2 Hearts (Kylie Minogue song)

"2 Hearts"
Single by Kylie Minogue
from the album X
B-side
  • "I Don't Know What It Is"
  • "King or Queen"
Released 9 November 2007 (2007-11-09)
Format
Recorded 2007; Olympic Studios, Stanley House Studios (London)
Genre
Length 2:53
Label Parlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Kish Mauve
Kylie Minogue singles chronology
"Giving You Up"
(2005)		 "2 Hearts"
(2007)		 "Wow"
(2008)

"Giving You Up"
(2005)		 "2 Hearts"
(2007)		 "Wow"
(2008)
Music video
"2 Hearts" on YouTube

"2 Hearts" is a song recorded by Australian singer Kylie Minogue for her tenth studio album, X (2007). It was written and produced by Jim Eliot and Mima Stilwell of the British electropop group Kish Mauve. Initially, the song was released on 9 November 2007 by Parlophone. The song was Minogue's first commercial single since she was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2005. After the announcement, Minogue took a hiatus between 2005 and 2006 to recover from her illness.

The song is a cover version of a track originally recorded by Kish Mauve. The song features instrumentation of electric guitars, guitars, drums, keyboards and piano riffs. The song also features "whooo"'s towards the singles chorus. Upon its release, "2 Hearts" received mixed reviews from music critics. The song was praised for its departure of musical content and the song's strength; however, the song received criticism for its production and for not living up to expectations.

Commercially, the song was successful worldwide. The song managed to top the spot in Minogue's native Australia and in Spain, while peaking inside the top ten in countries Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland. Though the song was released in North America, the song did not manage to chart on any component Billboard charts, but it did chart in Canada. The music video for "2 Hearts" was directed by Dawn Shadforth and filmed at Shepperton Studios in London, England. It features Minogue performing the song on a stage, where she dances on a piano and features the band playing along with the song.

Additionally, the song was featured on three of Minogue's tours. The song was first performed on her KylieX2008 Tour, where she played as an 'erotic bellboy'. The stage featured a green set, with a gigantic skull behind her. The song was also featured on her North American tour For You, for Me, where it was featured in the middle of the setlist. The song was then added to the setlist of her Aphrodite World Tour, where it was performed in Japan only.

Background and release

After performing in Europe and the United Kingdom with her Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour, Minogue was scheduled to perform in Australia and Asia. However, on 17 May 2005, Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 36.[2] This led her management to postpone the remainder of the tour and her appearance to the Glastonbury Festival. She was hospitalized in Melbourne so treatment could go ahead, but this led to a brief but intense period of media coverage, particularly in Australia. Minogue underwent surgery on 21 May 2005 at Cabrini Hospital in Malvern, and soon after commenced chemotherapy treatment.[3]

After recovering from her diagnosis, Minogue began writing lyrics towards the end of her cancer treatment in mid 2006, having not worked on any music for the previous year. Due to the recovery time following her cancer, X was the first album Minogue had consciously prepared for the recording of, having previously been engaged for much of her career in an endless cycle of record, release and tour. After she was clear of the disease, Minogue has resumed her tour, entitled Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour. She first performed in Sydney, with reworks of the dance routines as well as new costumes and outfits for the show. Just leading into 2007, Minogue had scheduled dates for the United Kingdom.

Her new single "2 Hearts" and its remixes were leaked onto file sharing websites on 9 October 2007.[4] It premiered on British radio the day after.[5] "2 Hearts" was released in various formats throughout the world. While most territories received a CD single and digital download release, the song was also released as a limited edition vinyl single in the United Kingdom.[6] The song was promotionally released in New Zealand as a CD single, where fans got free copies, due to the promotion of Minogue's film White Diamond.[7]

Recording and composition

After recovering from breast cancer, Minogue had started recording material for the production of X. She first started recording tracks in London, England for the studio album.[8] "2 Hearts" was written and originally recorded by London-based electro group Kish Mauve, who gave the song to Minogue. Commenting on the song, Minogue said that she "loved it from the moment I heard it". She also described the recording sessions with Kish Mauve as "a joy".[9] With additional production of Kish Mauve, they had also produced a track called "Lose Control".

Musically features instrumentation of electric guitars, guitars, drums, keyboards and piano riffs. The song also features "whooo"'s towards the singles chorus. In the verses, the song follows the chord progression Am-G.[10] In the chorus, it follows the progression F-Dm7-Am-C.[10] Although it hasn't been explained, fans have found the song talks about Minogue falling in love with someone (2 Hearts are beating together/I'm in love) while she feels she is forgetting about herself as well (You make me feel invisible).

Reception

Critical response

Minogue performing "2 Hearts" during her For You, for Me Tour, 2009.

