Blackout (Britney Spears album)
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| Britney Spears studio album | |||||||
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Publication |
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admission |
February 2006 - August 2007 |
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| Label (s) | Jive Records | ||||||
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Format (s) |
CD, MC |
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Dance, Pop, R 'n' B, Electro |
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Title (number) |
16 |
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running time |
59:59 min. |
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| occupation |
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Blackout is the fifth studio album of American pop - singer Britney Spears . It was released on October 26, 2007 in Europe and on October 29, 2007 in the USA, each on the Jive Records label. It is the genres of dance , pop , electro and R 'n' B attributed. Blackout was voted " Album of the Year " 2008 at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 .
Music style and criticism
Blackout was received positively by most of the critics and rated as a clear further development of the artist. Some reviews even praised it as Spear's best studio album. The album features mainly danceable disco songs and only contains one R-'n'-B ballad. However, it was questioned to what extent Spears was responsible for the songs, since she only co-wrote two lyrics. In this context, critics said that the songs could have been sung by any semi-professional singer. Nevertheless, it received mostly positive reviews.
The album was also received differently by the fans. Most are of the opinion that it is a further development. However, the Proactive to Help campaign was launched by fans and former Spears employees , urging fans not to buy the album until Spears changes their personal life for the better.
Blackout was listed at number fifty in 2007 by Rolling Stone Magazine in their annual top 50 album release. It was later voted number seven of the best albums of the 2000s in a readers' poll. In November 2009, The Times named Blackout the fifth best album of the decade. In 2011 Rolling Stone called it "possibly the most influential album of the past five years".
promotion
The album was seen in the media as the singer's comeback attempt. The singer herself did not advertise the album except for her MTV Video Music Awards appearance, as she was in the middle of a custody battle for her two children during the release time. Even so, it was one of the most anticipated albums in 2007. The record company itself promoted the album heavily, including several commercials and promotional photos.
Commercial win
Even if Spears' fifth studio album did not immediately reach number 1 in the US charts like its predecessors in the USA due to a reform of the Billboard 200 system and she was therefore unable to expand her record (as the only artist to record the first four studio albums in a row 1st place), the singer was able to set a new record in the music market: no album by an artist has sold more than Blackout in the first week online through digital sales .
With 124,000 copies sold on the first day in the USA alone, it initially looked as if Blackout would take the top position of the album charts right away. However, since the Billboard 200 system had been changed shortly before that , the Eagles were able to take the lead with their new album, which sold 305,000 times in the first week (since the double album was counted as 710,000), as it was only in one store is offered, which is officially not relevant for the charts (WalMart). Blackout rose to number 2 with 290,000 copies sold in the first week. Spears was the only artist who made it into the top 2 of the US album charts with the first five studio albums in a row. The record was broken in 2014 by Beyoncé , who is the first female artist to reach number 1 on the US charts with her first five albums. The album was also able to show good placements worldwide. 1st place and a. in Canada and Ireland; 2nd place in Great Britain, France and Japan as well as top ten placements in Australia, Switzerland, Korea, Greece, Austria, Italy, Denmark, New Zealand, Belgium and Germany. Blackout sold over 400,000 copies worldwide in the first week after its release.
By the end of 2007, Blackout had sold 2 million copies worldwide. However, due to the complete lack of promotion, the album could not keep the initial good sales figures for long. 3.1 million copies were sold by November 2008.
Awards
The comeback album Blackout was nominated in 2007 for awards ceremonies in the USA and Europe in 2008. The most important awards are the three of the MTV Video Music Awards 2008 and the two of the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 .
| year | Award show | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Billboard Readers' Choice | Album of the Year | won |
| Virgin Media Music Awards 2007 | Album of the Year | 3rd place | |
| 2008 | NRJ Music Awards 2008 | Best International Album | won |
| Hit Music Awards 2008 | Best International Album | won | |
| Best International Female Artist | won | ||
| Best Song ( Gimme More ) | won | ||
| Imperio Music Awards | Album of the Year ( Blackout ) | won | |
| Best Female Video ( Gimme More ) | won | ||
| Sexiest Video ( Gimme More ) | won | ||
| MTV Video Music Awards 2008 | Best Female Video ( Piece of Me ) | won | |
| Best Pop Video ( Piece of Me ) | won | ||
| Video of the Year ( Piece of Me ) | won | ||
| MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 | Best Act 2008 | won | |
| Album of the year ( Blackout ) | won | ||
| Best act ever | nominated |
particularities
- The label sued internet gossip columnist Perez Hilton for posting several songs illegally on the internet before they were even released.
- There was great speculation in advance about the name of the album. On the artist's official website, the fans were given suggestions as to which to choose. Among other things, the titles What If the Joke Is on You , Integrity , Down Boy and Dignity were available. In the end, the record company decided on Blackout itself , which does not refer to the scandals of the last few months, but rather stands for excluding negativity and enjoying life.
