Katy Perry hit #1 with “Firework”

Firework Katy Perry

Writer(s): Katy Perry, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm, Ester Dean (see lyrics here) Released: October 26, 2010 First Charted: October 17, 2010 Peak: 14 US, 14 RR, 11 AC, 15 A40, 3 UK, 11 CN, 3 AU, 8 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 12.0 US, 1.3 UK, 14.41 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.3 radio, 1536.70 video, 1019.13 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Katy Perry’s second album, Teenage Dream, with Capitol Records established her as “the #1 poster girl for contemporary dance-pop” SS thanks to five chart-topping songs. Only Michael Jackson had previously accomplished the feat (with 1987’s Bad). The album’s third single, “Firework,” was “a bouncing, danceable celebration of new love” SS and anthem to self-empowerment. Perry pronounced it her favorite song from the album WK and has even called it her epitaph. SF It’s hard,” she said, “to write an anthem that’s not cheesy…I hope this could be one of those things where it’s like, ‘Yeah, I want to put my fist up and feel proud and feel strong.’” WK She told Billboard that the inspiration for the song came from what she called her “very morbid idea…to be put into a firework and shot across the sky over the Santa Barbra Ocean” when she died. SF Her then boyfriend showed her a paragraph from Jack Kerouac’s book On the Road which she described as being about “people that are buzzing and fizzing and full of life…They shoot across the sky like a firework make people go ‘Ahhh.’ I guess that making people go ‘ahhh’ is kind of like my motto.” SF The lyrics weren’t completely embraced by critics. MTV said the lyrics were “clunky,” but praised Perry’s vocals and Slant magazine said the lyrics “are nonsensical…but the song would work well enough in a club setting that you could forgive its otherwise glaring weaknesses.” WK BBC Music’s Al Fox said the song “displays a breezy maturity and serious set of pipes.” WK It was the third of five songs from the album to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making her and Michael Jackson the only artists to land five chart toppers from one album (for Jackson it was his 1987 album Bad). The video, which featured Perry in Budapest, Hungary, features Perry at the center of an outdoor dance party among fans. The director, Dave Meyers, said he wanted the video “to articulate the meaning of that song: what it means to be an underdog and have the courage…to be your own person.” SF It won MTV Video of the Year and was ranked #1 on MuchMusic’s list of best videos of 2010. WK The song was also nominated for Grammys for Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Katy Perry SF Songfacts SS Steve Sullivan (2013). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings (Volumes I & II). Scarecrow Press: Lanham, Maryland. Pages 880-1. WK Wikipedia Related Links: Last updated 3/31/2024.

Rihanna “Only Girl in the World” hit #1

Only Girl in the World Rihanna

Writer(s): Crystal Johnson, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm (see lyrics here) Released: September 10, 2010 First Charted: September 12, 2010 Peak: 11 US, 13 RR, 17 AC, 11 A40, 12 UK, 14 CN, 14 AU, 16 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 6.0 US, 1.29 UK, 7.78 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.4 radio, 968.20 video, 1010.37 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “Only Girl in the World” was the lead single from Rihanna’s fifth album, 2010’s Loud. It topped the Billboard Hot 100, but not until after the album’s second single, “What’s My Name?” had reached the pinnacle. It was the first time that an album’s lead single got to #1 after the second single had reached that peak. WK It was her fourth #1 of the year, making her the first female to achieve that feat. SF “Only Girl” also hit the top in the UK, Australia, Austria, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. Rihanna approached the Norwegian production duo of Stargate (Tor Erik Hermansen and Mikkel Storleer Eriksen) about writing a song for the Loud album. She had worked with them on her top-10 hits “Don’t Stop the Music” and “Hate That I Love You” as well as the #1 song “Rude Boy.” She told them she wanted “happy, uptempo songs.” WK “Only Girl” was the first song written for the album. Cyrstal Nicole and Sandy Vee were also songwriters on the song. They had just produced Katy Perry’s “Firework” and Perry was also interested in “Only Girl” but it went to Rihanna. SF Lyrically, the dance-pop song is about the narrator demanding her lover’s physical attention, i.e. wanting to feel like the only girl in the world. Critics praised the song and Rihanna’s decision to move away from some of the previous album’s darker themes. Los Angeles Times’ Gerrick D. Kennedy called it a “surefire hit” WK and Billboard’s Monica Herrera said the song “aims squarely for dance-floor domination.” WK Rolling Stone’s James Dolan wasn’t as complimentary, saying “the trance beat won’t keep you in the club unless someone else is paying for the drinks.” WK The song won a Grammy for Best Dance/Electronic Recording. Resources: SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/10/2023; last updated 3/31/2024.