If U Seek Amy
Encyclopedia
"If U Seek Amy" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears
from her sixth studio album, Circus
. It was released on March 13, 2009 by Jive Records
as the third single of the album, and was chosen by a poll on Spears's official website. "If U Seek Amy" was co-written and produced by Max Martin
, who also wrote previous hits for her first three albums. In the song, Spears is looking for a woman named Amy in a club, and although it appears to be about sex, it is actually about how society perceives her life. The song's title features a homophonic name that can be interpreted as “F-U-C-K
me”. Musically, "If U Seek Amy" is a pop song with influences of electropop and usage of instruments such as synthesizers and timpani
.
"If U Seek Amy" was generally well received by contemporary critics, who praised Spears's confident vocals and frequently cited it as the highlight of the album. After its release, "If U Seek Amy" caused controversy in English-speaking countries for the double entendre and lyrical content, with the Parents Television Council
(PTC) threatening to file indecency complaints against any radio station that played the song during daytime. An edited version of the song titled "If U See Amy" was released in some regions, including in stations owned by Clear Channel Radio and Austereo Radio Network
. "If U Seek Amy" was a moderate success, reaching the top twenty in Australia, the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and many other countries worldwide. It was also her third single from Circus to reach the top twenty in the United States.
The music video for "If U Seek Amy" begins with a parody of an America's Newsroom
report by Megyn Kelly
and portrays Spears at a sex party that takes place at her house. Towards the end, she changes into conservative housewife clothes and opens the front door with her family while paparazzi take pictures of them. It references some of her previous music videos such as "...Baby One More Time
" and "Piece of Me
". Critics noted the similarities with her past work and also compared it to the film Eyes Wide Shut
. "If U Seek Amy" was performed at The Circus Starring Britney Spears (2009) and the Femme Fatale Tour
(2011).
, who wrote hits for Spears first albums, including "...Baby One More Time
" (1998) and "Oops!... I Did It Again
" (2000). This marked the first time they worked together since her third studio album, Britney
(2001). Recording sessions took place at Conway Recording Studios
and Sunset Studios
in Hollywood, California. Background vocals by Kinnda and Martin were recorded at Maratone Studios in Stockholm, Sweden. The recordings were mixed
by Serban Ghenea
at MixStar Studios in Virginia
. On December 5, 2008, a poll was added to Spears' official website to choose the third single, involving ten other songs from Circus. On January 7, 2009, it was announced that "If U Seek Amy" had won, receiving 26% of the total votes.
song, with influences of electropop and usage of synthesizers. The song runs through a dance-oriented beat
and features many instruments, including keyboard
s, bass drum
s, electric guitar
s and timpani
. According to the sheet music published at musicnotes.com by Hal Leonard Corporation, the song has a beat of 130 beats per minute and is written in the key of A minor
. Spears's vocal range spans from G3-C5. In the song, Spears seems to be looking for a woman named Amy
in a club. It has been suggested that Amy is an alter ego
of Spears herself. The verses end with the hookline
"Hahahehehahaho", that according to Poppy Cossins of The Sun
, is fitting to "the album's carnivalesque overtone". The chorus begins with the lines "Love me, hate me / Say what you want about me", a reference to the public's perception and fascination with Spears' life. This presents Spears both as "an object of desire and a punching bag". According to Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph
, this line also hints at the public image of British singer Amy Winehouse
. There is a double entendre
in the sentence "All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to if u seek Amy", which can be interpreted phonetically as "All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to F-U-C-K
Me". The double entendre was compared to the title of Van Halen
's 1991 album, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge
, as well as a portion of James Joyce's
Ulysses
.
said the song is "Max Martin and Spears at their best: a stomping dance floor beat with building synths prodding the song along and the singer sounding like she's having a blast being the bad girl". Rolling Stone
writer Caryn Ganz called the song one of the standout tracks of the album. Alexis Pretridis of The Guardian
commented that her stronger and confident delivery in the chorus was noticeably lacking in the rest of the album. Joey Guerra of The Houston Chronicle also said that the "more aggressive, pointed persona" Spears adopts in the song is one of the high points of the album. The Emory Wheels writer Julia Cox called it "the album’s strongest and most unorthodox song". Ricardo Baca of The Denver Post
named the song the most fascinating track of the album and commented on the double entendre, saying "It's trashy and clever, and it's also quite fun. And fun is exactly what Spears should be aiming for". However, there were also some negative reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic said the song is "a Katy Perry
-styled exercise in crass commercial carnality that is at once the best and worst song here". Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly
called it "puerile" and added that "it'll be a middle-school sensation". The Independent
gave the song a negative review, writing, "If You Seek Amy [sic] is crass: the entire song is simply an excuse for Spears to sing 'All of the boys and all of the girls want to F-U-C-K me,' about as cheap as sensationalist outrage gets". NME
named it one of the filthiest songs of all time.
, said, "I was astonished and totally taken aback when I heard my 5 and 7 year old kids walking around the house singing 'F-U-C-K' ... When I asked them what it was, they told me it was Britney Spears. I was horrified. I got them the Circus album but there was no warning on it ... It is extremely offensive. I feel deceived". Rolling Stone writer Daniel Kreps defended Spears, arguing that parents should have been aware of the singer's musical themes. After the song was announced as the third single from the album, American radio stations were unsure about playing the track due to its double entendre
in the chorus. Program director
s of Z100
and KIIS-FM
compared the issues to be faced by their radio stations to the release of the 2005 The Black Eyed Peas
single, "Don't Phunk with My Heart
", saying that "listeners thought it was the other word, and so we had to change it to 'mess'". Program director Patti Marshall of Q102
said "It's ok to put in on an album, have fun with it, but we're publicly owned
, you know? [...] It's not about us. It's about the mom in the minivan with her 8-year-old". WFLZ
's Tommy Chuck said his station produced their own edit of the song that replaced "seek" for "see", with the station's disc jockey
s referring to it as "If U See Amy".