- In Great Britain , Blackout far exceeded the success of its predecessor In the Zone , as it only made it to 13th place and Blackout jumped straight to 2nd place.
- The songs Piece of Me , Radar and Break the Ice only entered the US Billboard charts through high downloads in November 2007 , only Piece of Me was officially released shortly afterwards as a (second) single from Blackout . Likewise, the bonus track Everybody only made it into the Canadian Top 100 through high downloads.
- The cost of the video for the second single Piece of Me amounted to 500,000 US dollars .
- Break the Ice was released as the third single from the album; the single was released in Germany on May 2, 2008. The associated video clip is fully animated.
- Radar rose to number 8 in the Swedish charts without official publication, only through downloads .
- With Piece of Me , Spears won her first three Moonmen at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2008 after 16 nominations in previous years .
Track list
- Gimme More (Nate Hills, Alesha Dixon, James Washington, Keri Hilson, Marcella Araica) - 4:11
- Piece of Me (Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, Klas Åhlund) - 3:32
- Radar (Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, Henrik Jonback, Balewa Muhammad, Candice Nelson, Ezekiel Lewis, Patrick Smith) - 3:49
- Break the Ice (Nate Hills, James Washington, Keri Hilson, Marcella Araica) - 3:16
- Heaven on Earth (Michael McGroarty, Nick Huntington, Nicole Morier) - 4:53
- Get Naked (I Got a Plan) (Corte Ellis, Nate Hills, Marcella Araica) - 4:45
- Freakshow (Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, Henrik Jonback, Ezekiel Lewis, Patrick Smith, Britney Spears) - 2:55
- Toy Soldier (Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, Magnus Wallbert, Sean Garrett) - 3:22
- Hot as Ice (Faheem Najm, Hills, Marcella Araica) - 3:17
- Ooh Ooh Baby (DioGuardi, Fredwreck Nasser, Eric Coomes, Britney Spears) - 3:28
- Perfect Lover (Nate Hills, James Washington, Keri Hilson, Marcella Araica) - 3:03
- Why Should I Be Sad (Pharrell Williams) - 3:10
Bonus tracks
- Outta This World - 3:33 (US and Japan bonus track)
- Everybody - 3:18 ( iTunes bonus track)
- Get Back - 3:51 (iTunes bonus track)
- Gimme More ( Paul Oakenfold Remix) - 6:08
- Gimme More ( Junkie XL Dub ) - 4:59
success
Chart placements
| Charts | Top ranking | Weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Chart placements | ||
 Germany (GfK)
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10 (17 weeks) | 17th |
 Austria (Ö3)
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6th (13 weeks) | 13 |
 Switzerland (IFPI)
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4th (13 weeks) | 13 |
 United Kingdom (OCC)
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2 (31 weeks) | 31 |
 United States (Billboard)
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2 (34 weeks) | 34 |
Awards for music sales
| Country / Region | Award | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Awards for music sales (country / region, Award, Sales) |
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 Australia (ARIA)
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 platinum
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70,000 |
 Belgium (BEA)
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 gold
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15,000 |
 Brazil (PMB)
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gold
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30,000 |
 France (SNEP)
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gold
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50,000 |
 Ireland (IRMA)
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platinum
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30,000 |
 Japan (RIAJ)
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gold
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100,000 |
 Canada (MC)
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platinum
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100,000 |
 New Zealand (RMNZ)
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gold
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7,500 |
 Russia (NFPF)
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3 × platinum
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60,000 |
 Hungary (MAHASZ)
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gold
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3,000 |
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United States (RIAA)
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platinum
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1,000,000 |
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United Kingdom (BPI)
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gold
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100,000 |
| All in all |
7 × gold 7 × platinum |
1,565,500 |
Main article: Britney Spears / Music Sales Awards
Single releases
Gimme More
The first single from Blackout was Gimme More , a dance song that u. a. written by Keri Hilson and produced by Danja and published in Germany on October 26th. With this song Spears also appeared at the MTV Video Music Awards . In the US singles charts, Gimme More reached number 3 and was by then Spears' most successful single in the US since the debut single ... Baby One More Time .
Piece of me
The second single from Blackout has Piece of Me decoupled. In the song, Spears processes her relationship with the media and her early celebrities. One line says: “ I'm a Miss American Dream since I was seventeen. ”, Which means:“ I've been the American dream since I was seventeen. ”The song was produced and written by the Swedish producer duo Bloodshy & Avant.
Break the ice
On March 28, 2008, Break the Ice was finally released in the USA and on May 2, 2008 in Germany as the third and final single from Blackout . While Gimme More was being marketed through the VMA 2007 appearance and Piece of Me received attention through its textual content and the video clip, the promotion of the third single was completely canceled. Due to her private problems at the time, Spears could not even participate in the filming of a video clip. Eventually Robert Hales was hired to write the clip, who directed the fully animated video that portrayed Spears as a superhero.
