Special (Lizzo album)

Last updated

Special
Lizzo - Special.png
Standard cover
Studio album by
Lizzo
ReleasedJuly 15, 2022
RecordedSeptember 2021 – March 2022
Genre
Length35:16
Label
Producer
Lizzo chronology
Cuz I Love You
(2019)		Special
(2022)
Singles from Special
  1. "About Damn Time"
    Released: April 14, 2022
  2. "2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)"
    Released: July 18, 2022
  3. "Special"
    Released: February 9, 2023 [2]

Special is the fourth studio album by American rapper and singer Lizzo, released by Nice Life and Atlantic Records on July 15, 2022. [3] [4] It was preceded by the lead single "About Damn Time", released on April 14, 2022, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, and the top ten in twelve other countries.

Contents

Special, has been described by critics as a pop, funk, disco, hip hop, and R&B album. It received positive reviews from music critics. The album peaked at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, becoming, at the time, the highest-charting album by a female artist in 2022, as well as the largest week by units earned, among all albums released by women in 2022. [5] It reached the top ten on the UK, Australian, Canadian, Hungary, and New Zealand album charts.

At the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, the album received nominations for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album, while “About Damn Time” won Record of the Year, with additional nominations for Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

Background

Lizzo released her third studio album and major-label debut studio album, Cuz I Love You , on April 19, 2019. [6] The album was met with positive reviews and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 chart. [7] The album was nominated for Album of the Year at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards, contributing to Lizzo receiving the most nominations at the ceremony. The album also won the award for Best Urban Contemporary Album.

In October 2020, Lizzo announced that her fourth studio album was nearing completion, saying she had "a few more songs to write". [8] In January 2021, American singer SZA confirmed to have heard new material from Lizzo. [9] In August 2021, Lizzo announced "Rumors", her first song after two years, which was released on August 13. [10] The standalone single features fellow American rapper Cardi B.

During her keynote speech at the South by Southwest festival in March 2022, Lizzo announced that her album was finished, saying "It’s done so it’s coming very very soon…and it’s good. I worked real hard on it, so it better be good." [11]

Production and recording

Recording for "Special" began in 2018, but the tracks that made up the album only started to be recorded in September 2021 and was finished by March 2022. [12] [11]

In an interview with Zane Lowe for Apple Music 1 in April 2022, Lizzo explained that the album was originally titled In Case Nobody Told You until Max Martin helped her "restructure" the hook of the song "Special", which she then changed the title of the album to. [13]

In another interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 in July 2022, Lizzo talked about the origins of the track "Coldplay", with Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin briefly appearing in the interview as well. The track features a monologue by Lizzo where she talks about a recent vacation in which she "was with somebody, and I was just looking at the stars. And I was with him, and I was singing ["Yellow"]." [14]

Promotion

On March 21, 2022, Lizzo previewed the single "About Damn Time" on The Late Late Show with James Corden , with a release date of April 14. [15] Shortly after the release of the song and its accompanying music video, Lizzo formally announced Special, with a release date of July 15. [16]

On July 6, Lizzo revealed the tracklist of Special on her Instagram account by showing the back cover of its vinyl packaging. [17]

Singles

"About Damn Time" was released on April 14, 2022, as the lead single of the album. The song was a commercial success peaking at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in the US as well as reaching top 3 in 7 other countries.

On July 18, 2022 "2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)" was released to Italian radio as the album's second single. [18] In the United States the song impacted hot adult contemporary radio on August 1, 2022, and contemporary hit radio, as well as rhythmic contemporary radio on August 2, 2022. [19] [20] [21]

The title track was released on January 13, 2023, as the album's third single. [2] While "Special" was rumored to have a remix featuring American singer SZA dating back to November 2022, it was finally confirmed by Lizzo on her social media accounts when she announced the official remix. [22] The "Special" Remix featuring SZA was released on February 9, 2023. [22]

Promotional singles

"Grrrls" was released on June 10, 2022, as the album's first promotional single. [23]

Tour

On April 25, 2022, Lizzo announced a full arena tour in support of the album, starting on September 23, 2022, in Sunrise, Florida and ending on June 2, 2023, in Thousand Palms, California. Latto opened for the tour. [24]

Critical reception

Reviews

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.1/10 [25]
Metacritic 78/100 [26]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [27]
The Daily Telegraph Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [28]
Evening Standard Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [29]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [30]
The Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [31]
The Line of Best Fit 6/10 [32]
NME Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [33]
Pitchfork 6.4/10 [34]

Special received generally positive reviews from music critics upon its initial release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 78, based on 16 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [26]

