Let me start off by saying I like how the music industry is letting artists release singles titled things you can't say on the radio. Sometimes, these explicit titles disguise the better songs off an album and shouldn't just be ignored because of objectionable language. For a good while, the only way for Pink to get a hit single was to put out a party anthem. Her first album was a strong R&B effort with memorable melodies and solid vocals. However, her breakout hit was "Get This Party Started," which was accepted as a sincere party song when Pink's intentions are never that straight forward. She camped it up in the video and got a lot of money for a piece of ear candy.
It took another seven years for Pink to get her first solo number one single*, "So What." "So What," a personal empowerment anthem, really marked the first time that Pink combined her flair for memorable pop melodies and slick production with her more personal approach to life. "Raise Your Glass," her only other number one single, took a similar approach.
Still, her more serious efforts were often ignored. "Funhouse," a twisted little pop song about her then rocky marriage to Carey Hart, peaked at number 44 in America despite being as catchy as her less personal music. "Stupid Girls," one of her more acerbic and empowering efforts, only made it to number 13 despite heavy radio rotation and controversy. And many times, her label won't let her release her best singles because of controversy ("Dear Mr. President," a personal letter to George W. Bush, was released everywhere but America and charted quite nicely for a very political song).
This trend might finally be changing. Her current single, "Fuckin' Perfect," peaked at number 2 and is still getting steady rotation on radio and TV. I'm just going to throw it out there and say a major reason for this success is the video. It's a dark vision of a young woman remembering her tumultuous childhood of abuse and depression. As personal as this story is, the feelings evoked by the song and video are universal to the struggles of growing up.
The video is beautifully shot and edited. That's no surprise. Pink's videos are always produced very well. It's worth a watch and a listen.
*That Lil' Kim, Christina Aguilera, and Mya version of "Lady Marmalade" she sang on went to number 1, but is nothing like anything else she's done since. It's an anomaly.