It’s the song that you can’t escape. Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” is like an airborne virus, infecting everyone it comes into contact with. You don’t need to listen to the radio or even know how to pronounce the Australian artist’s name (it’s got-eee-ay, if you’re interested). The song is as much a part of you as your own soul.
So it’s no surprise that “Somebody That I Used to Know” is being by every show that dares to cover music. In the past 10 days, it’s been performed on NBC’s The Voice and on FOX’s Glee and American Idol. And this Saturday the man himself will be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. That’s a whole lot of angsty, break-up music for a fortnight.
So naturally, we’ll put it to a vote. Below you can watch all four versions and determine which one is your favorite. We have:
-Blaine (Darren Criss) and his big brother Cooper (Matt Bomer) singing it on Glee, reinterpreting it as a song about sibling rivalry rather than a romantic break-up
-Lindsey Pavao from The Voice doing a more gothic version
–American Idol finalists Phillip Phillips and Elise Testone performing it as a very disconnected duet
-And, of course, the weird, artistic music video for the original song
–UPDATE: Per a BuddyTV user bradtoughy’s suggestion, I’ve added a superb a cappella version from the winners of season 3 of NBC’s The Sing-Off, Pentatonix
So watch all four and vote for your favorite rendition of “Somebody That I Used to Know.” Then wait two or three months for the song to be replaced by another break-up song from someone in a foreign country. After all, Gotye seems to be replacing Adele, so maybe next we’ll get a South African woman singing about someone like you who she used to know.
Glee Version
The Voice Version
American Idol Version
Original Version
Pentatonix Version
(Image courtesy of FOX, Videos courtesy of FOX , NBC and YouTube)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
