Everything about Piece Of Me totally explained
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"
Piece of Me" is a song written by Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, and
Klas Åhlund and recorded by American singer
Britney Spears. It is the second single (except in France where it hasn't been released) from Spears' fifth studio album
Blackout. The song was very successful, peaking inside the top ten in most countries it charted, and reaching number one in
Ireland and
Brazil. It was also successful in clubs, reaching number one in various Dance Club Play charts, including
Billboard's in the
United States and in
Australia. It was also one of her most succesful singles in the UK, peaking at two, and staying in the top seventy-five for twenty-three consecutive weeks so far.
Background
"Piece of Me" was written by
Swedish songwriters
Bloodshy & Avant duo, Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg, and
Klas Åhlund for Spears's fifth
studio album,
Blackout. Although Spears wasn't credited as writer of the song, her
A&R rep, Teresa LaBarbera Whites, stated that she was involved in the songs and how they turned out. The song was recorded in response to the constant media scrutiny and sensationalization of her private life. In a radio interview with
Ryan Seacrest, Spears said of the song: "wherever you go there's a lot of people who ask questions and sometimes you don't know their intentions and stuff like that. So, it's kind of a cute way of putting it out there you know like, 'You want a piece of me', you know in a cool, cute and clever way. It's a cute song... I like it." Swedish pop singer
Robyn is featured on background vocals. The track was produced by Bloodshy & Avant, who produced Spears'
Grammy Award-winning single "
Toxic".
Composition
"Piece of Me" is a
pop-
groove song performed in a three minutes and thirty-two seconds duration, and is 115 BPM. It is composed in the
key of
C# minor, and is set in
common time; in 4/4 count. Spears's voice is heavily synthesized and constantly shifts in
pitch. The track consists of over-the-top vocal
distortions which caused a split
sound effect, making it difficult to discern which voice is Spears'. It has a dominating sounds of squelching series of beats and bleeps, introduced in the sludgy
bassline beginning of the melody.
Background vocals for
Piece of Me were performed by
Robyn. The song has a background of
Middle Eastern-like
percussion finger cymbals.
"Piece of Me" is constructed in the common
verse-chorus pattern. The lyrics are written like a biography retelling Spears's mishaps, sung in nearly spoken manner. There are also rhyming lyrics of "rich and famous" with "shameless" in the
chorus. The producers chimes in when she sings "Extra! Extra!". A new pre-verse and verse is created after the first chorus. The
bridge follows after the second chorus using the same lyrics in the first pre-verse. "Piece of Me" ends in a repeated chorus.
Release and cover artwork
"Piece of Me" was officially released on
January 7 2008 in the
U.S. and the
UK, but had already received radio
airplay before then.
An alternate cover for the
CD single which features images of Spears's fans making up the main image of her in a
montage form. Fans that had signed up for
Sony BMG UK Britney Spears updates received the e-mail informing them. The cover was revealed on
January 4,
2008.
Reception
Prior to the release of
Blackout, "Piece of Me" was among the critically praised and recommended of the album's tracks. Margeaux Watson of
Entertainment Weekly praised "Piece of Me" stating it "is a rump shaker that finds Spears venting". Chuck Taylor of
Billboard said that "the song drips and drools '80s synths, alongside a drowsy midtempo clip, as Brit sings in a heavily layered near-monotone." Bill Lamb from
about.com wrote that the song is brilliant, and is one reason to listen to
Blackout. Kelefa Sanneh of
New York Times defined "Piece of Me" as: "[asong] introduced by a sludgy bass line, Ms. Spears waxes defensive, in a heavily synthesized voice that's the main (and sometimes only) instrument." Jennifer Vineyard reported that "Spears' mission statement of sorts, finds the singer so vocoder-ized that it's hard to tell where the real Britney begins and ends — which is part of the point." Bill Lamb commented that "Britney Spears answers all of the critics directly, forcefully, and fearlessly", giving the song four and a half stars out of five. Melissa Maerz of
Rolling Stone referred to it as "tabloid-bashing banger" and a "must hear song", while including it in their annual "100 Best Songs of the Year" at number fifteen. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of
All Music Guide commented that Bloodshy & Avant "try desperately to craft a defiant anthem for this tabloid fixture".
Music video
The music video was filmed on
November 27 and
November 28,
2007 at an exclusive
Hollywood nightclub and restaurant, Social Hollywood. It was
directed by
Wayne Isham, who had previously worked with Spears in the video "
I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" and in the international
Pepsi commercial campaign in 2002. The clips used was the images of Spears over the years including interviews, red-carpet appearances and performances. MTV premiered the video on
December 14.
