Señorita (song)
Encyclopedia
"Señorita" is a song by American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...

 from his solo debut album Justified
Justified (album)
Justified is the debut album by American pop singer Justin Timberlake. Released during the hiatus of the group *NSYNC, the album signaled Timberlake's desire to craft a more mature image than that of a "boy band member". The album features guest performances by Timbaland, Clipse, Bubba Sparxxx, and...

(2002). It was released on September 2, 2003 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 fourth single from the album. The song was co-written by Timberlake, and The Neptunes
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...

' Pharell Williams and Chad Hugo
Chad Hugo
Charles Edward Hugo is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as one half of the music production and writing duo The Neptunes and as a member of the funk/rock band N.E.R.D. He is a saxophonist, pianist and guitarist...

. It was also produced by the Neptunes.

According to Timberlake, the song was influenced by Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...

. Musically "Señorita" is an R&B jazz up-tempo ballad, featuring an electric piano strut, cowbell in beat of the song, and a rhythm section. The song has been described as a Spanish "number" with a "Latin flavored" cut beat. In the track, Timberlake sings about a woman, whose attention he is trying to capture. "Señorita" received positive reviews from music critics, who commented on the track's general sound and lyrics.

The song peaked at number five on 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...

's Top 40 Mainstream chart. It also appeared on the 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...

 at number twenty-seven. Internationally, the single charted in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and European countries including Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Austria, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Ireland. The music video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award in the category for Best Male Video in 2004.

Background

"Señorita" was co-written by Justin Timberlake, and The Neptunes
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...

' Pharell Williams and Chad Hugo
Chad Hugo
Charles Edward Hugo is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as one half of the music production and writing duo The Neptunes and as a member of the funk/rock band N.E.R.D. He is a saxophonist, pianist and guitarist...

. Before the release of Timberlake's solo album, Justified
Justified (album)
Justified is the debut album by American pop singer Justin Timberlake. Released during the hiatus of the group *NSYNC, the album signaled Timberlake's desire to craft a more mature image than that of a "boy band member". The album features guest performances by Timbaland, Clipse, Bubba Sparxxx, and...

, Timberlake and the album's producers, Williams and Hugo, gave MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...

 a preview of the record in August 2002. While in discussion of "Señorita", Hugo said that he expected the song to make the track listing of Justified. In another interview, Timberlake revealed that the song was influenced by singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...

. Timberlake said that the song had "that groove that really fits into the summer". While in development, Timberlake said he was "beatboxing the notes". He wrote the song imagining a "dark-skinned, voluptuous lady whose attention he is trying to capture."

"Señorita" is a "Spanish number" infused with an R&B, up-tempo ballad. The song has been described as a fast "hot mid-tempo" and dance song. The song is composed in the key of Eb minor and is set in time signature
Time signature
The time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....

 of common time
Common Time
"Common Time" is a science fiction short story written by James Blish. It first appeared in the August 1953 issue of Science Fiction Quarterly and has been reprinted several times: in the 1959 short-story collection Galactic Cluster; in The Testament of Andros ; in The Penguin Science Fiction...

 with a tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...

 of 96 beats per minute. The music begins with an electric piano strut, that provides the main chordal accompaniment. A cowbell chimes, in beat of the song, in the background. Timberlake sings in a "reasonable falsetto vamping". The song's musicscape also features hand claps, a rhythm section, and "cruises on an unconventional reedy rhythm and crackling beat", according to Chuck Cavalaris of The Knoxville News-Sentinel. The track is also considered a "blues inflected track", and a dance jam. Kevin O'Hare of the Sunday Republican said the song is "a Latin-flavored cut with a pronounced beat". Lisa Rose of The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to The Jersey Journal of Jersey City, The Times of Trenton and the Staten Island Advance, all of which are owned by Advance Publications.The Newark Star-Ledgers daily...

commented that the song has a "jazz-funk ... embellished with a ground-rumbling beat and horn section solos." Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram is a major U.S. daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. Its area of domination is checked by its main rival, The Dallas Morning News, which is published from the eastern half of the Metroplex. It is owned...

said that the song has a "minimalist funk strut", while a contributor of the New Straits Times
New Straits Times
The New Straits Times is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print , having been founded as The Straits Times in 1845, and was reestablished as the "New Straits Times" in 1965. The paper served as Malaysia's only broadsheet format English...

said that the single is "a funk song with an organic feel – and quite close to Stevie Wonder's soulful style."

According to Teresa Gubbins of The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...

, she described the theme of the song as Timberlake singing about a girl with brown eyes. O'Hare noted that there are "some very amusing" improvisations as Timberlake guides the "guys and the ladies though their background vocal segment." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic also reported that Timberlake exhorts "the fellas and ladies" in "Señorita" to sing separately "in a cringe-worthy affectation". He directs the men to sing, "It feels like something's heatin' up. Can I leave with you?" and the women to sing, "I don't know what I'm thinking bout / really leavin wit you."

