Jump to content

Acapella (Kelis song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Leandrio (talk | contribs) at 14:43, 2 September 2010 (→‎Procession and succession). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

"Acapella"
Song

"Acapella" is a song performed by alternative American R&B artist Kelis, taken from her fifth studio album Flesh Tone. The song is a departure from her past singles in that it is a dance/electronica track rather than hip hop.[1] The song was first premiered on her Twitter page and her official website in November,[1] but was digitally released February 23, 2010 as the lead single from the singer's upcoming album.[2]

The album is due in international markets on May 17, 2010[3] and in the U.S. in July 2010.[4] The song's co-writer Makeba Riddick revealed that the song had previously been called "Majestic".[5] Kelis stated that she wrote the song "with love and life in my mind"[6] and as a tribute to her son, Knight.[7] It has received positive reviews from critics many of whom praise the song for its inspirational lyrics and for its uptempo feel-good vibe which includes angelic harmonies.

Reception

The single has so far received universally positive reviews. Pitchfork Media gave the song a positive review, rating the track an 8 [out of a possible 10] and saying: "'Acapella' is a smooth, Donna Summer-style track with Kelis as an icy electro queen, a robotic embrace of house's metronomic bliss."[8] About.com's "Dance Music" section reviewed the track favorably, calling the song "majestic" and named it its "Song of the Day".[9] Entertainment Weekly called the song a "feathery dance-floor delight"[6] and placed the song on its "The MustList" for 2010 whilst Billboard magazine added the song to its 2010's "Best Bits" listing.[6] NME magazine also loved the song calling it "the most thrilling tune since "Milkshake"[10] whilst Heat said the "banger" deserves four stars.[10]

Nick Levine of Digital Spy was more than impressed by the song. He said "Will.i.am's been a busy boy lately, but what's the best thing he's done for us - the new Usher single ['OMG']? Nah. 'Meet Me Halfway'? Hmm... maybe. Signing Kelis... Bingo! We say this because 'Acapella' is quite possibly the most sublime slice of club pop we'll hear all year. Over tub-thumping beats ... Kelis delivers a heartfelt tribute to her baby son, Knight. "Before you my whole life was acapella," she gushes on the near-hymnal chorus, "Now a symphony is the only song to sing". The result is so uplifting, so full of energy and emotion, it doesn't just make you want to dance - it makes you want to dance with everyone who's a little bit special to you."[7] Fraser McAlpine of BBC Chart Blog was also gushing with praise for the song, saying "... [its] a song which is itself so sparkling and loveable as to make other pop songs seem un-inspired and un-glorious, even the really good ones. [The] melody has been launched from a throat of pure devotion, and is borne aloft by a host of angelic harmonies."[11]

Chart performance

"Acapella" is Kelis's third solo U.S. dance chart-topper and first since 2003's "Milkshake", not regarding her 2004 feature on Enrique Iglesias's "Not in Love" that also reached the top of the dance chart.[12] It remained at number one for one week, but the single did fail to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.

On 15 April 2010, "Acapella" debuted on the Irish Singles Chart at number 30, and climbed two places to 28 the following week. On its third week in the chart, the single rose a further 6 places to its current peak of 22. By the fifth week the single rose to number 17 on the Irish music charts breaking into the top 20. In the UK the song debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number five making it the singer's sixth top-five hit and ninth top-ten hit on the chart. In its second week it fell to number seven, however on the UK dance chart it has been number one for two consecutive weeks.

In Germany, it's her most successful single since "Trick Me" from the year 2004, reaching #21.[13]

Music video

File:Acapella.JPG
Screenshots of Kelis' video Acapella.

The clip was filmed in the first week of March 2010, led by a British team consisting of portrait and fashion photographer John "Rankin" Waddell and musical director Chris Cottam.[3] It was released to the singer's official Vevo account on March 29.

Techincal credits

Adapted from Video Static.[14]

  • Directors - John "Rankin" Waddell, Chris Cottam, Nicole Ehrlich
  • Producers - Coleen Haynes, Ron Mohrhoff, Nicole Ehrlich
  • Production company - HSI
  • DP - Christopher Probst
  • Editor - Zuk
  • Production designer - Charles Infante
  • Stylist - Paula Bradley
  • Hair - Anthony Dickey
  • Make-up - Kathy Yeung
  • Body painter - Nelly Recchia

Track listing

Personnel

"Acapella" was recorded at Casa de Kelis and mixed at Gum Prod Studios in Paris.[21]

Charts and succession

Chart (2010) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[22] 36
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[23] 9
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[24] 29
Czech Airplay Chart Top 100[25] 36
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[26] 9
European Hot 100[27] 20
German Singles Chart [28] 21
Ireland (IRMA)[29] 17
Italian Singles Chart[30] 12
Japan Hot 100[31] 68
Romanian Top 100[32] 41
Slovakia Top 100 Airplay Chart[33] 3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[34] 61
Ukraine Top 40[35] 19
UK Singles (OCC)[36] 5
UK Dance (OCC)[37] 1
U.S. Hot Dance Club Songs[38] 1

