No Boundaries (song)
Encyclopedia
"No Boundaries" is the 2009 winner's single of season 8
of the reality television
show American Idol
.
It was co-written by American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi
, along with Cathy Dennis
, and Mitch Allan
. It is the first single for winner Kris Allen
and runner-up Adam Lambert
.
It was first performed on the May 19th American Idol final performance show by the season's winner Kris Allen
, as well as the show's runner-up, Adam Lambert
. A demo performed by Kara DioGuardi
herself has leaked onto the Internet as well, but remains officially unreleased. Both Lambert's and Allen's versions of the song however, were released to digital music retailers on May 20, 2009.
It is the second American Idol winner single that was released by both winner and runner-up. The first single was "Inside Your Heaven
" of season 4
, released by winner Carrie Underwood
and runner-up Bo Bice
.
It is also the second American Idol winner single that is not on the debut album of the winner, after Taylor Hicks
' "Do I Make You Proud
" in 2006.
It was performed on Britain's Got Talent
by young boy band Connected.
's version and Adam Lambert
's version, Allen's has sold more digital downloads to date.
Former American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe
described hearing the song as the "only downside" of American Idol's Grand Finale. Misha Berson of The Seattle Times
called the song "perhaps the most tuneless, hackneyed earful of 'inspirational' junk that any American Idol has been saddled with in their last chance at victory".
The lyrics of the song have attracted particular criticism, with Gil Kaufman of MTV
describing them as "a titanic mound of turgid clichés", citing the chorus "every step you climb another mountain / every breath is harder to believe / you’ll make it through the pain / weather the hurricane / to get to that one thing / when you think the road is going nowhere / just when you’ve almost gave up on your dreams / then take it by the hand and show you that you can".
Billboard
reviewed each version separately. On Allen's version, they gave a mixed review, by saying "Even though Allen sings lines like 'there are no boundaries,' his modest presentation implicitly recognizes there actually are. And though he sings he will 'climb another mountain,' this is a vocalist who will reach that peak with a trained, experienced guide." On Lambert's version, they gave a positive review, by saying "There's a slight hitch in his voice, but Lambert gets more comfortable as the rock-of-the-'80s orchestration builds to mind-boggling crescendos. Throwing caution to the wind, and maybe even leaving his cake out in the rain
, Lambert shows on this towering if inelegant power ballad he can 'weather the hurricane.'
Allen's single has sold 312,000 copies.
No Boundaries – Single (Adam Lambert version)
No Boundaries - Demo (Kara DioGuardi version/demo)
Allen's version of "No Boundaries" entered the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of May 29, 2009, at #11, selling 134,000 paid digital downloads. Also, during the same chart week, the song made its debut at #27 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary charts.
Adam Lambert
Lambert's version of "No Boundaries" entered the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of May 29, 2009, at #72, with sales of approximately 36,000 downloads.
American Idol (season 8)
The eighth season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2009. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson continued to judge the show's contestants, along with Ryan Seacrest as host. The season introduced Kara DioGuardi as the fourth judge on the Idol...
of the reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
show American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
.
It was co-written by American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi
Kara DioGuardi
Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, composer and TV personality. She writes music primarily in the light pop-rock, dance, and R&B genres. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; her songs have appeared on more than 159...
, along with Cathy Dennis
Cathy Dennis
Cathy Dennis is a British dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress...
, and Mitch Allan
Mitch Allan
Mitch Allan, is the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of punk rock band SR-71, and the lead guitarist and backing vocalist of power pop project Satellite.-Biography:...
. It is the first single for winner Kris Allen
Kris Allen
Kristopher Neil "Kris" Allen is an American musician and singer-songwriter from Conway, Arkansas, and the winner of the eighth season of American Idol...
and runner-up Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert
Adam Mitchel Lambert is an American singer, songwriter, and actor from San Diego, California. In May 2009, he finished as the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol...
.
It was first performed on the May 19th American Idol final performance show by the season's winner Kris Allen
Kris Allen
Kristopher Neil "Kris" Allen is an American musician and singer-songwriter from Conway, Arkansas, and the winner of the eighth season of American Idol...
, as well as the show's runner-up, Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert
Adam Mitchel Lambert is an American singer, songwriter, and actor from San Diego, California. In May 2009, he finished as the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol...
. A demo performed by Kara DioGuardi
Kara DioGuardi
Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, composer and TV personality. She writes music primarily in the light pop-rock, dance, and R&B genres. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; her songs have appeared on more than 159...
herself has leaked onto the Internet as well, but remains officially unreleased. Both Lambert's and Allen's versions of the song however, were released to digital music retailers on May 20, 2009.
It is the second American Idol winner single that was released by both winner and runner-up. The first single was "Inside Your Heaven
Inside Your Heaven
"Inside Your Heaven" is a song written by Andreas Carlsson, Pelle Nylén, Savan Kotecha and produced by Desmond Child. Two versions of the song were released as singles in 2005 : one by American Idol winner Carrie Underwood, and another by Idol runner-up Bo Bice.Underwood's recording of the song,...