Shortly after, the Parents Television Council
(PTC) threatened to file indecency complaints with the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) against any station that played the song between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. PTC President Tim Winter said "there is no misinterpreting the lyrics to this song, and it's certainly not about a girl named Amy. It's one thing for a song with these lyrics to be included on a CD so that fans who wish to hear it can do so, but it's an entirely different matter when this song is played over the publicly owned airwaves, especially at a time when children are likely to be in the listening audience". RBR.com reported that "interestingly, Circus was reviewed by Common Sense Media, another organization whose mission is to help parents manage their children's media consumption. It rated it appropriate for age 13 and up, but made no specific mention of 'If U Seek Amy'. Even more interestingly, reputed incoming FCC Chair Julius Genachowski
is a founding board member of Common Sense". The threats of the PTC were later extended to cable music channels that played the music video; however, the FCC does not have control over cable.
On January 23, 2009, Tom Poleman
, senior vice president of programming for Clear Channel Radio, announced they planned to play an edited version. Sharon Dastur of Z100 added that Spears had recorded a new version of the song and the new edit would be provided by Jive Records
. David Hinckley of the Daily News commented that "Clear Channel, which laid off 9% of its workforce this week, is hardly in the mood to finance an FCC fight right now". Finally, a radio edit titled "If U See Amy" was released to American radio stations, which changes the "seek" to "see". The amended version was released in the UK in May. While the song has not officially been renamed or released in Australia, some radio stations, such as those belonging to the Austereo Radio Network
, play the censored version, while others continue to play the uncensored. Both the music video and the international radio single remain "If U Seek Amy".
, "If U Seek Amy" sold over 107,000 digital copies in the United States within two weeks of the album's release. On April 11, 2009 the song peaked at number seventeen on the Billboard Hot Digital Songs
. On May 9, 2009, the song peaked at number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100, making Circus the first Spears album to have three top twenty hits since her 1999 debut, ...Baby One More Time
. "If U Seek Amy" has sold 1,175,000 digital copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan
. It is her seventh best-selling digital single in the country. In Canada the song debuted at eighty-eight on December 20, 2008. It returned on February 14, 2009 at eighty-six before reaching the thirteenth position, where it finally peaked on April 4, 2009.
"If U Seek Amy" debuted at number forty-nine on the ARIA Singles Chart
on February 16, 2009, and moved to a peak position of eleven on March 30, 2009, also becoming the chart's "greatest gainer". It has since been certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association
(ARIA) with sales of over 35,000 copies. "If U Seek Amy" entered the UK Singles Chart
at number forty-five on April 6, 2009 due to its rising digital sales. After its physical release, it peaked at number twenty on May 10, 2009. According to The Official Charts Company, the song has sold 105,000 copies there. "If U Seek Amy" also achieved success worldwide, reaching the top ten in Belgium (Wallonia), France and Turkey, and the top twenty in Belgium (Flanders), Ireland, New Zealand and Sweden.
, who previously worked with Spears for her "My Prerogative" music video. Spears was styled by David Thomas for the video. During the scenes at the party, she wears American Apparel
wet-looking leggings and a black corset from London lingerie designer Bordelle with diamond-shaped holes. She also wears a pair of red high-heeled Louboutins
with rouced petals, that were not available for sale until a month after the video was released. When she is dressed as a housewife, Spears has a blonde wig, wears a pale pink sweater, a white skirt from Derek Lam
and a Lacoste polo shirt. The music video premiered on March 12, 2009, on both Virgin Mobile's official website and Spears's official websites.
report by Megyn Kelly
. It then skips to a house, in which a sex party
is coming to an end. Spears starts singing while sitting on the edge of a bed while the people that surround her are getting dressed. She gets up and looks out the window. As the first verse ends, she picks up a pair of panties from the floor, recalling her personal struggles and the "Piece of Me" video. She dances with four male dancers in the first chorus. During the second chorus, she dances with four other female dancers dressed in cheerleading
outfits, while many men are watching them dance. The screen fades to white and Spears begins to change into a conservative '50s
-inspired housewife
outfit. As the chorus begins again, she comes out of her bedroom. She walks down the stairs, with dancers surrounding her and a woman gives her a potholder, which she uses to pick up a pie. After this, she walks out the front door of the house and is joined by her seemingly conservative-looking husband and children, one of them dressed with the schoolgirl
outfit Spears wore in the "…Baby One More Time" video. As they go down the walkway, they are surrounded by paparazzi
, who have no idea what goes on behind closed doors. While the kids and husband wave, Spears smiles for the camera and blows a kiss. The video then ends with the news anchor saying, "It doesn't make any sense, does it?".
stated that the video manages to combine elements from her previous music videos, such as the style of "Everytime" and the attitude of "Stronger". He also referred to it as "a pretty amazing amalgamation of all things Brit, and a nice primer of her entire career up to this point". Rolling Stone writer Daniel Kreps compared the party on the video to the 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut
and added that "this may be the first Spears video ever crafted strictly with the morally-lax Internet
in mind, a brazen clip that doesn’t have to tone down its explicit nature lyrically and visually in order to get airplay". Chris Johnson of the Daily Mail
compared Spears' housewife style to one of her looks in a 2001 Pepsi
commercial. Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly said, "it’s kind of difficult to believe the song’s real meaning will get past even the thickest listener, the video itself is pretty tame…almost disappointingly so". The reviewer also compared the hairstyle of Spears during the housewife scenes to Marilyn Monroe
.
