Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now
Encyclopedia
"Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" is a song by English soul
singer–songwriter Joss Stone
, featuring American rapper Common
. Written by Stone, Alonzo "Novel" Stevenson
, Tony Reyes and Common and produced by Raphael Saadiq
, the song was released as the album's second single
in July 2007. The song last single charting in UK and her first single in U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
, since 2004's "Spoiled
".
the week of 4 August 2007 and spent only one week on the tally, becoming Stone's first solo single to miss the UK top seventy-five. It charted mildly in other countries such as Canada, Germany, Romania and Switzerland. Nevertheless, the single did manage to achieve success in Turkey and the Netherlands, where it peaked at numbers four and twenty-three, respectively. It was also Stone's second single (the first being 2005's "Spoiled
") to chart on the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
, on which it debuted at number sixty-nine the week of 28 April 2007 (after debuting at number twelve on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles) and reached its peak position of number sixty-four four weeks later. Surprisingly, "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" debuted at number thirty-eight in Greece the week of 23 February 2008, peaking at number thirty-two the following week.
The music video
for "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", directed by Sanaa Hamri
and filmed in New York City
, premiered on VH1 Soul
on 7 May 2007 and on VH1
's VSpot Top 20 Countdown
, and has also been viewed on YouTube
over 24 million times (as of October 15, 2010) on 12 May. In aid of U2
's frontman Bono
's initiative Product Red
, an organization helping finance the fight of HIV
/AIDS
in Africa, 100% of the proceeds from copies of the video sold on iTunes
were reverted to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
; Stone is the first artist to do so.
The video starts with a red gerbera
being held by the cameraman, who heads for a typical New York City
terraced house
from which Stone shows up. He hands the gerbera in to her and proceeds to film Stone as the two go for a walk around the city. Next, they take a break and sit on a bench in the city centre, where the cameraman caresses Stone's face and hands a drink plastic glass in to her. They then head for the backstage of Stone's outdoor concert in a park; she gets changed in an impromptu dressing room and subsequently comes onto the stage (where a Product Red billboard can be seen in the background) along with Common before a crowded audience. Common performs his rap segment followed by the song's final lines. As the concert ends, Stone takes the cameraman to the backstage where she kisses the camera as if she had kissed the man. Intercut shots of Stone wearing a skin-coloured suit and purple high heels while lying on a flower-covered floor are included from the scene in which Stone and the cameraman are sitting on the bench.
UK CD single
U.S. promo CD single
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer–songwriter Joss Stone
Joss Stone
Jocelyn Eve Stoker , better known by her stage name Joss Stone, is an English soul singer-songwriter and actress. Stone rose to fame in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist...
, featuring American rapper Common
Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. , better known by his stage name Common , is an American hip-hop artist and actor....
. Written by Stone, Alonzo "Novel" Stevenson
Novel (musician)
Alonzo Mario Stevenson, professionally known as Novel, is an American hip-hop artist based in Los Angeles, California. He is a rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer...
, Tony Reyes and Common and produced by Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Saadiq has been a standard bearer for "old school" R&B since his early days as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! He also produced songs of such artists as TLC, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, Mary J...
, the song was released as the album's second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
in July 2007. The song last single charting in UK and her first single in U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
, since 2004's "Spoiled
Spoiled (song)
"Spoiled" is a song by English soul singer-songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, Mind Body & Soul . Written by Stone, Lamont Dozier and Beau Dozier, and released in March 2005 as the album's third single, the ballad peaked at number thirty-two on the UK Singles Chart—where it remained...
".
Chart performance
"Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" had a lacklustre performance in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number eighty-four on the UK Singles ChartUK 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 ...
the week of 4 August 2007 and spent only one week on the tally, becoming Stone's first solo single to miss the UK top seventy-five. It charted mildly in other countries such as Canada, Germany, Romania and Switzerland. Nevertheless, the single did manage to achieve success in Turkey and the Netherlands, where it peaked at numbers four and twenty-three, respectively. It was also Stone's second single (the first being 2005's "Spoiled
Spoiled (song)
"Spoiled" is a song by English soul singer-songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, Mind Body & Soul . Written by Stone, Lamont Dozier and Beau Dozier, and released in March 2005 as the album's third single, the ballad peaked at number thirty-two on the UK Singles Chart—where it remained...
") to chart on the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
, on which it debuted at number sixty-nine the week of 28 April 2007 (after debuting at number twelve on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles) and reached its peak position of number sixty-four four weeks later. Surprisingly, "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" debuted at number thirty-eight in Greece the week of 23 February 2008, peaking at number thirty-two the following week.
Music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", directed by Sanaa Hamri
Sanaa Hamri
Sanaa Hamri is a Moroccan American music video and film director. She is one of the few prominent female film and music video directors of color.-Early life and breakthrough:...
and filmed in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, premiered on VH1 Soul
VH1 Soul
VH1 Soul is a digital cable and satellite television channel and is the sister network to VH1. It showcases R&B, funk, soul, and Motown music from various periods....
on 7 May 2007 and on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's VSpot Top 20 Countdown
VSpot Top 20 Countdown
VH1 Top 20 Video Countdown is a weekly television show on the VH1 cable television network in the United States. The long-running series began in 1994 as the VH1 Top 10 Countdown, as part of VH1's "Music First" rebranding effort...
