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==Music video and alternate versions==
==Music video and alternate versions==

[[File:Hilary Duff - Dignity Tour.jpg|thumb|right|Hilary Duff performs "Play With Fire] live on her "Dignity" tour at Gibson Amphitheatre]]
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<!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:PlayWithFire.JPG|thumb|left|The video contains visual effects reminiscent of a [[house of mirrors]], according to directors [[Alex and Martin]].|{{deletable image-caption|1=Monday, 4 May 2009}}]] -->
The "Play with Fire" [[music video]] was directed by [[Alex and Martin]] and filmed in [[Toronto]], [[Canada]] in July 2006.<ref name="MTVNews-Aug2006"/> Alex and Martin have described the video as "real and surreal" and compared its [[visual effects]] to an amusement park [[house of mirrors]]. The directors said that they designed the video so that each [[film frame|frame]] is vital, writing "[f]or example, we could see a glass reflection close-up of Hilary vibrate and explode which then transitions to a completely different image behind her, then disintegrates into a new performing shot."<ref name="MTVNews-Aug2006"/> The video was inspired by the 1948 [[Orson Welles]] [[film noir]] ''[[The Lady from Shanghai]]'', and Duff said that "[i]t's definitely different from what anyone had seen before".<ref>Martin, Gloria. [http://www.oh-hilary.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=305&pos=7 "Big-Hearted Hilary Duff Proves as Generous as She Is Talented"]. ''[[Hello!]]'' Canada. September 7, 2006, iss. 1.</ref>
The "Play with Fire" [[music video]] was directed by [[Alex and Martin]] and filmed in [[Toronto]], [[Canada]] in July 2006.<ref name="MTVNews-Aug2006"/> Alex and Martin have described the video as "real and surreal" and compared its [[visual effects]] to an amusement park [[house of mirrors]]. The directors said that they designed the video so that each [[film frame|frame]] is vital, writing "[f]or example, we could see a glass reflection close-up of Hilary vibrate and explode which then transitions to a completely different image behind her, then disintegrates into a new performing shot."<ref name="MTVNews-Aug2006"/> The video was inspired by the 1948 [[Orson Welles]] [[film noir]] ''[[The Lady from Shanghai]]'', and Duff said that "[i]t's definitely different from what anyone had seen before".<ref>Martin, Gloria. [http://www.oh-hilary.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=305&pos=7 "Big-Hearted Hilary Duff Proves as Generous as She Is Talented"]. ''[[Hello!]]'' Canada. September 7, 2006, iss. 1.</ref>

Revision as of 10:26, 26 September 2010

"Play with Fire"
Song

"Play with Fire" is an electronic dance song performed by American singer Hilary Duff. It was written by Duff, Kara DioGuardi and Will.i.am and produced by Rhett Lawrence for Duff's third studio album and fourth album, Dignity (2007). The song is more dance-oriented than her previous work and makes use of more synthesizers, and less guitars, drums and keyboards.

The song was released to U.S. radio as the album's lead single in August 2006[1] to positive reviews from Billboard and The Washington Post. It reached the top forty on the U.S. club chart.[2] The song was remixed a number of times, and its music video was nominated for Best Direction of a Female Artist at the MVPA Awards in 2007.[3]

The song is included in Duff's greatest hits album Best of Hilary Duff.

Recording and style

According to Duff, a music video for "Play with Fire" was filmed before the song had been completed because she wanted it to be the album's first single. On the night following the rehearsals and wardrobe fittings for the video, Duff returned to the studio and finished recording the song three hours later, before a thunderstorm knocked out some of the equipment. Producer Rhett Lawrence submitted the song to the makers of the video the next morning, less than three hours before shooting was due to begin. Duff said that the situation "kind of worked out perfectly".[4]

According to Duff, "Play with Fire" and the other songs on the album are "more dancey" than her previous efforts and make use of more real instruments. "[I]t's fun and funky and different, something new for me. It's really cool", she said.[5] She has also described the album's sound as "a little less pop-rock and more electronic-sounding. It has a lot of dance melodies."[6] The "teaser" release of the single in advance of the album was, as she put it, "to give listeners a chance to get into my new sound, which matches the whole dance/electronic rock sounding vibe."[7]

The song is played during the first club scene in the 2006 film Material Girls, in which Duff stars. It is not listed in the credits on the DVD release; instead, her song "Happy" is in its place. "Play with Fire" was originally "Happy",[1] but the song's lyrics and instrumentals were changed, and "Happy" became a separate track on Dignity.

