Complicated (Avril Lavigne Song)
| Complicated | |
|---|---|
| Avril Lavigne | |
| publication | May 21, 2002 |
| length | 4:03 |
| Genre (s) | Pop rock |
| Author (s) | Avril Lavigne, Lauren Christy, Scott Spock, Graham Edwards |
| Label | Arista Records |
| album | Let go |
Complicated ( dt. Complexity) is a song by Canadian rock and pop - singer Avril Lavigne from 2002. The piece is the first single from Lavigne's debut album, Let Go , and was published on 21 May 2002 in the US as a single. Thanks to its high chart placement worldwide, the song represents Lavigne's commercial breakthrough as a singer.
background
After Lavigne signed her recording deal with Arista Records in November 2000, she moved to New York City with the help of Arista Records' executive director, LA Reid . There she began work on her debut album Let Go , on which she worked with several songwriters and music producers. For six months, the label let her work with two other songwriters, but this collaboration brought no significant success, so that Lavigne was on the verge of being terminated from her label. Her management gave her songs by other songwriters, but they all turned them down because she wanted to write songs herself. Lavigne moved back to Los Angeles where she worked with music producer and songwriter Clif Magness. Together they wrote the songs Losing Grip and Unwanted , which Lavigne could imagine as songs on her first studio album. However, Arista Records was not enthusiastic because of the heavy guitar-heaviness of the songs and continued to look for other producers.
Two years after signing the record deal, the producer trio The Matrix became aware of Lavigne. Arista couldn't find what she thought was the right style of music for Lavigne, so the manager of the music producing trio suggested that they work with Lavigne. According to The Matrix member Lauren Christy, they listened to previous Lavigne songs. When Lavigne walked into The Matrix's studio, they immediately noticed that their current style of music was inappropriate to their image and attitude. After speaking to Lavigne, Lavigne said she wanted songs with punk rock inclinations and played one of her songs for them. The Matrix told her to come back the next day and that afternoon they wrote Complicated and another song. They played this Lavigne the next day and Lavigne loved it. She presented Complicated L.A. Reid , who agreed with the style of music Lavigne and The Matrix were making with Complicated and designated the song as the lead single for their album.
Musical and content
Complicated is a pop - rock -Song with a length of 4:03 minutes. The song, written in F major , is four-four time and has a tempo of 80 beats per minute . Lyrically, the song is about people who disguise themselves to others and are not themselves.
reception
Complicated received a mixed reception from the critics. Alexander Cordas from Laut.de describes Complicated as "toothless", which means that the album drifts into such shallow waters while listening to it that a swimming ring is no longer necessary to free yourself from the smoothly ironed shallows of this record. " Armin Linder from Plattentests.de, on the other hand, considers the song “an irresistible hit, which shows no signs of wear and tear even after countless runs and in which Avril's innocent, relaxed voice is in top form.”. Christina Saraceno from Allmusic also rates Complicated positively. For them the song similar to Do not Let Me Get Me by Pink . The song has a “killer chorus” and is a “knockout radio hit”, the critic continues. Entertainment Weekly's David Browne , on the other hand, thinks the chorus is bad and wrote: "Too bad the song got stuck on the worst chorus lately."
In 2009, readers of Rolling Stone magazine voted Complicated 8th among the top singles of the 2000s . Billboard lists the song at # 83 on the Hot 100 Songs of the 2000s.
Commercial win
Complicated represents Lavigne's commercial breakthrough, with this song she was able to enter single charts worldwide for the first time. In the Billboard Hot 100 , the song first entered on June 1, 2002 at number 68. In the following weeks the song continued to rise in these charts until it reached its highest position there on August 3, 2002 with position 2. In total, Complicated spent 16 weeks in the top 10 and 31 weeks across the charts. The song sold over 1.1 million copies in the United States . Complicated debuted in the UK single charts on August 31, 2002 at number 84. After five weeks of the chart, the song reached its highest position at number 3, which it held for two weeks. In total it stayed in the top 10 for five weeks and 15 weeks in the entire charts. On March 2, 2013 Complicated reached the UK singles charts for another week. For over 400,000 copies sold, the single was awarded a gold record by the British Phonographic Industry .
Complicated entered the German single charts at number 5 on September 9th. In the third week of the chart, the song reached number 3, which could be held for three weeks. After that, the song was able to stay in the top 10 for another two weeks. The last chart listing in Germany took place on January 6, 2003 after 17 chart weeks. in the Ö3 Austria Top 40 rose Complicated an early September. Lavigne reached second place here, with a total of ten weeks in the top 10 and 21 weeks in the entire charts. The song was awarded a gold record by IFPI Austria . The picture in the Swiss charts is similar to that in Austria, where the highest ranking was achieved with second place in mid-September. The song spent twelve weeks in the top 10 and 29 weeks in the entire charts. Here, too, the IFPI awarded a gold record .
Complicated got number-one placements in Australia , New Zealand and Norway . Other top 10 placements were achieved in Belgium (Flanders: 3, Wallonia: 5), Denmark (2nd place), Italy (2nd place), the Netherlands (4th place) and Sweden (2nd place).
The Grammy Awards 2003 was Complicated in the categories of Song of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance nomination, but could not win any prizes. At the MTV Video Music Awards 2002 Lavigne won the Best New Artist in a Video category with the song .