" from Britney
, Spears performed a military drill with her male dancers, which ended with her putting on a faux fur vest to perform "If U Seek Amy". At the end, Spears pulled a giant pink hammer and proceeded to hit her dancers off the stage, in a similar way to Whac-A-Mole
. Jerry Shriver of USA Today
said in the opening night of the tour, "[the] single 'If U Seek Amy' draws a huge roar and sing-along from the crowd as Spears shakes her long blond mane". Craig Rosen of The Hollywood Reporter
commented, "The artist that raised the ire of parents from the beginning in her scandalous schoolgirl outfit also continues to use shock-and-awe tactics. Her latest, 'If U Seek Amy' [...] was included in the set, much to the delight of her young fans".
"If U Seek Amy" was also performed by Spears at 2011's Femme Fatale Tour
. Spears reappeared onstage after "Lace and Leather" to perform a jazz-inspired version of the song, wearing a white skirt and standing over a fan, recalling Marilyn Monroe
's iconic scene in The Seven Year Itch
(1955). The backdrops behind her showed 1940's crime film-inspired black-and-white footage while photographers in colorful outfits took pictures of her. Rick Florino of Artistdirect
said, "Marrying old school detective fare and stadium-size anthems is something no other pop star has done, and once again Britney's the first." Nicki Escudero of the Phoenix New Times
stated that it was "nice" to hear remixed versions of older hits, "such as the jazzy 'If You Seek Amy,' [sic] the sultry and Middle Eastern-inspired 'Boys' and the sped-up 'Toxic
'."
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
from her sixth studio album, Circus
Circus (Britney Spears album)
Circus is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Britney Spears. The album was first released on November 28, 2008 by Jive Records. Spears started work on the album in early 2008 with a range of producers including long-time producers Bloodshy & Avant and Danja...
. It was released on March 13, 2009 by Jive Records
Jive Records
Jive Records was a record label based in New York City, operating under RCA Music Group. Jive was primarily known for a string of successes with hip hop artists in the 1980s, and in teen pop and boy bands in the late 1990s. The word "jive" was inspired by Township Jive, a form of South African...
as the third single of the album, and was chosen by a poll on Spears's official website. "If U Seek Amy" was co-written and produced by Max Martin
Max Martin
Martin Karl Sandberg, known professionally as Max Martin, is a Swedish music producer and songwriter. Raised in Stenhamra, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, he broke through as a producer and songwriter in the mid to late 1990s after crafting a string of hits for pop artists like the Backstreet Boys,...
, who also wrote previous hits for her first three albums. In the song, Spears is looking for a woman named Amy in a club, and although it appears to be about sex, it is actually about how society perceives her life. The song's title features a homophonic name that can be interpreted as “F-U-C-K
Fuck
"Fuck" is an English word that is generally considered obscene which, in its most literal meaning, refers to the act of sexual intercourse. By extension it may be used to negatively characterize anything that can be dismissed, disdained, defiled, or destroyed."Fuck" can be used as a verb, adverb,...
me”. Musically, "If U Seek Amy" is a pop song with influences of electropop and usage of instruments such as synthesizers and timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
.
"If U Seek Amy" was generally well received by contemporary critics, who praised Spears's confident vocals and frequently cited it as the highlight of the album. After its release, "If U Seek Amy" caused controversy in English-speaking countries for the double entendre and lyrical content, with the Parents Television Council
Parents Television Council
The Parents Television Council is a U.S. based advocacy group founded by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995 using the National Legion of Decency as a model...
(PTC) threatening to file indecency complaints against any radio station that played the song during daytime. An edited version of the song titled "If U See Amy" was released in some regions, including in stations owned by Clear Channel Radio and Austereo Radio Network
Austereo Radio Network
Austereo Radio Network formerly operated commercial radio networks in metropolitan and regional areas of Australia. On 6 April 2011, Southern Cross Media purchased a majority of the company and is in the process of unifying the Austereo networks with Southern Cross's regional brands...
. "If U Seek Amy" was a moderate success, reaching the top twenty in Australia, the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and many other countries worldwide. It was also her third single from Circus to reach the top twenty in the United States.
The music video for "If U Seek Amy" begins with a parody of an America's Newsroom
America's Newsroom
America's Newsroom, written on-air as "America's Newsroom with Bill Hemmer and Martha MacCallum" is an American news/talk program on Fox News Channel, first airing on February 12, 2007.-Synopsis:...
report by Megyn Kelly
Megyn Kelly
Megyn Marie Kelly , formerly known as Megyn Kendall, is an American journalist and news anchor employed by the Fox News Channel. Kelly currently hosts America Live from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM EST live from the network’s New York City headquarters...
and portrays Spears at a sex party that takes place at her house. Towards the end, she changes into conservative housewife clothes and opens the front door with her family while paparazzi take pictures of them. It references some of her previous music videos such as "...Baby One More Time
...Baby One More Time (song)
"...Baby One More Time" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears. It served as Spears' debut single from her debut studio album, ...Baby One More Time . Written by Max Martin and produced by Martin, Denniz Pop and Rami Yacoub, "...Baby One More Time" was released on September 30, 1998,...
" and "Piece of Me
Piece of Me
"Piece of Me" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears from her fifth studio album, Blackout. It was released on November 27, 2007 by Jive Records as the second single from the album...
". Critics noted the similarities with her past work and also compared it to the film Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut is a 1999 drama film based upon Arthur Schnitzler's 1926 novella Traumnovelle . The film was directed, produced and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, and was his last film. The story, set in and around New York City, follows the sexually-charged adventures of Dr...
. "If U Seek Amy" was performed at The Circus Starring Britney Spears (2009) and the Femme Fatale Tour
Femme Fatale Tour
The Femme Fatale Tour is the seventh concert tour by American singer Britney Spears, in support of her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale. It was officially announced in March 2011, with dates for North American venues revealed. The tour was initially planned as a co-headlining tour with Enrique...
(2011).
