The Pretty Ones

"The Pretty Ones" is a song performed by British singer-songwriter Alesha. It was written and produced by Alesha with additional lyrics by Romo, who features alongside China and Emily Henning. The song was recorded for Alesha's sixth studio album Bigger Than God (2009). The lyrics lament three fallen stars who all bare similarities to Alesha's former collaborators Buffi, Shell Ruin and Taylor Brookes. Ruin allegedly took offense to the song's lyrics, threatening legal action and revoking Alesha's right to use songs she co-wrote for Bigger Than God. Eventually, Ruin digressed.

Musically, "The Pretty Ones" is a downtempo piano ballad with lyrics that lament the loss of beauty, fame and youth. The song then frantically changes into an upbeat, dance-punk song with guest vocals from China, Henning and Romo affirming their statuses as nouveau superstars. Romo wrote her own verse. In September 2009, Alesha released "The Pretty Ones" as the fourth single from Bigger Than God. It charted at number two, continuing a streak of platinum, top-two hits.

A music video for "The Pretty Ones" was said to co-star the featured artists, as well as Buffi, Shell Ruin and Taylor Brookes, as well as Putanovska. The video, to be set in New York City circa 1933, never premiered. Alesha performed the song on 2009's Apocalypse City Live world tour, as well as on two subsequent tours.

Background and composition
Alesha wrote the downtempo, piano-driven track "The Pretty Ones" while recording for her sixth studio album Bigger Than God (2009). The lyrics tell the tales of Heather – a drug fiend, Chloe – a "forgotten treasure" and Kimberly – a desperate fame junkie. The three fallen stars bare striking similarities to Buffi, Shell Ruin and Taylor Brookes respectively, all of whom collaborated with Alesha on the 2007 single "Power Power". To achieve her desired effect, Alesha approached three of the biggest stars from a "newer" generation – China, Emily Henning and Romo. Alesha didn't even play the song for Romo, so that the song would sound like two tracks stitched together. Alesha based China and Henning's verses off of Romo's.

Despite being close friends with Alesha, and a recurring collaborator, Shell Ruin took offense to the song's lyrics and threatened legal action against Alesha. Just weeks before the album was out in April 2009, Ruin almost revoked Alesha's right to use the songs she had co-written for Bigger Than God. Eventually, Ruin digressed and the pair resumed their fruitful friendship. "The Pretty Ones" was released as a single on September 28, just six weeks after Alesha's number one hit "Bear Dance". Alesha admitted the release was rushed in order to get the full mileage out of Bigger Than God before pursuing "bigger plans" – later revealed to be the Shell Ruin duet "Delusions of Grandeur". B-sides included "My Baby", recorded following Alesha miscarried, and "What Became of Us". A solo version of "The Pretty Ones" appears on the digital remix EP.

Reception
"The Pretty Ones" earned a positive response from contemporary music critics. Stewart Mason of Allmusic said the track was "a mature and engaging work revealing an exciting new side of Alesha, who has quietly turned into one of pop's most compelling presences." Liz Colville of Stylus Magazine suggested that "the piano’s winding melody might conjure a solo dance in an empty, furniture-less room," but "then the song transcends into an actual dance-punk fury." Pitchfork Media wrote that "clunky riffage and hi-hat beats replace simple piano figures and subtle adornments that draw out Haines' most stirring vocal performances to date, and the muted milieu highlights her natural, sensuous whisper, lending a sympathetic thrust to these broken-down anthems for a twentysomething girl."

"The Pretty Ones" entered the official singles chart at number two, continuing a streak of top-two singles effective since 2007's "The OH in Ohio"/"Candy Cigarettes". "The Pretty Ones" sold a total of 273,622 copies, enough to be certified platinum (before the digital era, 250,000 copies represented a platinum certification; now the number is 300,000 copies).

Music video
The music video for "The Pretty Ones" was said to have co-starred all three featured artists – China, Emily Henning and Romo – as well as Buffi, Shell Ruin, Taylor Brookes and Putanovska. Filmed in black-and-white and set in New York City circa 1933, the video was said to feature a gangster theme. A video never premiered, and it is presumed that Alesha could not compile all seven recording artists.

Live performances
Alesha performed "The Pretty Ones" was performed during 2009's Apocalypse City Live tour, Alesha's third world tour in as many years and her first to use stadiums as venues. The tour told the story of a dystopian future much like the one described in the song's lyrics. The following year, Alesha sang "The Pretty Ones" in a medley with first number one single "Infernal Superstar" on The Reckoning, a joint world tour with Putanovska. It was performed independently with all three featured artists at Judgment Day, a televised greatest hits concert held at Wembley Stadium in June 2010. Emily Henning also joined Alesha to sing her hit single "Folie de l'Amour", penned by Alesha and Ruin.

Legacy
Romo recorded a sequel to "The Pretty Ones" called "Turned Ugly", which reunited her with Alesha, China and Emily Henning in uncredited vocal performances, on her 2020 album Romo.

Track listing

 * CD
 * 1) "The Pretty Ones"
 * 2) "My Baby"
 * 3) "The Pretty Ones" (Mexican Swine Flu Infestation MetroMix)
 * Digital EP
 * 1) "The Pretty Ones"
 * 2) "My Baby"
 * 3) "What Became of Us"
 * 4) "Bear Dance" (live in Moscow)
 * 5) "The Pretty Ones" (music video)


 * Digital remix EP
 * 1) "The Pretty Ones"
 * 2) "The Pretty Ones" (solo version)
 * 3) "The Pretty Ones" (Mexican Swine Flu Infestation MetroMix)
 * 4) "The Pretty Ones" (Disco Bloodbath Remix)
 * 5) "The Pretty Ones" (Gui Borrato Remix)
 * 6) "The Pretty Ones" (Final Fantasy Remix)