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Crazy in Love

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"Crazy in Love"
Song

"Crazy in Love" is a pop–R&B song written by singer Beyoncé Knowles, producer Rich Harrison, rapper Jay-Z, and Eugene Record. Released as the first single from Beyoncé's debut album Dangerously in Love in the summer of 2003 (see 2003 in music), it reached number one in the United States and United Kingdom and the top ten on the majority of charts it entered across the world. The song contains a prominent horn sample from the Chi-Lites "Are You My Woman", and serves as the song's hook. "Crazy in Love" received a generally positive response from music critics; some referred to it as the best single release of 2003 while others criticized it and its accompanying music video for being too overtly sexual. Its success established Knowles as a leading solo performer, after several years as a member of the R&B trio Destiny's Child.

Writing and recording

"Crazy in Love" was co-written by Beyoncé, Rich Harrison, and Jay-Z, and was co-produced by Beyoncé and Rich Harrison. The song is built around a sample of the song "Are You My Woman", originally performed by the Chi-Lites and written by Eugene Record. The single was one of the most commercially successful songs of 2003. The song's lyrics recall moments of temporary romantic insanity that have her "looking so crazy in love".

Although Beyoncé had released singles as part of Destiny's Child, and had appeared as a solo artist on special soundtrack singles and guest appearances, the first single release from the Dangerously in Love album was seen as crucial in establishing her as a substantial performer in her own right; she and her record company first considered using "Naughty Girl" as the first single. While searching for a backing track, she discovered a struggling producer, Harrison, who played a beat for her that he had created from the song "Are You My Woman". He was commissioned to create a melodic track for the verses and chorus, and was going to write the lyrics too, until Beyoncé's manager and father, Matthew Knowles instructed Harrison to focus only on the music, as Beyoncé was writing the lyrics. Beyoncé had given Harrison only two hours to write the song, and problems soon arose, as he was severely hungover. He was able to write the music of the verses and chorus in time for Beyoncé's return, however, and she subsequently wrote the bulk of the lyrics and bridge.

After the completion of "Crazy in Love", record company advisors suggested to Beyoncé that she return to "Naughty Girl" as the lead single from her forthcoming album. It was believed that "Naughty Girl" would probably be a success, and a safe choice, allowing Beyoncé to convey the sexy persona that she had established with Destiny's Child; moreover, the general style, together with a well-known hook from Donna Summer's "Love To Love You Baby", was considered to be more commercial in sound than other songs Beyoncé had recorded for the album. "Crazy in Love" was seen as more of a gamble, and both the aggressive sound and attitude were somewhat different from Beyoncé's previous work.

Beyoncé insisted on moving ahead with "Crazy in Love", however, and although confident that the song was the correct choice, she felt that it might not perform well on urban charts. In order to move beyond Top 40 Mainstream markets, she enlisted her boyfriend Jay-Z to record a guest rap vocal performance. Like most of Jay-Z’s guest raps, the verse was recorded from memory, and provided a contrast to Beyoncé's more elegant vocal style. Beyoncé hoped that the combination would allow her to move beyond Destiny’s Child's reputation of pop-R&B, and as the deadline for the single's release approached, she submitted the final mixed version of the song.

Critical response

"Crazy in Love" attracted generally positive comments from reviewers. Tim Sendra of the All Music Guide praised the Australian release, and described the song as a "stunning pop masterpiece" [1], while Darryl Sterdan, writing for Jam! Showbiz, noted the song's "instantly addictive horn lines" [2]. Anthony DeCurtis for Rolling Stone also remarked upon the horn sample, and noted the contribution of Jay-Z, writing: "'Crazy in Love' ... roars out of the speakers on the strength of a propulsive horn sample and the charged presence of her pal, Jay-Z." [3]. Reviewing Dangerously in Love, Sam Smallman of Playlouder wrote: "'Crazy In Love' ... kick starts the album, and it is well chosen — the track is blatantly huge, a proper club banger, and a fine showcase for Jay-Z's new, more melodic flow" [4]. Whudat.com commented on the song's role as a club track, and noted that it was "the '1AM' track in the clubs"; it also gave it a rating of "90/100 degrees". [5]

The song also attracted some negative reviews, such as that of Marc Anthony Neil of Popmatters who called the song, "R&B on crack", and noted: "it's just some other shit and it don't let up" [6]. Bunny Hopkins of Bunny on a Stick criticized the song's music video, writing: "If I wanted to watch a fashion show, I'd watch my local cable channel's high school prom preview". She further criticized Beyoncé with the comment: "She’s unnecessarily trampy in this video, especially when she's spontaneously performing stripper moves on the sidewalk" [7]

The British magazine New Musical Express provided the single with the highest praise they could offer by voting it the best single release of the year, in their end of year review of 2003. [8]

Chart performance

"Crazy in Love" was solicited to radio on July 8 2003 in North America. Upon release, the song became a large success and was able to reach number one on nine of the major U.S. Billboard charts; it spent several weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, the Hot 100 Airplay, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, the Hot Dance Music/Club Play, the Top 40 Mainstream, and the Rhythmic Top 40. It also proved somewhat successful on other Billboard charts, but it only climbed to number twenty-eight on the Adult Top 40 format.