, and has also been viewed on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
over 24 million times (as of October 15, 2010) on 12 May. In aid of U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
's frontman Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
's initiative Product Red
Product Red
Product Red, styled as RED, is a brand licensed to partner companies such as Nike, American Express , Apple Inc., Starbucks, Converse, Bugaboo, Penguin Classics , Gap, Emporio Armani, Hallmark and Dell...
, an organization helping finance the fight of HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
in Africa, 100% of the proceeds from copies of the video sold on iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
were reverted to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is an international financing organization that aims to "[a]ttract and disburse additional resources to prevent and treat HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria." A public–private partnership, the organization has its secretariat in Geneva,...
; Stone is the first artist to do so.
The video starts with a red gerbera
Gerbera
Gerbera L. is a genus of ornamental plants from the sunflower family . It was named in honour of the German botanist and naturalist Traugott Gerber who travelled extensively in Russia and was a friend of Carolus Linnaeus....
being held by the cameraman, who heads for a typical New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
terraced house
Terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace house, terrace, row house, linked house or townhouse is a style of medium-density housing that originated in Great Britain in the late 17th century, where a row of identical or mirror-image houses share side walls...
from which Stone shows up. He hands the gerbera in to her and proceeds to film Stone as the two go for a walk around the city. Next, they take a break and sit on a bench in the city centre, where the cameraman caresses Stone's face and hands a drink plastic glass in to her. They then head for the backstage of Stone's outdoor concert in a park; she gets changed in an impromptu dressing room and subsequently comes onto the stage (where a Product Red billboard can be seen in the background) along with Common before a crowded audience. Common performs his rap segment followed by the song's final lines. As the concert ends, Stone takes the cameraman to the backstage where she kisses the camera as if she had kissed the man. Intercut shots of Stone wearing a skin-coloured suit and purple high heels while lying on a flower-covered floor are included from the scene in which Stone and the cameraman are sitting on the bench.
Track listings
CD maxi single- "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" (Album Version featuring Common) – 4:22
- "Tell Me 'bout ItTell Me 'bout It"Tell Me 'bout It" is a song by English soul singer-songwriter Joss Stone from her third studio album, Introducing Joss Stone . Written by Stone, Raphael Saadiq and Robert Ozuna , the Saadiq-produced track was released in March 2007 as the album's lead single...
" (Live from the Bowery BallroomBowery BallroomThe Bowery Ballroom is a music venue in the Bowery section of New York City. The structure, at 6 Delancey Street, was built just before the Stock Market Crash of 1929. It stood vacant until the end of WWII, when it became a high-end retail store. The neighborhood subsequently went into decline...
) – 5:20 - "What Were We Thinking" (Live from the Bowery Ballroom) – 5:25
UK CD single
- "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" (Album Version featuring Common) – 4:22
- "Music" (Live from the Bowery Ballroom) – 4:20
U.S. promo CD single
- "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" (Radio Edit, No Rap) – 3:40
- "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" (Radio Edit featuring Common) – 3:58
- "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" (Instrumental) – 4:23
Musicians
- Joss Stone – vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
- Common – vocals
- Raphael SaadiqRaphael SaadiqRaphael Saadiq is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Saadiq has been a standard bearer for "old school" R&B since his early days as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! He also produced songs of such artists as TLC, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, Mary J...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Khari Parker – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Robert OzunaJake and the PhatmanJake and the Phatman are Grammy Award-winning, multi-platinum producers, songwriters, DJ's and Multi-Instrumentalists....
– additional drums, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, turntablismTurntablismTurntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating music using phonograph turntables and a DJ mixer.The word 'turntablist' was coined in 1995 by DJ Babu to describe the difference between a DJ who just plays records, and one who performs by touching and moving the records, stylus and mixer... - Chalmers "Spanky" Alford – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Lionel Holoman – organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
- Charlie Happiness – clavesClavesClaves are a percussion instrument , consisting of a pair of short Claves (Anglicized pronunciation: clah-vays, IPA:[ˈklαves]) are a percussion instrument (idiophone), consisting of a pair of short Claves (Anglicized pronunciation: clah-vays, IPA:[ˈklαves]) are a percussion instrument (idiophone),...
Production
- Raphael Saadiq – 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...
- Glenn StandridgeJake and the PhatmanJake and the Phatman are Grammy Award-winning, multi-platinum producers, songwriters, DJ's and Multi-Instrumentalists....
– 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... - Chuck Brungardt – mixing
- Oswald Bowe – assistant engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- John Tanksley – assistant engineer
- James Tanksley – assistant engineer
- Marlon Marcel – assistant engineer
- Charlie Stavish – assistant engineer
- Jeremy Mackenzie – Pro ToolsPro 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...
operator - Benjamin Wright – stringStrings (music)A string is the vibrating element that produces sound in string instruments, such as the guitar, harp, piano, and members of the violin family. Strings are lengths of a flexible material kept under tension so that they may vibrate freely, but controllably. Strings may be "plain"...
arrangements
Charts
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Tip Chart 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... (Flanders) |
14 |
| 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... |
53 |
| 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... |
23 |
| 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... |
96 |
| Swiss Singles Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
66 |
| 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 ... |
84 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
64 |
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
| Greek Singles Chart IFPI Greece International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece or IFPI Greece is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Greece. Currently two charts are compiled, one for sales of... |
32 |