" of season 4
American Idol (Season 4)
The fourth season of American Idol premiered on January 18, 2005 and continued until May 25, 2005. It was hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell also returned to judge. It was won by Carrie Underwood, who has gone on to become a five-time Grammy-winning country megastar...
, released by winner Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Marie Underwood is an American country singer-songwriter and actress who rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of American Idol, in 2005...
and runner-up Bo Bice
Bo Bice
Harold Elwin "Bo" Bice, Jr. is an American singer and musician who placed second to Carrie Underwood in the fourth season of American Idol. He has recorded three studio albums, including one on RCA Records...
.
It is also the second American Idol winner single that is not on the debut album of the winner, after Taylor Hicks
Taylor Hicks
Taylor Reuben Hicks is an American singer who achieved fame in 2006, when he won the fifth season of American Idol. Hicks got his start as a professional musician in his late teens and performed around the Southeastern United States for well over the span of a decade, during which he also released...
' "Do I Make You Proud
Do I Make You Proud
"Do I Make You Proud" is a soul-pop song written for American Idol season five winner Taylor Hicks by Tracy Ackerman, Andy Watkins, and Paul Wilson of the Absolute production team, and co-produced by Dave Way...
" in 2006.
It was performed on Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent (series 4)
The fourth series of Britain's Got Talent was broadcast on ITV from 17 April 2010 to 5 June 2010. It was presented by Ant & Dec and won by gymnastic troupe Spelbound. Judges Simon Cowell, Piers Morgan and Amanda Holden returned for the televised auditions on 18 January at the Clyde Auditorium in...
by young boy band Connected.
Reception
The song overall has received mixed reviews. Between Kris AllenKris Allen
Kristopher Neil "Kris" Allen is an American musician and singer-songwriter from Conway, Arkansas, and the winner of the eighth season of American Idol...
's version and Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert
Adam Mitchel Lambert is an American singer, songwriter, and actor from San Diego, California. In May 2009, he finished as the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol...
's version, Allen's has sold more digital downloads to date.
Former American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe
Nigel Lythgoe
Nigel Lythgoe is an English television and film director and producer, and former dancer in the Young Generation and choreographer. He is noted for being the producer of the shows Pop Idol and American Idol as well as being a creator, executive producer and a regular judge for So You Think You Can...
described hearing the song as the "only downside" of American Idol's Grand Finale. Misha Berson of The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times is a newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, US. It is the largest daily newspaper in the state of Washington. It has been, since the demise in 2009 of the printed version of the rival Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle's only major daily print newspaper.-History:The Seattle Times...
called the song "perhaps the most tuneless, hackneyed earful of 'inspirational' junk that any American Idol has been saddled with in their last chance at victory".
The lyrics of the song have attracted particular criticism, with Gil Kaufman of MTV
MTV
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....
describing them as "a titanic mound of turgid clichés", citing the chorus "every step you climb another mountain / every breath is harder to believe / you’ll make it through the pain / weather the hurricane / to get to that one thing / when you think the road is going nowhere / just when you’ve almost gave up on your dreams / then take it by the hand and show you that you can".
Billboard
Billboard (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...
reviewed each version separately. On Allen's version, they gave a mixed review, by saying "Even though Allen sings lines like 'there are no boundaries,' his modest presentation implicitly recognizes there actually are. And though he sings he will 'climb another mountain,' this is a vocalist who will reach that peak with a trained, experienced guide." On Lambert's version, they gave a positive review, by saying "There's a slight hitch in his voice, but Lambert gets more comfortable as the rock-of-the-'80s orchestration builds to mind-boggling crescendos. Throwing caution to the wind, and maybe even leaving his cake out in the rain
MacArthur Park (song)
"MacArthur Park" is a song by Jimmy Webb, originally composed as part of an intended cantata. The song was initially rejected by The Association. Richard Harris was the first to record it, in 1968; the song was subsequently covered by numerous artists. Among the best-known covers are Donna Summer's...
, Lambert shows on this towering if inelegant power ballad he can 'weather the hurricane.'
Allen's single has sold 312,000 copies.
Track listing
No Boundaries – Single (Kris Allen version)- "No Boundaries": 3:30
No Boundaries – Single (Adam Lambert version)
- "No Boundaries": 3:48
No Boundaries - Demo (Kara DioGuardi version/demo)
- "No Boundaries": 3:36
Release history
Both versions| Region | Date |
|---|---|
| Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
May 20, 2009 |
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
|
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
May 22, 2009 |
| Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... |
|
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
|
| Philippines Philippines The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam... |
May 26, 2009 |
| Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Chart performance
Kris AllenAllen's version of "No Boundaries" entered the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of May 29, 2009, at #11, selling 134,000 paid digital downloads. Also, during the same chart week, the song made its debut at #27 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary charts.
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| 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... |
13 |
| 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 ... |
92 |
| 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... |
11 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States... |
23 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Pop 100 The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009... |
26 |
Adam Lambert
Lambert's version of "No Boundaries" entered the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of May 29, 2009, at #72, with sales of approximately 36,000 downloads.
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| 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... |
52 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... Singles Chart |
38 |
| 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... |
72 |