The Battle for the best LOVE ON TOP version

First thing: I am not a singer. But I love singing. I sing but during rare moments only. Friends tell me that I can sing and I appreciate that but I don't think I can do that professionally.

Okay. Here's my take on several renditions of Beyonce's Love On Top. Recently, I have been watching a lot of different versions and attempts of local artists to sing this song. It's really HARD. The last part of the song is the chorus. Beyonce repeatedly sang the chorus while the notes are going up. She repeated it 5 times. So it means the notes went higher 5 times. It's that hard. However, some local artists still try (some succeeded, some did not) to perform this song. On Youtube, I found 7 versions and here's how I rate them.

Best version would be Musica Cristobal.

First, she sang it very smoothly. There was no moment that she was about to give up. Her breathing was very controlled and the way she threw the notes.

Best part: SHE SANG IT WHILE SITTING DOWN AND HAS HER LEGS CROSSED.

We know how hard it is for singers to sing while sitting down because the diaphragm does not expand very much. But with her, it was completely amazing. This is the best version of the song I have heard from a local artist. Check out her Love On Top video (by clicking her name above) and all her other videos. She is one artist that the country has been missing out. For the readers who does not know her, she is one of the contenders of Star for a Night, where in Sarah G. won. Also I've heard she went up against Angeline Quinto in Star Power. She may not have won these contests but definitely she is something worth watching for.

Rank # 2 in my list is Raven Diva

Sure she's not a real "she" but she sounded really really well in this song. Very powerful voice and her breathing is well controlled, I give props to this performer. She regularly sings at Zirkoh Bar in Timog and you can check out as well her many Youtube videos to see for yourself how great is she as a singer.

Rank # 3 for me is Jonalyn Viray

She sang this song twice already, one in Party P and this one in her mini concert "One Love" in Metro Bar. Definitely this one's better, she managed to dance along while she's singing. However, she would skip some lines to allow her to breathe deeply for the next set of chorus. Overall, she did fine and was able to sustain until the last set of chorus.

Rank # 4 is Sheryn Regis.

For me she technically did ok on this song however, her voice did not fit the RnB vibe. Her voice is more for 'birit' type of songs, Whitney Houstons and Celine Dions. For this one, it did not sound Beyonce-ish. But yeah, it was just ok.

Rank # 5 is Song Bird Regine Velasquez

We all know Regine is a great singer, but for this song, I think she lacked rehearsal. She was running out of breath a bit. I know she can do better if she rehearses this song well enough. She was cutting the last syllables (or notes or was not able to sustain to the last note). I was somehow frustrated to hear her like that. But given that she came from a long break (from getting married to giving birth) I think it's ok. But she can do really better.

Rank # 6 is Soul Siren Nina. 

Hearing Nina's rendition was a bit frustrating because she would not use the falsetto to sustain high notes. She would always prefer head tones that is why instead of "Baby it youuuu, you're the one I looooove" it was "Baby it's youu, you're the one I loove". Do you get it? It's bitin at the end of each line or phrase. And it really showed she's having a hard time singing it. Yes I know it's really hard but compared to Musica and Raven, they did not seem like they're having a hard time. For Nina, it was not as flawless. She was out of breath.

Rank # 7 is RnB Princess Kyla.

This was the most frustrating of all. I have known Kyla as a really great singer and her voice is really one of its kind. But upon hearing her version, it was just 'sayang'. When she got into the first chorus, I was like, "no, oh no.."  I knew she will have difficulty until the end.  When she reached the repeated chorus, she was really having a hard time. She was alternating tones already (she's singing the notes for the 'second voice' already, not the main, which is how Beyonce sang it). Plus, she did not complete the 5 (or more) choruses. I think she only did 2 or 3. Well, she can rehearse more. I know she'll be able to do it.


That's it! It's up to you if you'll agree. For the fans of those in rank 4 to 7, don't kill me ok? Those were just my opinions. Enjoy reading/listening!