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"Cry" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
that features on his tenth and final studio album, '' Invincible'' (2001). The song was written by R&B singer-songwriter
R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwide ...
, who had previously written Jackson's 1995 single " You Are Not Alone". "Cry" was produced by Jackson and Kelly. It was released on December 5, 2001, under Epic Records as the third single from ''Invincible''. "Cry" is a R&B ballad, with lyrics that highlight problems with the planet. The lyrics also urge people to unite to make the world a better place. The track, thus, recalls previous Jackson songs that promote peace and environmentalism. The song was released only in Europe with two
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
tracks; "Shout" and "Streetwalker". "Cry" received mixed reviews from music critics. The single had a moderate chart performance internationally, with its highest peak being number sixteen in Denmark, and its least successful charting country being Austria. The track was promoted with a music video, which was filmed by Nicholas Brandt. The video does not feature Jackson but shows people holding hands and standing side by side in a variety of settings, including a beach and a forest.


Background

"Cry" was recorded by American singer
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
for his tenth and final studio album, '' Invincible'' (2001). The song was written by R&B singer-songwriter
R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwide ...
, who had previously worked with Jackson on his 1995 single, " You Are Not Alone;" Jackson and Kelly's collaboration on "Cry" is the second of what would be three collaborations. "Cry" was one of the first songs completed for the album. The track was produced by Jackson and Kelly. Outside of the United States, the song was released on December 3, 2001, as the second single from ''Invincible'', under Epic Records. The single was released with two
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
tracks, "Shout" and "Streetwalker". "Shout" was a previously unreleased song that was originally intended for ''Invincible'', but was replaced at the last moment by "You Are My Life".Halstead, Cadman, p. 190 "Streetwalker" had previously appeared as a track on the 2001 special edition of Jackson's seventh studio album, '' Bad''. Like "Shout", it was replaced last minute by " Another Part of Me".


Composition

The themes of "Cry" are world issues such as isolation, war, and brotherhood. It also suggests if everyone pulls together as one, then they make a change to the world, with Jackson singing, "You can change the world/I can't do it by myself". Music critic Mark Brown of ''
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'' felt that Jackson cries the lyrics "I can't do it by myself". The song's lyrics and themes are similar to the ones in Jackson's 1988 single "
Man in the Mirror "Man in the Mirror" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was written by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It was released on February 6, 1988, as the fourth single from Jacks ...
" and his 1992 single " Heal the World". "Cry" is composed in the key of A major and the song's time signature is common time. "Cry" has a moderate metronome of eighty four
beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...
. The single is built in the
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...
of A–G/A–A–A/G in the verses and A–A/G–D–A in the chorus. Jackson's
vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of st ...
spans from D3 to E5.


Critical reception

Jason Elias of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
describes "Cry" as a moody and reflective piece of material reminiscent of Jackson's
Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
-produced ballads for ''Bad'', and indicates the song's themes are those of alienation and sorrow rather than love. He believes the strength of the strings, the competent backing vocals, and the keyboard figures prevent the listener from convulsing with laughter at Jackson's "oh-so-pained delivery" and interjections of "Hold on" or "Oh my!"
Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' called the track the "change-the-world-song" and wrote that the single "applies its grand buildup to one of pop's strangest utopian schemes," which was asking everyone to cry at the same time, at which point Jackson may answer their prayers. Catherine Halaby of ''
Yale Daily News The ''Yale Daily News'' is an independent student newspaper published by Yale University students in New Haven, Connecticut since January 28, 1878. It is the oldest college daily newspaper in the United States. The ''Yale Daily News'' has consi ...
'' felt that the song is a "less triumphant use of a contemporary's input" on the album. '' NME'' music critic Mark Beaumont believed that Jackson "starts banging creepily on about" the lyrics which pertain to saving the children. Frank Kogan of the ''
Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'' noted that while "Cry" and another song from ''Invincible'' ("Speechless") are "very pretty", they give the impression that Jackson's "standing sideways, so as to let the beauty slide off him." ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...
'' staff writer Robert Hilburn wrote that the track "fills the social commentary role" of Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" (1988), while ''Hartford Courant'' rock music critic Roger Catlin believed that the single is a redux to Jackson's "Heal the World" (1991). ''
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'' staff writer Glenn Gamboa said that the song was "equally average" to other tracks on ''Invincible''. James Hunter of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine wrote that R. Kelly "more or less succeeds with the kind of life affirming number" on the single. Jim Farber of New York's '' Daily News'' wrote that in "Cry", Jackson "goes into his healing-the-world shtick, though rarely has he been this condescending about his role as universal savior." ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
'' rock music critics
Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the ''Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busines ...
believed that R. Kelly "reprises the formula of his big gospel-stoked anthem" (" I Believe I Can Fly") on the track. A journalist for ''
The Wichita Eagle ''The Wichita Eagle'' is a daily newspaper published in Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. ...
'' wrote that Jackson "shines on the sincere ballads" such as "Cry" and "Speechless". Pop music critic Thor Christensen of the ''
Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the '' Galvest ...
'' described the single as being the musician's "latest batch of inspirational cotton candy." Francisco Cangiano of ''University Wire'' noted that the overall good songs from ''Invincible'' are "Heartbreaker," "Cry" and "Speechless." Pamela Davis and Gina Vininetto of '' St. Petersburg Times'' called the song "hubris- filled" and said that it was full of Jackson's "freaky messiah-savior complex."


