Underrated Female Pop Artists – P!nk

P!nk is one of my favourite musical artists. I have physical and digital copies of every single one of her albums; in fact Misunderstood (or M!ssundaztood) was the first album I ever bought. Through the years my tastes have changed, and there are few bands I worshipped age eight that I still listen to now, but P!nk has never left me. I love her. But I feel she is all too often dismissed or people forget about all the great songs she’s had over the years that weren’t ‘So what’. It isn’t just P!nk; too many female pop artists are dismissed by music fans out of snobbery. I intend to avenge these slighted artists, and one by one I shall – without irony – call to light the best works of the female singers people have forgotten have real talent. So here is my first list of the five most underrated songs by a female pop artist. In this case, the lovely P!nk!

1. ‘Long Way to Happy’ – From the album ‘I’m not dead’, this is one of my favourite P!nk songs. It shows off all of what she does best and the best qualities of her voice. (Not to mention it’s such a tear-jerker: ‘Left in the pieces you broke me into // torn apart but now I’ve got to // keep on rolling like a stone // cause it’s gonna be a long, long way to happy’).
2. ‘Dear Mr. President’ – This is one is really political, and I still remember age about 10 or 11 listening to this for the first time and being totally distraught. While I no longer fall into uncontrollable sobs at how horrible the world is when I hear it, it still really packs a punch. My favourite lyric: ‘Let me tell you ’bout hard work // Minimum wage with a baby on the way // Let me tell you ’bout hard work // Rebuilding your house after the bombs took them away // Let me tell you ’bout hard work // Building a bed out of a cardboard box’. Gets me every time.
3. ’18 Wheeler’ – I listen to this when I plan on getting stuff done. It’s also the soundtrack that plays in my head as I walk away from an argument. ‘Hey hey man, what’s your problem // I see you try to hurt me bad // Don’t know what you’re up against.’ Sums it up really.
4. ‘Lonely Girl’ – I like that this one has quite a different vibe to lots of her other songs; in fact it differs even from the slower tracks or the ones you may point out as being the saddest. It feels younger and less angry. In fact, I don’t understand why people don’t seem to mention it as one of her stronger songs from the earlier albums. My favourite lyric: ‘Lyin’ awake watchin’ the sunlight // How the birds will sing as I count the rings around my eyes // Constantly pushing the world I know aside’.
5. ‘My Signature Move’ – This is the only song from P!nk’s most recent album that I have included, and it screams everything P!nk fans love about her. The album as a whole feels much more polished than previous albums and it’s a really smooth, well put together P!nk classic. My favourite lyric: ‘You know I said I would change // I did I went and tried a different outfit’.