The single was a substantial hit throughout the world, and spent eight weeks at number one for the overall tracks and five weeks at number one on sales data chart on the United World Chart by Media Traffic. Top40-charts.com records that the single spent four weeks at number one on the European official singles chart, ten weeks on the world singles chart, based on sales from 65 countries, and eight weeks on the world airplay chart with the worldwide sample of 2650 commercial and public radio stations throughout the world by the radio station's Top 40 Radio Playlist Charts. It also spent three weeks at number one in the United Kingdom and two weeks at number one in Canada, with the latter based exclusively upon sales. Top40-charts.com, which counts airplay in addition to sales, recorded that the single peaked at number two in Canada. It reached number three in Australia and New Zealand. It has sold more than 3.2 million units worldwide, with cumulative levels of certification at around 2 million (Sales Only) and 4 million (Sales, Votes, Downloads and Airplay) respectively.

In 2003, Knowles also made history by being the first female artist to have a number-one single and number one-album Dangerously in Love in the US and the UK simultaneously. In the US, it has occurred when the album made a new entry to the top spot, while the single reached to the top position from number 3 in the previous week. (Only one-week simultaneous in the US). In the UK, the album was released one week earlier than the single. Like the US, it too made a new entry to number one for her album. (Evanesence's single "Bring Me To Life" made the top that week). The following week, both singles and albums were number one simultaneously for three consecutive weeks. This made her the second female artist to have a simultaneous number ones for the Official UK Chart in the 21st century (The first was Kylie Minogue with the album "Fever" and single "Can't Get You Out of My Head"). The album had one more week at number one while the single dropped to number two the next week. (Daniel Bedingfield's single "Never going to leave your side" had the number one spot that week). (ie. Five consecutive weeks at number one for the album and three of those weeks at the top consecutively for the single co-inciding with the album in the UK).

  • Her album and single was simultaneous in both countries (US and UK) at the same time from July 12 to July 20 (1 week).

Music video

The music video, which was filmed by Jake Nava, is relatively plotless. The opening scene begins with Knowles wearing a tank top, shorts, and red high-heels. She performs an elaborate solo dance on a riser. The scene shifts to a gold set detailing a mock photo shoot, before moving into a scene with dancers detailing Knowles and dancing against a wall while wearing caps and full length pants. In a controversial sequence, the video then shifts into its next scene, which shows a helpless Beyoncé struggling inside a car. She is apparently unaware that there is a trail of gasoline outside of the car, which Jay-Z ignites, causing the car to explode.

Knowles does not appear injured; next, she is dancing to Jay-Z's solo rap in an exotic silk print over a fur coat, and decides to kick a fire hydrant. She continues to dance whilst the water is flying all over the place. The video ends with Knowles and her dancers in front of a giant fan in vibrant dresses in contrast to the more neutral colors of the background.

Awards

By 2005 the digital downloads of "Crazy in Love", counting sales of the original version and the remixes of the song, known as "Krazy in Luv", had sold over 100,000 copies. As a result of this, the song was awarded the gold single certification by the RIAA for sales of at least 100,000 digital downloads. (Note: Sales of the DVD single and 12" maxi single were not counted in this tabulation). In terms of certification, the song has also been recognized in the U.K. by the Official U.K. Charts Company (OCC) and in Australia by ARIA; unlike the USA, it has been recognized for mostly shipments of the CD single earning a silver (for shipments of at least 265,000 units) and platinum [9] certification respectively. It was also ceritified gold in New Zealand by RIANZ after spending sixteen weeks in the official singles chart. (At least 5,000 to 6,500 units sold in NZ for shipments).

Beyoncé was nominated for three Grammy Awards for "Crazy in Love" at the 2004 ceremony, in the categories of Record of the Year, Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, winning the last two. The award for "Record of the Year" was won by Coldplay's "Clocks". A remix of "Crazy in Love" known as "Krazy in Luv" (Maurice's Soul Nu mix) won the award Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical for the remixer, Maurice Joshua).

