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"The Fear" is a song by English singer-songwriter
Lily Allen
Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of actor Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. Her music career began in 2005 when she made some of her vocal recordings publi ...
from her second studio album, ''
It's Not Me, It's You
''It's Not Me, It's You'' is the second studio album by English singer Lily Allen, released on 4 February 2009 by Regal Recordings and Parlophone. It was produced and co-written by Greg Kurstin, with whom Allen had previously worked on her deb ...
'' (2009). Written by Allen and
Greg Kurstin
Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
, the song was released as the lead single from the album. Initially, "Everyone's at It" was announced to be the first single from the album. However, it was ultimately decided on "The Fear" to be released on 26 January 2009 by
Regal Recordings
Regal Recordings is a British record label functioning as an imprint of Parlophone, Parlophone Records.
Background
Regal Records was a British record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings ...
, while Allen posted the demo (which was then titled "I Don't Know") onto her
MySpace account in April 2008. The song incorporates
electropop
Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...
music as the lyrics articulate problems with celebrity lifestyles and include metaphors for recognised tabloid national newspapers such as ''
The Sun'' and the ''
Daily Mirror
The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
''.
Contemporary critics complimented the song and its themes of
consumerism
Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the Industrial Revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to overproduction—the supp ...
and the
postmodern
Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of moderni ...
condition. "The Fear" topped 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 ...
for four consecutive weeks, thus becoming the longest running number 1 in the UK of 2009, while peaking inside the top 10 in Australia and Ireland and the top 20 in several European countries. It is also Allen's second entry on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States, where it reached number 80.
The accompanying music video portrayed a fantasy theme, with Allen dancing with giant wrapped gifts and balloons. It was shot at
Wrest Park
Wrest Park is a country estate located in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, England. It comprises Wrest Park, a Grade I listed country house, and Wrest Park Gardens, also Grade I listed, formal gardens surrounding the mansion.
History
Thomas Carew (1 ...
in Bedfordshire and also featured dancers dressed as butlers; the locations were initially in a caravan in a park, and then in a giant colourful mansion, surrounded by contrasting grey clouds. The song was performed live for the first time via ''
The Scott Mills Show
''Scott Mills'' was a British award-winning radio show broadcast on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to 2022. It was hosted by Scott Mills, with contributions from Chris Stark. Other contributors have included Mark Chapman, Laura Sayers, and Beccy Hu ...
'' on BBC Radio 1 and during Allen's
2009 concert tour. "The Fear" was awarded with ''Best Track'' prize at the 2009
Q Awards
The Q Awards were the UK's annual music awards run by the music magazine '' Q''. Since they began in 1990, the Q Awards became one of Britain's biggest and best publicised music awards. Locations for the awards ceremony included Abbey Road Studios ...
, and also won Allen two
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They have been presented annually in London by the Ivors Academy (formerly the BASCA) since 1956, and over 1,000 statuettes have been a ...
in 2010, for
Best Song Musically and Lyrically, and Most Performed Work.
Background and composition
Allen wrote and recorded the song with
Greg Kurstin
Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
in a cottage located in
Moreton-in-Marsh
Moreton-in-Marsh is a market town in the Evenlode Valley, within the Cotswolds district and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Gloucestershire, England.
The town stands at the crossroads of the Fosse Way Roman road (now the A429) and the ...
in 2007. She released a demo version of the song, which was then called "I Don't Know", onto her
Myspace account, along with another song, "I Could Say", in April 2008. Initially, the song "Everyone's at It" was announced to be released as the lead single from the album, but it was ultimately decided on "The Fear".
While discussing ''It's Not Me, It's You'', Allen stated that her intention was to make "bigger sounding, more ethereal songs, real songs.
..I think I've grown up a bit as a person and I hope it reflects that." The singer declared about the inspiration for the song, which has to do with
materialism
Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materiali ...
and the pressures of being rich and famous:
'lltell you where the inspiration for it came from. I was walking down this street, in this village in the middle of the countryside in the U.K., and there was this little girl who must have been eight or nine, walking down the street with her mum in, like, high-waisted hot pants and a little crop top. And I just thought, 'That's not really right.' And I could tell she was the kind of girl that would be trying out for Pop Idol in five years time, and wants to be famous when she grows up. And there's definitely the whole culture of that where I come from, and it's not necessarily a culture that I think is particularly healthy. But at the same time, I'm very aware that I am a part of that culture – but it's not something that I feel particularly comfortable with.
Musically, Allen adopts a more mature
electropop
Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...
groove for the song, which has been described to have "a pulsing, sleekly modern electro dance backing",
while coming through a "flood of soft synths"
and being "eminently danceable and slightly trancey".