Writing for Evening Standard David Smyth states that "This time she'll sweep an older generation into her gang too. Many of the biggest tunes channel Seventies disco and Eighties synthpop" and added "It's clear she isn’t an outsider any more. This is her world, and we're lucky to live in it." [29] In an article for The Independent , reviewer Helen Brown pointed that Special is overflowing with love and gratitude to friends, family, lovers and fans and added that [Lizzo's] rap flow has a terrific tensile strength and said that when singing, she delivers as both a belter and a breathy balladeer. Special is good as hell." [31]

NME contributor Nick Levine gave the album four out of five stars, observing that "Lizzo's overwhelmingly positive message, Special is sometimes a bit cheesy," before concluding that "Lizzo knows exactly who she is as an artist and what she wants to achieve: she's the bad bitch with an incredible talent for making people feel good". In a more mixed reception of the album, Sam Franzini of The Line of Best Fit believed that for "most songs on Special, there is a rawer, more real iteration somewhere else in Lizzo’s catalog," and that having the "glossiest pop sheen steamrolled over them, erasing any wrinkles or mishaps" removed "the exact thing that made [Lizzo's songs] endearing to begin with." [32] PopMatters published two contrasting reviews of the album, with John Amen scoring the album 7/10 and commenting that "Special is as much a celebration of the Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook cosmos as it is an in-person, post-Covid bacchanal." [35] while Nick Malone scored the album 4/10 and wrote that "Special is such a disappointment because you can hear the better album Lizzo is capable of making." [36]

Controversy over word choice

The song "Grrrls" earned controversy for its use of the word "spaz" in its lyrics "I'mma spaz / I'm about to knock somebody out". Disability advocates viewed the use of the term "spaz" as an offensive ableist slur and called for Lizzo to remove the song. [37] [38] [39] Some internet users claimed that "spaz" is used differently in African-American Vernacular English and is synonymous with "freaking out," but disability organizations in the UK and the US have criticized its use. [40] [41] Shortly afterwards, Lizzo issued an apology and released an updated version of the song, stating, "I never want to promote derogatory language." [42] The updated song lyrics replace "I'mma spaz" with "Hold me back". [43]

Commercial performance

In the United States, Special debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, with 69,000 equivalent album units sold in its first week, becoming Lizzo's highest-charting album to date. [41] It was the highest-charting album by a female artist in 2022, as well as the largest week by units earned, among all albums released by women in 2022 until it was surpassed by Beyoncé's Renaissance and later by Taylor Swift's Midnights . [44]

Track listing

Special track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicProducer(s)Length
1."The Sign"
2:45
2."About Damn Time"
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
3:11
3."Grrrls"
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
2:01
4."2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)"
  • Jefferson
  • M. Martin
  • Kotecha
  • ILYA
3:07
5."I Love You Bitch"Jefferson
  • Slatkin
  • Fedi
2:28
6."Special"
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
  • Wansel
  • Kirkpatrick
  • Daoud
  • M. Martin
2:54
7."Break Up Twice"
  • Jefferson
  • Ronson
  • Reed [a]
2:56
8."Everybody's Gay"
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
  • Frederic
  • Wansel
  • Kirkpatrick
  • James Johnson
  • Wansel
  • Kirkpatrick
  • Reed
  • Mercereau [a]
3:35
9."Naked"
  • Wansel
  • Kirkpatrick
  • Reed [c]
3:00
10."Birthday Girl"
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
 The Monsters and the Strangerz 3:07
11."If You Love Me"
  • Kid Harpoon
  • Mercereau
3:11
12."Coldplay"Jefferson
2:55
Total length:35:16
Holiday Edition [45]
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
13."Someday at Christmas" (Amazon original)
2:58
Total length:38:14
Japanese bonus track [46]
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
13."About Damn Time" (Purple Disco Machine remix)
  • Jefferson
  • Thomas
  • Frederic
  • Slatkin
  • McLaren
  • Larkins
  • Price
  • Hague
3:39
Total length:38:55
Apple Music bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."A Very Special Message from Lizzo"Jefferson1:39
Total length:36:55

