mike Posner appears on "With Ur Love" and Carolina Liar on "Beautiful People".
- The Stinger: Right at the end of "Want U Back":Does this sound like a helicopter? Brrrrrrrrrrrr!
- Surprisingly Gentle Song:
- Songs like "With Ur Love", "Beautiful People", "Oath" and "Behind the Music" are surprisingly soft compared to her other, more aggressive tracks.
- "Goodnight" from Sorry I'm Late.
- Thriving Ex-Crush: "Want U Back" is about Lloyd feeling bad when she watches her ex doing much better with his new girl. When they broke up, she thought he wouldn't take it well but now that he's doing much better than her, she wants him back.
- Updated Re-release: Sticks + Stones got one in late 2012 following the international release of the album. It includes all the tracks from the UK and overseas editions, as well as a few new ones. It also includes the solo versions of "Dub on the Track" and "With Ur Love" alongside the Astro and Snoop Dogg versions of "Want U Back".
- A Wild Rapper Appears!:
- Busta Rhymes in "Grow Up", Mic Righteous, Dott Rotten and Ghetts in "Dub on the Track".
- Astro featured in the original single mix of "Want U Back" but he was removed from the actual international release. A later remix of the same song featuring Snoop Dogg was released in the US. Also, a new song released from "Sticks + Stones" called "Oath" features Dr. Luke's protegee Becky G.
- Also, Cher herself on Demi Lovato's "Really Don't Care" and T.I. on "I Wish".
- Worst. Whatever. Ever!:
- Many have called "Swagger Jagger" this. But that didn't stop it from going to #1…
- Funnily enough, Cher's debut album as a whole actually got decent, if fairly mixed, reviews.
- Many have called "Swagger Jagger" this.
- Xtreme Kool Letterz: "Want U Back", "With Ur Love".
