Pop (song)

"Pop" is a song by American boy band NSYNC. It was released on May 14, 2001 as the first single from their third studio album, Celebrity. The song was written by Wade Robson and Justin Timberlake and produced by BT. It won four MTV Video Music Awards, for Best Group Video, Best Pop Video, Best Dance Video, and Viewers Choice, as well as a Teen Choice Award for Choice Single.

"Pop"
Single by NSYNC
from the album Celebrity
ReleasedMay 14, 2001
FormatCD single
Studio
Genre
Length3:57
LabelJive
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Brian Transeau
NSYNC singles chronology
"This I Promise You"
(2000)		 "Pop"
(2001)		 "Gone"
(2001)
Music video
"Pop" on YouTube

Background
BT was personally asked by Timberlake to produce the song.

On May 11, 2001, MTV broadcast a recording of "Pop" via satellite during NSYNC's tour rehearsal for PopOdyssey, which subsequently led to the song's radio release on May 14, 2001.[1]

Despite the success of the group's previous album, No Strings Attached, they were constantly blasted by critics who had preconceptions of what a "credible group" was, which forced them to be more involved in the production of their next album, Celebrity.[1] In an interview with Billboard, Justin Timberlake described the song's unique sound:[1]

We put everything that is not considered 'pop music' in that song. It's time to re-educate the new generation about what pop really is: a collection of sounds and genres. How you mix it all together is what makes pop music interesting -- and popular.

The group enlisted BT after Timberlake heard "The Hip Hop Phenomenon", which was released on the UK version of his 1999 album Movement in Still Life [2] BT agreed to produce the track on the request that he "treat your vocals so irreverently, it’s not even funny".[2] While the song was in production, BT heard Timberlake beatboxing under his breath, demanding him to use his vocals. Timberlake initially hesitated, as he did not want it to be featured on any track, but relented as BT created four tracks using broken headphones.[2] After BT created over 1,200 edits of the track using Max Headroom-styled stutter-edits, he showed the song to JC Chasez and Timberlake, who immediately loved it.[2]

Composition

"Pop" was written by Wade Robson and Timberlake, and produced by BT using his famous "stutter edit" sound.[3] The song refers to the band's longevity during a period of celebrity culture.[4] "Pop" contains "massive DJ loops, scratches, and a hefty amount of editing".[5] John Hugar of Uproxx described it as "a sort of proto-salvo against in the rockist vs. poptimists argument", and stated that it was the precursor to "Rock Your Body".[6] Larry Flick of Billboard described the song as "a crafty, anthemic blend of Cameo-style electro-funk beats, Euro-pop synths, heavy-metal guitars, and Timberlake's now-signature human beat-box riffs."[1]

Commercial performance

"Pop" reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart. It charted in the top 10 in several countries, including number seven in Norway, number nine on the UK Singles Chart, and number 10 on the Australian ARIA Charts. It peaked on the US Billboard Hot 100 at number 19.

Music video

Background

The music video for "Pop" was shot from May 13–15, 2001 in Sony Pictures Studios, and was directed by Wayne Isham. Three sets were built: an apartment shot as the opening scene, a multi-storey club, and a green screen where the band performed the song's dance choreography aided with several CGI sequences. A 35-foot tall stage was built with a 40-foot ramp, where the dancers were harnessed to the ceiling.[7] Two days before the shoot, Joey Fatone injured his leg while rehearsing for the PopOdyssey tour in New Orleans, as the area between his knee and calf was trapped between a 300 pound platform underneath the stage, creating a hole in his leg as well as the bone being exposed.[2] Throughout the music video, long-distance camera angles superimposed Fatone's face onto choreographer Wade Robson's body, as the latter substituted in his place due to the sustained injury.[8] Filming lasted for over two straight days, which the band members were not able to sleep and complained about being overworked.[9] The video debuted on MTV's Making the Video on May 28, 2001.[1]

Synopsis

The music video begins with a girl (Sandra McCoy) holding a bowl of cereal (Alpha-Bits) watching a commercial of Justin Timberlake advertising pop to her: "Hey you! Yeah, I'm talking to you, sassy girl. Need a little ahh in your step? Try this on for size: i-i-i-i-i-it's Pop! I-i-i-it tastes great and makes you feel kind of funny, not here, not down there, but all up in this area. And, c-coming J-July 24, 2001, Jumbo-pop."

