‘Glee’ season 5: Lea Michele performs ‘Cannonball’ for first time on ‘Ellen’
Even though there is no new episode of “Glee” airing on Fox this week, it has still turned out to be quite a big week for one of the show’s stars in Lea Michele. What’s the reason for that? You really don’t have to look any further than the current state of her music career. Earlier this week, she released her first single “Cannonball” to iTunes, and she took advantage of the chance to perform it Wednesday on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.”
To us, what is probably the best thing about the song is that it’s almost a welcome shift from what is typically expected of female artists today in their twenties. There are no raunchy dance moves, house music influences, or skimpy clothing in the performance. Instead, it feels almost like the sort of pop record that someone like Celine Dion or Barbra Streisand would put out if they were Lea’s age in 2013. While we don’t know how well it will do on dance-obsessed Top 40 radio, this could end up being a strong performer on the Adult Contemporary market.
One other thing that’s nice about Lea’s performance? She sings all of it live, accompanied by backup singers in a band. It’s almost a throwback in some ways, but it doesn’t necessarily feel like one. It will probably be around late January or early February before we really know whether or not Lea’s song ends up being a hit. The reason that she’s smart to release the single and a pre-order for her album “Louder” now is that diehard fans will buy it right away, and it will be out there for everyone who gets iTunes gift cards in the mail come Christmastime. It’s therefore an opportunity to sell throughout December, and hope that some stations pick up the song come the new year once the holiday season is over and Christmas tracks aren’t being played anymore.
What do you think about this “Cannonball” performance? Share some of your thoughts below! Also, click here for some more scoop on the upcoming 100th episode of “Glee,” and we’ll have some more soon.
Photo: Fox