Background
The song was co-written and produced by Max MartinMax Martin
Martin Karl Sandberg, known professionally as Max Martin, is a Swedish music producer and songwriter. Raised in Stenhamra, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, he broke through as a producer and songwriter in the mid to late 1990s after crafting a string of hits for pop artists like the Backstreet Boys,...
, who wrote hits for Spears first albums, including "...Baby One More Time
...Baby One More Time (song)
"...Baby One More Time" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears. It served as Spears' debut single from her debut studio album, ...Baby One More Time . Written by Max Martin and produced by Martin, Denniz Pop and Rami Yacoub, "...Baby One More Time" was released on September 30, 1998,...
" (1998) and "Oops!... I Did It Again
Oops!... I Did It Again (song)
"Oops!... I Did It Again" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears. The song was written and produced by Max Martin and Rami for Spears' second studio album, Oops!... I Did It Again . It was released on March 27, 2000 by Jive Records, as the first single from the album. "Oops!.....
" (2000). This marked the first time they worked together since her third studio album, Britney
Britney (album)
Britney is the third studio album by American pop singer Britney Spears. The album was released worldwide on November 6, 2001 by Jive Records, and one day after in the United States...
(2001). Recording sessions took place at Conway Recording Studios
Conway Recording Studios
Conway Recording Studios is a recording and post production facility in Hollywood, California.Conway has hosted a variety of producers, mixers and artists, such as Alicia Keys, Barbra Streisand, The Black Eyed Peas, Blink-182, Britney Spears, Carlos Santana, Christina Aguilera, Dave Matthews Band,...
and Sunset Studios
Sunset Sound Recorders
Sunset Sound Recorders is a recording studio in Hollywood, California, located at 6650 Sunset Boulevard.The Sunset Sound Recorders complex was converted in 1962 by Walt Disney's Director of Recording, Tutti Camarata, from a collection of old commercial and residential buildings - some built more...
in Hollywood, California. Background vocals by Kinnda and Martin were recorded at Maratone Studios in Stockholm, Sweden. The recordings were mixed
Mix engineer
A mix engineer, also referred to as "mixing engineer", is a person who, once all instruments, voices, and sounds, etc., have been recorded, creates what is called the final version of a song, hence the term "mix engineer"...
by Serban Ghenea
Serban Ghenea
Serban Ghenea is a four-time Grammy Award and three-time Latin Grammy Award-winning mixer. He has mixed songs for such artists as Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Faith Hill, Carrie Underwood, Jewel, Santana, Ozomatli, Shakira, Jill Scott, R. Kelly, Rod Stewart, and Dave Matthews Band...
at MixStar Studios in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. On December 5, 2008, a poll was added to Spears' official website to choose the third single, involving ten other songs from Circus. On January 7, 2009, it was announced that "If U Seek Amy" had won, receiving 26% of the total votes.
Composition
"If U Seek Amy" is an uptempo popPop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
song, with influences of electropop and usage of synthesizers. The song runs through a dance-oriented beat
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
and features many instruments, including keyboard
Musical keyboard
A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
s, bass drum
Bass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
s, electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
s and timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
. According to the sheet music published at musicnotes.com by Hal Leonard Corporation, the song has a beat of 130 beats per minute and is written in the key of A minor
A minor
A minor is a minor scale based on A, consisting of the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. The harmonic minor scale raises the G to G...
. Spears's vocal range spans from G3-C5. In the song, Spears seems to be looking for a woman named Amy
Amy
Amy is a given name, sometimes short for Amelia or Amanda. In French, the name is spelled "Aimée", which means beloved. In ancient Irish it has been translated as "little it".- Notable people with the given name Amy :*Amy Acker, American actress...
in a club. It has been suggested that Amy is an alter ego
Alter ego
An alter ego is a second self, which is believe to be distinct from a person's normal or original personality. The term was coined in the early nineteenth century when dissociative identity disorder was first described by psychologists...
of Spears herself. The verses end with the hookline
Hook (music)
A hook is a musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing and to "catch the ear of the listener". The term generally applies to popular music, especially rock music, hip hop, dance music, and pop. In these genres, the hook is often...
"Hahahehehahaho", that according to Poppy Cossins of The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
, is fitting to "the album's carnivalesque overtone". The chorus begins with the lines "Love me, hate me / Say what you want about me", a reference to the public's perception and fascination with Spears' life. This presents Spears both as "an object of desire and a punching bag". According to Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, this line also hints at the public image of British singer Amy Winehouse
Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse was an English singer-songwriter known for her powerful deep contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres including R&B, soul and jazz. Winehouse's 2003 debut album, Frank, was critically successful in the UK and was nominated for the Mercury Prize...
. There is a double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
in the sentence "All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to if u seek Amy", which can be interpreted phonetically as "All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to F-U-C-K
Fuck
"Fuck" is an English word that is generally considered obscene which, in its most literal meaning, refers to the act of sexual intercourse. By extension it may be used to negatively characterize anything that can be dismissed, disdained, defiled, or destroyed."Fuck" can be used as a verb, adverb,...
Me". The double entendre was compared to the title of Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
's 1991 album, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge is the ninth studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen, released in 1991 through Warner Bros. Records. It debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart and maintained the position for three weeks...
, as well as a portion of James Joyce's
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
Ulysses
Ulysses (novel)
Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
.
