"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is a song by American singer Usher featuring American rapper Pitbull, who wrote the song with Savan Kotecha and producers Shellback and Max Martin. It was originally intended for

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

's 2010 album ''Loud'', but her team turned it down. It was released to digital download on July 12, 2010, and sent to radio on August 18, 2010, as the first single from Usher's EP, '' Versus'', which is an extension of his sixth studio album, '' Raymond v. Raymond''. An

electronic dance Electronic dance music (EDM), also referred to as dance music or club music, is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and List of electronic dance music festivals, festivals. It is generally ...

track with a

Europop Europop (also spelled Euro pop) is a style of pop music that originated in Europe during the mid-to-late 1960s and developed to today's form throughout the late 1970s. Europop topped the charts throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with revivals and ...

style (though the track was recorded in the United States), the song puts emphasis on its chorus, and follows the chord progression of Gm-F-E♭. It received mixed to positive reviews from critics, who favored its production and Usher's vocals, but criticized the song's lack of originality. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" peaked in the top-ten in over fifteen countries, becoming one of Usher's most successful singles. It reached the top-three on the Japan Hot 100,

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, Hungary Singles Chart, French Singles Chart, and ARIA Singles Chart. It peaked at number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, marking Usher's sixteenth top-ten hit on the chart. It received a 4× Platinum certification from the

ARIA In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

and a 2× Platinum certification from Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). An accompanying music video, directed by Hiro Murai, shows Usher krumping and crip walking in a club.

Background and composition

"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" was leaked on the internet on July 1, 2010, with its follow-up single " Hot Tottie" leaked later that month. The song was released from '' Versus'' as the EP's mainstream single, whereas the latter track was released as the urban single. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" features guest vocals by American rapper Pitbull, who co-wrote it with Savan Kotecha, Max Martin and Shellback, with production handled by the latter two. It was recorded at Maratone Studios,

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and at Conway Studios,

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, handled by Sam Holland and Emily Wright. Mixing was done by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" runs for a duration of three minutes and forty seconds. This is the first of two songs that Kotecha, Martin, and Shellback have co-written for Usher, who would later join the three in co-writing his 2012 single " Scream". According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by

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, "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is written in the key of

G Minor G minor is a minor scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has two flats. Its relative major is B-flat major and its parallel major is G major. The G natural minor scale is: Changes n ...

and has a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

of 120 beats per minute. It follows the

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...

of Gm-F-E, and Usher's vocal range spans from the low note of G₄ to the high note of B₅. The song is described as a club track, that contains

and

influences. Bill Lamb of

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noted that the song puts emphasis on its chorus, to which Usher sings "with appropriate passion".

Critical reception

The song received mixed to positive reviews from critics, with criticism directed mainly towards its lack of originality.

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's Andy Kellman noted the song as a stand-out from '' Versus'', along with " Hot Tottie" and " There Goes My Baby". Bill Lamb of

gave the song three-and-a-half stars out of five, praising Usher's vocal delivery and the song's "memorable chorus". Lamb criticized Pitbull's appearance, writing that his verse is "tossed on as a commercial gimmick", while also writing that the song doesn't compare well to Usher's " OMG" (2010). ''

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'' Michael Menachem described Pitbull's verse as "energizing" and wrote that Usher's "high register fits seamlessly with dance beats". Despite citing the lyrics as repetitive, he thought that the song "should keep clubgoers moving for months to come". Sarah Rodman of ''

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'' depicted the song as a "dance thumper" and invites listeners to "lose themselves in the music". ''

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Jeff Weiss viewed the song as "generic" with Usher "singing generic paeans to a paramour’s eyes over a Eurovision-like Max Martin production". Eric Henderson of

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disapproved of the track as a whole, writing "'DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love' is, while indistinguishable from any other overdriving club banger, one of the only songs in which Usher Raymond acknowledges an aphrodisiac more powerful than his own ab musk".

Chart performance

In the United States, the song debuted at number nineteen on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on the week ending December 21, 2010. It became Usher's second top-20 debut of 2010, after " OMG" opened at number fourteen in April. On the week ending December 24, 2010 "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" was positioned at number five. It was the first time that Usher—as a lead artist—had four singles on the top-40 of the Hot 100 simultaneously, with "OMG" at number twenty, " There Goes My Baby" at thirty-three and " Hot Tottie" at twenty-five. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" remained on the Hot 100 for thirty weeks before dropping out, and peaked at number four, becoming Usher's sixteenth top-ten hit. The song peaked at number two on the Pop Songs Chart, and twelve on the Adult Pop Songs Chart. On the Hot 100 year-end charts for 2010 and 2011, it reached number twenty-two and sixty-five, respectively. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" peaked at number two on the

chart, and was certified 2 times Platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA), for shipments of over 160,000 copies. It peaked at number three on the Australian Singles Charts, and received a six times Platinum certification 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 Records (Australia), Festival, Sony Music ...

(ARIA). The song reached number four on the

New Zealand Singles Chart The Official Aotearoa Music Charts, formerly the Official New Zealand Music Chart (), 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 M ...

, and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ). "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" was certified Platinum in the regions of México and Switzerland, by the AMPROFON and

IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...

, respectively. The song achieved success in Europe, peaking at number three on the European Hot 100. Internationally "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" reached the top-ten in over fifteen countries, becoming one of Usher's most successful singles. It peaked in the top five in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

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and

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. By February 2011, the song had reached 3 million in digital sales, according to

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, making it the second single of 2010 for both Usher and Pitbull to achieve the figure (Usher's "OMG" sold 3,957,000 copies, while " I Like It" performed by lead artist

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican label Fonovisa where he released three Spanish albums ''Enrique Iglesias (album), Enrique ...

sold 3,197,000). It reached its 4 million sales mark in the US in April 2013. As of June 2014, the song has sold 4,198,000 copies in the US.

