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"No" is a song recorded by Colombian singer
Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the " Queen of Latin Music" and is ...
from her sixth
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
''
Fijación Oral, Vol. 1 ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' (English: ''Oral Fixation, Vol. 1'') is the sixth studio album by Colombian singer and songwriter Shakira. It was released on 3 June 2005 by Epic Records. After attaining international success in 2001 with her fifth st ...
'' (2005). It was written by Shakira and
Lester Mendez Lester Mendez is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning record producer, songwriter and composer. His production/writing credits include a multitude of successful hits with Shakira, Jewel, Nelly Furtado, Jessica Simpson, Enrique Iglesias, and ot ...
and features Argentine singer-songwriter
Gustavo Cerati Gustavo Adrián Cerati (11 August 1959 – 4 September 2014) was an Argentine singer-songwriter, composer and producer, considered one of the most important and influential figures of Ibero-American rock. Cerati along with his band Soda Stereo ...
, who also played the guitar and provided
backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
to the song. "No" was released as the second single from the album on 2 July 2005, by
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
. A Latin pop
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
, it explores a woman's effort in trying to tell her boyfriend that she no longer wants to be involved in a toxic relationship and that separating is best for both. "No" received positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
, being called a "tender" ballad by a reviewer from '' Billboard''. Commercially it attained moderate success, peaking at numbers eleven and two on the US Hot Latin Songs and
Latin Pop Songs Latin Pop Airplay (also referred to as Latin Pop Songs) is a record chart published on ''Billboard'' magazine and a subchart of the Latin Airplay chart. The chart focuses on Latin pop music, namely Spanish-language pop music. It was established ...
charts, respectively. An accompanying
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for "No" was directed by Jaume de Laiguana and depicts Shakira in a defunct
ship yard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...
. She also performed the song on several occasions, such as
Madrid bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics Madrid 2012 was one of the five short-listed bids for the 2012 Summer Games. Madrid and New York City were the only two cities that opted to hold the 2012 Olympics that had never held a Summer Olympics before. The candidacy celebration, held on ...
and Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica 2006, as well as including it on the setlist for her
Oral Fixation Tour Oral Fixation Tour (known as Tour Fijación Oral in hispanophone countries) was the fourth concert tour by Colombian singer and songwriter, Shakira. It was launched in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' (200 ...
(2006–07).


Background and release

Although at first Shakira did not know whether she would release an album in Spanish or English, she wanted to work on an album. After attaining
crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Albums and songs * ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album) * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album) * ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album) * ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
success in 2001 with her first English language album, ''
Laundry Service ''Laundry Service'' ( es, Servicio de Lavandería) is the fifth studio album and first English-language album by Colombian singer Shakira, globally released on 13 November 2001 by Epic Records. It is her first album to be primarily recorded in E ...
'', the singer wanted to release its follow-up. Shakira, having co-written almost 60 songs for the project, decided to divide the release into two volumes and put herself "on the mission of selecting erfavorite ones" to the record. Shakira stated that she did the project "because it came out like this" and "that led to two albums". She decided that she wanted to release a Spanish language album first as part of a two-language bilingual project. This would be the first since ''
Dónde Están los Ladrones? ''Dónde Están los Ladrones?'' ( en, Where Are the Thieves?, italic=yes) is the fourth studio album by Colombian singer and songwriter Shakira, released on 29 September 1998 by Columbia Records and Sony Music Latin. After attaining success in La ...
'' (1998). She said: "The market responded so well to ''Laundry Service''. But what my soul asked me was to release first a record in Spanish. That's what I had to do". When recording the albums, she worked with previous collaborators along with new partners, such as Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz and Argentine musician
Gustavo Cerati Gustavo Adrián Cerati (11 August 1959 – 4 September 2014) was an Argentine singer-songwriter, composer and producer, considered one of the most important and influential figures of Ibero-American rock. Cerati along with his band Soda Stereo ...
. Shakira stated that "they are very credible artists within Hispanic music, great composers and unique voices". She also commented that the latter "has always been my idol, for me he's the maximum figure of
rock en Español Rock en español () is a term used widely in the English-speaking world to refer to any kind of rock music featuring Spanish vocals. Compared to English-speaking bands, very few acts reached worldwide success or between Spanish-speaking countri ...
. The opportunity of co-producing with him was something very enriching for me and I enjoyed it very much as a fan that I am. It was dream come true to see him playing the guitar in the marquee of my house". In early June 2005, Shakira's spokespeople announced that "No" would be released in the following weeks as the second single from ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'', after "
La Tortura "" (English: "The Torture") is a song by Colombian singer Shakira, featuring Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz, from Shakira's sixth studio album ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' (2005). It was released on 13 April 2005 by Epic Records as the lead single ...
", but only in Latin American markets. The song was released on 2 July 2005, by
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
.