Reception
Critical response
The song received generally positive reviews. Chris Williams of BillboardBillboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
said the song is "Max Martin and Spears at their best: a stomping dance floor beat with building synths prodding the song along and the singer sounding like she's having a blast being the bad girl". Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer Caryn Ganz called the song one of the standout tracks of the album. Alexis Pretridis of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
commented that her stronger and confident delivery in the chorus was noticeably lacking in the rest of the album. Joey Guerra of The Houston Chronicle also said that the "more aggressive, pointed persona" Spears adopts in the song is one of the high points of the album. The Emory Wheels writer Julia Cox called it "the album’s strongest and most unorthodox song". Ricardo Baca of The Denver Post
The Denver Post
-Ownership:The Post is the flagship newspaper of MediaNews Group Inc., founded in 1983 by William Dean Singleton and Richard Scudder. MediaNews is today one of the nation's largest newspaper chains, publisher of 61 daily newspapers and more than 120 non-daily publications in 13 states. MediaNews...
named the song the most fascinating track of the album and commented on the double entendre, saying "It's trashy and clever, and it's also quite fun. And fun is exactly what Spears should be aiming for". However, there were also some negative reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic said the song is "a Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...
-styled exercise in crass commercial carnality that is at once the best and worst song here". Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
called it "puerile" and added that "it'll be a middle-school sensation". The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
gave the song a negative review, writing, "If You Seek Amy [sic] is crass: the entire song is simply an excuse for Spears to sing 'All of the boys and all of the girls want to F-U-C-K me,' about as cheap as sensationalist outrage gets". NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
named it one of the filthiest songs of all time.
Public reaction
Controversy was first reported by Australian music site Undercover.com.au on December 5, 2008, after the release of the album. Leonie Barsenbach, a housewife from SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, said, "I was astonished and totally taken aback when I heard my 5 and 7 year old kids walking around the house singing 'F-U-C-K' ... When I asked them what it was, they told me it was Britney Spears. I was horrified. I got them the Circus album but there was no warning on it ... It is extremely offensive. I feel deceived". Rolling Stone writer Daniel Kreps defended Spears, arguing that parents should have been aware of the singer's musical themes. After the song was announced as the third single from the album, American radio stations were unsure about playing the track due to its double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
in the chorus. Program director
Program director
In service industries, such as education, a program director or programme director researches, plans, develops and implements one or more of the firm's professional services...
s of Z100
WHTZ
WHTZ — branded Z100 — is a commercial pop/contemporary hit radio radio station licensed to Newark, New Jersey serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
and KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM is a Los Angeles, California, USA-based radio station with a partial Top 40 musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications. KIIS is also simulcasted on KVVS in Rosamond, at 105.5 MHz...
compared the issues to be faced by their radio stations to the release of the 2005 The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American pop group , formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1995. The group includes rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, and Taboo, and singer Fergie. Since the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide...
single, "Don't Phunk with My Heart
Don't Phunk with My Heart
"Don't Phunk with My Heart", titled "Don't Mess with My Heart" on some radio edits, is a song by The Black Eyed Peas from their fourth album Monkey Business. It was released as the lead single from the album on May 10, 2005....
", saying that "listeners thought it was the other word, and so we had to change it to 'mess'". Program director Patti Marshall of Q102
WKRQ
WKRQ, known on-air as Q102, is a radio station located in the Cincinnati, Ohio area and broadcasts at 101.9 FM. Its transmitter is located in Cincinnati. It carries an adult top 40 format and is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting.-History:...
said "It's ok to put in on an album, have fun with it, but we're publicly owned
Bonneville International
Bonneville International Corporation is a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation...
, you know? [...] It's not about us. It's about the mom in the minivan with her 8-year-old". WFLZ
WFLZ-FM
WFLZ-FM is a CHR/Pop station broadcasting in the Tampa Bay area, Florida, USA. Before the 1990s, the station played the oldies format before switching to Top 40 to compete against local CHR Q105. The station became 93.3 , and later was re-imaged to 93.3 FLZ...
's Tommy Chuck said his station produced their own edit of the song that replaced "seek" for "see", with the station's disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
s referring to it as "If U See Amy".
Shortly after, the Parents Television Council
Parents Television Council
The Parents Television Council is a U.S. based advocacy group founded by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995 using the National Legion of Decency as a model...
(PTC) threatened to file indecency complaints with the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) against any station that played the song between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. PTC President Tim Winter said "there is no misinterpreting the lyrics to this song, and it's certainly not about a girl named Amy. It's one thing for a song with these lyrics to be included on a CD so that fans who wish to hear it can do so, but it's an entirely different matter when this song is played over the publicly owned airwaves, especially at a time when children are likely to be in the listening audience". RBR.com reported that "interestingly, Circus was reviewed by Common Sense Media, another organization whose mission is to help parents manage their children's media consumption. It rated it appropriate for age 13 and up, but made no specific mention of 'If U Seek Amy'. Even more interestingly, reputed incoming FCC Chair Julius Genachowski
Julius Genachowski
Julius Genachowski is an American lawyer and businessman. He became Federal Communications Commission Chairman on June 29, 2009.-Education:Genachowski grew up in Great Neck, New York. He attended yeshiva and studied in Israel...
is a founding board member of Common Sense". The threats of the PTC were later extended to cable music channels that played the music video; however, the FCC does not have control over cable.
On January 23, 2009, Tom Poleman
Tom Poleman
Tom Poleman is President, National Programming Platforms, for Clear Channel Radio. In his role, Poleman oversees Clear Channel Radio's National Programming Platforms group, which includes music and event marketing, label and artist relations, on-air talent development, digital programming and a...
, senior vice president of programming for Clear Channel Radio, announced they planned to play an edited version. Sharon Dastur of Z100 added that Spears had recorded a new version of the song and the new edit would be provided by Jive Records
Jive Records
Jive Records was a record label based in New York City, operating under RCA Music Group. Jive was primarily known for a string of successes with hip hop artists in the 1980s, and in teen pop and boy bands in the late 1990s. The word "jive" was inspired by Township Jive, a form of South African...
