meta-scriptReImagined At Home: Netta Gives MC Hammer's '90s Classic "U Can't Touch This" A Modern-Day Makeover | GRAMMY.com
ReImagined At Home: Netta Gives MC Hammer's '90s Classic "U Can't Touch This" A Modern-Day Makeover
Netta

Photo: Courtesy of Netta

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ReImagined At Home: Netta Gives MC Hammer's '90s Classic "U Can't Touch This" A Modern-Day Makeover

MC Hammer's GRAMMY-winning hit "U Can't Touch This" gets a playful update in this imaginative homage from pop singer/songwriter Netta.

GRAMMYs/Aug 9, 2022 - 05:03 pm

Born in January 1993, singer/songwriter and looping artist Netta wasn't even alive when MC Hammer released his classic "U Can't Touch This" in 1990.

But in this episode of ReImagined at Home, Netta puts her signature stamp on a cover performance of "U Can't Touch This," paying homage to the original with an equally joyful — and colorfully revamped — rendition that's brimming with her own infectious personality. 

Atop a bed made of netting, Netta sits suspended some 10 or 15 feet in the air, her microphone suspended from the ceiling and BOSS tabletop looper at her feet. With a big smile on her face, she adds layer after layer of melody and harmony to create a lush, danceable and modern track that's still recognizable as "U Can't Touch This."

Toward the tail end of her performance, Netta also tips her hat to another aspect of the song's history, singing "She's a very kinky girl" over the beat. That's a line from Rick James' "Super Freak," which is prominently sampled in MC Hammer's original recording of "U Can't Touch This." (When "U Can't Touch This" won the GRAMMY for Best Rhythm & Blues Song in 1991, both MC Hammer and James took home trophies. The song also won Best Solo Rap Performance.)

As a star who first rose to fame when she won the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 — repping her home country of Israel — Netta is no stranger to cover performances. During her stint on HaKokhav HaBa, Israel's televised national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, she won fans over with cover performances of artists like Kesha, the Spice Girls and David Guetta.

Since winning the big contest with her own original song, "Toy," Netta has been steadily mounting her personality-packed, harmony-laden, signature brand of electropop. She'll continue to build that vision with her next song, "Playground Politica," set for release on August 31. 

In the meantime, press play on the video above to watch Netta's spin on "U Can't Touch This," and keep checking back to GRAMMY.com for more episodes of ReImagined at Home. 

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ReImagined: LØLØ Flips Green Day's "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams" Into An Acoustic Jam
LØLØ

Photo: Courtesy of LØLØ

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ReImagined: LØLØ Flips Green Day's "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams" Into An Acoustic Jam

Canadian pop-punk singer LØLØ offers a stripped-down rendition of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," the GRAMMY-winning smash from her childhood inspirations, Green Day.

GRAMMYs/Mar 19, 2024 - 05:00 pm

Almost exactly two decades ago, Green Day traced the story of a lonely teenager, Jesus of Suburbia, in their seventh album, American Idiot. Its most notable chapter, "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," earned the band Record Of The Year at the 2006 GRAMMYs.

In this episode of ReImagined, Canadian pop-punk singer LØLØ delivers her take on the song, an ethereal acoustic version.

LØLØ is a longtime fan of Green Day. In an interview with Kerrang! magazine, she recalled their single "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" as the first song she learned to play. She later told idobi Radio that her 2023 track "omg" was "a bunch of intrusive thoughts jumbled into a song, wondering if I will ever be enough, or ever be as cool as Green Day."

This year, LØLØ released two original singles, "poser" and "2 of us," via Hopeless Records.

Press play on the video above to hear LØLØ's fresh rendition of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," and check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of ReImagined.

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ReImagined: Gen Neo Delivers A Lo-Fi Cover Of Seal's "Kiss From A Rose"
Gen Neo

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ReImagined: Gen Neo Delivers A Lo-Fi Cover Of Seal's "Kiss From A Rose"

Singaporean R&B singer/songwriter Gen Neo offers a sultry take on Seal's three-time GRAMMY-winning hit, "Kiss from a Rose."

GRAMMYs/Mar 5, 2024 - 06:03 pm

In 1994, Seal's completely self-written "Kiss from a Rose" won him the first GRAMMYs of his career for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, Song Of The Year, and Record Of The Year. 