Composition and recording

"No" was written by Shakira and
Lester Mendez Lester Mendez is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning record producer, songwriter and composer. His production/writing credits include a multitude of successful hits with Shakira, Jewel, Nelly Furtado, Jessica Simpson, Enrique Iglesias, and ot ...
and produced by Shakira, Mendez and Cerati, who also played the
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 stri ...
and provided
backing vocal A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are used ...
s to the song. The mixing and
engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...
for "No" was performed by Rob Jacobs at
Henson Recording Studios The Jim Henson Company Lot, formerly A&M Studios, is a studio property located just south of the southeast corner of North La Brea Avenue and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Originally established by film star Charlie Chaplin, the property served ...
in Los Angeles, with additional engineering by Kevin Killen. Other instrumentation for "No" included guitar and
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
by Tony Reyes and Rene Toledo, drums by Jonathan Mover, and bass by Chris Chaney. Vlado Meller completed the
audio mastering Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via met ...
at
Sony Music Studios Sony Music Studios was an American music recording and mastering facility in New York City. The five-story building was a music and broadcasting complex located at 460 W. 54th Street, at 10th Avenue, in the Hell's Kitchen section of Manhattan. I ...
in New York City. "No" is a pop
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
whose lyrics chronicle a woman's effort in trying to tell her boyfriend that she no longer wants to be involved in a relationship and that separating is best for both: "No, no intentes disculparte / no juegues a insistir / las excusas ya existían antes de ti / no, no me mires como antes / no hables en plural / la retórica es tu arma más letal". Additionally, the lyrics depict the distance that age marks between two people: "y que a tu edad sepas bien lo que es / romperle el corazón a alguien así ..espero que no esperes que te espere / después de mis 26 la paciencia se me ha ido hasta los pies". On a colombian TV show, Shakira's first love, César Ulloa was interviewed and told the reporter that Shakira's mom told him that he was the inspiration behind this song. "No" is for Shakira a closure to that relationship.


Reception


Critical

"No" received positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. Matt Cibula from ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
'' opined that the song's "slow-burning reserve is the simple setting for the crazy diamond that is Shakira's voice. It is almost as if she contains so much emotion that she cannot be contained by human songform. And yes, I know this is an affectation; that's why I said 'almost'. But still, it's one hell of a trick". '' Billboard'' magazine classified it as a "tender ballad", whilst
Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...
website said it was a "classic heartbreak song". Mark Kemp from '' Paste'' magazine stated that "No" was a "seething, acoustic-guitar-based" recording in which Cerati "fills the spaces between her words with subtle, tremolo-laden guitar lines". Spence D. from
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
website considered the song "starkly titled" and a "beautiful and haunting slow number that rides on Shakira's piercing vocals. Sure a wee bit of Celine over-emphasis creeps in on some of the warbles that tremor through her vocals", finishing the review of the song saying that "on the whole the song is a strong impression of what Shakira is capable of delivering: an impassioned sense of longing and desperation", whilst also recommending it for download. For Jorge Patiño from '' Rolling Stone Argentina'', "it's not hard to imagine 'No' with less ornaments, a little bit more raw, because it is a great song that didn't need major touches to stand up for itself". According to Mariana Enriquez from '' Página/12'' newspaper, "just a few write as well as Shakira", and that the best example was "No". Besides stating that it was a "poignant ballad whichever way you look at it, and it's impossible to hear it without spilling tears if the listener is suffering for love", she considered that the song was "better than all the recent songs by the former Soda Stereo together". "No" was recognized as one of the best-performing Latin songs of the year at the 2007 BMI Latin Awards.


Commercial

On 10 September 2005, "No" debuted at number 41 on the US Hot Latin Songs chart. It slowly rose to its peak of number 11 on 10 December 2005. It achieved better success on the
Latin Pop Songs Latin Pop Airplay (also referred to as Latin Pop Songs) is a record chart published on ''Billboard'' magazine and a subchart of the Latin Airplay chart. The chart focuses on Latin pop music, namely Spanish-language pop music. It was established ...
chart, peaking at number two on 3 December 2005. The song was placed eighth on the Hot Latin Songs year-end chart.


Music video

An accompanying
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for "No" was directed by Spanish director Jaume de Laiguana, who would later work with Shakira for various other projects. It was supposed to be filmed on 26–27 June 2005 in a defunct
ship yard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...
in Barcelona, Spain, but its date was changed to July 4. The clip was produced by Sergi Ciuro and Ester Udaeta, co-produced by Laiguana and Piramide, cinematographed by Alejandro Oset, and edited by Anna Oriol. It was premiered in late July 2005. Recorded without
Gustavo Cerati Gustavo Adrián Cerati (11 August 1959 – 4 September 2014) was an Argentine singer-songwriter, composer and producer, considered one of the most important and influential figures of Ibero-American rock. Cerati along with his band Soda Stereo ...
, the
black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
video depicts a sad Shakira, with tears rolling down her face. At the defunct ship yard, she is surrounded by several rail tracks and cars, some of the latter which are used for her to sit on. Towards the end of the video, one of the small wooden car falls off the track and into water beneath a cliff. Throughout the clip, Shakira is engaged in building
butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...
wings. At the closing moments of the video, she stands at the water's edge, ready to take flight, but does not go through with it and walks away, smiling slightly. The video was included on '' Oral Fixation Volumes 1 & 2'' bonus DVD.