The music video for "Piece of Me" follows a
paparazzi theme. as well as at number thirty-seven on the
Canadian Hot 100. After the release of the single's music video, "Piece of Me" climbed up the charts. On
January 5,
2008, the single rose to number twenty-one, receiving the
Greatest Gainer certification. On
February 9, "Piece of Me" peaked at number eighteen, and has since stayed the chart for twenty weeks, it was then removed from the Hot 100 due to
Billboard deletion criteria, it was, however, charted on the
Hot 100 Singles Recurrents at nine on the week of
April 05,
2008 due to still-strong digital sales as well as a somewhat high airplay. The single has been certified
Platinum by the
RIAA
The single debuted at number two on the Australian Singles Chart on
February 4,
2008. the single also spent nine consecutive weeks at number one on the Australian Dance Chart, while simultaneously topping the Australian Airplay Chart. The track enjoyed a second surge in support by fans which saw it climb back to the top of the Australian Dance Chart. It held the number one spot for thirteen weeks and achieved Platinum status. On the 11th of May, the single dropped back down to number two on the Australian Dance Chart, behind My People by
The Presets.
The single was successful in
European charts. In the
United Kingdom, "Piece of Me" debuted at number sixty-nine on
December 24,
2007. From number nineteen on
January 7, "Piece of Me" propelled to number two on
January 14,
2008 after its physical release, surpassing the peak position of its predecessor, "
Gimme More", which peaked at number three in
2007. In the
UK, as of
March 2 2008, "Piece of Me" has sold 147,382. The single failed to top the chart and has since stayed there for eight weeks. The song entered the
Irish Singles Chart on
December 20,
2007 at number twenty-four, and after four weeks on the chart, it reached the top spot on
January 12,
2008. "Piece of Me" became her seventh Irish number-one single, tying with
Madonna as solo female artist with the most number ones in the country. "Piece of Me" has also reached the top ten in
Denmark,
Finland,
Greece, and
Sweden, where the single had it's first chart entry. "Piece of Me" peaked at number four on
February 4,
2008, surpassing the achievements of "Gimme More", which peaked at number fifteen in October 2007 and is still charting after 19 weeks.; the single was certified gold after thirteen weeks on the chart. "Piece Of Me" is Spears' highest charting single in New Zealand since
Toxic, which peaked at number two in April 2004. The song remained on the chart for twenty weeks.
In Latin America, the single has so far has peak at six in the
Latin America Top 40, making Spears' fourth entry in the top ten on the chart.
"Piece of Me" debuted on the
United World Chart on
January 5,
2008 at number thirty-eight.
Certifications
Charts
Track listings and versions
Major formats released for "Piece of Me":
European/Australian Maxi CD Single (88697 186802)
(Released: January 11, 2008)
- "Piece of Me" (Album Version) – 3:32
- "Piece Of Me video 3.10
- "Piece of Me" (Bloodshy & Avant's Böz o lö Remix) – 3:51
- "Piece of Me" (Bimbo Jones Remix) – 6:26
- "Piece of Me" (Vito Benito Remix) – 6:46
- "Gimme More" (The "Kimme More" Remix) (featuring Lil' Kim) – 4:14
The Remixes - EP [Digital]
(Released: January 28, 2008)
"Piece of Me" – 3:33
"Piece of Me" (Bloodshy & Avant's Böz o lö Remix) – 4:55
"Piece of Me" (Tiësto Radio Edit) – 3:25
"Piece of Me" (Junior Vasquez and Johnny Vicious Radio Edit) – 3:40
"Piece of Me" (Friscia and Lamboy Radio Edit) – 3:29
"Piece of Me" (Reggae Remix) (featuring Sly & Robbie) – 4:19
Official version and remixes
Main Version – 3:32
Radio/Video Edit – 3:09
Bill Hamel Remix – 4:52
Bimbo Jones Club Mix – 6:26
Bimbo Jones Radio Edit – 3:03
Bimbo Jones Dub – 6:31
Bloodshy & Avant's Böz o lö Remix – 4:55
DaVinChe Mix – 3:15
Friscia & Lamboy Club Mix – 8:44
Friscia & Lamboy Radio Edit – 3:31
Junior Vasquez & Johnny Vicious Club Mix – 8:28
Junior Vasquez & Johnny Vicious Radio Edit – 3:40
Mike Rizzo Rough Remix – 2:47
Mysto & Pizzi Dance Mix – 4:37
Sly & Robbie Reggae Remix (feat. Cherine Anderson) – 4.23
Tiësto Club Mix – 7:53
Tiësto Dub – 7:53
Tiësto Radio Edit – 3:29
Vito Benito Vocal – 6:51
Non-Official Released:
Tonal Remix - 3.53
Release history
Credits and personnel
Written by: C. Karlsson, P. Winnberg & K. Åhlund
Produced by: Bloodshy & Avant
Recorded by: Bloodshy & Avant at Bloodshy & Avant Studios, Stockholm, Sweden and Chalice Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California
Mixed by: Niklas Flyckt at Mandarine Studios, Stockholm, Sweden
Keyboard, Programming, Bass & Guitar by: Bloodshy & Avant
Additional Guitar by: Henrik Jonback
Additional Bass: by Klas Åhlund
Background Vocals by: Robyn Carlsson
Mastered by: Tom Coyne at Sterling Sound, New York CityFurther Information
Get more info on 'Piece Of Me'.
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