Chart performance

"Cry" was not released as a CD single in the United States, but it ranked at the bottom of ''Billboard'' music charts for three weeks within the country, peaking at number one at Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles. "Cry" was a moderate commercial success worldwide. "Cry" debuted at number twenty five, its peak position, on December 22, 2001, on the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. The single remained on the country's chart for four consecutive weeks from December 2001 to January 2002, before falling out of the top 100 positions. The track debuted at number thirty seven on December 12, and peaked at number thirty in the succeeding week on the
French Singles Chart French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...
. The song debuted at its peak position, number forty three, on December 12, on the
Australian Singles Chart 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 songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
. It only remained on the country's chart for one week. "Cry" did not chart on Belgian Ultratip Singles Chart, but did chart on the Belgian
Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—al ...
music chart, debuting at number thirty seven on December 15, and peaking at number thirty one on January 12, 2002. "Cry" charted on the
Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan (, lit. "the Sweden top list") is the Swedish national record chart, formerly known as Topplistan (1975–1997) and Hitlistan (1998–2007) and known by its current name since October 2007, based on sales data from the Swedish ...
for five consecutive weeks. Having debuted at number fifty on December 21, and peaked at number forty eight the following week. The single spent the next four weeks fluctuating down the chart. The track peaked at number forty two on the
Swiss Singles Chart The Swiss Hitparade (german: link=no, Schweizer Hitparade) is 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 ...
, and remained on the country's chart for six weeks. The single's most commercially successful charting territory was Spain. Although the track only remained on the singles chart for two weeks, it peaked at number 6. The single's least successful chart territory was Austria. Having debuted on the country's singles chart at its peak position, number sixty five on December 16, in the succeeding week the track charted at number seventy one and fell out of the top 100 positions the following week. Regarding the song's chart performance, Halstead and Cadman wrote that it was a "setback for sure, but not a major one" for Jackson.Halstead, Cadman, p. 197


Music video

"Cry" was promoted by a music video, or "short film," as Jackson would refer to it. The video was directed by photographer Nick Brandt, who had previously directed " Earth Song" (1995), "
Childhood A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger t ...
" (1995) and "
Stranger in Moscow "Stranger in Moscow" is a song by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson from his ninth studio album, ''HIStory'' (1995). The song was released as the sixth and final single worldwide on November 4, 1996 by Epic Records. It was not released ...
" (1996), all of which were featured on Jackson's '' HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I'' album. The video was filmed in six different locations, all were filmed in
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...
. People featured in the video included members of a real life gospel group. The video begins with dozens of people of different ages, ethnicities and races holding hands. Long lines of people were stretched over mountains, across highways, in a forest and on the beach. Everyone stands in silence for a majority of the video. Following the bridge, everyone begins singing the chorus. Towards the final chorus, the group collectively clap their hands along with the song, taking hands once more as the song ends. "Cry" is the only Michael Jackson video to be included on an
enhanced CD Enhanced CD is a certification mark of the Recording Industry Association of America for various technologies that combine audio and computer data for use in both Compact Disc and CD-ROM players. Formats that fall under the "enhanced CD" ...
of the single. "Cry" was issued as a single against Jackson's original intentions to release "Unbreakable." (The same situation applied with the release of "You Rock My World" months prior.) Filmed in the weeks after 9/11, Jackson was too nervous to travel to the shoot in northern California. When Jackson saw the rough cut of the video, he and the director, Nick Brandt, agreed that the video was stronger without Jackson in it. Craig Halstead and Chris Cadman, authors of the book ''Michael Jackson: The Solo Years'', believe that Jackson's absence from the video "did little to promote it."


Track listing and formats

;UK enhanced maxi CD # "Cry" – 5:01 # "Shout" – 4:17 # "Streetwalker" – 5:49 # "Cry" (short film in
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and
QuickTime QuickTime is an extensible multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. Created in 1991, the latest Mac version, QuickTime X, is a ...
formats) – 5:00 ;UK 12" vinyl *A. "Cry" – 5:01 *B1. "Shout" – 4:17 *B2. "Streetwalker" – 5:49 ;UK cassette single *A1. "Cry" – 5:01 *A2. "Shout" – 4:17 *A3. "Streetwalker" – 5:49 *B1. "Cry" – 5:01 *B2. "Shout" – 4:17 *B3. "Streetwalker" - 5:49 ;Enhanced maxi CD # "Cry" – 5:01 # "Shout" – 4:17 # "Streetwalker" – 5:49 # "Cry" (Video) – 5:00 ;CD single # "Cry" – 5:01 # "Shout" – 4:17 ;US 7" vinyl, 45 RPM *A. "Cry" – 5:01 *B. "Cry" – 5:01 ;European promo CD single # "Cry" – 5:01


B-sides

"Shout" was recorded within the "Invincible" album sessions and left off the album while "Streetwalker" (recorded from the "Bad" sessions) is included in the " Bad Special Edition" (2001), in the video-game " Michael Jackson: The Experience" (2010) and in " Bad 25" (2012).


Credits and personnel

* Written and composed by R. Kelly * Produced by Michael Jackson and R. Kelly * Lead vocal by Michael Jackson *
Percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
by Paulinho da Costa * Keyboard and drum programming by Michael Jackson and Brad Buxer * Choir arrangement by R. Kelly *
Drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...
by John "JR" Robinson *
Guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...
s by Michael Landau * Recorded by Mike Ging, Bad Gilderman and Humberto Gatica * Mixed by Michael Jackson and Mick Guzauski


Charts


References

;Bibliography * *


External links


The music video for "Cry"
at MTV.co.uk. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cry (Michael Jackson Song) 2001 singles 2001 songs 2000s ballads Michael Jackson songs Songs written by R. Kelly Song recordings produced by Michael Jackson Anti-war songs Contemporary R&B ballads Gospel songs Epic Records singles Music videos directed by Nick Brandt