Fallin'

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Fallin'"

Single by Alicia Keys
from the album Songs in A Minor
Released	April 2001 (airplay) July 10, 2001 (commercial single)
Format	CD single 12" maxi single
Recorded	Krucial Keys Studios, New York City, New York, 2000
Genre	R&B
Length	3:30
Label	J
Writer(s)	Alicia Keys
Producer(s)	Alicia Keys
Chart positions
#1 (US) #3 (UK) #2 (Australia) #1 (Netherlands)
Alicia Keys singles chronology
	"Fallin'" (2001)	"A Woman's Worth" (2001)

"Fallin'" is the first single from R&B/soul musician Alicia Keys's debut album, Songs in A Minor. Released to radio and music video outlets in April 2001, the song is her debut single and is also generally considered her signature song. "Fallin'" became Keys' first number one single in the United States, and her first top five hit in the United Kingdom and Australia.

1 Song information
2 Release
3 Awards
4 Music video
5 Credits
6 See also

[edit] Song information

The songwriting and production credits for "Fallin'" are credited solely to Alicia Keys. However, the composition and arrangement of the song's instrumentation is very similar (the only difference being a change in key) of "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a 1966 single by James Brown.

The song's lyrics find Keys lamenting on a relationship that fills her with confused and mixed feelings. Following the song's a cappella intro, she proceeds to explain how her relationship with her man varies between happy times and painful conflict. To sum up her feelings, Keys notes, "I keep on fallin', in and out of love with you, I never loved someone the way that I'm loving you..". Accompanying the lyrics is Keys' production, including her piano performance, which takes the main chords from "It's A Man's Man's Man's World" and weaves them into a new song. The record also features a violin performance of the pizzicato and legato strings from Brown's song by Miri Ben-Ari. Keys' collaborator, and later, Kerry "Krucial" Brothers, provides the song's drum programming.

Although the song is Alicia Keys's signature song, it ironically almost did not become her single. Before she joined J Records, Keys had signed a recording contract with Sony's Columbia Records. Sony felt that Keys should sing more mainstream-accessible material written by others, while she insisted upon recording her own compositions. As a result, Keys' recording career remained in limbo for two years. Bored and with free time on her hands because of Sony's lack of interest in her, Keys decided to put her time to good use and began to write a song. Instantly, arpeggios hit her, and she became inspired with the chords that would define "Fallin'" (the ones that were close to "It's A Man's Man's Man's World"). She quickly composed lyrics basing the tune on the emotions she faced during one of her first serious romantic relationships.

As Keys was still in aristic limbo, the song was originally not meant for her; Sony intended to have Kim Scott, a child prodigy signed to their label, record "Fallin'". Keys became uneasy over the matter, as she wanted to record the song herself, but could not because Sony was not focusing on her career. At first Keys had surrendered the piece to Scott willingly, but later changed her mind, and Scott did not record it. Clive Davis, a former Columbia Records executive then at Arista Records, heard about Keys and was impressed with her artistry. After Davis started a label of his own, J Records, he bought out Keys' Sony contract and signed her to his label.

Once at J Records, Keys began work on her debut album, Songs In A Minor. Unlike Sony, J Records did not mind Keys recording her own compsitions, and encouraged her to do so. When it was time for a first single to be chosen, "Girlfriend", a song Keys had worked on with Jermaine Dupri while at Columbia, was considered, but Keys and other executives agreed that "Fallin'" would be the best choice.

[edit] Release

"Fallin'" was released in April 2001 as Keys' first single, amidst considerable promotion and praise from Davis and J Records. The song quickly became a stable of both urban and pop radio, eventually rising to number-one on both the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. "Fallin'" reached number one in the U.S. charts on August 18, 2001, and remained there for six weeks. It also reached number three in the United Kingdom and number two in Australia. A remix of the song, featuring Busta Rhymes and Rampage from the Flipmode Squad (also at that time signed to J Records), included on the British edition of her album, reimagines the song as a hip-hop-flavored dance song. Since its release, "Fallin'" has become a popular standard for contestants on the reality television series American Idol.

[edit] Awards

As one of the most critically acclaimed singles of 2001, "Fallin'" was nominated for several awards. "Fallin'" connected well with NARAS as the song was nominated in 2002 for four Grammy Awards: Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, and Best R&B Song. It ended up winning Song of the Year, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, and Best R&B Song (Record of the Year was awarded to U2's "Walk On").

At the 2001 Billboard Music Awards, "Fallin'" was nominated for the Hot 100 Single of the Year; however, it lost the award to Lifehouse's "Hanging By A Moment". The song was also nominated for Outstanding Song and Outstanding Music Video at the 2002 NAACP Image Awards. It did not win in either category.

[edit] Music video

The music video of "Fallin'", directed by Chris Robinson was a staple of BET and MTV2 during the spring and summer of 2001. Unlike most other contemporary R&B videos, "Fallin's" video was a low-key clip with no dancing. The video's plot has Keys traveling to a prison to visit her incarcerated boyfriend. The plot is continued in the video for Keys' next single, "A Woman's Worth", which explores what happens when Keys' boyfriend is released and, with her help, adjusts back to regular life. Keys said in an interview that she was supposed to be the one incarcerated, and her boyfriend was visiting her.

[edit] Credits

Written by Alicia Keys
Produced by Alicia Keys
Lead vocals by Alicia Keys
Background vocals by Alicia Keys, Cindy Mizelle, Tammy Saunders, and Andricka Hall
Violin by Miri Ben-Ari
Drum programming by Kerry "Krucial" Brothers
All other instruments performed by Alicia Keys

Preceded by: "Bootylicious" by Destiny's Child	Billboard Hot 100 number one single August 18, 2001	Succeeded by: "I'm Real" by Jennifer Lopez
Preceded by: "Loverboy" by Mariah Carey featuring Cameo	Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number one single August 18, 2001	Succeeded by: "Where the Party At" by Jagged Edge with Nelly