City of Dreams (Joel Turner song)
Encyclopedia
"City of Dreams" is the first single
from Joel Turner
's second studio album Out of the Box
.
It was released on August 25, 2007 and features Turner on vocals, beatbox and acoustic guitar, with rappers C4 and KNO (of the Modern Day Poets
) performing the verses. An uncensored version of the track is included on the CD single and the Out of the Box album.
The song, which includes a strong R&B aspect, is a declaration of the performers’ passion for the hip-hop culture and their hometown of Brisbane
. The video contains both colour and black-and-white scenes and opens with footage of a cypher
led by KNO and New York
MC
Lee Majaz, taken from the online documentary This Kid. Also featured in the clip are shots of the Brisbane River
and city skyline, as well as scenes filmed at a local skate park, inside a train station, and at Turner’s childhood home.
In a promotional interview for the Out of the Box album, Turner stated that “City of Dreams” was released as lead single at the behest of his record company Hardwax. “Personally 'City of Dreams' wasn't one of my favourites but the record company liked it and they said it was the most versatile track at the time because I was singing, playing guitar and beat boxing on it, but I like it as well because it talks about where you're from and believing in your city of dreams.”
Despite Turner’s previous chart successes, "City of Dreams" was not picked up by major radio and had a sluggish start on music television, forcing his label to rely largely on the Internet and live performances in order to reach listeners. Promotion was also hampered by Turner’s broken jaw, which he had suffered less than a month before the single’s release. Nevertheless, the song rocketed to #30 on the ARIA
charts in its second week (#15 on the physical singles chart), after a disappointing debut at #60. It later received a nomination for Urban Work of the Year at the 2008 APRA Awards
and again in 2009.
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
from Joel Turner
Joel Turner (musician)
Joel Turner is an Australian beatboxer, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist and record producer best known for the Australian hit song "These Kids". As a beatboxer, he is recognised for his raw power, deep bass, and trademark sounds such as his "third voice", cowbell, teeth beats and bass guitar...
's second studio album Out of the Box
Out of the Box (Joel Turner album)
Out of the Box is the second studio album from Joel Turner. It was first planned for release in early 2006 but did not reach stores until October 6, 2007. No reason has been given for the many postponements....
.
It was released on August 25, 2007 and features Turner on vocals, beatbox and acoustic guitar, with rappers C4 and KNO (of the Modern Day Poets
Joel Turner (musician)
Joel Turner is an Australian beatboxer, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist and record producer best known for the Australian hit song "These Kids". As a beatboxer, he is recognised for his raw power, deep bass, and trademark sounds such as his "third voice", cowbell, teeth beats and bass guitar...
) performing the verses. An uncensored version of the track is included on the CD single and the Out of the Box album.
The song, which includes a strong R&B aspect, is a declaration of the performers’ passion for the hip-hop culture and their hometown of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. The video contains both colour and black-and-white scenes and opens with footage of a cypher
Freestyle rap
Freestyle rap commonly refers to rap lyrics which are improvised through a acapella or with instrumental beats, i.e. performed with no previously composed lyrics, or "off the top of the head"...
led by KNO and New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
MC
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
Lee Majaz, taken from the online documentary This Kid. Also featured in the clip are shots of the Brisbane River
Brisbane River
The Brisbane River is the longest river in south east Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay. John Oxley was the first European to explore the river who named it after the Governor of New South Wales, Thomas Brisbane in 1823...
and city skyline, as well as scenes filmed at a local skate park, inside a train station, and at Turner’s childhood home.
In a promotional interview for the Out of the Box album, Turner stated that “City of Dreams” was released as lead single at the behest of his record company Hardwax. “Personally 'City of Dreams' wasn't one of my favourites but the record company liked it and they said it was the most versatile track at the time because I was singing, playing guitar and beat boxing on it, but I like it as well because it talks about where you're from and believing in your city of dreams.”
Despite Turner’s previous chart successes, "City of Dreams" was not picked up by major radio and had a sluggish start on music television, forcing his label to rely largely on the Internet and live performances in order to reach listeners. Promotion was also hampered by Turner’s broken jaw, which he had suffered less than a month before the single’s release. Nevertheless, the song rocketed to #30 on the ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
charts in its second week (#15 on the physical singles chart), after a disappointing debut at #60. It later received a nomination for Urban Work of the Year at the 2008 APRA Awards
APRA Awards
The APRA Music Awards are several award ceremonies run in Australia and New Zealand by Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually....
and again in 2009.
Track listing
- "City of Dreams" (Clean Version)
Writers: Joel Turner, Chris Heiner, Kitchener Wesche, Shaunne Diamond
Producer: Colin Emmanuel - "City of Dreams" (Album Version)
Writers: Joel Turner, Chris Heiner, Kitchener Wesche, Shaunne Diamond
Producer: Colin Emmanuel - "Turn Up the Bass" (Beatbox skit)
Writer: Joel Turner
Producer: Joel Turner - "Jungle Rhythm" (Beatbox skit)
Writer: Joel Turner
Producer: Joel Turner - "1,2,3" (featuring Preech)
Writers: Joel Turner, Preech
Producers: Joel Turner, Preech