. David Hinckley of the Daily News commented that "Clear Channel, which laid off 9% of its workforce this week, is hardly in the mood to finance an FCC fight right now". Finally, a radio edit titled "If U See Amy" was released to American radio stations, which changes the "seek" to "see". The amended version was released in the UK in May. While the song has not officially been renamed or released in Australia, some radio stations, such as those belonging to the Austereo Radio Network
Austereo Radio Network
Austereo Radio Network formerly operated commercial radio networks in metropolitan and regional areas of Australia. On 6 April 2011, Southern Cross Media purchased a majority of the company and is in the process of unifying the Austereo networks with Southern Cross's regional brands...
, play the censored version, while others continue to play the uncensored. Both the music video and the international radio single remain "If U Seek Amy".
Chart performance
According to Nielsen SoundScanNielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
, "If U Seek Amy" sold over 107,000 digital copies in the United States within two weeks of the album's release. On April 11, 2009 the song peaked at number seventeen on the Billboard Hot Digital Songs
Hot Digital Songs
The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
. On May 9, 2009, the song peaked at number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100, making Circus the first Spears album to have three top twenty hits since her 1999 debut, ...Baby One More Time
...Baby One More Time
...Baby One More Time is the debut studio album of American recording artist Britney Spears, released on January 12, 1999, by Jive Records. In June 1997, while Spears was in a negotiation with manager Lou Pearlman to join female pop group Innosense, her mother asked family friend and entertainment...
. "If U Seek Amy" has sold 1,175,000 digital copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
. It is her seventh best-selling digital single in the country. In Canada the song debuted at eighty-eight on December 20, 2008. It returned on February 14, 2009 at eighty-six before reaching the thirteenth position, where it finally peaked on April 4, 2009.
"If U Seek Amy" debuted at number forty-nine on the ARIA Singles Chart
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
on February 16, 2009, and moved to a peak position of eleven on March 30, 2009, also becoming the chart's "greatest gainer". It has since been certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association
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...
(ARIA) with sales of over 35,000 copies. "If U Seek Amy" entered the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
at number forty-five on April 6, 2009 due to its rising digital sales. After its physical release, it peaked at number twenty on May 10, 2009. According to The Official Charts Company, the song has sold 105,000 copies there. "If U Seek Amy" also achieved success worldwide, reaching the top ten in Belgium (Wallonia), France and Turkey, and the top twenty in Belgium (Flanders), Ireland, New Zealand and Sweden.
Development
The music video for "If U Seek Amy" was filmed on February 7, 2009, at Pacific Palisades, California and was directed by Jake NavaJake Nava
Jake Nava was born on 17 August and grew up in northern London. He currently lives in eastern London.He graduated from the University of WestministerJake Nava is an English-born music video and film director.-Filmography:MUSIC VIDEOS...
, who previously worked with Spears for her "My Prerogative" music video. Spears was styled by David Thomas for the video. During the scenes at the party, she wears American Apparel
American Apparel
American Apparel is a clothing manufacturer in the United States. It is a vertically integrated clothing manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer that also performs its own design, advertising, and marketing...
wet-looking leggings and a black corset from London lingerie designer Bordelle with diamond-shaped holes. She also wears a pair of red high-heeled Louboutins
Christian Louboutin
Christian Louboutin is a French footwear designer whose father is cabinetmaker Roger Louboutin and homemaker mother Irene. His siblings include three sisters, no brothers. Landscape architect Louis Benech has been his partner since 1997. Louboutin launched his line of high-end women's shoes in...
with rouced petals, that were not available for sale until a month after the video was released. When she is dressed as a housewife, Spears has a blonde wig, wears a pale pink sweater, a white skirt from Derek Lam
Derek Lam
Derek Lam is an American fashion designer. He was born in San Francisco, California and is of Chinese American parentage. Lam is the youngest of three children in his fourth-generation family. His parents had a business that imported clothes from Asia, and his grandparents ran a successful garment...
and a Lacoste polo shirt. The music video premiered on March 12, 2009, on both Virgin Mobile's official website and Spears's official websites.
Concept
The video starts with a news anchor saying the title of the song above a news banner that reads "Britney Spears song lyrics spell out obscenity in disguise". This is actually a parody of an America's NewsroomAmerica's Newsroom
America's Newsroom, written on-air as "America's Newsroom with Bill Hemmer and Martha MacCallum" is an American news/talk program on Fox News Channel, first airing on February 12, 2007.-Synopsis:...
report by Megyn Kelly
Megyn Kelly
Megyn Marie Kelly , formerly known as Megyn Kendall, is an American journalist and news anchor employed by the Fox News Channel. Kelly currently hosts America Live from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM EST live from the network’s New York City headquarters...
. It then skips to a house, in which a sex party
Sex party
A sex party is a gathering at which sexual activity takes place. Sex parties may be organized to enable people to engage in casual sexual activity or for swinging couples or people interested in group sex to meet, but any gathering where sexual activity is anticipated can be called a sex party.Sex...
is coming to an end. Spears starts singing while sitting on the edge of a bed while the people that surround her are getting dressed. She gets up and looks out the window. As the first verse ends, she picks up a pair of panties from the floor, recalling her personal struggles and the "Piece of Me" video. She dances with four male dancers in the first chorus. During the second chorus, she dances with four other female dancers dressed in cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
outfits, while many men are watching them dance. The screen fades to white and Spears begins to change into a conservative '50s
50s
- Significant people :* Claudius, Roman Emperor * Nero, Roman Emperor * Kujula Kadphises, Kushan emperor* Paul of Tarsus, Christian evangelist* Emperor Ming of Han China...
