Beyonce: Standing on the Sun leaked, but is it finished? (AUDIO)

Hear a New (and Unfinished?) Beyoncé Song

Hear a New (and Unfinished?) Beyoncé Song

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Slate's Culture Blog
June 27 2013 12:45 PM

Hear a New (and Unfinished?) Beyoncé Song

beyonce_sun
Beyoncé in the H&M ad that featured her new song.

Beyoncé’s new album may have been pushed back indefinitely, but her presence on the pop landscape has only grown since her Super Bowl performance back in February. The singer recently announced she’ll be adding more concerts to her “Mrs. Carter Show” world tour later this year, and she has dropped a few new songs for her fans to enjoy. The latest leaked track is “Standing on the Sun.”

Granted, this isn’t exactly a brand new listening experience. The breezy island jam originally premiered as a snippet in her commercial for H&M back in April, and those lucky enough to see Beyoncé on her tour overseas were treated to a rousing live performance of the song. Now the rest of us get to hear the studio version of “Standing on the Sun" in full—maybe. As SPIN reports, her live performances have included some reggae-flavored rap, which are completely missing from this leaked track. So perhaps this is not the final version that we will hear on the  album.

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Which is probably for the best. While “Standing on the Sun” is a perfectly pleasant summer song, it’s surprisingly dull for a Beyoncé song, with two verses barely deviating from a subdued, even syrupytone. It seems better suited for background listening at the beach than for more careful attention. Perhaps it would benefit from a Beyoncé rap, and its more intricate and upbeat rhythms.

Here’s hoping SPIN is right and that the truly finished version of this song is a bit brighter.

Aisha Harris is a Slate culture writer and host of the Slate podcast Represent.