Procession and succession

Preceded by U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs number-one single
March 20, 2010 		Succeeded by
"Fancy Free" by Sun
Preceded by
"Hot" by Inna
 UK Dance Chart number-one single
18 April 2010 - 2 May 2010 		Succeeded by
Preceded by South African Singles Chart South Africa
August 14 2010 - August 21 2010 		Succeeded by
"Billionaire by Travie McCoy featuring Bruno Mars

Release history

Country Date Format Label
United States February 23, 2010 Digital download will.i.am music
France April 5, 2010[39] Polydor Records
United Kingdom April 11, 2010
Germany May 7, 2010 CD single Universal Music[40]
United Kingdom May 10, 2010 Polydor Records[41][unreliable source?]

References

  1. ^ a b Up for DiscussionPost Comment (2009-09-14). "Kelis "Flesh Tone" Album Preview". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  2. ^ a b "Acapella: Kelis: MP3 Downloads". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  3. ^ a b "Music - News - Kelis reveals new album details". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  4. ^ http://www.rap-up.com/2010/03/24/kelis-out-of-fashion-in-acapella-video/
  5. ^ "Makeba Riddick 'Change Up' album". Musicremedy.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  6. ^ a b c ""Acapella," Lead Single From Grammy-Nominated Singer-Songwriter Kelis' New Album, Available Now On The Itunes Music Store". Hip Hop Press. 2010-02-23. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  7. ^ a b Levin, Nick (2010-04-16). "Music Reviews: Kelis Acapella". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2010-04-17.
  8. ^ "Track Reviews: Kelis - "Acapella"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  9. ^ "Song of the Day: Kelis - "Acapella"". Dancemusic.about.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  10. ^ a b "UK press loves Acapella". iamkelis.com. 2010-04-26. Retrieved 2010-04-28. {{cite web}}: Text "last-anon." ignored (help)
  11. ^ McAlpine, Fraser (2010-04-15). "BBC Chart Blog: Kelis is back with Acapella (review)". BBC Chart Blog. Retrieved 2010-04-28.
  12. ^ Up for DiscussionPost Comment (2009-09-14). "Chart Beat Thursday: Taio Cruz, Ludacris, Peter Gabriel - Chart Beat". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
  13. ^ http://musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Kelis/?type=longplay
  14. ^ Gottlieb, Steve (2010-04-09). "Official video credits". Videostatic.com. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  15. ^ http://hmv.com/hmvweb/simpleMultiSearch.do?searchUID=&pGroupID=0&adultFlag=false&primaryID=0&simpleSearchString=kelis+acapella&btnSubmitSearch.x=0&btnSubmitSearch.y=0
  16. ^ http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/acapella/id371260232
  17. ^ http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B003FD8BKA/ref=dm_sp_alb?ie=UTF8&qid=1271770861&sr=8-1
  18. ^ http://www.amazon.de/Acapella-2-Track-Kelis/dp/B003IODO12/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1278463113&sr=8-5
  19. ^ http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B003JD066I/ref=dm_sp_alb?ie=UTF8&qid=1278463113&sr=8-1
  20. ^ http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/acapella-the-remixes/id364755470
  21. ^ Flesh Tone (Media notes). Will.i.am music group (Interscope-Geffen-A&M). 2010. p. 5. {{cite AV media notes}}: |format= requires |url= (help); Unknown parameter |artist= ignored (|others= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ "Kelis – Acapella" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  23. ^ "Kelis – Acapella" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  24. ^ "Kelis – Acapella" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  25. ^ Czech Airplay Chart
  26. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 22, 2010" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  27. ^ http://www.billboard.com/charts/european-hot-100#/charts/european-hot-100?begin=21&order=position
  28. ^ http://www.mtv.de/charts/germany
  29. ^ "Chart Track: Week 17, 2010". Irish Singles Chart.
  30. ^ Italian Charts
  31. ^ Japan Hot 100
  32. ^ [1]
  33. ^ Slovakian Airplay Chart
  34. ^ "Kelis – Acapella". Swiss Singles Chart.
  35. ^ Ukraine Top 40
  36. ^ "Kelis: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  37. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  38. ^ Trust, Gray. "Chart Highlights: Adult Contemporary, Country Songs & More". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  39. ^ Amazon France
  40. ^ http://www.kelis.de/releases/detail/product/163067/0/acapella/
  41. ^ http://www.radio1.gr/music/forthcoming_uk_singles.htm
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Acapella_(Kelis_song)&oldid=382483844"