Upon its release, "2 Hearts" received mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. Victoria Newton from The Sun, described the song as "a surefire number one", remarking that "it's on a par with "Can't Get You Out of My Head".[11] Tom Ewing from Pitchfork Media compared the song to the music of Goldfrapp, and wrote that "it's an unexpected stylistic move" and "it plays to her strengths".[12] Chris True from Allmusic highlighted the song as an album standout.[13] Alexis Petridis from The Guardian said the song "offers a winning glam, piano-driven stomp."[14] Evan Sawdey from PopMatters was very positive towards the song, saying "From the sexy bass that sets up the opening track "2 Hearts", it's obvious that she’s not only going to go back to her disco sex-kitten persona [...] "2 Hearts"—aside from being one of her best singles in years—makes for an incredible album opener."[15] Though Dave Hughes from Slant Magazine said that "2 Hearts" "serviceable rip of Goldfrapp's glammier slinks, kicks things off well" he felt that Minogue was playing it too safe.[16] The Boston Globe highlighted the song as the album's best track, and said ""2 Hearts," the glammy lead track, is the heaviest song here, musically speaking, and also the freshest, even though the stomping, swaggering gem is a blast from the Marc Bolan-esque past."[17]

However, the song did received negative reviews from music critics. Sarah Walters of the Manchester Evening News was less impressed, commenting that "it takes more than a bunch of singable wooh's to maketh the memorable single".[18] Drowned in Sound reviewer Alex Denney called "2 Hearts" a "disappointment", stating that "it's a genetic three-way splice of the burlesque chic Christina Aguilera's been peddling for the last 12 months to a worldwide chorus of mehs, Alison Goldfrapp's vampish electro shtick and, quite literally, Feist's "1234".[19]

Rolling Stone ranked "2 Hearts" at number 94 on its list of the Top 100 Songs of 2007, even though the song had not been released in the United States.[20] The song also ranked at number 40 on Stylus Magazine's Top 50 Songs of 2007.[21]

Chart performance

In Minogue's native Australia, the song debuted at number one on the Australian Singles Chart, becoming her first number one since "Slow" and her tenth number one overall. It stayed in the charts for 13 weeks.[22] Although it was the lowest-selling number one of Australia in 2007,[23] it received a Gold certification from ARIA in 2008 for sales of at least 35,000 copies.[24] The song was not as successful in New Zealand, where it debuted at number 34 then left the chart the next week. The song then re-entered at number 38 due to the copies given at the premiere of her film White Diamond: A Personal Portrait of Kylie Minogue. This was her last single to chart until "Higher" and her last solo single until "Timebomb".[25] The song wasn't successful in Canada as well, where it only charted at number 60 for a sole week.[26] In Sweden, the song debuted at number 39, then peaked at number three for two consecutive weeks. It was Minogue's highest single since "Can't Get You Out of My Head".[27]

"2 Hearts" was successful elsewhere. It debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number 12 on 11 November 2007, based solely on digital download sales. It reached a peak position of number four on 19 November 2007, and remained in the top 75 for a total of 13 weeks.[28] "2 Hearts" debuted at number 29 on the Irish Singles Chart, a week before its physical single release. The track reached a peak position of number 12 in the Ireland the following week, and remained in the top 50 for seven weeks.[29] Outside the British Isles, the song became a number-one hit in Spain, debuting at the top spot on 18 November 2007 and staying in the top 20 for 10 non-consecutive weeks.[30] In Italy, the song debuted at number 10 on the Italian Singles Chart, then peaked at number two the next week.[31] The song also charted in several other European countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.

Music video

The music video for "2 Hearts" was directed by Dawn Shadforth and filmed at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England in September 2007.[32] The video features Minogue in 2 different scenes: dressed in a black latex catsuit, red lipstick and curly blonde hair performing with her band & another scene where she has a plain black dress, and in a darker, more mysterious environment. It is similar to Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot.[33] It begins with Minogue singing into a microphone on top of a piano. The video concludes with Minogue and her band performing on a stage with multi-colored confetti falling around them.

Minogue drew inspiration from London nightclub BoomBox, where she DJed during London Fashion Week.[32] The costumes worn by Minogue and her band were designed by Gareth Pugh and Christopher Kane.[32] The video premiered on GMTV on 10 October 2007.[34]

"2 Hearts" was used in promotional advertisements for the ABC sitcom Cougar Town starring Courteney Cox. and was included in the Brazilian soap opera Duas Caras.