The girl drops her cereal bowl and the camera passes through three pieces spelling the word "POP". After the music starts, the video takes place at a colorful disco club with NSYNC performing on a lighted circle with the word "POP" in a neon sign behind them. While they are singing, Timberlake is also on a spinning spiral, and JC Chasez is in the crowd. Many special effects, including fast-motion, bullet-time, and computer generated warp-transitions, are used. During the song's breakdown, the group perform an extended choreographed sequence, while they are seen in various outfits. At the end of the video, Timberlake begins to beatbox for thirty seconds, while the other members float in the background.[10]

Live performances

NSYNC performed "Pop" at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards on September 6, where they were accompanied by Michael Jackson.[9]

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of "Pop".[3]

Recording
Personnel
  • Justin Timberlake – songwriter, producer, arranger, beatbox
  • BT – songwriter, producer, arranger, engineer, programmer, mixing
  • Wade J. Robson – songwriter, producer, arranger
  • Mike Tucker – vocal recording engineer
  • Carlos Vasquez – additional beat programming
  • Chris Haggerty – digital editing
  • Richard Fortus – electric guitar, bass
  • Kenny Blank – additional guitar
  • Chaz Harper – mastering

Charts

References
  1. Flick, Larry. "'N Sync: Shouldering The Burden of Celebrity". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 30, 2001. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  2. Touré (August 31, 2001). "'N Sync: True Tales of the Pop Life". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  3. NSYNC (2001). Pop (liner notes). Jive Records. 9252282.
  4. Lockhart, Bri (July 24, 2016). "From the Record Crate: *NSYNC – Celebrity (2001)". The Young Folks. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  5. CaliggyJack (July 12, 2016). "'N Sync - Celebrity (album review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  6. Hugar, John (July 24, 2016). "NSYNC's 'Celebrity' Signaled Their Imminent Demise". Uproxx. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  7. Dangelo, Joe (May 29, 2001). "No Pain, No Gain On Set of 'NSYNC's 'Pop' Video". MTV News. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  8. "*NSYNC: Pop". Making the Video. Season 5. May 28, 2001. MTV.
  9. Barlow, Eve (March 24, 2020). "The Best, Worst, and Most Questionable of *NSYNC, According to Lance and Chris". Vulture. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
  10. NSYNCVEVO. "NSYNC - "Pop"". Retrieved August 28, 2017 – via YouTube.
  11. "Australian-charts.com – *N Sync – Pop". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  12. "Austriancharts.at – *N Sync – Pop" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  13. "Ultratop.be – *N Sync – Pop" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  14. "Ultratop.be – *N Sync – Pop" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  15. "N SYNC Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  16. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 19 no. 31. July 28, 2001. p. 7. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  17. "Offiziellecharts.de – *N Sync – Pop". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  18. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – 'N Sync". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  19. "Italiancharts.com – *N Sync – Pop". Top Digital Download.
  20. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 27, 2001" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  21. "Dutchcharts.nl – *N Sync – Pop" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  22. "Charts.nz – *N Sync – Pop". Top 40 Singles.
  23. "Norwegiancharts.com – *N Sync – Pop". VG-lista.
  24. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 19 no. 42. October 13, 2001. p. 13. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  25. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  26. "Spanishcharts.com – *N Sync – Pop" Canciones Top 50.
  27. "Swedishcharts.com – *N Sync – Pop". Singles Top 100.
  28. "Swisscharts.com – *N Sync – Pop". Swiss Singles Chart.
  29. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  30. "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  31. "N SYNC Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  32. "N SYNC Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  33. "N SYNC Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  34. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2001" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.