Notes

Personnel

Musicians

  • Lizzo – vocals (all tracks), flute (track 2)
  • Phoelix – bass, programming (1)
  • Thomas Pridgen – drums (1, 8)
  • Nate Mercereau – electric guitar (1, 2, 8, 9, 11); acoustic guitar, bass, drums, piano (11)
  • Lemar Guillary – horns arrangement, trombone (1, 6, 8)
  • Ricky Reed – programming (1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 12), bass (2, 6, 8); additional vocals, horns arrangement, glockenspiel, guitar, synthesizer (2); instrumentation, keyboards (8, 9)
  • Michael Cordone – trumpet (1, 2, 6, 8)
  • Blake Slatkin – programming (2, 3), additional vocals (2); instrumentation, keyboards (3)
  • Chawntá Van – additional vocals (2)
  • Doshiniq Green – additional vocals (2)
  • Myke Wright – additional vocals (2)
  • Shelbeniece Swain – additional vocals (2)
  • Victor Indrizzo – drums, percussion (2, 8)
  • Jesse McGinty – saxophone, trombone (2)
  • Terrace Martin – vocoder (2)
  • Benny Blanco – instrumentation, keyboards, programming, vocals (3)
  • Ilya – instrumentation (3), programming (3, 4); arrangement, background vocals, bass, drums, guitar (4); additional programming (6)
  • Chris Keys - Instrumentation (12)
  • Max Martin – instrumentation (3, 6), programming (3, 4, 6); arrangement, background vocals, bass, drums, guitar (4)
  • Rickard Göransson – bass, guitar (4)
  • Peter Carlsson – drums, guitar (4)
  • Pop Wansel – instrumentation, programming (3, 6, 8, 9); keyboards (6, 8, 9)
  • Johan Carlsson – organ, piano (4)
  • Jasper Harris – piano (5)
  • Daoud – guitar (6, 9); instrumentation, keyboards, piano, programming, Rhodes solo, saxophone (6)
  • Ian Kirkpatrick – instrumentation, keyboards, programming (6, 8, 9)
  • Donald Hayes – saxophone (6, 8)
  • Nick Movshon – bass (7)
  • Larry Gold – conductor, string arrangement (7)
  • Tommy Brenneck – guitar (7)
  • Leon Michels – keyboards (7)
  • Mark Ronson – keyboards, string arrangement (7)
  • Ian Hendrickson-Smith – saxophone (7)
  • Raymond J. Mason – trombone (7)
  • Dave Guy – trumpet (7)
  • Jonathan Kim – viola (7)
  • Yoshihiko Nakano – viola (7)
  • Blake Espy – violin (7)
  • Chris Jusell – violin (7)
  • Emma Kummrow – violin (7)
  • Gared Crawford – violin (7)
  • Luigi Mazzocchi – violin (7)
  • Natasha Colkett – violin (7)
  • Jerry Hey – horns arrangement (10)
  • Jordan Johnson – instrumentation, keyboards, programming (10)
  • Stefan Johnson – instrumentation, programming (10)
  • Michael Pollack – keyboards (10)
  • Dan Higgins – saxophone (10)
  • Andy Martin – trombone (10)
  • Wayne Bergeron – trumpet (10)
  • Kid Harpoon – drum programming, Mellotron, pianosynthesizer (11)
  • Quelle Chris – additional vocals (12)
  • Jon Kubis – string arrangement (12)
  • Ray Chew – string arrangement (12)
  • Adrianne Woods – cello (12)
  • Ryan Cross – cello (12)
  • Chris Woods – viola (12)
  • Jarvis Benson – viola (12)
  • Jonah Sirota – viola (12)
  • Leah Katz – viola (12)
  • Charlie Bisharat – violin (12)
  • Daphne Chen – violin (12)
  • Jenny Takamatsu – violin (12)
  • Marissa Kuney – violin (12)
  • Melissa Reiner – violin (12)
  • Radu Pieptea – violin (12)
  • Richard Adkins – violin (12)
  • Songa Lee – violin (12)

Technical

  • Emerson Mancini – mastering
  • Manny Marroquin – mixing (1, 2, 7–12)
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing (3–6)
  • Ricky Reed – mixing (7)
  • Bill Malina – engineering (1, 2, 6, 8, 12)
  • Patrick Kehrier – engineering (1–9, 12), engineering assistance (10, 11)
  • Benny Blanco – engineering (3)
  • Ilya – engineering (3)
  • Damien Lewis – engineering (6, 8, 9)
  • Ian Kirkpatrick – engineering (6, 8, 9)
  • Jacob Ferguson – engineering (7)
  • Jeff Chestek – engineering (7)
  • Jens Jungkurth – engineering (7)
  • Stefan Johnson – engineering (10)
  • Jeremy Hatcher – engineering (11)
  • Bryce Bordone – mix engineering (6), mixing assistance (3–5)
  • Andrew Hey – horns engineering (10)
  • Anthony Vilchis – mixing assistance (1, 2, 7–12)
  • Trey Station – mixing assistance (1, 2, 7–12)
  • Zach Pereyra – mixing assistance (1, 2, 7–12)
  • Chad Gordon – engineering assistance (1)
  • James Kirk – engineering assistance (2)
  • Piéce Eatah – engineering assistance (2)
  • Trey Pearce – engineering assistance (2)
  • Nate Ramer – engineering assistance (11)
  • Tom Peltier – engineering assistance (11)
  • Ira Grylack – engineering assistance (12)