Nearly 30 years later, Singaporean songwriter Gen Neo takes a turn at the microphone with a synth-driven rendition of the romantic track for the latest installment of ReImagined.

"Baby, I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the gray/ The more I get of you, stranger it feels," Gen Neo sings in the iconic chorus. "And now that your rose is in bloom/ A light hits the gloom on the gray."

Much like Seal, Gen Neo has written the majority of his solo tracks. He also has an extensive list of songwriting credits for K-pop artists like Henry Lau, f(x), Super Junior, Eric Nam, and more.

Gen Neo has continuously released singles since 2023, including "Same Mistakes," "Unless We Try," and "Stay." His most recent track, "KISS&TELL," which dropped on Feb. 23, is a collaboration with fellow Singaporean R&B singer Ethan Low.

Press play on the video above to hear Gen Neo's cover of Seal's "Kiss from a Rose," and check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of ReImagined.

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ReImagined: Britti Offers A Jazzy Rendition Of Ray Charles' "Georgia On My Mind"
Britti

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ReImagined: Britti Offers A Jazzy Rendition Of Ray Charles' "Georgia On My Mind"

New Orleans-based newcomer Britti delivers a blues-inspired cover of Ray Charles' GRAMMY-winning classic, "Georgia on My Mind."

GRAMMYs/Feb 20, 2024 - 06:00 pm

Thirty years after its original 1930 release, Ray Charles breathed new life into Hoagy Carmichael's "Georgia on My Mind." His 1960 cover eventually won him his first-ever gramophones for Best Performance By A Pop Artist and Best Male Vocal Performance Single Record Or Track at the 3rd Annual GRAMMY Awards in 1961.

Another 60 years later, New Orleans-based newcomer Britti enters the ring with her own rendition of "Georgia" for the latest installment of ReImagined.

"Georgia, Georgia/ No peace, no peace I find/ Just an old, sweet song/ Keeps Georgia on my mind," Britti sings in the video, shot by videographer Patrick Linehan. Her fast vibrato adds a haunting ambiance to her jazzy version of the classic.

On Feb. 2, Britti released her debut studio album, Hello, I'm Britti., via Dan Auerbach's label, Easy Eye Sound. The superproducer/Black Keys star also contributed to the songwriting and production of the project.

According to a press release, the songstress calls the LP "a love letter to the place she calls home, a triumphant ode to fresh starts in the face of heartbreak, and the culmination of a years-long journey she didn't know she was taking."

Press play on the video above to watch Britti's performance of "Georgia on My Mind," and check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of ReImagined.

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ReImagined: Watch TeaMarrr Deliver A "Radioactive" Rendition Of Imagine Dragons' Chart-Topping Single
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Photo: Courtesy of TeaMarrr

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ReImagined: Watch TeaMarrr Deliver A "Radioactive" Rendition Of Imagine Dragons' Chart-Topping Single

Rising genre-bending songstress TeaMarrr offers a charming take on Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive," the track that skyrocketed their career in 2013.

GRAMMYs/Dec 12, 2023 - 06:00 pm

Over a decade ago, pop-rock band Imagine Dragons took their career to the next level with their electrifying smash "Radioactive." It became one of their highest-charting hits at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and won them a GRAMMY for Best Rock Performance in 2014.

In this episode of ReImagined, promising pop newcomer TeaMarrr covers Imagine Dragons' life-altering track, and it might just be a sign of a "Radioactive" career of her own. She remains faithful to the original recording yet adds her own twist with new harmonies, quick ad-libs and light choreography.

"I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones/ Enough to make my systems blow," TeaMarrr cheers in the chorus. "Welcome to the new age, to the new age/ I'm radioactive, radioactive."

On Nov. 17, TeaMarrr dropped her debut studio album, You Should Prolly Sit Down For This, via Raedio, Issa Rae's imprint label in partnership with Atlantic Records.

"I want people to heal themselves with my sound," she explains in her artist biography. "I hope they walk away, thinking, 'TeaMarrr is my new musical pharmacist.' My catalog will heal whatever mood you're in."

Press play on the video above to watch TeaMarrr's bright rendition of Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive," and check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of ReImagined.

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