Music video

The music video for the song premiered on August 26, 2010, on

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, and was directed by Hiro Murai. The video begins in a club environment, with misplaced furniture and a shattered glass bottle. The scene goes in reverse motion, people instantly appear, frozen in a raving action. As the scene is still reversing a DJ is spinning his booth, and the shattered glass bottle forms into its original state, the clubbers and the scene then start to move in forward but slow motion and the song begins with Usher approaching from a set of stairs. Usher sings and dances, while moving past clubbers who are still moving in slow motion while he is in moving normally. Once the chorus comes in, the clubbers begin dancing and raving in normal motion, periodically slowing down; Usher is krumping pass them, moving on to the next scene. Usher slides into a room with a large lit up window as a back drop. He performs choreography backed-up by female dancers for the second verse, and then returns to the original room with the second chorus coming in. A similar scene is involved to the first chorus, but this time Usher is dancing with the clubbers, who are still alternating in motion speed. Pitbull then begins his verse, and is sat in a V.I.P. area with three females, with the camera alternating between him, the clubbers and Usher. The video ends with its final scene, in a dance off, with Usher dancing adjacent to some of the clubbers. Once the climax of the chorus comes in, Usher jumps in the air and starts freely dancing along with the clubbers, with everyone in the same motion speed; Usher is primarily crip-walking. Usher and the clubbers then perform a final organized choreography, mainly krumping, and the video ends. The music video on

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has received over 390 million views as of May 2024.

Live performances

Usher first performed "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" on ''

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'', alongside "OMG". A few days later, Usher performed the song on ''

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''. On December 17, 2010, he performed the song alongside " There Goes My Baby" on '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!''. Usher performed "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" in the season five finale of '' America's Got Talent'', and in the seventh season of ''

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''. He performed the song during his OMG Tour, alongside several other tracks. The song was performed with "OMG" during the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. VMA executive producer Dave Sirulnick told MTV News, "We said to him, 'We want to do the best televised dance routine that you've done in years. Let's show why you're the king.'" MTV Buzzworthy writer, Tamar Antai was present at the rehearsal for the show, and commented that the VMA crew was about to "pull off visual feats not just previously unseen and unparalleled at the VMAs, but unseen and unparalleled on TV." The performance was received with critical acclaim. On Usher specifically Antai said the performance was like "liquid magic", saying, "He took it to the level that comes after the next level. The penthouse level." He was aided by about a dozen background dancers, the males in skeleton-like costumes, and the females donning a one-piece, gloves and boots. The "OMG" performance was accompanied by red laser lights, making an illusion as if the stage disappeared. The lights spelled out "O.M.G" as well as "Usher", as dancers lowered from the ceiling. Jayson Rodrgiguez of MTV News commented, "The singer moved and grooved, proving that he's the R&B star that everyone pays attention to for the big moments." Rochell D. Thomas, also of the site said "Call it what you will: talent, swag, skills...When he steps on the dance floor, some mysterious thing comes out of him and puts the G in groove." Thomas went on to say that Usher's dance moves would make "the late great

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 Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

jealous" in the stage production "that included more special-effects bells and whistles than a summer blockbuster." Chris Ryan of MTV Buzzworthy also compared the performance to Jackson, calling it overall, "One part "Tron," one part laser show, one part Michael Jackson choreo tribute, and all spectacle."

Track listings

Digital download # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" – 3:42 German CD Single # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" - 3:42 # "More" - 3:49 Australian CD and digital Single # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" – 3:42 # " Lil Freak" (Mig & Rizzo Extended Mix) – 5:36 Australian digital remixes No longer available to purchase in iTunes Australian store # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" – 3:42 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Almighty 12 Inch Mix) – 7:41 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Almighty Radio Mix) – 3:38 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Ad Brown Remix) – 7:36 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (2 Darc Drum 'n' Bass) – 2:37 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (2 Darc Funky House Remix) – 3:31 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (MK Ultras Mix) – 3:34 US CD single # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" – 3:42 # "OMG" (Cory Enemy Club Mix) - 5:55 US iTunes Remixes # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (HyperCrush Remix) – 4:05 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Precize Club Mix) – 4:23 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Precize Dub) – 4:23 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Versatile Club Mix) – 5:54 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Versatile Radio Mix) – 4:02 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Versatile Dub) – 5:54 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (DJ Spider & Mr. Best Remix) – 6:07 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Jump Smokers Radio Mix) – 4:05 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Jump Smokers Club Mix) – 5:13 # "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Dino Roc Radio Mix) – 3:53

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''Versus''.Usher ''Versus'' Liner notes. LaFace Records (2010) Recording locations * Vocal recording – Maratone Studios, Stockholm, Sweden; Conway Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California; Al Burna's Crib, Miami, Florida * Mixing – MixStar Studios, Los Angeles, California Personnel *

Songwriting A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

– Max Martin, Shellback, Savan Kotecha, Armando C. Pérez * Production and instruments – Max Martin, Shellback * Recording – Sam Holland, Emily Wright * Pitbull vocal recording – Al Burna * Mixing – Serban Ghenea * Mix engineer – John Hanes * Photography – Walid Azami * Assistant mix engineer – Tim Roberts

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dj Got Us Fallin' In Love 2010 songs 2010 singles Usher (musician) songs Pitbull (rapper) songs Songs written by Savan Kotecha Songs written by Max Martin Songs written by Shellback (record producer) Songs written by Pitbull (rapper) Song recordings produced by Max Martin Song recordings produced by Shellback (record producer) LaFace Records singles Jive Records singles