The Way You Are by David Choi and Kina Grannis

David Choi and Kina Grannis are already established artists who found success in a much more modern way than the traditional route. David Choi initially made waves by winning a David Bowie mashup contest judged by the man himself. He then hit fame with ‘YouTube, A Love Song’ and now has nearly a million YouTube subscribers. Kina Grannis won the Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest, garnering a deal with Interscope Records and has accumulated nearly 100 million YouTube views.

This song brings their talents together, an acoustic ballad duet with a simple but effective musical backing that allows their vocals to shine. They both have strong, distinctive voices and what is immediately striking is how well they compliment each other. Choi’s smooth, mellow tone acts as a perfect contrast to Grannis’ slightly sharper singing style.

The song has a beautiful, lilting vocal melody that perfectly expresses the deeply romantic nature of the lyrics. Beginning with singing a short verse each at a time, their voices eventually combine and sound great in tandem. The intermittent bursts of ukulele playing the vocal line add a nice touch of instrumental colour and even after just one listen, the song lodges in the memory.

With gorgeous warmth to the overall sound and faultless production, I would suggest that this song has everything it takes to become a huge hit on radio and in the charts. However, in the musical climate that these artists have made their name, perhaps it would be more apt to predict a colossal amount of YouTube views and continued success for both of them.

By Alex Faulkner