Music video
The music video for Complicated was filmed by the film directors The Malloys in Eagle Rock Plaza Mall and Griffith Park in Los Angeles . The video was shot within 14 hours and the mall stayed open during filming. The music video starts with Lavigne, who asks her bandmates if they want to "crash" the mall. Together they skate in the mall, annoy other customers and employees, and generally cause chaos in the mall. These scenes are interrupted by footage showing Lavigne and her band performing the song in a skate park . The music video for Complicated reached over 349 million views on YouTube (as of May 2020).
Chart placements
| Charts | Top ranking | Weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Chart placements | ||
 Germany (GfK)
|
3 (17 weeks) | 17th |
 Austria (Ö3)
|
2 (31 weeks) | 31 |
 Switzerland (IFPI)
|
2 (29 weeks) | 29 |
 United Kingdom (OCC)
|
3 (15 weeks) | 15th |
 United States (Billboard)
|
2 (31 weeks) | 31 |
Awards
Awards for music sales
Complicated has been awarded 6 × gold and 6 × platinum worldwide. The single was sold over 2.1 million times.
| Country / Region | Award | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Awards for music sales (country / region, Award, Sales) |
||
 Australia (ARIA)
|
 2 × platinum
|
140,000 |
 Belgium (BEA)
|
 gold
|
25,000 |
 Brazil (PMB)
|
platinum
|
100,000 |
 Italy (FIMI)
|
gold
|
25,000 |
 Japan (RIAJ)
|
gold
|
100,000 |
 New Zealand (RMNZ)
|
platinum
|
15,000 |
 Norway (IFPI)
|
platinum
|
10,000 |
|
Austria (IFPI)
|
gold
|
15,000 |
 Sweden (IFPI)
|
gold
|
10,000 |
|
Switzerland (IFPI)
|
gold
|
20,000 |
|
United States (RIAA)
|
- | 1,100,000 |
|
United Kingdom (BPI)
|
platinum
|
600,000 |
| All in all |
6 × gold 6 × platinum |
2,160,000 |
Main article: Avril Lavigne / Music Sales Awards
Awards ceremonies
| year | Award | category | result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | MTV Video Music Awards 2002 | Best New Artist in a Video | Won |
| 2003 | Grammy Awards 2003 | Best Female Pop Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| Grammy Award for Song of the Year | Nominated | ||
| Juno Award 2003 | Single of the year | Won | |
| MTV Video Music Awards Japan | Video of the Year | Nominated | |
| Best Female Video | Nominated | ||
| Best New Artist Video | Won |
Formats
CD single (Europe)
- Complicated - 4:06
- I Don't Give - 3:39
- Why - 3:59
- Complicated - video
Individual evidence
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated Label: Arista - ARPCD-5099. Discogs , accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ^ Avril Lavigne, The Real Deal. MTV , archived from the original on December 26, 2008 ; accessed on February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Corey Moss: Britney Spears, Avril Lavigne Fall Into The Matrix. MTV , March 13, 2003, archived from the original on May 2, 2008 ; accessed on February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Gil Kaufmann: IT'S NOT 'COMPLICATED' - 17-YEAR-OLD AVRIL LAVIGNE WAS BORN TO ROCK. MTV , May 21, 2001, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Jenny Eliscu: Avril Lavigne: Little Miss Can't Be Wrong. In: Rolling Stone . March 20, 2003, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ^ The Matrix Writing & Producing in LA. Retrieved February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Notes Avril Lavigne - Complicated. musicnotes.com, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Alexander Cordas: For people with oversized beefsteak tomatoes on their ears. In: Laut.de . Retrieved February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Armin Linder: Missundaztood. In: Plattentests.de . Retrieved February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Christina Saraceno: Let Go - AllMusic Review by Christina Saraceno. In: Allmusic . Retrieved February 6, 2017 .
- ^ David Browne: Complicated . In: Entertainment Weekly . August 5, 2002, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ^ The Decade-End Readers' Poll. In: Rolling Stone . December 8, 2009, archived from the original on December 13, 2009 ; accessed on February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ 2000 Decade end Hot 100 Songs. In: Billboard . Retrieved February 7, 2017 .
- ^ The Billboard Hot 100 1st June 2002. Billboard , accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ The Billboard Hot 100 3rd August 2002. Billboard , accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated Chart Information. In: Chartsurfer.de. Retrieved February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Complicated Charthistory United Kingdom. Official Charts Company , accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Germany. GfK Entertainment , accessed on February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Austria. Hung Medien, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Switzerland. Hung Medien, accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Australia. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements New Zealand. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart positions Norway. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Belgium. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart positions Denmark. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart positions Italy. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Netherlands. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated - Chart placements Sweden. Hung Medien, accessed February 7, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne Videografia. Archived from the original on February 9, 2007 ; Retrieved February 7, 2017 (Italian).
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated Music Video. YouTube , accessed on February 7, 2017 (not available in Germany).
- ↑ Avril Lavigne Charthistory United States. Billboard , accessed February 6, 2017 .
- ↑ Avril Lavigne - Complicated Label: Arista - 74321945772. Discogs , accessed on February 7, 2017 (English).