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FourFiveSeconds

"FourFiveSeconds" is a song recorded by Barbadian singer Rihanna, American rapper Kanye West, and English musician Paul McCartney. It was written and produced by McCartney, West, Mike Dean, Dave Longstreth and Noah Goldstein with additional writing from Kirby Lauryen, Ty Dolla Sign, Dallas Austin, Elon Rutberg and Rihanna. Previewed by West at the iHeartMedia Music Summit on January 21, 2015, it was digitally released on January 24. "FourFiveSeconds" is a folk-pop and soul song with an instrumentation consisting of an acoustic guitar, organ and bass guitar.

Background and release
On January 21, 2015, Kanye West made a surprise appearance at the iHeartMedia Music Summit, where he teased a collaboration with Rihanna that "featured acoustic guitar and a big, soaring chorus and melody with a massive hook." Earlier, on January 2, recording artist and producer Ty Dolla Sign gave an interview to Billboard magazine where it revealed that he, West, Rihanna and Paul McCartney worked on a track together, which was yet to receive its final title. On January 24, Rihanna posted the song on her official website, Rihannanow.com. The song titled "FourFiveSeconds" was released as single being made available for digital download on January 24 via the iTunes Store. In the United Kingdom it was digitally released on January 26 via Amazon. Carnie Wilson said the trio were invited to appear on the song by West. West further compared Rihanna's vocals on the song to that of Scottish singer Annie Lennox: "I feel like she has this type of energy in her vocals. And she even brought it to another level of like soul and heart and artistry". In an interview with V magazine, Rihanna revealed, "The thing that made me fall in love with ['FourFiveSeconds'] is the juxtaposition of the music and the lyrics. When you read the lyrics it's a completely different song than what you are hearing. The music is easygoing, but the lyrical content is very loud and in your face." Although it is a first collaboration by the trio, they have collaborated separately. West and McCartney collaborated on the 2014 single "Only One", a track dedicated to West's daughter North. Rihanna and West previously collaborated on Jay-Z's 2009 single "Run This Town"—which became a commercial success and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart—and West's 2011 single "All of the Lights", a track featuring backup vocals by John Legend, Fergie, and Elton John among others. == Composition and lyrical interpretation ==
Composition and lyrical interpretation
"FourFiveSeconds" is an acoustic folk-pop, pop, pop rock and soul pop song, with a length of three minutes and eight seconds. Critics noted how the song has a stripped back feel to it, and that it incorporates elements of country and folk. "FourFiveSeconds" makes use of a simple instrumentation, primarily consisting of an acoustic guitar and organ, as well as a bass guitar in the background. It has been noted that West sings his lines in the song instead of rapping them, which prompted Jim Farber of the Daily News to write that he could have done with auto-tune to smooth out his "unsteady vocals." Billboard's Jocelyn Vena stated that the musical direction of the song represents a departure from the material present on Rihanna's most recent studio album, Unapologetic (2012), which incorporated EDM and dubstep. Hugh Mclntyre of Forbes also wrote that the song represents a change in musical direction for Rihanna and West, while noting that it is consistent with McCartney's style of music. Writing for Vogue magazine, Alex Frank described the song as an "unplugged version" of Rihanna's 2011 single "We Found Love", and without the dance beats present on her previous singles. The New York Post wrote that the lyrics "express emotions ranging from the flip to the resigned". while a Yahoo! News reviewer noted that it is about "personal travails and confusion". Nora Crotty of Elle magazine described the single as an "ode to repenting in the morning for the foolish mistakes you made the night before". Billboard's Vena stated that a "plucky acoustic guitar" accompanies Rihanna's vocals while she sings the lines, "I think I've had enough/ Might get a little drunk/ I say what's on my mind/ I might do a little time. Cause all of my kindness/ Is taken for weakness." After the first chorus West sings, "Woke up an optimist/ Sun was shining, I'm positive/ Then I heard you was talking trash/ Hold me back/ I'm about to spazz." On the second chorus, he and Rihanna harmonize as they sing, "Now I'm four, five seconds from wylin'/ And we got three more days 'till Friday/ I'm just trying to make it back home by Monday morning." == Critical reception ==
Critical reception
Peter Kandunias of Gigwise praised Rihanna's and West's vocals as well as McCartney's instrumentation. Mclntyre of Forbes noted: "The song puts the spotlight on Rihanna's vocals, highlighting them in a way that her club-ready, bombastic tunes don't usually." Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic wrote of Rihanna's vocals: "Listen to the ragged squeak in her voice in the first verse, and how she maintains control as she alternates between contemplative trills and gospel shouts during the bridge". According to Kornhaber, the song showcases "how distinctive her timbre and phrasing is", something that was not heard on her previous songs like the 2010 single "Only Girl (In the World)". Accolades The song received a nomination for Collaboration of the Year at the American Music Awards of 2015. Although "FourFiveSeconds" was described by a Los Angeles Times writer as "tailor-made for multiple Grammy nominations" the song failed to receive a nomination in any category for the 2016 Grammy Awards. == Chart performance ==