-inspired housewife
Housewife
Housewife is a term used to describe a married woman with household responsibilities who is not employed outside the home. Merriam Webster describes a housewife as a married woman who is in charge of her household...
outfit. As the chorus begins again, she comes out of her bedroom. She walks down the stairs, with dancers surrounding her and a woman gives her a potholder, which she uses to pick up a pie. After this, she walks out the front door of the house and is joined by her seemingly conservative-looking husband and children, one of them dressed with the schoolgirl
Schoolgirl
A schoolgirl is a girl attending either primary or secondary school, generally aged between four and eighteen years old.-Academic performance:This has led in some countries to calls for greater equality for education in the school system...
outfit Spears wore in the "…Baby One More Time" video. As they go down the walkway, they are surrounded by paparazzi
Paparazzi
Paparazzi is an Italian term used to refer to photojournalists who specialize in candid photography of celebrities, politicians, and other prominent people...
, who have no idea what goes on behind closed doors. While the kids and husband wave, Spears smiles for the camera and blows a kiss. The video then ends with the news anchor saying, "It doesn't make any sense, does it?".
Reception
James Montgomery of MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
stated that the video manages to combine elements from her previous music videos, such as the style of "Everytime" and the attitude of "Stronger". He also referred to it as "a pretty amazing amalgamation of all things Brit, and a nice primer of her entire career up to this point". Rolling Stone writer Daniel Kreps compared the party on the video to the 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut is a 1999 drama film based upon Arthur Schnitzler's 1926 novella Traumnovelle . The film was directed, produced and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, and was his last film. The story, set in and around New York City, follows the sexually-charged adventures of Dr...
and added that "this may be the first Spears video ever crafted strictly with the morally-lax Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
in mind, a brazen clip that doesn’t have to tone down its explicit nature lyrically and visually in order to get airplay". Chris Johnson of the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
compared Spears' housewife style to one of her looks in a 2001 Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
commercial. Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly said, "it’s kind of difficult to believe the song’s real meaning will get past even the thickest listener, the video itself is pretty tame…almost disappointingly so". The reviewer also compared the hairstyle of Spears during the housewife scenes to Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
.
Live performances
Spears performed the song during 2009's The Circus Starring Britney Spears. After a performance of "BoysBoys (Britney Spears song)
"Boys" is a song performed by American recording artist Britney Spears. It was written and produced by Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams of the production team The Neptunes and American rap group N.E.R.D.. A version of the song, "The Co-ed Remix" was released as the sixth single from Spears' third...
" from Britney
Britney (album)
Britney is the third studio album by American pop singer Britney Spears. The album was released worldwide on November 6, 2001 by Jive Records, and one day after in the United States...
, Spears performed a military drill with her male dancers, which ended with her putting on a faux fur vest to perform "If U Seek Amy". At the end, Spears pulled a giant pink hammer and proceeded to hit her dancers off the stage, in a similar way to Whac-A-Mole
Whac-A-Mole
Whac-A-Mole is an arcade redemption game. A typical Whac-A-Mole machine consists of a large, waist-level cabinet with five holes in its top and a large, soft, black mallet. Each hole contains a single plastic mole and the machinery necessary to move it up and down. Once the game starts, the moles...
. Jerry Shriver of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
said in the opening night of the tour, "[the] single 'If U Seek Amy' draws a huge roar and sing-along from the crowd as Spears shakes her long blond mane". Craig Rosen of The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
commented, "The artist that raised the ire of parents from the beginning in her scandalous schoolgirl outfit also continues to use shock-and-awe tactics. Her latest, 'If U Seek Amy' [...] was included in the set, much to the delight of her young fans".
"If U Seek Amy" was also performed by Spears at 2011's Femme Fatale Tour
Femme Fatale Tour
The Femme Fatale Tour is the seventh concert tour by American singer Britney Spears, in support of her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale. It was officially announced in March 2011, with dates for North American venues revealed. The tour was initially planned as a co-headlining tour with Enrique...
. Spears reappeared onstage after "Lace and Leather" to perform a jazz-inspired version of the song, wearing a white skirt and standing over a fan, recalling Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
's iconic scene in The Seven Year Itch
The Seven Year Itch
The Seven Year Itch is a 1955 American film based on a three-act play with the same name by George Axelrod. The film was co-written and directed by Billy Wilder, and starred Marilyn Monroe and Tom Ewell, reprising his Broadway role...
(1955). The backdrops behind her showed 1940's crime film-inspired black-and-white footage while photographers in colorful outfits took pictures of her. Rick Florino of Artistdirect
ARTISTdirect
Founded in 1994, Artistdirect, Inc. is an online digital media entertainment company. It owns several websites including Artistdirect.com, UBL.com and the Artistdirect Network...
said, "Marrying old school detective fare and stadium-size anthems is something no other pop star has done, and once again Britney's the first." Nicki Escudero of the Phoenix New Times
Phoenix New Times
The Phoenix New Times is a free, weekly Phoenix, Arizona newspaper, put out every Thursday. It is the founding publication of the New Times Media , but The Village Voice is now the flagship publication of that company....
stated that it was "nice" to hear remixed versions of older hits, "such as the jazzy 'If You Seek Amy,' [sic] the sultry and Middle Eastern-inspired 'Boys' and the sped-up 'Toxic
Toxic (song)
"Toxic" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears, co-written and produced by Bloodshy & Avant, from her fourth album, In the Zone. It was released on January 12, 2004, by Jive Records as the second single from the album. After trying to choose between " Boom Boom" and "Outrageous" to...
'."
Track listing
- US Promo CD 1
- "If U Seek Amy" (Radio Edit) — 3:37
- "If U Seek Amy" — 3:36
- "If U Seek Amy" (Instrumental) — 3:30
- "If U Seek Amy" (Clean Acapella) — 3:36
- "If U Seek Amy" (Dirty Acapella) — 3:37
- US Promo CD 2
- "If U See Amy" (US Radio Edit) — 3:20
- US Lightscribe Promo CD 3
- "If U Seek Amy" (Crookers Remix) — 4:29
- "If U Seek Amy" (Mike RizzoMike RizzoMichael "Mike" Rizzo, is an American DJ/remixer from New York City since the early 1990s. He is well known for working with various artists such as Jennifer Green and Sun, all of whom scored hits on both Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts.He also achieved success on both...
