The Worst (Jhené Aiko song)

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"The Worst"
PBR&B[1]
Length4:14
LabelARTclub, ARTium, Def Jam
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Fisticuffs
Jhené Aiko singles chronology
"Bed Peace"
(2013) 		"The Worst"
(2014) 		"To Love & Die"
(2014)

"The Worst" is a song by American recording artist Jhené Aiko released on her debut EP Sail Out (2013). The song was released as its second official single and serviced to rhythmic contemporary radio on January 14, 2014, through ARTium and Def Jam Recordings. "The Worst" was written by Aiko, Myron Birdsong and produced by Fisticuffs. The song offers a sample of the 2003 single "Excuse Me Miss" by Jay-Z.

"The Worst" is an

Best R&B Song at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards
.

An accompanying video directed by Danny Williams was released on November 11, 2013. The video depicts the aftermath of the murder of Aiko's boyfriend. Aiko performed the track on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, BBC Radio 1′s Future Festival and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. "The Worst" was remixed by

RIAA.[3]

Background

It was revealed in 2012 that Jhene Aiko's debut EP would feature production from producer Fisticuffs, who helped produce the majority of Aiko's 2011 mixtape Sailing Soul(s).[4]

Critical reception

Writing on behalf of

Consequence of Sound, BJ called the song "forgettable", continuing on to say that the song does not "stick".[5] Ryan B. Patrick of Exclaim! also gave the song a negative review stating that "The Worst" lacks "weight" and does not achieve the "intended trance effect," instead disappearing into the "ether" like "smoke."[6]

Commercial performance

On May 2, 2014 "The Worst" rose 3-1 on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. With this achievement, Aiko became first female artist to top the chart as a lead with a debut single since Jazmine Sullivan reached the same feat with "Need U Bad" in 2008.[7] The Worst also rose forty seven to forty three on the Hot 100.[7] The song peaked on the US Billboard Hot 100 at forty-three, becoming Aiko's first solo release to chart in the region, the song also peaked at number eleven on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[8][9]

Promotion

On November 11, 2013 Aiko debuted the song's accompanying music video.[10] The video depicts Aiko being driven to murder due to her bad relationship, the video continues with Aiko sitting in her kitchen while her boyfriend lies on the floor. After committing murder, she makes herself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, applies her makeup, and puts on her jewelry.[10] She washes her hands of blood and calmly walks out of her house in lingerie to waiting cops. The video was described by Rap-Up as "dark and deadly."[10] Aiko said the video depicted fantasy.

"I've never killed a guy, and I've never went to jail, but those are the things I have to get out of my head some way. It's writing a song and then turning my crazy thoughts into those moments where I'm like, I could really do that, but I'm not going to."[11]

To promote the song Aiko performed it live on various occasions. On January 18, 2014 she performed the song on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," accompanied by The Roots. The performance was described as "emotional" by online publication Rap-Up.[12] On January 22, 2014 she performed the song at BBC Radio 1′s Future Festival in Maida Vale, London along with her band wearing a flowy white dress.[13] The following month on February 13, Aiko performed the song on Conan.[14] On May 27, 2014 Aiko performed the single on the "Ellen DeGeneres Show, the performance featured the lights turned low, and Aiko barefoot.[15] On July 22, 2014 Aiko released a video of her preparing to go on tour and rehearsals. During the video she sang an acoustic rendition of the song along with her guitarist Jeff, during the video Aiko also performed "Stay Ready (What a Life)" and "To Love & Die".[16]

Remixes

The song has been remixed by a variety of artists. The first came from fifteen-year-old rapper Jaden Smith, in which he lyrically deals with the "complexity of a relationship."[17] British rapper Stormzy remixed the song and released the music video on January 26, 2014.[18] American rapper T.I. remixed the song for "DJ MLK's Goodnight Don't Exist in ATL 4," during the song the rapper draws on his own relationships and "responds to his scorned lover."[19] The song was later remixed by roy Ave who added a short verse to the song.[20] American rapper Kirko Bangz release a cover version of the song which featured Bangz free styling, Bannz also released an accompanying video to his free style.[21]

On May 18, The Robert Glasper Trio released an instrumental cover of the song as a promotional single for their upcoming album, "Covered".

Accolades

"The Worst" won the Centric Award at the

Best R&B Song at the 2015 Grammy Awards.[citation needed
]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Silver 200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[31] 5× Platinum 5,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Radio adds

Country Date Format Label
United States[32] January 14, 2014 Rhythmic radio Def Jam Recordings

References

  1. The Grio. NBC News. Archived
    from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
  2. ^ Mackenzie, Holly (November 21–28, 2013). Jhené Aiko: Sail Out (Def Jam/Universal). NOW. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  3. ^ https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH Search "The Worst" in "title" box
  4. ^ "Jhene Aiko's Guide to Wining and Dining". Theboombox.com. 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2013-11-16.
  5. ^ "Album Review: Jhene Aiko — Sail Out". 28 November 2013.
  6. ^ B. Patrick, Ryan (December 9, 2013). Jhené Aiko Sail Out. Exclaim!. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Katy Perry's 'Birthday' on Hot 100; Jhene Aiko Tops Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop; Chrissie Hynde's New Album Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2014-05-04.
  8. ^ "The Hot 100". Billboard. March 20, 2014.
  9. ^
  10. ^ a b c "Video: Jhené Aiko – 'The Worst'".
  11. ^ "VIBE Summer 2014 Cover Story: Jhené Aiko". 24 June 2014.
  12. ^ "Jhené Aiko Performs 'The Worst' on 'Fallon'".
  13. ^ "Jhené Aiko Performs 'The Worst' at BBC Radio 1 Future Festival".
  14. ^ "Jhené Aiko Performs 'The Worst' on 'Conan'".
  15. ^ "Jhené Aiko Performs 'The Worst' on 'Ellen'".
  16. ^ "Jhené Aiko Performs Acoustic Version of 'To Love & Die'".
  17. ^ "New Music: Jhené Aiko f/ Jaden Smith – 'The Worst (Remix)'".
  18. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: STORMZY - THE WORST. YouTube.
  19. ^ "New Music: T.I. F/ Jhené Aiko – 'The Worst (Remix)'".
  20. ^ "New Music: Jhené Aiko f/ Troy Ave – 'The Worst (Remix)'".
  21. ^ "The Source |Kirko Bangz Takes on Jhene Aiko's 'The Worst'". 27 May 2014.
  22. ^ "Beyonce & Jay Z Lead 2014 BET Awards". Billboard. 2014-01-26. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
  23. ^ "Jhené Aiko – The Worst" (in Dutch). Ultratop Urban. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  24. ^ "Jhene Aiko Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  25. ^ "Jhene Aiko chart history: Adult R&B Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  26. ^ "Jhene Aiko Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  27. ^ "Jhene Aiko Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  28. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2014". Billboard. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  29. ^ "Rhythmic Songs – Year-End 2014". Billboard. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  30. ^ "British single certifications – Jhene Aiko – The Worst". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  31. ^ "American single certifications – Jhené Aiko – The Worst". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  32. ^ "FMQB: Radio Industry News, Music Industry Updates, Arbitron Ratings, Music News and more!". Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved November 23, 2013.

External links

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