I have said many times on this blog that Hilary Duff's Dignity is one of the greatest, most underrated pop albums of the 2000s... maybe ever. The pop starlet is usually out of the headlines and Hollywood spotlight these days, taking care of her little boy Luca, but there was once a time when Duff was on the top.
Duff's recent claims to fame have been a guest stint on Gossip Girl, two books she co-wrote and an appearance in the movie Stay Cool, which I happened to really enjoy. When the teen icon was basking in her fame with her portrayal of Lizzie McGuire and a dozen family films, Duff decided to become a singer as well. All of her albums achieved commercial success, except for her greatest effort, 2007's Dignity, her last album of new material to date. The album was amazing and far beyond its time. It saw the release of three singles, "Play With Fire", "With Love", her highest charting single, and "Stranger", all amazing, but there was once talks about a fourth single that never happened. If things were different, what should have been the album's next release?
Back in 2007, rumors suggested that "Gypsy Woman", a track thought to have been written about Nicole Richie, would be the album's fourth and final single. But with album sales starting to decline and Duff venturing out of her next tour, plans were scrapped, the first of many, by Duff's label, Hollywood Records. After "Stranger" disappointed on the charts, which took me by surprise, "Gypsy Woman" would have made a nice follow-up release since it seemed to be the sequel to the former song. The music video would have been a perfect fit in the story line. However, I don't know if the track would have found the right audience. It was a great track, just something very different for Hilary.
The song featured dark lyrics of a promiscuous woman breaking up a family and ruining a reputation. Duff has stated numerous times that the song was not written with Richie in mind, and after seeing her family go through a divorce, I think it is safe to say the song was about the woman responsible for it all. The song holds real meaning for the actress/singer and I think it would have been a good choice to let people on to her usually private personal life. Duff's vocals are good and it features a sound that would have been new and fresh coming out in 2007/2008. If "Stranger" would have been more successful then I could see Duff and her label quickly moving to get this track on the radio, but I guess we will never know the success it would have garnered. 4th single material?
To be safe though, if Dignity was going to have a fourth single, then all my money would have been on the sad but empowering "Happy". From the chilling opening, to Duff's soft and emotional vocals, I loved everything about this track the first time I heard it. Any boy or girl who experienced a terrible breakup would have been able to relate to Duff's lyrics, which she wrote herself. "There's a reason why we meant, and I'm glad that we did" is a powerful lyric about someone who would always bring you down, but without them you would have never been able to find the strength you have within. The song has a nice dance beat and is something real and heartfelt, nothing like what's on the radio today.
"Happy" would have been my choice for the album's fourth and final single because I feel it perfectly wraps up what Duff was going through when she was recording the album. She experienced a public breakup, but can say that she came out of the ordeal stronger and wiser, that is what the song represents, a brand new woman. We were all able to see Hilary grow up in front of our eyes, I mean it still shocks me to know she is married with a kid, and "Happy" was her cry for independence. I always pictured a sassy, attitude-filled, revenge video to accompany this awesome track, and it makes me a little sad to know that will never happen. Do you agree with my "Happy" choice?
Honorable mentions: "Burned" is another single worthy track off Dignity, while "Holiday" is the song I would consider to be Duff's greatest achievement to date. Sad to see it featured only on a ridiculous greatest hits album. Oh what could have been!
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