Fifth Harmony in "Work From Home"
GiphyIf you hadn't noticed, Camila didn't come out of nowhere. She got her start with the very popular girl group Fifth Harmony. Now I wouldn't get out of hand and say the group was the next Destiny's Child. It can be argued that the lack of popular female singing groups around today leaves them without competition (which it does), but they're doing pretty okay…. "Work From Home" is a bop. Nevertheless, Camila was a prominent part of the girl group from its conception in 2012 until her recent departure in December of 2016. Anyway… despite Fifth Harmony having a "meh" musical run. "Work From Home" is their only single to reach the top 10 of Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 4. "Worth It"Worth It" made it to No.12. None of their other singles being that notable. They did build a decent fan base among young people. This gave Camila a platform to launch her solo career.
*Not to mention that Camila already appeared to be a crowd favorite. Which we'll touch on later.*
Camila deciding to step away from the group wasn't an irrational decision. Even if she did flop, she had a little bit of credibility rolling over from Fifth Harmony.
Camila Cabello in "Crying In The Club"
GiphyNot assuming that Camila had been planning to break away from Fifth Harmony for a long time (probably), she still took her time with releasing her album. Mind you, she left the group in late 2016 and her debut album didn't come out until 2018. But in that time, she tested the waters. Before she left the group, she released "I Know What You Did Last Summer" with Shawn Mendes. A song they both co-wrote. The song peaked at 20 on Billboard Hot 100 (unlike many of Fifth Harmony's singles). She also released many other collaborations: "Bad Things" with Machine Gun Kelly, "Hey Ma" with Pitbull to name a few. It wasn't until May of 2017 when she released her first real solo single "Crying in the Club" co-written by Sia. The song didn't chart well at all. (Probably because it's a clearance version of "Cheap Thrills" and "Shape of You". Listen to it and you'll get what I mean.) Still, Camila stayed busy and toured with Bruno Mars for a while.
These things were prepping her for a very successful solo career. She was learning and constantly staying involved in the music game. "Havana" did not drop until September of 2017. Finally, she had a hit of her own. Not to mention that people still like her from Fifth Harmony, and her many collabs. "Havana" was the perfect breakout song. It's not too emotional, catchy, but unique enough not to blend in. Just in time for the fans who have been following her!
Even then, she waited until "Havana" peaked at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100 to release her album. She made sure the world loved her only solo single so much that they'd go listen to the rest of her music! Currently, she's touring with Taylor Swift as an opener. She's opening a stadium tour!
Camilla Cabello in "Havana"
GiphyDespite all the experience she does have in the music game, Camila is still new. She still has much to prove. The world is out here still questioning if she can truly last alone and a good amount of people hate her for leaving Fifth Harmony behind. She's not the first artist to have been in this position. "Havana" topping the charts isn't enough to launch her solo career. Camila and her team seem to understand this.
Let's look at her live performances of "Havana." Don't forget, Havana's biggest claim to fame is that fact that it embraces Cuban culture. The song isn't too spectacular. (80% of it is "nah, nah, nah"). But it's catchy and you can't help but like it. Still, Camila never fails to elevate it during her live performances. She pulls a Beyoncé type feel with two gorgeous background dancers to compliment her. All three in coordinating outfits. Camila always being the center of attention. The only consist thing about any of Havana's live performance is the awesome staging and choreography. What makes it special is that every performance is completely different from each other. Camila is sure to make it like you're hearing the song for the first time. Some examples:
Music Video: The "Havana" music video is set as a large tele novella. The video is almost 7 minutes long and gives you much more than just a pop song. It has acting, comedy, costumes, drama, and just happens to be set to a dope song. Making it, not only a must watch, but something impossible to watch just once.
Women In Music 2017: slows it down, acoustic. Camila takes time to show off her vocals just in case you dismissed the song as generic Pop trash. She uses this opportunity to make her vocals intimate.
Latin American Music Awards 2017: This performance really digs into Camila's Cuban roots. She begins the performance with a hype dance into. It's only proper that for the Latin American Music Awards she sings a verse in Spanish.
Ellen: Even on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Camila spares no expense getting in touch with her inner diva. This time she embraces an Old Hollywood theme. Her and her background dancers decked out in 1930s inspired costumes. Camila styling a big flowing white gown, with matching white gloves and diamond earrings. Old fashioned dress. Not to mention that the entire stage was set as an old-time speakeasy.
Why does Camila have to do all this stuff for her performances?? She doesn't!! But no great performer became great by doing just enough. Imagine if Michael Jackson never said "We should make this music video 15 minutes long. And everybody should be zombies." Great art is when crazy ideas meet quality execution. Camila does exactly this every time.
Bias or Prophecy:
It may just be my opinion, but I believe this young lady will find herself among the greats if she keeps playing her cards right. She appears to have a heavy hand in the creation of her work. She also has an eye for quality and innovation. The momentum and effort that she is putting into her career is setting her up for a long and successful one.