Due to the complete lack of a promotion, Break the Ice was unable to build on the success of the previous singles and only achieved placements in the global charts around the world, e.g. B. # 25 in Germany and # 43 in the USA. For example, Sony BMG decided to only release Break the Ice in the UK in smaller stores to increase Blackout sales . This also worked, because the album returned to the top 20 of the album charts at that time, while Break the Ice only entered position 15. Only in Portugal (# 2), Bulgaria (# 3), Canada (# 9), Italy (# 7), Ireland (# 7), Finland (# 8) and Israel (# 8) did the single reach the top ten the respective charts. The song reached number 13 in Denmark and was awarded gold for over 7,500 copies sold. In the United States, more than 500,000 copies were ultimately sold, which led to gold status. Thus, Blackout is the first Spears album in the US to produce three singles with precious metal awards.
Spears first sang the song on her current Las Vegas show Britney: Piece of Me .
Chart successes
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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DE
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AT
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CH
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UK
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US
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| 2007 | Gimme More |
DE7 (12 weeks) DE |
AT8 (17 weeks) AT |
CH4 (21 weeks) CH |
UK3 (18 weeks) UK |
US3 (20 weeks) US |
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| 2008 | Piece of me |
DE7 (23 weeks) DE |
AT6 (26 weeks) AT |
CH19 (25 weeks) CH |
UK2 (23 weeks) UK |
US18 (20 weeks) US |
|
| Break the ice |
DE25 (9 weeks) DE |
AT39 (9 weeks) AT |
CH63 (5 weeks) CH |
UK15 (11 weeks) UK |
US43 (17 weeks) US |
||
Contributors
Choir and instruments
- Background : Jim Beanz, Robin "Robyn" Carlsson, Jamie Lynn Spears, Kara DioGuardi, Sean Garrett, Keri Hilson, Britney Spears, Windy Wagner, Pharrell Williams, Nicole Morier
- Keyboard : Avant, Bloodshy, Fredwreck
- Bass & Guitar : Klas Alund, Eric Coomes, Henrik Jonback, Fredwreck,
Web links
- Blackout at Allmusic (English)
- Criticism in the BBC (English)
- Review ( memento of August 17, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) from Billboard (English)
- Criticism from Rolling Stone (English)
- Review by The New York Times
- Criticism at laut.de
- Official music video for Piece of Me on YouTube
- Official music video for Break the Ice on YouTube
Individual evidence
- ↑ mtv.de
- ↑ Blackout by Britney Spears. ( Memento of the original from October 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. m & g CD review
- ↑ Oops, Britney Spears is making great music now . welt.de
- ↑ myspace.com
- ^ Entertainment.timesonline.co.uk
- ^ Rollingstone.com
- ^ Revised Chart Policy Lands Eagles At No. 1 billboard.com
- ↑ sonybmg.at ( Memento of the original from April 25, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ billboard.com
- ↑ mtv.com
- ↑ Keith Caulfield: It's Official: Beyoncé Makes History With Fifth No. 1 album. In: Billboard. December 17, 2013, accessed April 7, 2015 .
- ↑ prnewswire.com ( Memento of the original from May 11, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ ifpi.org (PDF; 1.6 MB)
- ↑ guardian.co.uk
- ↑ new.music.yahoo.com
- ^ Readers' Choice. ( Memento of August 17, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) billboard.com
- ^ Virgin Media Music Awards 2007: the winners. virginmedia.com
- ↑ nrj.fr: News report on Vienna.at ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c awards.hitmusichall.com ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c mtv.de
- ↑ mtv.de
- ↑ mtv.de
- ↑ Perez Hilton is sued by Britney Spears record company . ( Memento of the original from December 22, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. stylekingdom.com
- ↑ Upstart Hottie Britney rattles . nypost.com
- ↑ britney.com ( Memento of the original dated February 12, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ swedishcharts.com
- ↑ a b c d e Chart sources (album): DE AT CH UK US
- ↑ Chart Listing For The Week Of Jan 19, 2008. billboard.com; Retrieved January 12, 2008
- ↑ finnishcharts.com
- ↑ charts.co.il ( Memento of the original from March 30, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ acharts.us
- ↑ Britney Spears . Official German charts, GfK Entertainment; accessed on July 31, 2019.
- ^ Britney Spears in the Austrian hit parade. austriancharts.at; Retrieved January 12, 2008
- ^ Britney Spears in the Swiss hit parade. hitparade.ch; Retrieved January 12, 2008
- ↑ Britney Spears . Official Charts Company; accessed on July 31, 2019.
- ^ Britney Spears Hot 100 Chart History . billboard.com; accessed on July 31, 2019.