"Play with Fire" was released to Australian radio in the week beginning on April 23, 2007.[8] It was scheduled to be released as the second single from Dignity.[9]

Billboard magazine's Chuck Taylor described the song as being "less of the clichéd little-girl-playing-tough-pop/rocker than it is a truly intriguing exploration into darker, more experimental melodic structures that could attract a whole new crowd of late-night dancefloor minions to the Duff camp."[10] Allison Stewart, in a negative review of Dignity for The Washington Post, wrote that the song "boasts what may be the best kiss-off in months ("I don't have time for this, I'm off to play in Houston"), even if most of Duff's tween audience can't exactly claim it for everyday use."[11]

Music video and alternate versions

File:Hilary Duff - Dignity Tour.jpg
Hilary Duff performs "Play With Fire] live on her "Dignity" tour at Gibson Amphitheatre

The "Play with Fire" music video was directed by Alex and Martin and filmed in Toronto, Canada in July 2006.[1] Alex and Martin have described the video as "real and surreal" and compared its visual effects to an amusement park house of mirrors. The directors said that they designed the video so that each frame is vital, writing "[f]or example, we could see a glass reflection close-up of Hilary vibrate and explode which then transitions to a completely different image behind her, then disintegrates into a new performing shot."[1] The video was inspired by the 1948 Orson Welles film noir The Lady from Shanghai, and Duff said that "[i]t's definitely different from what anyone had seen before".[12]

The music video premiered on August 15, 2006 on MTV's Total Request Live in the United States. It reached number five on the Total Request Live top ten video countdown and remained on the show for nineteen days, until September 14.[13] In Australia, the video premiered during the week of April 23, 2007.[8] For the video, Alex and Martin were nominated for Best Direction of a Female Artist at the MVPA Awards, losing to Floria Sigismondi and Christina Aguilera for the video for Aguilera's "Hurt".[3]

Jane magazine described the "trippy visuals" in the video as being "a million miles away from the rainy, suburban comfort and adolescent longing of the clip for [Duff's] 'Come Clean'". The magazine also noted Duff's "sexy silver dress" in the video, writing that "she seems to be announcing a new grown-up woman, one who is diving headfirst into her 20s with a mission to distance herself from her bubblegum past." Duff said, "I haven't really done the super-sexed thing. That's not really me. There's a different way, a cooler way to go about it."[14]

Richard Vission created remixes of the song, and Billboard called the Richard Vission radio edit "a true work of art, refashioning Duff as a potential innovator — and heaven knows there are precious few of those these days ... It will be fascinating to see if this is an enchanting fluke, or if America is destined to at last see the arrival of its own Kylie."[10] A re-edit of the song's music video was released to accompany the Richard Vission remix.[15]

This is the first music video from a Hilary Duff album that was not to be seen on the Disney Channel.

Formats and track listings

These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Play with Fire".

U.S. promotion CD single[16]
  1. "Play with Fire" (Richard Vission remix radio edit) – 3:12
  2. "Play with Fire" (Richard Vission Mix Show edit) – 4:55
  3. "Play with Fire" (Richard Vission club mix) – 6:10
  4. "Play with Fire" (Richard Vission dub mix) – 5:55
  5. "Play with Fire" (original version) – 3:01
Official remixes
  • "Play with Fire" (Vada mix) – 3:17 (featured on the Wal-Mart Edition of Dignity)[17]
  • "Play with Fire" (rock mix) – 3:00 (featured on the Best Buy Edition of Dignity)[18]

Charts

Chart (2006)[2][19] Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 31

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalog
United States August 21, 2006 Hollywood Records promo single
October 3, 2006 digital download
Australia April 2007 promo single
New Zealand April 2007 Hollywood Records promo single

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Vineyard, Jennifer. "Hilary Duff: Psychedelic Dance Star? Singer Shoots Trippy Clip For New Single". MTV News. August 3, 2006. Retrieved August 4, 2006.
  2. ^ a b "Hilary Duff - Billboard Singles". Allmusic and Billboard. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
  3. ^ a b "Best Direction of a Female Artist". MVPA. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
  4. ^ Untitled [episode of Total Request Live]. August 15, 2006. United States: MTV.
  5. ^ "For The Record: Quick News On Hilary Duff, 'American Idol,' Kate Hudson, Travis Barker, Shanna Moakler & More". MTV News. August 14, 2006. Retrieved August 25, 2006.
  6. ^ "New Duff album to debut this fall". United Press International. August 20, 2006. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
  7. ^ Widran, Jonathan. "Hilary Duff Talks About The Making Of Her New Album Dignity, And Her Songwriting". SingerUniverse Magazine. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
  8. ^ a b "Request Hilary's 2nd single 'Play With Fire'". hilaryduff.com.au. April 23, 2007. Retrieved August 8, 2007.
  9. ^ "'Play With Fire' - the 2nd single from Dignity" but was scapped. hilaryduff.com.au. Retrieved August 8, 2007.
  10. ^ a b Taylor, Chuck. "Play With Fire" Single Review. Billboard. November 21, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2007.
  11. ^ Stewart, Allison. "Avril Lavigne and Hilary Duff: You Growl, Girls". The Washington Post. April 15, 2007, pg. N08. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
  12. ^ Martin, Gloria. "Big-Hearted Hilary Duff Proves as Generous as She Is Talented". Hello! Canada. September 7, 2006, iss. 1.
  13. ^ "The TRL Archive - August 2006". popfusion.net. Retrieved December 18, 2006.; "The TRL Archive - September 2006". popfusion.net. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
  14. ^ Lyon, Joshua. "The baddest good girl". Jane. December 2006–January 2007, pg. 88–92.
  15. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBplVDF0Zfg
  16. ^ U.S. 5-track promotional only CD. eil.com. Retrieved August 8, 2007.
  17. ^ Dignity Wal-Mart Edition. Wal-Mart. Retrieved August 8, 2007.
  18. ^ Dignity Best Buy Edition. Best Buy. Retrieved August 8, 2007.
  19. ^ Week of August 28,2006 billboard.com