Chart performance
North America "FourFiveSeconds" debuted at number 37 on the US Mainstream Top 40 chart before the end of two days of airplay. Nielsen Music attributed the quick debut to hourly plays on radio stations owned by iHeartMedia. The song garnered 1,000 plays on 100 reports, with an audience reach of 7.4 million. "FourFiveSeconds" is Rihanna's 40th entry on the chart, while it is McCartney's first since the chart's launch in 1992. For the week dated January 31, 2015, the song debuted at number 54 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. and became the chart's top new entry. Subsequently, it debuted at number 12 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. On the Billboard Hot 100, it moved to number 15 with sales of over 138,000 digital downloads in its second week. It became McCartney's highest-charting single since 1986 when his single "Spies Like Us" reached number seven on the chart. The same week, it moved ten places from number 12 to number two on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart. The same week, it topped the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and became Rihanna's fourth number one, while West's seventh. It was McCartney's second number-one song on the chart following his 1983 duet with Michael Jackson, "The Girl Is Mine". In the song's fourth week on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the song moved two places and peaked at number four. The song became West's highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 since "Heartless", which peaked at number two in 2009. It also became McCartney's first top-five hit in 31 years, one month, and one week; his last top-five hit was his 1983 collaboration with Jackson, "Say Say Say", which became his ninth solo number-one single. For the issue dated March 7, "FourFiveSeconds" moved to number 10 on the Pop Songs chart with an audience impression of over 70 million. With the achievement, Rihanna tied Mariah Carey for most top 10 songs on the chart; each of them has 23 top 10 singles. Although it did not chart on the US Hot Country Songs chart, it has received airplay on a number of country stations in major metropolitan areas. As of July 2015, "FourFiveSeconds" has sold 1,868,000 copies in the United States. In Canada, "FourFiveSeconds" debuted at number 65 on the Canadian Hot 100 for the week dated February 7. The next week it jumped 56 places to number nine with the biggest gain in digital sales and radio airplay for that issue. In its third week it peaked at number four on the chart. "FourFiveSeconds" reached its peak of number three on the chart in its sixth week, for the issue date March 14. Oceania and Europe In Australia, "FourFiveSeconds" debuted at number 13 on the singles chart for the week dated February 8, 2015. The next week it jumped to number three and became Rihanna's 28th top-ten song on the chart. For the week dated February 16, the song topped the chart and became Rihanna's ninth song to reach number one. It also became West's second chart-topper and McCartney's third (post Beatles). With the feat, McCartney became the oldest artist at age 72 to reach number one on the chart, a record which was previously held by American singer Cher; she was 52 when her single "Believe" topped the chart. Furthermore, "FourFiveSeconds" also peaked at number one on the Australian Urban Singles Chart. The next week it reached a peak of number four and sold 41,535 digital downloads. On March 8, 2015, the track reached a new peak of three on the chart. As of September 2017, the song was the 311th best-selling song of all time in the UK (including streaming equivalent sales). In Ireland, the song debuted at number fourteen on the Irish Singles Chart for the week dated January 29. On March 19, in its eight-week on the chart, it reached number one. The single debuted at number 39 in the sixth week of the Norwegian Singles Chart and the next week it fell off it. In its tenth week, the song re-entered at number 11. In the twelfth week of the chart, "FourFiveSeconds" topped the chart and became Rihanna's eighth, McCartney's third, and West's first chart-topper in the country. The single reached number four in both Italy and Spain. In the former it was certified gold by the Federation of the Italian music industry (FIMI) denoting sales/streams of 25,000 copies. On the Swiss Singles Chart, the song peaked at number three and stayed on the position for seven consecutive weeks. It was certified gold by the IFPI Switzerland for selling over 15,000 copies in the country alone. "FourFiveSeconds" was also successful in France, where it peaked at number two on the singles chart after previously debuting at number 18. == Music video ==
Music video
Development The accompanying music video for "FourFiveSeconds" was directed by Dutch photographer duo, Inez and Vinoodh and shot in late December 2014 in New York City. Stephanie Bargas, Jeff Lepine, and Jon Barlow served as the visual's producers, while theCollectiveShift executively produced it. Jodokus Driessen was the director of photography, with Otto Arsenault serving both as editor and cinematographer. On January 30, 2015, via her official YouTube channel, Rihanna posted a behind the scenes video from the making of the clip. The video features Rihanna, West, and McCartney performing against a white background. She explained the fashion that they used for the video, "Kanye came up with the idea of doing just some real street, denim, all-American-type look. Denim never goes out of style; it's classic, it's iconic, just like the Beatles." On February 2, Rihanna posted a snippet of the clip on her official