Reception

Music critic David Browne
David Browne
David Browne is an American journalist and author. He was the resident music critic at Entertainment Weekly between 1990 and 2006. He was an editor at Music & Sound Output magazine and a music critic at the New York Daily News before EW...

 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...

, in review of the album, wrote: "In the latter category, he's more engaging—the stud on the loose, making promises of romance and more in slurpy cuts like 'Senorita' and 'Rock Your Body
Rock Your Body
"Rock Your Body" is the third single from Justin Timberlake's solo debut album Justified. The song features Vanessa Marquez. She was at that time to Star Trak Entertainment....

'." Denise Boyd of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 wrote: "The introduction [of] 'Senorita' immediately grabs your attention." Tyler Martin of Stylus
Stylus Magazine
Stylus Magazine was an online music and film magazine launched in 2002. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, a number of different podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog....

said that the song's rhythm section was "brilliant, a simple, yet distinctive beat that could only come from the Neptunes. The song allows for much amusement in the last minute and a half with a sing-along that is more wonderful and surprising than most artists have offered us this year." Jonathan Takiff of the Philadelphia Daily News
Philadelphia Daily News
The Philadelphia Daily News is a tabloid newspaper that serves Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The newspaper is owned by Philadelphia Media Holdings which also owns Philadelphia's other major newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Daily News began publishing on March 31, 1925, under...

wrote that the track and "Nothing Else", another song from the album, reshape "Stevie Wonder-style Latin pop". Katie McDonald of Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...

 wrote: "The album opens with the Latin and hip-hop influenced 'Senorita'. Although this reviewer was a little amused by Timberlake's use of the word 'Momma' in reference to a girl, this track is nothing to mock. Timberlake's voice complements the dynamic beat; and although the lyrics are in no way profound, at least he wrote them himself." Lisa Verrico of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

wrote that the song could be 'N Sync
'N Sync
N Sync was an American boy band formed in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich, *NSYNC consisted of JC Chasez, Justin Timberlake, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick...

 "with a salsa flavour". Christian Dahlager of Iowa State Daily
Iowa State Daily
The Iowa State Daily is an independent student newspaper serving Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, that is published in print and online. It was founded in 1890, and is largely funded by advertising revenues...

noted that Timberlake "cops classic Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

" throughout the album, and on the tracks "Señorita" and "Rock Your Body". Howard Cohen of Knight Ridder
Knight Ridder
Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. Until it was bought by The McClatchy Company on June 27, 2006, it was the second-largest newspaper publisher in the United States, with 32 daily newspapers sold.- History :The corporate ancestors of...

 said that in the album Timberlake "appropriates Jackson's trademark 'Thriller
Thriller (song)
"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller. It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records...

'-era falsetto squeals and staccato vocal style on the tuneless first single 'Like I Love You
Like I Love You
"Like I Love You" is the first single from Justin Timberlake's solo debut album Justified, featuring a rap from hip hop duo Clipse. Released in 2002, the Neptunes-produced single peaked at #11 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at #2 in the United Kingdom, with Dilemma keeping the song...

', 'Senorita' and a couple other cuts."

The song received criticism as well. Jane Stevenson of Jam!
Jam!
Jam! is a Canadian website, which covers entertainment news. It is part of the CANOE online portal, owned and operated by Quebecor through its Sun Media division....

 wrote: "In the minus category is silly lead-off track 'Senorita', which suffers from being too cute and has an awful call-and-answer ending featuring 'the guys and the ladies.'" A music contributor from the Daily Free Press reported that The Neptunes appeared to have "recycled beats from their N.E.R.D. project" for Justified and that "Señorita" sounded like N.E.R.D.'s song, "Run to the Sun".

Timberlake performed the song live on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

in October 2003, where he served as host and musical guest. At the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004, he also performed the song live and was accompanied by Latin jazz
Latin jazz
Latin jazz is the general term given to jazz with Latin American rhythms.The three main categories of Latin Jazz are Brazilian, Cuban and Puerto Rican:# Brazilian Latin Jazz includes bossa nova...

 trumpeter Arturo Sandoval
Arturo Sandoval
Arturo Sandoval is a jazz trumpeter and pianist. He was born in Artemisa, in the newest renamed Artemisa Province, Cuba....

.

Music video

The music video for "Señorita" was directed by Paul Hunter
Paul Hunter (director)
Paul Hunter is a music video director known for his high-budget, visually distinctive videos for popular music singles. He has directed over 100 music videos, many television advertisements and was nominated for an Emmy for Nike's Freestyle commercial...

. The video was filmed in July 2003 and shot in a club in Los Angeles. The video also features cameo appearances by both Pharrell Wiliams and Chad Hugo. In mid-2003, Timberlake was asked about the concept of the video, but said that the video was still in development. He was asked whether he would be aiming his affection at a "lovely lady", to which Timberlake responded, "No. Why would you limit yourself to just one?" In the "Señorita" video, Timberlake performed with his live band.