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [74] Gold40,000‡
United States—600,000 [75]

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for Special
RegionDateFormatLabelRef.
VariousJuly 15, 2022 [76]
JapanAugust 31, 2022
  • CD
 [77]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)</span> 2022 single by Lizzo

"2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)" is a song by American singer and rapper Lizzo, from her fourth studio album Special (2022). It was released to Italian radio on July 18, 2022, as the album's second single, while in the United States, it impacted hot adult contemporary radio on August 1, 2022, as well as rhythmic contemporary radio and contemporary hit radio the following day. "2 Be Loved (Am I Ready) is a "new wave-ish" pop song, inspired by 70's disco and 80's synth-pop, and has been compared to works by The Pointer Sisters and Hall & Oates.

References

  1. ↑ Muggs, Joe (July 16, 2022). "Album: Lizzo - Special". The Arts Desk. Archived from the original on October 17, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "LIZZO "Special" | (Radio Date: 13/01/2023)". Archived from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Lizzo Announces New Album Special, Shares Video for New Song 'About Damn Time'". Pitchfork . April 14, 2022. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  4. ↑ Anderson, Carys (April 14, 2022). "Lizzo announces new album, Special, shares "About Damn Time": Stream". Consequence . Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  5. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (July 24, 2022). "Bad Bunny's 'Un Verano Sin Ti' Lands Sixth Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Lizzo Announces New Album and Tour". Pitchfork . January 28, 2019. Archived from the original on July 23, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Billboard 200 - 2019-09-07". Billboard. September 7, 2019. Archived from the original on April 19, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Lizzo has 'a few more songs' to write before her new album is finished". Music-News.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  9. ↑ "SZA appears to tease new Lizzo music: "Best song I ever heard in my life"". NME. January 19, 2021. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Lizzo Releasing "Rumors," First New Song in 2 Years, Next Week". Pitchfork. August 2, 2021. Archived from the original on August 13, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  11. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (March 13, 2022). "Lizzo Says New Album Is Done, Rips Texas's Anti-Trans Legislation During SXSW Keynote Speech". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Everything We Know About Lizzo's New Album 'Special'". www.grammy.com. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
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  14. 1 2 Blistein, Jon (July 13, 2022). "Lizzo Says Coldplay's 'Yellow' Became Her Make Out Song -- and Chris Martin Approves". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
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  17. ↑ @lizzobeeating (July 6, 2022). "SHES A 10 BUT YOU CANT GET HER UNTIL JULY 15TH 😏😏😏😏 LIZZOMUSIC.COM 😏😏😏😏" . Retrieved July 7, 2022– via Instagram..
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  22. 1 2 Bowenbank, Starr (February 9, 2023). "Lizzo & SZA's 'Special' Remix Has a Release Date". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 9, 2023. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
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  29. 1 2 Smyth, David (July 15, 2022). "Lizzo - Special review: This is her world, and we're lucky to live in it". Evening Standard . Archived from the original on July 22, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
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  31. 1 2 Brown, Helen (July 15, 2022). "Lizzo review, Special: Singer's new exuberant pop record is good as hell". The Independent . Archived from the original on July 22, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  32. 1 2 Franzini, Sam (July 15, 2022). "Special dims Lizzo's shine". The Line of Best Fit . Archived from the original on July 16, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
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  41. 1 2 Trust, Gary (July 24, 2022). "Bad Bunny's 'Un Verano Sin Ti' Lands Sixth Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard . Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
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  47. ↑ "Z-Ro on Instagram: "Repost from @derrickmc Big shout out to @lizzobeeating for showing love to the King of the Ghetto @z_ro on her new single #iLoveYouBitch "I'm from Houston, and there's this Houston rapper named Z-Ro who has a song called "I Hate U B*TCH. Suddenly I was like, hold up, what if I sang the 'I Hate U B*TCH' melody but said "I love you, b*TCH' instead? It just came out, and it might be the greatest thing we've ever done. As I was writing the lyrics, I realized that I wanted to write a universal love song one you could sing to the person you're f*cking and your best friend, to your family or to someone you just met at a bar." - Lizzo via @uproxxmusic @uproxx Writer 📝 @drossignol_"". Archived from the original on August 16, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
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  76. ↑ Special release formats:
    1. "Special Transparent Purple Cassette". Lizzo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
    2. "Special CD". Lizzo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
    3. "Special Digital Album". Lizzo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
    4. "Special by Lizzo". Apple Music (US). Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
    5. "Special Vinyl". Lizzo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
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