Instagram account. It shows the singer in silhouette as she sings the lyrics; she is wearing a Sean John throwback denim jacket. The video premiered on February 3 on Rihanna's official Vevo channel on YouTube. The same day, it was digitally released on the iTunes Store. Analysis and reception and filmmaker Xavier Dolan (pictured). According to Kreps of Rolling Stone, "The Herb Ritts-esque black-and-white clip finds Rihanna and West just singing their collaborative track while McCartney strums the riff on an acoustic guitar, with the real highlight coming when the three musical titans share the same frame." Steven Gottlieb of VideoStatic described it as, "vertically constrained to just the center third of the screen, the focus of this silvery black-and-white clip is Rihanna's emotional performance", while McCartney and West supported her role. Jessica Goodman of The Huffington Post described the video as "simple and clean, much like the song". Similarly, Nolan Feeney of Time called the video simple, but also "surprisingly intimate" like the single. A reviewer of MTV UK noted that the video is set in a square frame and resembles the single's artwork. Sophie Schillaci of Entertainment Tonight called the square "Instagram friendly". VH1's Alexa Tietjen called the visual "stunning" and further praised Rihanna's looks, West's attitude, and McCartney's "social media skills". Dee Locket of Slate called the visual a "performance video" in which Rihanna and West "appear to be on the verge of losing it". Billy Johnson Jr. of Yahoo! Music stated that if the visual wanted to depict Rihanna "as a fragile woman on the verge of snapping", it succeeded: "Stylistically, the black and white video finds a happy medium between the look and feel of Abercrombie & Fitch and Gap ad campaigns with Rihanna [baring] just enough cleavage to make censors nervous." Rachel Maresca of Daily News noted that West vents his aggression by kicking the camera. The video was nominated for Best International Video at the 2015 Much Music Video Awards. == Live performances and covers ==
Live performances and covers
Rihanna, McCartney, and West performed "FourFiveSeconds" at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards held on February 8, 2015, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Chris Payne of Billboard named the performance as one of the best moments of the ceremony and praised Rihanna's vocals, "Let's face it – seeing this improbable collaboration in person is the main reason many tuned in. There are so many ways three huge personas can get in the way, but Rihanna, 'Ye, and Sir Paul knew how to bring this one to life". Joe Lynch of the same publication listed the performance at fourth out of the total of 23 performances that night, writing, "'FourFiveSeconds' ironically takes time to grow on you, but the presence of three disparate pop stars on stage with each other was one of the most deliriously awesome Grammy highlights". Isabella Biedenharn of Entertainment Weekly graded the performance an "A" and praised Rihanna and West's vocals and the trio's wardrobe. According to TiVo, the performance was the fifth most-viewed segment of the night. On April 4, Rihanna performed at the Final Four of the March Madness 2015 which was held in Indianapolis, Indiana. During the performance, she sang a solo version of "FourFiveSeconds", as well as, her new songs "Bitch Better Have My Money" and "American Oxygen" among others. McCartney added the song to his setlists, and was joined by Rihanna for a performance at the Desert Trip festival in October 2016. Canadian rapper Drake covered the song during his performance at the Sprite NBA All-Star Weekend concert held at the Irving Plaza in New York City on February 14. Welsh band Punk Rock Factory recorded a cover of the song, transforming it into "a punk rock anthem". English singer-songwriter James Bay covered "FourFiveSeconds" during the BBC Radio 1 Lounge on March 3. Australian pop singer Cody Simpson performed an acoustic version of the single during his visit on SiriusXM radio. Christina Garibaldi of MTV News, regarding the performance, wrote, "The 'New Problems' singer effortlessly covers Rihanna and Kanye's verses while giving off some serious John Mayer vibes." Rihanna also performed the song on the South American dates in late September 2015. One of the shows was one of the nights of the Rock in Rio festival, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rihanna performed the song on the Anti World Tour. Paul McCartney regularly performed "FourFiveSeconds" on his 2016/17 One on One Tour. Ariana Grande, with her team members Holly Forbes and Jim and Sasha Allen, performed this song on episode twenty of the 21st season of The Voice. == Track listing ==
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of the CD single of "FourFiveSeconds" and ASCAP. Locations • Recorded at Jungle City Studios, New York City, New York; Windmark Recording, Santa Monica, California; No Name Studios, Mexico • Mixed at Larabee Studios, Los Angeles, California Personnel • Production – Kanye West, Paul McCartney • Co-production, fuzz bass – Mike Dean • Additional production – Dave Longstreth, Noah Goldstein • Vocal production – Kuk Harrell • Recording – Marcos Tovar, Noah Goldstein, Mike Dean • Assistant recording engineer – Brendan Morawski, Zeke Mishanec, Jeremy "Head" Hartney, Brandon Wood, Jordan Heskett • Mixing – Manny Marroquin • Assistant mixing – Chris Galland, Jeff Jackson, Ike Schultz • Acoustic guitar – Paul McCartney • Organ – Dave Longstreth • Backing vocals - Chynna Phillips, Carnie Wilson, Wendy Wilson == Charts ==
Charts
Weekly charts Year-end charts == Certifications ==
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