| "The Silence" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Alexandra Burke | ||||
| from the album Overcome | ||||
| Released | 6 December 2010 | |||
| Format | Digital download, CD single | |||
| Recorded | 2009 | |||
| Genre | Pop, R&B | |||
| Length | 3:36 (Single Version) 4:01 (Album Version) |
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| Label | Syco | |||
| Writer(s) | Nadir Khayat, Bilal Hajji, Savan Kotecha | |||
| Producer | RedOne | |||
| Alexandra Burke singles chronology | ||||
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"The Silence" is a the sixth single from English recording artist Alexandra Burke's debut studio album Overcome.[1] It was written by RedOne, Bilal Hajji, and Savan Kotecha and produced by RedOne, who co-wrote and produced her previous singles "Broken Heels" and "Start Without You".
The song is a pop ballad, which lyrically speaks about being in a difficult relationship where one does not know what their partner is thinking, and wants them to admit their feelings. For the song's release as a single, the song was remixed and given new instruments and new adlibs. The single was released on 6 December 2010 as a digital download. Burke performed the song notably a number of times including on The Paul O'Grady Show a year before its release in 2009 and The X Factor and in December 2010.[2]
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"The Silence" was originally due to be released after the release of "Broken Heels",[3] however the release was scrapped for unknown reasons and "All Night Long" was released as the album's third single. Burke has already recorded the music video for "The Silence" but was put on hold as she said it 'would' be released at some point, and the singles art work cover, was put on hold, although it was leaked onto the Internet.[4]
Burke herself described the song as "one of her favourite songs on Overcome" during an interview with Peter Andre on The Paul O'Grady Show.[5] According to the singer, the song was inspired by her auntie's relationship with her boyfriend.[5] Burke said on the show, "My auntie was going through that situation and she came over to L.A. to spend some time with me and get away from her fella etc. And she was telling me about her situation and [...] why does he let the silence do the talking? Why doesn't he let you know how he feels? And then this song came about".[5] "The Silence" is an midtempo ballad pop song, with a length of four minutes and one second, penned by Nadir Khayat, Bilal Hajji, Savan Kotecha.
"The Silence" entered the UK Singles Chart on 31 October 2009 at #95, due to a performance on The Paul O'Grady Show.[2] The song remained on the UK Singles Chart for one week, before dropping out a week later.[6] The song then re-entered the UK singles chart in December 2010 at number 16.
The music video was shot by Nzingha Stewart before Burke recorded her video for "All Night Long", but its release was put on hold due to "All Night Long" being released before hand. The music video premiered via Burke's official YouTube account on 21 October 2010. It shows Burke in many outfits with many different props. It is a notable change from her previous video, being shot in black and white (her only black and white video).
Burke has performed the song only on MTV Push[7] and on The Paul O'Grady Show.[2] Burke also performed the song for the first time as an official single at the Metro Radio Live 2010 Concert in Newcastle (30 November) & the Jingle Bell Ball at the Manchester Evening News Arena on December 1, 2010, as well as various other Jingle Bell Ball locations.[8][9] Burke also appeared on The X Factor on December 5, 2010, to perform the song, where she used wires to levitate at the end of the performance whilst having people suspended in mid-air for props, she also had three violinists playing upside-down whilst her singing and levitating.[10] She also appeared on The Alan Titchmarsh Show on December 14, 2010.
| Chart (2010/2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[13] | 26 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[14] | 30 |
| Scotland (The Official Charts Company)[15] | 10 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] | 66 |
| UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[17] | 16 |
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