Funk Generation Club Mix) — 7:52 - "If U Seek Amy" (Weird Tapes Club Mix) — 5:15
- "If U Seek Amy" (Junior VasquezJunior VasquezJunior Vasquez, , is an American club DJ and remixer/producer.-Career:...
Big Room Mix) — 9:43 - "If U Seek Amy" (U-Tern Remix) — 6:10
- "If U Seek Amy" (Doug Grayson Club Mix) — 5:18
-
- UK/Australian CD Single
- "If U Seek Amy" — 3:37
- "CircusCircus (song)"Circus" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears from her sixth studio album, Circus. It was released on December 2, 2008, by Jive Records as the second single from the album. "Circus" was written by Dr. Luke, Claude Kelly and Benny Blanco as a metaphor for the public's perception of...
" (Joe Bermudez Radio Remix) — 3:43
- European/Asian Maxi CD
- "If U Seek Amy" — 3:38
- "If U Seek Amy" (Bimbo JonesBimbo JonesBimbo Jones is a UK dance music group comprising producers Lee Dagger and Marc JB and vocalist Katherine Ellis. Known for their remix work and white label releases, they produced a remix of Meck's 2006 UK number-one single "Thunder in My Heart Again"...
Radio Remix) — 2:57 - "If U Seek Amy" (CrookersCrookersCrookers are an Italian DJ/production duo who have worked together since 2003. When the two artists met, both were trying to branch out of their genre and explore dance music. Their first collaboration worked...
Remix) — 4:29 - "If U Seek Amy" (U-Tern Remix) — 6:10
- "If U Seek Amy" (Enhanced Video)
- Digital EP - The Remixes
- "If U Seek Amy" (Crookers Remix) — 4:29
- "If U Seek Amy" (Mike RizzoMike RizzoMichael "Mike" Rizzo, is an American DJ/remixer from New York City since the early 1990s. He is well known for working with various artists such as Jennifer Green and Sun, all of whom scored hits on both Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts.He also achieved success on both...
Funk Generation Club Mix) — 7:52 - "If U Seek Amy" (Weird Tapes Club Mix) — 5:15
- "If U Seek Amy" (Junior VasquezJunior VasquezJunior Vasquez, , is an American club DJ and remixer/producer.-Career:...
Big Room Mix) — 9:43 - "If U Seek Amy" (U-Tern Remix) — 6:10
- "If U Seek Amy" (Doug Grayson Club Mix) — 5:18
-
- The Singles Collection Boxset Single
- "If U Seek Amy" — 3:38
- "If U Seek Amy" (Crookers Remix) — 4:29
Credits and personnel
- Vocals: Britney SpearsBritney SpearsBritney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
- WritersLyricistA lyricist is a songwriter who specializes in lyrics. A singer who writes the lyrics to songs is a singer-lyricist. This differentiates from a singer-composer, who composes the song's melody.-Collaboration:...
: Max MartinMax MartinMartin Karl Sandberg, known professionally as Max Martin, is a Swedish music producer and songwriter. Raised in Stenhamra, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, he broke through as a producer and songwriter in the mid to late 1990s after crafting a string of hits for pop artists like the Backstreet Boys,...
, Shellback, Savan KotechaSavan KotechaSavan Kotecha is an American songwriter and vocal producer from Austin, Texas of Indian descent. Kotecha has sold over 60 million records with artists such as Usher, Enrique Iglesias, Carrie Underwood, Britney Spears, One Direction and Celine Dion...
and Alexander KronlundAlexander KronlundAlexander Kronlund is a Swedish producer and songwriter.Kronlund co-wrote Meja's one million selling debut album on Sony and co-wrote two songs for Britney Spears' second album, Oops I Did It Again. Kronlund co-wrote her hit single, "Lucky", with Max Martin and Rami and also co-wrote "Don’t Go... - ProducerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
: Max Martin - MixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
: Serban GheneaSerban GheneaSerban Ghenea is a four-time Grammy Award and three-time Latin Grammy Award-winning mixer. He has mixed songs for such artists as Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Faith Hill, Carrie Underwood, Jewel, Santana, Ozomatli, Shakira, Jill Scott, R. Kelly, Rod Stewart, and Dave Matthews Band... - Protools editingPro ToolsPro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television...
: John Hanes - ProgrammingProgramming (music)Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...
: Shellback and Max Martin - Background vocals: Britney Spears, Kinnda and Max Martin
Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Brazil (Billboard Billboard Brasil Billboard Brasil is a monthly Brazilian magazine launched on October 10, 2009, with a print-run of over 40,000 copies. It is distributed nationwide by Brazil's biggest distributor Dinap... Hot 100 Brasil Hot 100 Airplay Brasil Hot 100 Airplay is the official music singles charts in Brazil. It has been compiled by Crowley Broadcast Analysis and published monthly by Billboard Brasil since the release of the magazine, in October 2009.... ) |
4 |
| Brazil (Billboard Hot Pop Songs Billboard Brasil Billboard Brasil is a monthly Brazilian magazine launched on October 10, 2009, with a print-run of over 40,000 copies. It is distributed nationwide by Brazil's biggest distributor Dinap... ) |
7 |
| French Digital Singles Chart | 11 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
19 |
| US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Hot Dance Club Play The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs... |
16 |
| US Billboard Pop Songs | 8 |
End of year charts
| Charts (2009) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 97 |
| Belgian Singles Chart Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... (Wallonia) |
65 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
68 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
172 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
74 |
Certifications
| Country | Provider | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 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... |
Gold |
Radio and release history
| Region | Date | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | March 13, 2009 | Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
| Italy | Digital download | |
| United Kingdom | May 4, 2009 | CD single, digital download |
| Germany | May 29, 2009 | CD single, digital download |