Radio (Beyoncé song)
"Radio" | |
---|---|
Beyoncé | |
from the album I Am... Sasha Fierce | |
Recorded | 2008 |
Genre | |
Length | 3:38 |
Label | Columbia |
Songwriter(s) |
|
Producer(s) | Jonsin |
"Radio" is a song recorded by American singer
"Radio" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics, who generally praised Knowles's departure from her usual R&B style. Some of them also complimented the believability as well as the originality of the song and chose it as the standout track of I Am... Sasha Fierce. In September 2009, "Radio" was used to promote Dutch radio station Radio 538, and it subsequently charted for six weeks on the Dutch Top 40 chart, where it peaked at number 14. It also reached number five on its urban chart. "Radio" was part of Beyoncé's set list on her I Am... World Tour (2009–10) and was included on the live album I Am... World Tour (2010).
Production and composition
"Radio" was written by
It just seems like a feel-good record but when you really listen to the lyrics, it's about me growing up. In my household, I didn't go all of the parties and I didn't do all the things that a lot of the other teenage girls did because I was so in love with my radio and my music. I was so in love with this radio and my parents were happy that I was into something positive.[6]
According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by
The believability of the song's lyrics, which conveys love testaments as well as its timeless endurance, sung on sensual vocal arrangements by Beyoncé, who additionally adopts a sneering attitude, demonstrates her alter ego Sasha Fierce.[7][13] Lyrically, "Radio" explores the relationship between Beyoncé as the female protagonist and the songs played on the radio,[14] shown in the lyrics: "You're the only one that Papa allowed in my room with the door closed / We'd be alone / And Mama never freaked out when she heard it go boom / 'Cause she knew we were in the zone".[15] Amy Linden of Vibe magazine felt that "Radio" could make an ideal "valentine" song because of its lyrical content.[16]
Critical reception
"Radio" received generally positive reviews from contemporary critics, who praised Knowles's brief departure from usual
James Reed of The Boston Globe described "Radio" as fun, bouncy, and ideal for a night at the club.[7] Similarly, Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly wrote that the "spiky, Europop throb" of "Radio" expertly taunt the boys and fill the dance floor.[5] Darryl Sterdan of Jam! was surprised by the new musical direction of Beyoncé but concluded that "... you better believe it ... it kinda works".[3] Daniel Brockman of The Phoenix described "Radio" as the most believable song on the album, and complimented its "amid bland testaments to love's timeless endurance and the smut and thuggin[g] of the 'Sasha Fierce' persona, [which] is one with sensual overtones sung to an electronic device that, unlike men, 'never lets me down'".[13] Echoing Brockman's sentiments, Amy Linden of Vibe magazine, who wrote that 1980's electropop and the sleek Valentine music of "Radio" tells the story of Beyoncé's alter ego.[16] Similarly, Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond of The Village Voice wrote that "Radio" "show[s] [that] Sasha [is] just a good girl playing fierce".[18] By contrast, Matos Michaelangelo of The A.V. Club said that "Radio" sounds like "shameless target-marketing" aiming at programming directors.[19] On The Village Voice' 2008 year-end Pazz & Jop singles list, "Radio" was ranked at number 443.[20]
Credits and personnel
- publisher, vocals producer, writer
- Jim Caruana – recorder, vocals recorder
- Matt Green – mixerassistant
- Beyoncé Beyoncé – vocals, writer
- Anton Bakholdin – writer
- James Scheffer – producer, recorder, writer
- Mark "Spike" Stent– mixer
Source:[21]
Promotion and chart performance
Beyoncé performed "Radio" on her
Chart (2009) | Peak position |
---|---|
Dutch Top 40[25] | 14 |
Dutch Urban Chart[27]
|
5 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[28] | 75 |
References
- ^ Hal Leonard Corporation.)
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help - ^ a b c McGuire, Colin. (February 9, 2009) Review: I Am... Sasha Fierce Archived 2013-05-24 at the Wayback Machine. PopMatters. Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b c Sterdan, Darryl (November 18, 2008). "Review Album: Beyoncé - I Am... Sasha Fierce". Jam!. Sun Media. Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Guardian News and Media). Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ Time Inc. Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Beijing date announced for Beyonce's "I AM..." world tour". China Daily. October 13, 2009. Archived from the original on October 24, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b c d Reed, James (November 18, 2008). "Beyoncé branches out". The Boston Globe. The New York Times Company. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ Hoard, Christian. (November 18, 2008) Review: I Am... Sasha Fierce Archived 2011-08-04 at the Wayback Machine. Rolling Stone. Wenner Media. Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b Westhoff, Ben (November 20, 2008). "CD Review Beyoncé, 'I Am . . . Sasha Fierce' (Columbia)". OC Weekly. Village Voice Media. Archived from the original on February 6, 2010. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Bijonse iskopirala Seku! Ma daj…" [Beyoncé copied Seka! Come on...]. Tračara (in Serbian). August 17, 2009. Archived from the original on January 12, 2010. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
- ^ Jovana (August 17, 2009). "Bijonse pokrala Seku Aleksić?!" [Beyoncé ripped off Seka Aleksić?!]. Tračarenje (in Serbian). Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
- ^ "Video: Dve pesmi, ena melodija" [Video: Two songs, one melody]. Radiotelevizija Slovenija (in Slovenian). August 22, 2009. Archived from the original on June 22, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
- ^ a b Brockman, Daniel (December 2, 2008). "Beyoncé | I Am . . . Sasha Fierce - CD Reviews - Boston Phoenix". The Phoenix. Phoenix Media/Communications Group. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ Freedom du Lac, J. (November 18, 2008). "Beyoncé's More Fun When She's 'Fierce'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b "Cinquemani, Sal. (2008-11-12) Review: I Am... Sasha Fierce Archived 2012-10-10 at the Wayback Machine. Slant Magazine. Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b Linden, Amy (November 18, 2008). "Beyoncé: I Am...Sasha Fierce". Vibe. InterMedia Partners. Archived from the original on May 2, 2009.
- ^ Kraines, Talia (November 17, 2008). "Beyoncé I Am...Sasha Fierce Review". BBC Music. BBC. Archived from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ Brew-Hammond, Nana Ekua. (December 17, 2008) Review: I Am... Sasha Fierce Archived 2015-01-26 at the Wayback Machine. The Village Voice. (Village Voice Media). Retrieved on December 21, 2011.
- ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (November 17, 2008). "Music - Album Review - Beyoncé: 'I Am... Sasha Fierce'". The A.V. Club. The Onion, Inc. Archived from the original on October 1, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles - 2008". The Village Voice. Village Voice Media. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
- Knowles, Beyoncé (2008). I Am... Sasha Fierce [Deluxe Edition] (Liner Notes)(Compact Disc). Beyoncé Knowles. Los Angeles, California: Columbia Records. p. 12. 88607 42884 2.
- Amazon.com (Germany) Amazon Inc. Archived from the originalon January 20, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Radio 538: TV Commercial". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2013-12-05. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – 19 September 2009 Week 38" (in Dutch). Top 40 Netherlands. Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ a b "Nederlandse Top 40 – 17 October 2009 Week 41" (in Dutch). Top 40 Netherlands. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – 24 October 2009 Week 43" (in Dutch). Top 40 Netherlands. Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ MegaCharts Urban Top 100. 2009. Archivedfrom the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
- ^ "Beyoncé – Radio" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.