It is set in
common time
The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...
and in the key of
F major
F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor
F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...
and has a
metronome
A metronome, from ancient Greek μέτρον (''métron'', "measure") and νομός (nomós, "custom", "melody") is a device that produces an audible click or other sound at a regular interval that can be set by the user, typically in beats pe ...
of 134
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 ( ...
.
Allen's voice spans from F
3 to A
4.
Lyrically, the song is a satire of materialism "sung in the voice of a would-be starlet",
and tackles societal consumerism and overnight-fame-hunting.
It also makes reference, through the line "I'll look at The Sun and I'll look in The Mirror", at the daily British tabloid national newspapers ''
The Sun'' and ''
Daily Mirror
The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'', which often report on Allen. The synthesiser parts were written by
Greg Kurstin
Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
using
Apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...
's
Logic Studio
Logic Studio is a discontinued professional music production suite by Apple Inc. The first version of Logic Studio was unveiled on September 12, 2007.
It claims to be the largest collection of modeled instruments, sampler instruments, effect plu ...
, using its built-in instruments.
Critical reception
"The Fear" received positive reviews from music critics. Michael Menachem from ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' commented on the song, saying it "packs another lyrical punch", while complimenting Allen's vocals.
Lucy Davies of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
described the song as "
inently danceable and slightly trancey".
Neil McCormick from ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' suggested that the song confirms that the singer's "pithy observational skills and sweet musicality" remain intact, as she has been a bit bruised by her encounter with 21st-century fame.
''
Clash'' reporter Natasha Arico concluded that "The Fear" is somewhat trite, though "sickeningly catchy and dance friendly",
while ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' magazine criticised the song for being a "cliché" delivered by Allen "with sneer".
James Montgomery of
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
gave a good review, saying it is a relatively scathing indictment of today's glossy, "celeb-ified culture".
Ryan Dombal from
Pitchfork Media
''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog.
Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...
described the song to have a "part admission, part brag, part apocalyptic vision" and suggested that "for almost any other artist, the lines would be barbed, sarcastic, and, ultimately, uppity and bland indictments. But not for the loudmouth
llen.
Other reviews were also positive; Sal Cinquemani from ''
Slant Magazine
''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
'' suggested that "The Fear" is proof of the pop singer's self-awareness, but, given her own personal tabloid history, the song possesses a trail of irony: "I'll look at ''The Sun'' and I'll look in ''The Mirror''/I'm on the right track, yeah, we're onto a winner."
Leah Greenblatt of ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' liked the song, in which Allen makes fun of her own material-girl ID and went on to say that it is in fact "a tale of two Lilys: the naughty postadolescent in the rearview mirror, and the fully realized female coming around the bend."
Chris Buckle from ''The Skinny'' gave "The Fear" three stars, commenting that it "is a potent reminder that she's more than just gobby gossip-fodder", but also disliked a few lyrics, which "in particular
rea clumsy attempt to inject politics amongst the celeb-woe naval-gazing", while
About.com
Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...
praised the song for being a "pop masterpiece", Allen's "witty intelligent lyrics" and compared it to
Pink
Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
's "
Stupid Girls
Stupidity is a lack of intelligence, understanding, reason, or wit. It may be innate, assumed or reactive. The word ''stupid'' comes from the Latin word ''stupere''. Stupid characters are often used for comedy in fictional stories. Walter B ...
".
Commercial performance
"The Fear" debuted at number 168 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 ...
on 25 January 2009―for the week ending dated 31 January 2009. The following week, the song climbed 167 places to the top of the chart, thwarting
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
's "
Just Dance" from the summit.
Gaga commented on this, saying, "I'm very familiar with Lily's music and good job Lily for knocking me off. There always deserves to be a female on top and I don't want to be the only one to do it. I think generally that pop music is making an enormous comeback and I'm actually very pleased with Lily Allen's new record as it's decidedly pop". The song managed to remain on top for four weeks, throughout the whole of February,
until it was dethroned by
Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of ''American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her debu ...
's "
My Life Would Suck Without You
"My Life Would Suck Without You" is a song by American singer Kelly Clarkson from her fourth studio album, '' All I Ever Wanted'' (2009). The song features songwriting credits from Max Martin, Lukasz Gottwald, and Claude Kelly and production cr ...
". It thus earned Allen's second chart-topper, since her debut single, "
Smile
A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile.
Among humans, a smile expresses ...
", achieved the feat in July 2006.
"The Fear" also became the single which spent more weeks atop the chart of 2009 in the UK. On the single's third week stay at number one, its parent album, ''
It's Not Me, It's You
''It's Not Me, It's You'' is the second studio album by English singer Lily Allen, released on 4 February 2009 by Regal Recordings and Parlophone. It was produced and co-written by Greg Kurstin, with whom Allen had previously worked on her deb ...
