Artist
H 'two' O Feat. Platnum
Why we feature this artist A question with a bassline doing half the talking What's It Gonna Be helped make the sound of British bassline pop immediately recognisable in 2008. H 'two' O's recording with Platnum places a bright, direct vocal hook above a low en…
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The story of H 'two' O Feat. Platnum
Why we feature this artist
A question with a bassline doing half the talking
What's It Gonna Be helped make the sound of British bassline pop immediately recognisable in 2008. H 'two' O's recording with Platnum places a bright, direct vocal hook above a low end that seems to bounce against the edges of the beat. The production is forceful, but its personality is playful rather than severe.
The groove leaves a gap for the answer
The track's main question works because the arrangement gives it somewhere to land. The bass has a springy, exaggerated shape, and the percussion leaves little pockets of space around the vocal. Platnum's performance sits inside that movement, sounding like part of the rhythm rather than a separate pop song pasted above it.
The contrast between the clear melody and the heavier instrumental setting gives the record its reach. The hook can be sung back easily, while the bassline keeps the production tied to a very particular club sound. Neither element needs to be softened for the other to work.
A club sound in a short pop frame
The original Hard2Beat release arrived in February 2008, with Ministry of Sound presenting the official video. Its UK chart run reached number two, a striking result for a recording whose low-end character remained so conspicuous in the finished single.
The appeal is still in the small acts of timing: the vocal arriving just ahead of the bass response, the brief spaces before a familiar phrase returns and the way the whole arrangement seems to hop forward. What's It Gonna Be makes its point quickly, then finds plenty of pleasure in repeating it.
Essential releases
What’s It Gonna Be
The original H ’two’ O and Platnum single balances a direct sung hook with the elastic bassline that gives the recording its identity.