"The Silence" is a song performed by British recording artist Alexandra Burke, which serves as second single from the albums re-release, the fifth and final single overall from her debut album, Overcome.[1] It was written by RedOne, Bilal Hajji, and Savan Kotecha and produced by RedOne, who co-wrote and produced her previous singles Broken Heels and Start Without You.
| "The Silence" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
The song is a pop ballad, which lyrically speaks about being in a difficult relationship where one does not know what their partner is thinking, and wants them to admit their feelings. For the song's release as a single, the song was remixed and given new instruments and new adlibs. The single was released on 6 December 2010. Burke performed the song notably a number of times including on The Paul O'Grady Show and The X Factor.[2]
Background
"The Silence" was originally due to be released after the release of "Broken Heels",[3] however the release was scrapped for unknown reasons and "All Night Long" was released as the album's third single. Burke has already recorded the music video for "The Silence" but was put on hold as she said it 'would' be released at some point, and the singles art work cover, was put on hold, although it was leaked onto the internet.[4]
Writing and composition
Burke herself described the song as "one of her favourite songs on Overcome" during an interview with Peter Andre on The Paul O'Grady Show.[5] According to the singer, the song was inspired by her auntie's relationship with her boyfriend.[5] Burke said on the show, "My auntie was going through that situation and she came over to L.A. to spend some time with me and get away from her fella etc. And she was telling me about her situation and [...] why does he let the silence do the talking? Why doesn't he let you know how he feels? And then this song came about".[5] "The Silence" is an midtempo ballad pop song, with a length of four minutes and one second, penned by Nadir Khayat, Bilal Hajji, Savan Kotecha.
Chart performance
"The Silence" entered the UK Singles Chart on 31 October 2009 at #95, due to a performance on The Paul O'Grady Show[2]. The song remained on the UK Singles Chart for one week, before dropping out a week later.[6] The song is yet to chart after its announcement of being a single, but is expected to do so, when the official single version is also released.
Music video
The music video was shot by Nzingha Stewart before Alexandra recorded her video for "All Night Long", but its release was put on hold due to All Night Long being released before hand. The music video premiered via Burke's official YouTube account on 21 October 2010. It shows Burke in many outfits with many different props. It is a notable change from her previous video, being shot in Black and White (her only Black and White video).
Live performances and promotion
Burke has performed the song only on MTV Push[7] and on The Paul O'Grady Show[2]. Burke also performed the song for the first time as an official single at the Metro Radio Live 2010 Concert in Newcastle (30 November) & the Jingle Bell Ball at the Manchester Evening News Arena on December 1, 2010, as well as various other Jingle Bell Ball locations[8][9]. Burke also appeared on The X Factor on December 5, 2010, to perform the song, where she used wires to levitate at the end of the performance[10].
Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Ireland (IRMA)[11] | 30 |
| Scotland (OCC)[12] | 10 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[13] | 66 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[14] | 95 |
References
- ^ Love, Ryan (25 October 2010). "Burke announces new single details". Digital Spy. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ a b c Niriden (3 November 2009). "Live Performance: Alexandra Burke Performs "The Silence" Live on Paul O'Grady". Zimbio. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ Balls, David (19 February 2010). "Alexandra Burke plots 'sexy' music video". Digital Spy. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ Copsey, Robert (22 April 2010). "Alexandra Burke reveals video details". Digital Spy. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ a b c "Alexandra Burke - Interview On Paul O Grady - 3/11/09". YouTube. 7 November 2009. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ "Alexandra Burke - The Silence". Chart Stats. 31 October 2009. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ "MTV PUSH - Alexandra Burke - The Silence". MTV. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
- ^ http://www.ok.co.uk/celebnews/view/29557/Nicole-Scherzinger-Alexandra-Burke-Olly-Murs-and-The-Wanted-hit-the-Jingle-Bell-Ball-/
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keI0o1SXGYU
- ^ http://entertainment.stv.tv/tv/214340-flying-high-alexandra-burke-raises-the-game-on-the-x-factor/
- ^ "Chart Track: Week 49, 2010". Irish Singles Chart.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Alexandra Burke – The Silence". Swiss Singles Chart.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
External links