'' topped the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
, having a chart double, to which Allen said: "It's great being at the top of both charts, especially in the same week as the
Brit Awards
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
are once again celebrating the best of British music."
The song shared similar success in Australia, where it peaked at number three on the
ARIA 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 ...
and stayed eight consecutive weeks in the top 10,
and was certified Platinum by the
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...
.
In Ireland, "The Fear" entered at number 29 on the
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...
, making a slow rise to number five, where it remained for one week after descending the chart.
The song became a success in Europe, having entered the top 20 in most of its countries,
which resulted in a peak of number three on the
European Hot 100 Singles
The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and '' Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...
chart.
Also, in New Zealand, Allen scored her fourth top 40 entry with the song placing itself at a peak of number 14 on the
New Zealand Singles Chart
The Official New Zealand Music Chart ( mi, Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa) is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Music ...
.
In North America, "The Fear" shared moderate success, charting at number 80 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it Allen's only second entry in the United States.
Despite low positions on the main chart, the single managed to become the singer's first
Hot Dance Club Play
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...
number one, topping it for one week.
In Canada, it debuted at 57 in late 2008, afterwards leaving the chart for seven weeks; it returned in 2009, peaking at 33.
It was certified Gold by the
Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...
(CRIA) for shipments of over 20,000 copies.
Music video
On 14 October 2008, Allen announced on her MySpace account that she had started filming a music video for "
Everyone's at It", however, filming for the video was shelved when it was decided that "The Fear" would be released instead. The music video was principally shot on 18 November 2008 at
Wrest Park
Wrest Park is a country estate located in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, England. It comprises Wrest Park, a Grade I listed country house, and Wrest Park Gardens, also Grade I listed, formal gardens surrounding the mansion.
History
Thomas Carew (1 ...
in Bedfordshire and directed by Nez.
It premiered on
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
on Thursday, 4 December 2008 at 11:40pm, however, the video was leaked on to
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
a few hours before the official premiere, receiving over 200 views before it premiered.
The video begins with Allen singing from a caravan window, while a clothes line on the right has underwear and a teddybear hanging from it. As she exits, her clothes are revealed to be a smock dress with a big bow and high heels; upon returning through the caravan door, the interior changes to that of a luxurious mansion, in reality an English country estate.
The chorus starts and she walks down the hall, surrounded by butlers, all making synchronised moves and starting a choreography with Allen.
Afterwards, she climbs the stairs and the camera cuts to the next scene, where she is sitting down in front of the mirror in an extravagant bedroom, with dresses, lamps, toys and cupcakes. The scene changes once again, with Allen walking into a room with giant, brightly coloured presents. They suddenly stand up, having two human legs, and begin to spin around, with the singer joining them.
After descending the stairs and walking through the same hall she entered, she exits the estate, and the video takes down a darker, more serious tone, while the verse "Forget about guns and forget ammunition/'Cause I'm killing them all on my own little mission/Now I'm not a saint but I'm not a sinner/Now everything is cool as long as I'm getting thinner" is sung. The euphoric visual effects appear once again soon after, as the chorus takes place. Allen walks down the estate stairs, being surrounded by dancing balloons, hopping butlers and coloured fog.
The camera zooms out showing the estate tied in a giant ribbon, but also grey, melancholic clouds, which contrast the cheerful party from before.
Allen stated that she hoped the music video would convey parts of the song's sarcasm.
The video reportedly cost
£50,000.
During the shoot, the video was documented on the
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
show
Making The Video
''Making the Video'' is an MTV show, consisting of half-hour episodes, which chronicles the process of filming various music videos. Usually the director outlines the concept of the video (or treatment) and the show often includes light-hearted ...
; in which Allen stated:
I wanted to do a dance routine, even though I'm not really doing a dance routine, other people are doing it, but I'm part of it. I think people are quite used to girls in this industry really being able to move in front of the camera, but I'm just rubbish at that kind of thing.
I find it quite nerve-racking performing, actually. Because when you write songs, you don't really think about performing in a video. I think it's quite fun. Lots of colour and dancing, and it's about doing something that's in keeping with the song, actually.
Live performances
While being invited to the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
show hosted by The Fear (The People vs. Lily Allen)
An alternate version of the song was released on April 2, 2010. The remake was titled "The Fear (The People vs. Lily Allen)" and consists of number of fans singing along to the song, fading in and out overtop of the original track. A music video was released alongside it, featuring hundreds of videos of fans singing and dancing to the song, as well as videos of Allen herself, collected together to form an animated