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'Songland': Ester transforms Shawn's original song into 'Lean On', wins over fans with appealing upgrade

Fans felt that the 'Esterized' version of 'Lean On' was better than the original song 'Ain't Goin Nowhere' by Shawn Austin

It is no secret that Ester Dean is a musical wizard. On the latest episode of ‘Songland’, we got to witness her do what she is best at -- songwriting. Florida Georgia Line's Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley were the guest celebrities on the episode, and the amateur songwriters had to compose an original country song track that the duo could use during their tours.
 
While all the four songwriters showcased their exceptional talent in the first round, only three managed to make it to the final studio round. Each of these three participants was paired up with one of the coaches on the show. Although Shawn Austin managed to impress the judges and the coaches with his lyrics to ‘Ain’t Goin Nowhere’, there was still something missing from the track that could spruce it up further.

Shawn was paired with Ester. Together, the duo managed to come up with a lyrical masterpiece ‘Lean On’. With the help of Ester, Shawn rewrote his original song 'Ain’t Goin Nowhere' and made some tweaks that made the song a lot more appealing. When Shawn gave his final performance, coach Ryan Tedder couldn’t help but wonder how different the track was as compared to the original one. Shane McAnally joked that it had been "Esterized."

Fans weren’t mad about the Esterized version and praised her for refining the original number. A fan tweeted, “Alright, @EsterDean is winning me over with this re-writing of, “Lean On”. @NBCSongland #Songland.” Another fan remarked, “Lean on was really upgraded! Love it  #Songland.” “#Songland Lean On sounds pretty jamming,” commented a fan.
 
Although after the tweaking the song sounded good, it didn’t fit the bill for Florida Georgia Line, who were looking for a country track, and ‘Lean On’ had more of an urban vibe to it. A fan wrote, “The revised version of “Ain’t Goin Nowhere” now called “Lean On” was cool and vibey but I’m afraid by  “Esterizing it” @EsterDean made it a little too Urban/R&B for FGL’s liking and taste but it’s still a bop for sure #Songland.” Another fan expressed, “First up was “Ain’t Goin Nowhere” I loved the lyrics and melodies in this song but the actual tag where the title was at the end of the hook fell flat to me... I liked the “Lean On” idea the producers came up with #Songland.”
 
‘Songland’ airs every Monday at 10 pm EST only on NBC.