"Almost Is Never Enough" is a song recorded by American singer

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...

and English singer

Nathan Sykes Nathan James Sykes (born 18 April 1993) is an English singer, best known as a member of the boy band The Wanted. In 2013, Sykes appeared with his bandmates in the E! channel reality television series '' The Wanted Life''. After the band's hiat ...

. The pop and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

-influenced track was written by Grande,

Harmony Samuels Harmony David Samuels (born 16 May 1980), also known as H-Money, is an English record producer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. He has produced a multitude of hits for artists such as Brandy, Jennifer Lopez, Mary J. Blige, Ariana Grande, ...

Carmen Reece Helen Culver, known by her stage name Carmen Reece, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer based in Los Angeles, California. An accomplished pianist and flautist from childhood, Carmen penned her first song aged 11 and has sinc ...

, Al Sherrod Lambert, Olaniyi-Akinpelu, and its producer, Moses Samuels. Two official versions of the song exist. A shortened version is included on the official soundtrack for the 2013 fantasy film '' The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones'' and was released August 19, 2013 via

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

as a second promotional single from the same, following

Colbie Caillat Colbie Marie Caillat (; born May 28, 1985) is an American singer-songwriter. She rose to fame through social networking website Myspace. At that time, she was the number one unsigned artist of her genre. After signing with Universal Republic R ...

's "When the Darkness Comes" on July 10, and a longer version was remastered for inclusion on Grande's debut studio album, '' Yours Truly'' (2013).

Composition

The song is composed in the key of D Major. The duo's vocal range spans 2 octaves and 2 notes, from F#3 to D6.

Critical reception

The duet received primarily positive reception. ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...

'' editor Mike Wass called "Almost Is Never Enough" a "glorious" and "soulful" anthem and praised the collaboration between the two artists; "The simple production is timeless and showcases Ariana’s powerful pipes superbly. And who knew Nathan could sing like that? 'Almost Is Never Enough' is a revelation all around and promises very good things for Grande's debut album." Brent Faulkner of ''Star Pulse'' found the duet to be a pleasantly surprising blend of modern and classical elements and noted that the song "should be sappy but isn't". This sentiment was mirrored by ''Popdusts Andrew Unterberger, who observed that the song "manages to mostly stay out of the way of its two talented young vocalists... and lets them carry it with the strength of their voices, and of the song itself. The result is a ballad that’s surprisingly mature and classic sounding." Unterberger also drew comparisons to

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

, and her

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duet "

One Sweet Day "One Sweet Day" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey and vocal group Boyz II Men. The song was released on as the second single from Carey's fifth studio album, ''Daydream'' (1995) by Columbia Records. The artists co- ...

" also

Brandy Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with ...

and

Wanya Morris Wanyá Jermaine Morris ( ) (born July 29, 1973) is an American singer, best known as a member of the R&B group Boyz II Men. Television and film appearances Morris was announced as one of the celebrities who would compete on season 22 of '' ...

's " Brokenhearted" in particular.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 2010s ballads 2013 songs Ariana Grande songs Male–female vocal duets Pop ballads Republic Records singles Songs written by Al Sherrod Lambert Songs written by Ariana Grande Songs written by Carmen Reece Songs written by Harmony Samuels Soul ballads