Live performances and cover

Shakira performed "No" for the first time at
Madrid bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics Madrid 2012 was one of the five short-listed bids for the 2012 Summer Games. Madrid and New York City were the only two cities that opted to hold the 2012 Olympics that had never held a Summer Olympics before. The candidacy celebration, held on ...
on 5 June 2005. Five days later, Shakira sang the song on ''
Despierta America "Despierta" (English: ''Wake Up'') was the first single from Edurne's debut album, ''Edurne Edurne García Almagro (; born 22 December 1985) is a Spanish singer, actress, and television presenter. She rose to fame in late 2005 when she too ...
'', ''
Hoy Hoy ( sco, Hoy; from Norse , meaning "high island") is an island in Orkney, Scotland, measuring – the second largest in the archipelago, after Mainland. A natural causeway, ''the Ayre'', links the island to the smaller South Walls; the tw ...
'' on 15 June, and ''
No Manches No (and variant writings) may refer to one of these articles: English language * ''Yes'' and ''no'' (responses) * A determiner in noun phrases Alphanumeric symbols * No (kana), a letter/syllable in Japanese script * No symbol, displayed ...
'' on 16 June. After performing "No" on ''
Otro Rollo ''Otro Rollo'' (officially ''Otro rollo con: Adal Ramones'') (lit. Another roll, meaning other stuff) is a Mexican sketch comedy and variety television show, broadcast live on Televisa on Tuesday nights. Hosted by Adal Ramones, it began airing in ...
'' the day before, the singer made an appearance to sing it on MTV Day festival in Madrid, Spain which occurred on 29 June 2005, among other songs from her back catalog. On 11 July 2005, she went to Argentina and gave a performance of "No" on '' Susana Giménez'' TV show, and on her own special concert titled ''Shakira: Íntimo'', both aired by
Telefe Telefe (acronym for Televisión Federal) is a television station located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The station is owned and operated by Paramount Global through Televisión Federal S.A. Telefe is also one of Argentina's six national televisio ...
. Shakira also sang "No" on ''Channel n°4'' in Spain on 8 November 2005. In the same country, she participated on a special show titled ''Andalucía Te Quiere'' where she performed the song among other songs in March 2006. The singer performed the song on Chilean television show ''
Sábado Gigante Saturday is the day of the week between Friday and Sunday. No later than the 2nd century, the Romans named Saturday ("Saturn's Day") for the planet Saturn, which controlled the first hour of that day, according to Vettius Valens. The day's ...
'' on 20 May 2006. Shortly before the start of her tour, Shakira sang it during the
Rock in Rio ''Rock in Rio'' is a recurring music festival originating in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Nine incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, ...
festival in Lisbon, Portugal, on 26 May. The song was included in the concert setlist of her 2006–07
Oral Fixation Tour Oral Fixation Tour (known as Tour Fijación Oral in hispanophone countries) was the fourth concert tour by Colombian singer and songwriter, Shakira. It was launched in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' (200 ...
, which was launched to promote the albums ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' and ''Oral Fixation, Vol. 2''. The performance of the song during the concert in Miami, Florida, on 9 December 2006, was filmed for a live album release. On 19 October 2006, Shakira gave a performance of "No" on Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica 2006. At the 12th Latin Grammy Awards ceremony in 2011, Venezuelan singer-songwriter
Franco De Vita Franco Atilio De Vita De Vito (born January 23, 1954, in Caracas, Venezuela) is a Venezuelan Latin Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter. His first album as a solo artist garnered three Spanish-language hits in Venezuela. He signed with the ...
performed a live cover of "No" as part of the Latin Grammys tribute to Shakira, where she was honored
Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year The Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year is an award presented annually by the Latin Recording Academy, the same organization that distributes the Latin Grammy Awards, to commend musicians of Ibero-American heritage for their "artistic ach ...
.


Track listing

*Mexican promo CD single #"No" – 4:45


Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'': *
Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the " Queen of Latin Music" and is ...
– lead vocals, songwriter, producer *
Gustavo Cerati Gustavo Adrián Cerati (11 August 1959 – 4 September 2014) was an Argentine singer-songwriter, composer and producer, considered one of the most important and influential figures of Ibero-American rock. Cerati along with his band Soda Stereo ...
– producer, backing vocals, guitar, vocals *Rene Toledo – acoustic guitar *Tony Reyes – guitar *
Lester Mendez Lester Mendez is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning record producer, songwriter and composer. His production/writing credits include a multitude of successful hits with Shakira, Jewel, Nelly Furtado, Jessica Simpson, Enrique Iglesias, and ot ...
– songwriter, producer, keyboards & synthesizers *Jonathan Mover - drums *Chris Chaney - bass *Rob Jacobs - mixing, engineer *Henry Gerhart - live audio engineer *Kevin Killen - engineer *Pete Davis - programming *Vlado Meller - mastering


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


Notes


References

{{Shakira singles 2000s ballads 2005 singles Black-and-white music videos Music videos shot in Spain Pop ballads Shakira songs Song recordings produced by Lester Mendez Songs written by Shakira Spanish-language songs