Kidz Bop/Nightmare Fuel

Kidz Bop may be a "children's" brand, but this doesn't mean it can't scare anyone, even adults.

Pre-era

The cover of "I'm Real" by Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule on album 2 literally starts with a drunk-sounding man screaming, "WHAT'S MUH NAAAAAAAAAME?!" It can catch listeners off guard.
To sum it all up, Kidz Bop Halloween (2004) as a whole. Literally every track (with the exception of "This Is Halloween") starts off with spooky sounds that can legitimately scare children, although it was undeniably intentional.
- "Thriller" is probably the scariest, mainly because it uses the word, "hell." It's the only time a Kidz Bop song has sworn.
Kidz Bop 9 utilizes novel authors associated with CINAR or 4Kids Entertainment, but the album still has covers that can catch you off guard.
- The ominous orchestral fanfare that starts "Don't Lie" by The Black Eyed Peas is still there, but this time, it's even higher-pitched, making it more unnerving than it already was!
- Their version of "Feel Good Inc." by Gorillaz from album 9 starts with laughter that sounds even more menacing and aggressive and will scare more than a few, especially children. The fact that is plays after the serene "You and Me" could make it worse! PacificKid1993 put it best: "DEAR GOD."^{[please verify]}However, some can find it funny.
- It only gets worse from there. Try being a kid from 2004 to 2009. You might recognize the voice as Screwhead from the series It's Not Scary!
More Kidz Bop Gold has hits that really groove, but their cover of The Bangles' "Walk Like an Egyptian" starts off with the chorus letting out, loud, high-pitched, shrill screams that go down in pitch, which can scare some listeners, especially those who have heard the original and know that it does not start off with screaming.
At the beginning of their cover of "Umbrella" by Rihanna featuring Jay-Z, on Kidz Bop 12, a group of voices shouts, "Oh! Come on!" While it's not overly terrifying, it sounds like a teacher seeing something she disapproves of, which can be a little much for some listeners.
Even if the song "4 Minutes" by Madonna featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland rocks, the same cannot be said for the intro, which is basically a bunch of kids chanting, "I'm out of time and all I got is 4 minutes" while ominous music plays in the background. This repeats for four times.
Kidz Bop covered "Disturbia" by Rihanna on their 15th album. If the woman's black accent doesn't bother you, the darkness of the lyrics can scare anyone who is sensitive, but the fact that it has two minors begging for release and the dark imagery accompanying the song in the commercial are scary even if you aren't.

First Era

Kidz Bop 17
- "Paparazzi" by Lady Gaga is about stalking someone, and the loud instrumentation is creepy enough (the minor key doesn't help things), but the fact that children are singing it makes it worse. Creepy Child comes into play here.
The loud synth fanfare at the beginning of Cascada's "Evacuate the Dancefloor" from album 18. While it grooves, it sounds more shrill and reverberated and doesn't start with the reverse cymbal, so you barely have half a second to prepare yourself.
- While their cover of "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy featuring Bruno Mars is neat to listen to, and the singing is less loud and aggressive, the minor key the refrain of the song can still be uncomfortable to listen to and there's still the "I'm gonna get rich whether you care or not" message.
The loud synth fanfare at the beginning of Justin Bieber's "Somebody To Love" from album 19 can catch listeners off guard due to how sudden and loud it is.

Second Era

The fact that their version of "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga literally starts with loud synth static and wind is disturbing in its own rights. It's even track 1 on Kidz Bop 20.
- The dramatic buildup in "On The Floor" by Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull can scare some.
- Sure, their cover of "More" by Usher is groovy, the way it ends is far from groovy. A loud, shrill and high synth note that abruptly stops isn't exactly my idea of a good song that kids can enjoy without being scared.
Lady Gaga's "The Edge of Glory" is already about suicide, which does seem a bit dark and has been very unsettling to most. The music may not sound ominous, especially with all of the censorship, but the "DeviantArt Novel Anime" chords in the pre-chorus could make it worse by bringing back unpleasant memories to anyone who's witnessed roadkill. Doubles as a Tear Jerker.
In their cover of "Starships" by Nicki Minaj on album 22, the kids replace "We're higher than a motherf**ker" with "We're Kidz Bop and we're taking over" in a distorted, increasing-in-pitch voice. Doubles as Paranoia Fuel.
- The cover of "Tonight is the Night" by Outasight does groove, but the refrain sounds rather bombastic and can scare more than a few.

Third Era

Two of the first eleven songs from album 25 were not previewed in the commercial, and for a very good reason. Some of the songs were by EDM instrumentalists featuring singers from Europe. Sometimes, when they get too rowdy, they'll incorporate certain sounds, such as gunshots (Zedd) or whip cracks (Calvin Harris).
- "Clarity" by Zedd and Foxes. The gunshots are left intact.
- The whip cracks in "I Need Your Love" by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding are much louder and more audible than in the original. Imagine being on the receiving end of one of those whips. Ouch!
They could've included many different songs on album 26, such as "Call Me Up" by Thomas Rhett, "Turn Down For What" by DJ Snake and L'il Jon, but no, they included "Dark Horse" by Katy Perry featuring Juicy J. As we still have the "There's no goin' back" and the subject matter (a witch warns a man not to fall in love with her), the fact kids are singing about witchcraft somehow makes it worse. How could they make kids sing that?
The start of their version of Ariana Grande's "Break Free" from album 27 is even worse than the original. It's louder, more overbearing, and sounds like a technology error or a computer crashing as a result of a virus. The actual synths were sampled from DeviantArt Will Ruin Your Life.
- When you realize the song's actually about inflation, it can double as Nausea Fuel.

Fourth Era

The terribly discordant synth sting at the beginning of "24K Magic" by Bruno Mars, from album 34. And keep in mind, this is what the album starts off with. It's very reminiscent to scary Indian Vanity Plates.
- There's also that one lyric in "Closer" by The Chainsmokers: they changed "That we beat to death in Tucson" to "That we played to death in Tucson." Keep in mind, Kidz Bop has never used any word relating to "death" in a song, and hearing this is kind of unsettling. Steve Terreberry put it best: "You're making kid-friendly music and you included the word death?!"

Fifth Era

Just their cover of "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X. If you're aware of the Satanic panic the song caused, elaboration is not needed. The music can be seen as a silver lining to the censorship, but it's too late now. The Satanic panic has already ruined the catchiness.

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