The video begins, with the song playing, at an outside scenery of a bar. Inside, Timberlake is seen and goes directly to the bar. He looks at the stage area and immediately goes there. He takes the microphone and begins singing the song. Pharrell is shown playing the drums while Chad is at the keyboards throughout the video. Timberlake continues singing, but grabs the attention of a woman in a red dress. Elsewhere, Timberlake, not on stage, is shown dancing with a woman wearing a white blouse, while he sings the song. In another part of the video, Timberlake dances with a different woman. In the bridge
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...

, he sings to the two women and dances with them, in separate shots. Following the bridge he is then seen performing on stage. In part of the song, Timberlake directs the crowd of men and women, telling the men to sing, "It feels like something's heatin' up. Can I leave with you?" and the women to sing, "I don't know what I'm thinking bout / really leavin wit you." Timberlake ends the song with "Gentlemen, good night / Ladies good morning".

Actor Owen Wilson
Owen Wilson
Owen Cunningham Wilson is an American actor and writer, known for his roles in the films The Haunting, The Royal Tenenbaums, Zoolander, Meet the Parents, Wedding Crashers, You, Me and Dupree, Bottle Rocket, the Cars series, The Darjeeling Limited, Marley & Me, Midnight in Paris, Shanghai Noon,...

 and his then-girlfriend, Carolina Cerisola, appear in the video. Lanford Beard of Middlebury College Student Weekly, in review of the video, wrote that Timberlake's "Mexicali saloon setting" for the video "embraced a certain macho, trashy playa aesthetic" for him "so we'll take it on the chin that this is the image he's building for himself and – love it or hate it – we might as well get used to it." In 2004, the video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award in the category of Best Male Video.

Chart performance

In North America, the single was officially solicited to radio in September 2003. "Señorita" appeared on the 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...

 and debuted at number 27. It appeared on Billboard's Top 40 Mainstream chart in the number 5 position. The song reached the number 10 spot on Billboard's Top 40 Tracks
Top 40 Tracks
Top 40 Tracks is a defunct airplay chart from Billboard Magazine. It was created in 1998, when Billboard Magazine changed the airplay profile of The Hot 100 Airplay to include more R&B, Country, and Rock stations to its profile . To preserve the notion of the former chart, Top 40 Tracks was...

 chart. In addition, "Señorita" charted in the Rhythmic Top 40
Rhythmic Airplay Chart
The Rhythmic Airplay Chart is an airplay chart that is featured weekly in Billboard Magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on Rhythmic stations, whose playlist includes mostly hit-driven R&B/Hip-Hop, Rhythmic pop, and some Dance tracks...

 at number 29.

The single performed averagely when it was released internationally. It debuted at number 13 in the 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...

 for the week ending September 27, 2003. The song failed to achieve any higher position, and it fell for eight consecutive weeks until it left the charts completely. When "Señorita" entered the Irish Singles Chart
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...

, it did so at number 15. It spent seven weeks on the chart, and failed to earn a higher position. In New Zealand, it charted at number 9 on September 14, 2003. During the following four weeks, it peaked at number 4 and remained there for two weeks. The song spent 15 weeks on the chart. In Australia, it peaked at number 6 and retired after spending eleven weeks on the chart. The track charted in the Canadian Singles Chart
Canadian Singles Chart
The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....

, where it reached a peak position of 19. The single charted in European countries, it peaked in the Top 10s and Top 20s:

Chart summary

Chart (2003) Peak
position
Australian 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...

6
Austria Singles Chart
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann...

61
Belgium Singles Chart (Flanders)
Ultratop 50
Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995...

15
Belgium 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)
15
Canadian Singles Chart
Canadian Singles Chart
The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....

19
Denmark Singles Chart
Tracklisten
Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl...

13
Dutch Top 40
Dutch Top 40
The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting...

26
French Singles Chart
Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...

41
German Singles Chart
Media Control Charts
The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie...

51
Irish Singles Chart
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...

15
Italian Singles Chart 32
New Zealand Singles Chart
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...

4
Swedish Singles Chart
Sverigetopplistan
Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association ....

29
Swiss Singles Chart 42
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 ...

13
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 27
U.S. Billboard Pop Songs 5

Formats and tracklist

European CD Single
  1. "Señorita" (Album version) – 4:54
  2. "Señorita" (Instrumental) – 4:54
  3. "Señorita" (Eddie's Extended Club Mix) – 6:27
  4. "Rock Your Body
    Rock Your Body
    "Rock Your Body" is the third single from Justin Timberlake's solo debut album Justified. The song features Vanessa Marquez. She was at that time to Star Trak Entertainment....

    " (Vasquez Club Anthem) – 9:15
  5. "Señorita" (Video) – 4:33


UK CD Single
  1. "Señorita" (Radio Edit Short Intro) – 4:16
  2. "Señorita" (Eddie's Crossover Rhythm Mix) – 4:18
  3. "Señorita" (Eddie's Extended Dance Mix) – 6:27
  4. "Señorita" (Dr. Octavo 2-Step Mix) – 3:50

External links

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