Messy Little Raindrops

Messy Little Raindrops is the follow-up to Cole's multi-platinum debut solo album 3 Words (2009), and comes in the aftermath of Cole's divorce from footballer Ashley Cole and her life-threatening battle with malaria. Cole started recording sessions for her second album in February 2010 though in an interview on Alan Carr: Chatty Man she admitted that some of the songs submitted for the record dated back to 3 Words (2009). Recording continued in Los Angeles while Cole recuperated from malaria. Cole described the album as "more exciting, very personal, very me", combining pop, R&B, and dance-pop sounds. The album's title is taken from a lyric in the song "Raindrops"; "And now love can grow without tiny little raindrops. Tiny little, tiny little, messy little raindrops." Cole said, "when it rains, everything she's washed [...] it feels hopeful." Cole is seen in a bright pink and orange off-the-shoulder dress and five-inch animal print Christian Louboutin heels on the album cover, which was unveiled on 14 October 2010. It also features the album title and her name scrawled in orange text. Cole's barbed-wire and rose tattoo, located on her right thigh, was airbrushed out of the shot. == Composition ==

"Promise This", the album's lead single, serves as the opening track. Produced by Wayne Wilkins, it has been described as an "upbeat, pop track" with "more of a dance feel than previous releases". The song "finds her contemplating mortality with a cheerful morbidity, asking for prayers over a brutal march beat." Tabloids suggested that the lyrics were based upon her divorce from footballer Ashley Cole, and how her dancer friend Derek Hough nursed her to health while she was suffering from malaria. This is unlikely however, as Cole did not write the lyrics to this song. The song is followed by "Yeah Yeah", which was produced by Starsmith and features a rap from Travie McCoy. It has received comparisons to Madonna's Confessions on a Dancefloor (2005) era. "Live Tonight", produced by will.i.am, includes a "Beach Boys-go-native breakdown completing the tug on the collective houseinflected heartstrings" and "a blissful synth line". It received comparisons to Natalie Imbruglia. "Amnesia" was initially rumoured to be a Britney Spears cover from that singer's 2008 album, Circus; however, it is an original track produced by Wilkins and Steve Kipner. It was described as "bhangra-flavoured". "Better to Lie" was produced by J. R. Rotem and features guest vocals from August Rigo. It received comparisons to Keri Hilson's "Knock You Down". "Let's Get Down" was produced by and featuring will.i.am. It samples "I.O.U." by Freeez. "Happy Tears" is "acoustic-based pop". It was produced by Wilkins. The album's closing track "Waiting" was co-written by American singer Kelis and produced by Free School. == Critical reception ==

Messy Little Raindrops received mixed reviews from music critics. A predominantly positive review came from Jon O'Brien of AllMusic who awarded it four out of five stars, saying that "Messy Little Raindrops is a cohesive and adventurous follow-up that will undoubtedly continue [Cole's] ascent into pop's premier league", and praising the songs "Promise This", "Amnesia" and "Happy Tears". Tom Hocknell of BBC Music was generally positive, labeling Messy Little Raindrops a "competent and frequently enjoyable pop album". The Daily Mirror also gave three stars, noting an improvement from 3 Words as well as Cole's perseverance. Although he saw an improvement from 3 Words, Montgomery felt the album did not live up to "the Xenomania-directed wizardry of her Girls Aloud oeuvre". It received two stars out of five from Andy Gill of The Independent, who wrote that "Cole delve[s] further into her experience for Messy Little Raindrops; sadly, most of the album simply continues its predecessor's tedious romantic arguments, with only a couple of songs drawing on her more traumatic illness." A review from The Scotsman agreed, criticizing the album as "a reasonable pop record that has had all the personality produced right out of it." Simon Price, also from The Independent, was overwhelmingly negative. He summarised, "Messy Little Raindrops is music for yoghurt adverts, with lyrics for people who get their emotional vocabulary from Take a Break and Loose Women." Entertainment.ies Jenny Mulligan describes Messy Little Raindrops as being "more club-friendly" and as "a pop album with a few banging singles and a lot of filler". == Singles ==

"Promise This" was premiered on Chris Moyles' BBC Radio 1 breakfast show on 14 September, where it was introduced as the lead single from Messy Little Raindrops. The video for the song was directed by Sophie Muller and was debuted on 21 September 2010 on UK television channel ITV2. On 24 October, Cole performed "Promise This" on The X Factor's results show. She donned a white tuxedo jacket, "frilly black knickers", knee-high zebra print tights, and leather boots and was joined by multiple back-up dancers. The song was released on 25 October 2010 and charted at number one on the Irish and UK Singles Charts. It became the fastest-selling single of 2010 in the UK. "The Flood" is the second and final single from the album. She also performed the track along an acoustic version of "Promise This" on Alan Carr: Chatty Man. The song entered the charts after its official release at number 18, becoming Cheryl's lowest charting single in the UK to date. "Everyone", featuring Dizzee Rascal, was slated as the third single and was to be released on 21 March 2011, but was cancelled due to Cheryl's involvement on the US version of The X Factor and the underperformance of "The Flood". == Promotion ==

Marketing In addition to her role as a judge on The X Factor, Cheryl Cole made a high-profile appearance on ''Piers Morgan's Life Stories'', in which she discussed her marriage and divorce with Ashley Cole and her life-threatening battle with malaria. The show's ratings reached an all-time high. Polydor Records worked with advertising firm MediaCom to create various marketing strategies to promote the album, such as the usage of Facebook Places. Billboard posters invited fans to check into the nearest poster using Facebook Places on their smartphone, to win tickets, travel and hotel for a recording of The X Factor. Live performances On 24 October, Cole performed "Promise This" on The X Factor's results show. She donned a white tuxedo jacket, "frilly black knickers", knee-high zebra print tights, and leather boots and was joined by multiple back-up dancers. Similar to her 2009 performance of "Fight for This Love" on The X Factor, the media speculated whether Cole lip synced or not. She wore a gown from Roberto Cavalli's spring 2011 collection with jewelry by David Morris. Cole also performed on the 20 December 2010 episode of Alan Carr: Chatty Man, singing "The Flood" and an acoustic version of "Promise This". == Track listing ==

• Fin Dow-Smith • Wayne Hector • McCoy}} • William Adams • Cheryl Cole}} • Hamilton • Wilkins}} • Wilkins • Antwoin "T-Wiz" Collins}} • Steve Kipner • Wilkins • Tamara Savage}} • Wilkins • Kipner}} • Andre Merritt • Wilkins • Collins • Dylan Mills}} • Wilkins • T-Wiz}} • Jean-Baptiste • Hamilton • Alain Whyte • Michael McHenry • Nick Marsh • Ryan Buendia}} • Al Shuckburgh • Hamilton}} • J. R. Rotem • Rigo}} • Adams • Cole}} • Nasri Atweh • Wilkins • Collins}} • Wilkins • T-Wiz}} • Baptiste • McHenry • Marsh • Buendia • Kelis}} }} Sample credits • "Let's Get Down" contains a sample of the recording "I.O.U" as performed and written by Freeez. • "Waiting" contains a sample of the recording "A Thousand Miles" as performed and written by Vanessa Carlton. ==Charts==

Weekly charts Year-end charts ==Certifications==