Live performances

Minogue performed the song on the following concert tours:

The song was also performed on:

Formats and track listings

Personnel

The following people contributed to "2 Hearts":[35]

Charts

Release history

Country Date Format Label Ref.
Germany 9 November 2007 CD single EMI [55]
CD maxi single [56]
Digital download [57]
United Kingdom 12 November 2007 CD single Parlophone [58]
CD maxi single [59]
12" [60]

References

  1. 1 2 3 X (Kylie Minogue album)
  2. ↑ "Minogue's cancer shock ends tour". CNN. 17 May 2005. Retrieved 19 September 2007.
  3. ↑ "Kylie begins cancer treatment". CNN. 19 May 2005. Retrieved 9 December 2006.
  4. ↑ Rakowski, Ian. "Kylie Minogue's new single leaked online". News.com.au. 10 October 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  5. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071012224153fw_/http://www.kylie.com:80/2006_site/frameset.htm
  6. ↑ "'2 Hearts' (12" vinyl) (Single) (Enhanced) (Limited Edition)". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  7. ↑ "Kylie Minogue's White Diamond At Skycity Cinemas | Scoop News". Scoop.co.nz. 2007-11-08. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  8. ↑ Dingwall, John. "Kylie: Back to Sexy Pop". Daily Record. 29 December 2006. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  9. ↑ "Kylie Minogue 2 Hearts" Archived 5 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine.. Warner Music Australia. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  10. 1 2 http://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/k/kylie_minogue/two_hearts_crd.htm
  11. ↑ Newton, Victoria. "Kylie's Hearts set to top charts". The Sun. 31 August 2007. Retrieved 22 September 2007.
  12. ↑ Ewing, Tom. "Kylie Minogue X Pitchfork Record Review" Archived 14 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine.. Pitchfork Media. 30 November 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  13. ↑ Kylie - X allmusic.com.
  14. ↑ Alexis Petridis, The Guardian, Friday 23 November 2007 Kylie Minogue, X
  15. ↑ http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/kylie-minogue-x/
  16. ↑ Kylie Minogue: X | Music Review slantmagazine.com.
  17. ↑ "Back at it, Kylie mines gold from glitter". The Boston Globe. 1 April 2008.
  18. ↑ Walters, Sarah. "Kylie - 2 Hearts (Parlophone)". Manchester Evening News. 9 November 2007. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
  19. ↑ Denney, Alex. "Reviews - Singles - Kylie Minogue: 2 Hearts". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  20. ↑ "The 100 Best Songs of 2007". Rolling Stone. 11 December 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  21. ↑ "Top 50 Songs of 2007". Stylus Magazine. 31 November 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  22. 1 2 "Australian-charts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  23. 1 2 "ARIA Top 100 Singles 2007". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 2011-08-16.
  24. 1 2 "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2008 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  25. 1 2 "Charts.nz – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". Top 40 Singles.
  26. 1 2 "Kylie Minogue Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
  27. 1 2 "Swedishcharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". Singles Top 100.
  28. 1 2 "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  29. 1 2 "Chart Track: Week 46, 2007". Irish Singles Chart.
  30. 1 2 "Spanishcharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" Canciones Top 50.
  31. 1 2 "Italiancharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". Top Digital Download.
  32. 1 2 3 "Kylie films steamy new video". Stuff.co.nz. 5 October 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  33. ↑ Trombetta, Natalie. "Kylie returns as 'Marilyn Minogue' in raunchy new video". Daily Mail. 10 October 2007. Retrieved 25 December 2007.
  34. ↑ "What's On GMTV?" Archived 14 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine.. GMTV. Retrieved 6 October 2007.
  35. ↑ X (CD liner notes). Parlophone. November 2007.
  36. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  37. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  38. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  39. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200743 into search.
  40. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". Tracklisten.
  41. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" (in French). Les classement single.
  42. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  43. ↑ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  44. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 49, 2007" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40
  45. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  46. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". VG-lista.
  47. ↑ "Romanian Top 100: Issue nr: 1/2008" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  48. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  49. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200805 into search.
  50. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts". Swiss Singles Chart.
  51. ↑ FDR Media (2007). "Top 40 - Week of 10 December 2007". fdr.com.ua. FDR Media. Archived from the original on 11 December 2007. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
  52. ↑ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  53. ↑ "Hit Parade Italia - Top Annuali Single: 2007". Archived from the original on 3 July 2013. Retrieved 2013-06-30.
  54. ↑ "The Official UK Singles Chart 2007" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  55. ↑ https://www.amazon.de/2-Hearts-Wallet-Minogue-Kylie/dp/B000XIJ3MK
  56. ↑ https://www.amazon.de/2-Hearts-Slimline-Kylie-Minogue/dp/B000X9Y108
  57. ↑ https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B001QEQ508
  58. ↑ https://www.amazon.co.uk/2-Hearts-CD-Kylie-Minogue/dp/B000X9Y108
  59. ↑ https://www.amazon.co.uk/2-Hearts-Cd2-Kylie-Minogue/dp/B000X1BI98
  60. ↑ https://www.amazon.co.uk/2-Hearts-VINYL-Kylie-Minogue/dp/B000X9XOAG
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