Iggy Azalea & Rita Ora Are Vying For Bey & Gaga's Crown

When two pop stars collaborate on a track and accompanying music video, it'll inevitably stir-up comparisons. So-and-so is the new Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer. World, meet the new Brandy and Monica. At first, Iggy Azalea's track with Rita Ora "Black Widow", the new single off her debut LP The New Classic, didn't bring to mind any glaring artist-to-artist similarities. However, after paparazzi images from the set surfaced, the direction the single's campaign has taken resembles that of Lady Gaga and Beyoncé's "Telephone".

The paparazzi shots show Azalea and Ora romping around in skintight body suits, with Ora sporting a wig reminiscent of Uma Thurman's 'do from Kill Bill. The bodysuits, too, take a cue from Thurman's yellow KB duds. Other images show the entertainers wielding samurai swords, Thurman's Deadly Viper Assassination Squad Black Mamba character's weapon of choice. Plus, Michael Madsen, Kill Bill's Budd, makes a cameo in the video.

From the typeface to the hip-hop video edits, Gaga's "Telephone" video was more of an ode to Quentin Tarantino than a riff on Kill Bill. She incorporated the film's famous Pussy Wagon, but that's about as KB as it gets.

Aside from the glaring Tarantino references, "Black Widow" treads further into "Telephone" territory with what looks like a diner scene. According to Azalea's Instagram feed, the video will begin with a diner sequence, with Azalea playing a (non nipple-baring) waitress. (Gaga played a waitress in her video, too.) Sure, "Telephone" climaxed at the diner, but that very environment is enough to sound the proverbial air horn that something's up.

This isn't and won't be the last time an artist's work eerily resembles another's, but with the buzz surrounding Nicki Minaj's Shadegate, the last thing Azalea needs is another attack at her authenticity.



Photo: via @thenewclassic.