The music video of the song won acclaim from both American and international video awarding-committees. It was nominated for four 2003 MTV Video Music Awards in the categories of Best Female Video, Best R&B Video, Best Choreography, and Viewer's Choice. It won the awards for "Best Female Video", "Best R&B Video", and "Best Choreography", but the "Viewer's Choice" award was won by Good Charlotte for their single, "Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous". In Europe, the "Crazy in Love" video won the award for "Best Song" at the 2004 MTV Europe Music Awards. The song has also been recognized by Beyoncé's peers in the urban markets, and won the award for Best Collaboration at the BET Awards in 2004. Vibe magazine's "Vibe Awards" also recognized the song for "Coolest Collabo" in 2003.

Formats and track listings

These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Crazy in Love".

  • U.S. DVD single
  1. "Crazy in Love" (music video)
  2. "Behind the Scenes of 'Crazy in Love'" (video)
  • Canadian/Australian CD single
  1. "Crazy in Love" (Album version featuring Jay-Z)
  2. "Summertime" (featuring P. Diddy)
  3. "Krazy in Luv" (Maurice's Nu Soul remix)
  4. "Krazy in Luv" (Rocwilder remix)
  • European enhanced CD single
  1. "Crazy in Love" (album version featuring Jay-Z)
  2. "Summertime" (featuring P. Diddy)
  3. "Krazy in Luv" (Maurice's Nu Soul remix)
  4. "Crazy in Love" (CD-ROM music video)
  • UK vinyl single
  1. "Crazy in Love" (album version featuring Jay-Z)
  2. "Crazy in Love" (instrumental album version)
  3. "Crazy in Love" (rockwilder remix)
  4. "Crazy in Love" (Pego's Poontin Muzik dub)

Charts

Chart (2003) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 1 (8 weeks)
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Airplay 1 (7 weeks)
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks 1 (3 weeks)
U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Tracks 1 (6 weeks)
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play 1 (1 week)
U.S. Billboard Top 40 Tracks 1 (1 week)
U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream 1
U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 1
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Airplay 7
U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 29
Irish Singles Chart 1 (4 weeks)
UK Singles Chart 1 (3 weeks)
Chile Singles Chart 1 (1 week)
Taiwanese Singles Chart 1 (1 week)
Australian Singles Chart (ARIA) 2
Canadian Singles Chart 2
Dutch Singles Chart 2
Spanish Singles Chart 2
New Zealand Singles Chart (RIANZ) 3
Italian Singles Chart 5
German Singles Chart 6
Japanese Singles Chart 9
French Singles Chart 21
World Chart Show 1 (4 weeks)
United World Tracks Chart 1 (8 weeks)
World Airplay Top 100 1 (8 weeks)
World Physical Sales Chart 1 (10 weeks)
Europe Official Singles Chart 1 (4 weeks)

Notes and references

  1. ^ Sendra, Tim Crazy in Love (Australia CD) Review. All Music Guide. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  2. ^ Sterdan, Darryl Beyonce Album Review: DANGEROUSLY IN LOVE. Jam! Showbiz. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  3. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony Dangerously in Love Review. Rolling Stone. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  4. ^ Smallman, Sam Review - Dangerously in Love. PlayLouder. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  5. ^ CG Dangerously in Love - Music Review. Whudat. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  6. ^ Neal, Marc Anthony Dangerously in Love - PopMatters Music Review. PopMatters.com. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  7. ^ Hopkins, Bunny Crazy in Love - Video Review. Bunny on a Stick.com. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  8. ^ Rocklist (NME) 2003. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.
  9. ^ ARIA 2003 Certification Singles 2003 Certification. Retrieved Oct. 30, 2005.
  • Beyoncé (2003). "Crazy in Love" (DVD single) New York: Columbia Records Co.— Beyoncé explains the making of the video
  • Beyoncé (2004). Live at Wembley (DVD/CD) New York: Columbia Records Co.— Beyoncé explains the risks she took by making this song her first single.
  • D'Angelo, Joe Road To The Grammys: The Making of Beyonce's 'Crazy In Love'" , MTV.com Retrieved Oct. 28, 2005.— Rich Harrison talks about the creation of "Crazy in Love".
  • Bronson, Fred (2003, 5th ed.). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN 082-307677-6— more information on the creation of "Crazy in Love"
  • "40 Top 20 & Top 40 Music Charts from 25 Countries" (2005). top40charts.com. Retrieved from Full Chart History of "Crazy in Love" by Beyonce feat. Jay-Z on Oct. 28, 2005.— International chart information.
  • Media Traffic - United World Chart: Singles and Album Data.
  • Top Hits Online - Personal Chart by beyondradio.com and Alaska Jim's Music Archive: Weekly Chart Evidence.
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