"Don't Hold the Wall" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake for his third studio album, The 20/20 Experience (2013). It was written and produced by Timberlake, Timothy "Timbaland" Mosley and Jerome "J-Roc" Harmon, with additional writing from James Fauntleroy. Musically, it is a R&B song that contains tribal chants, "oozing" vocal samples, tribal drums, rainsticks, "spacious drums", and a "pseudo-Indian" beat.
"Don't Hold the Wall" debuted at number 34 on South Korea's Gaon chart. In the United States, it peaked at number 4 and 37 on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, respectively. On March 31, 2016, Canadian entertainment company Cirque du Soleil filed a lawsuit against Timberlake claiming that Timbaland sampled one of their compositions, "Steel Dream" from Quidam (1997), without permission.
Background and production
Timberlake started writing and recording for his third studio album from late May to the first week in June. He concluded it in July 2012,[1] which was produced in a span of 20 days.[2] In August 2012, producer Jim Beanz reported that Timberlake started work on his new music project.[3] However, shortly after the announcement, Timberlake's publicist revealed that there were no current plans for a new Timberlake album, affirming instead that Timberlake was working with Timbaland on songs for his upcoming project Shock Value III.[3] Although, originally planned for release in October 2012, its date was postponed because of the singer's wedding with actress Jessica Biel.[1] Timberlake's manager, Johnny Wright, stated that although the project involved artists who are primarily Timberlake's friends, it was tough keeping it a secret, making them use codenames for the project.[1] It was released on March 15, 2013, under the title The 20/20 Experience.[4]
Written by Timberlake, Timothy "Timbaland" Mosley, Jerome "J-Roc" Harmon, and James Fauntleroy, "Don't Hold the Wall" was produced by Timbaland, Timberlake, and Harmon. Timberlake arranged and produced his vocals, which were recorded at Larrabee Studios in North Hollywood, California. Harmon provided keyboards, while Elliott Ives played the guitar for it. Chris Godbey engineered it with assistance from Alejandro Baima, and Jimmy Douglass mixed it with Godbey and Timberlake at Larrabee Studios.[5]
According to Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle, "Don't Hold the Wall" "rides a hypnotic, sensual groove",[7] featuring tribal chants and "oozing" vocal samples.[8] Tribal drums,[9]rainsticks,[8] "spacious drums"[8] and a "pseudo-Indian" beat[10] are also present.
"Don't Hold the Wall" begins a "gorgeous sounding" the Beach Boys-like chorus, according to David Meller of MusicOMH.[6] Jean Bentley of Hollywood.com compared the a cappella introduction to that of Timberlake's former boy band, NSYNC.[11] It then shifts into a mix of hip-hop, Bollywood and Bhangra music.[6] Four minutes and twenty seconds in, "Don't Hold the Wall" transcends "darker, more muscular structure", according to Billboard's Jason Lipshutz.[8] It concludes with drum and bass loops and vocoder backing vocals.[6]
Timberlake commands the object of his affection to "give in" to her "physical impulses".[8] Timbaland chants, "Dance... Don't hold the wall", in a voice that sounds "as if it is coming through a broken phone receiver", according to Allan Raible of ABC News.[10] As noted by Lipshutz, Timbaland's production on it is "the star" of The 20/20 Experience.[8] He wrote that "there are so many things happening" in it that it takes five listens just to "process them".[8]
Reception
Writing for ABC News, Allan Raible called it a "sparse, hand-clap jam" that does not warrant its seven-minute length, even with its "marginally interesting breakdown".[10] Following the release of The 20/20 Experience, it appeared on the charts in South Korea and the United States. For the week dated March 17, 2013, it debuted on the South Korea Gaon International Chart at number 34.[12] It also debuted at number 4 on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart and number 37 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[13][14]
Lawsuit
On March 31, 2016, Canadian avant-garde circus troupe Cirque de Soleil filed a lawsuit against Timberlake claiming that Timbaland sampled one of their compositions, "Steel Dream" from Quidam (1997), without permission.[15] The suit, filed in a New York federal court,[16] seeks a minimum of $800,000 (£560,000) in copyright infringement damages,[17][18] with Sony Music Entertainment, co-writers Harmon and Fauntleroy, Universal Music, and Warner Music Group named as defendants.[15] American brewing company Anheuser-Busch is also named after using it in a beer advertisement.[17]
Personnel
Credits were adapted from the liner notes of The 20/20 Experience.[5]
Locations
Vocals recorded and mixed at Larrabee Studios, North Hollywood, California
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