April 03, 2008
The "4 Minutes" music video is released
Single by Madonna featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland
From the album Hard Candy
Released: March 17, 2008
Format: CD single music download 12"
Recorded: 2007; Sarm West Studios (London); The Hit Factory (Miami)
Genre: Dance-pop
Length: 4:04
Label: Warner Bros.
Writer(s): Madonna, Tim Mosley, Justin Timberlake, Nate Hills
Producer(s): Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Danja
"4 Minutes" is a song by Madonna from
her eleventh studio album Hard Candy (2008), featuring vocals by
American musicians Justin Timberlake and Timbaland. It was released as
the lead single from the album on March 17, 2008, by Warner Bros.
Records. The song's development was motivated by a sense of urgency to
save the planet from destruction, and how people can enjoy themselves in
the process. The writing was completed through discussions between
Madonna and Timberlake about different situations, issues and
relationships. According to Madonna, the song inspired her to produce
the documentary I Am Because We Are (2008).
The song was recorded at Sarm West Studios, in London, while the mixing
of the track was finished at The Hit Factory studio, in Miami. Sound
engineer Demacio "Demo" Castellon first worked on the vocals of the
track, by honing them according to his instincts, and then worked on the
beats and the synths composed by Timbaland and Danja. An uptempo dance
song with an urban and hip hop style, "4 Minutes" incorporates
Timbaland's characteristic bhangra beats and the instrumentation used in
the song includes brass, foghorns and cow bells. The song's lyrics
carry a message of social awareness, inspired by Madonna's visit to
Africa and the human suffering she witnessed in the continent.
"4 Minutes" received positive reviews from many music critics who
called it a busy dance track and complimented its music, which was
compared to that of a marching band. Some however noted that Madonna,
rather than Timberlake, appeared as more of a featured artist in the
song. "4 Minutes" achieved worldwide success by reaching number one in
21 countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Spain and the
United Kingdom. In the United States, "4 Minutes" peaked at number
three on the Billboard Hot 100, giving Madonna her 37th top-ten single,
breaking the record previously held by Elvis Presley as the artist with
most top-ten hits.
In the song's accompanying music video, Madonna and Timberlake sing and
run away from a giant black screen that devours everything in its path.
At the end of the video, Madonna and Timberlake are consumed by the
screen. "4 Minutes" was performed by Madonna on the promotional tour for
Hard Candy and the Sticky & Sweet Tour. In the latter, the song
served as the opener of the rave segment, where Madonna wore a
futuristic robotic outfit. During performances of the song, Timberlake
and Timbaland appeared on video screens and sang their lines. The song
received two Grammy Award nominations for Best Pop Collaboration with
Vocals and Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical at the 2009 ceremony.
Writing and inspiration
Following the release of her tenth studio album, Confessions on a Dance
Floor, Madonna mused on what kind of music she wanted to record, and it
was dance music like her previous album. When asked by producer Stuart
Price what kind of music appealed to her, Madonna replied that she loved
singer Justin Timberlake and producer Timbaland's records, so she
collaborated with them. "4 Minutes" was written by all three of them,
along with Nate "Danja" Hills, and produced by Timbaland, Timberlake and
Danja. The song, initially named "4 Minutes to Save the World", was one
of the last to be produced for Madonna's album Hard Candy. In an
interview with MTV News, Madonna said that the concept of the song was
developed through discussions with Timberlake. She further explained the
meaning of the song:
Well I don't think it's important to take it too literally. I think the
song more than anything is about having a sense of urgency; about how
we are you know, living on borrowed time essentially and people are
becoming much more aware of the environment and how we're destroying the
planet. We can't just keep distracting ourselves we do have to educate
ourselves and wake up and do something about it. You know at the same
time we don't want to be boring and serious and not have fun so it's
kind of like well if we're going to save the planet can we have a good
time while we are doing it?
Madonna clarified that her age did not have anything to do with the
sense urgency reflected in the track, it was just something that she had
in mind for a long time and with "4 Minutes", the sense seeped into her
music. Ingrid Sischy from Interview magazine said that the song felt
like a ballad for the world, containing "the sounds of a great big
marching band. It's a giant dance song". Madonna agreed with Sischy and
responded that the song was "a funny paradox" and was one of the
inspirations behind her documentary I Am Because We Are (2008). The
documentary dealt with the acute suffering and food shortage afflicting
the African nation of Malawi.
"We kind of had psychoanalytic sessions whenever we wrote songs.
We'd sit down and we'd start talking about situations. And then we'd
start talking about issues or problems or relationships with people.
That was the only way, because you know, writing together with somebody
is very intimate. So we had to find a place to start talking about
something we cared about, so we could get into writing about something
we cared about."
—Madonna talking to Interview about the writing process.
Recording and mixing
The recording sessions for "4 Minutes" took place at Sarm West Studios
in West London, on a 72-channel SSL 9080 scratching tool. Paul Tingen
from Sound on Sound magazine interviewed mixing and recording engineer
Demacio "Demo" Castellon, who recalled that he did not attend the first
recording sessions "because [he] was working on another project, but
[he] was lucky enough to go in for the second set of sessions". Over
half of the song was already done by the time Castellon arrived,
including the drum sounds to the basic keyboard lines. According to him,
he "recorded the rest, and [he] also did some programming, particularly
in the intro and the end." At Sarm, Timbaland and Danja used Akai
MPC3000 and Ensoniq ASR-10 sampling drum machines, Yamaha Motif
workstation and synths to build the backing track for "4 Minutes".
"There were dedicated analogue keyboards and the rest were soft synths.
But we're always experimenting and we're always using whatever equipment
we have in the studio we work in. We may have our preferences, but
we're always into trying new things. That's why our stuff sounds
different to that of everybody else." Castellon said that the "4
Minutes" background "consists mainly of brass, synths, and percussion."
Castellon asserted that the session was "actually much bigger than most
people would think, because Tim and Danja take a lot of pride in
designing their own sounds [...] The drums and percussion on '4 Minutes'
are 23 stereo tracks, so 46 tracks in total, there were 16 stereo
tracks of brass, and so on. The whole session panned out to about 100
tracks, and I took 80 outputs from Pro Tools to the SSL, so there was
some submixing in Pro Tools. But for the most part it was straight
across the board." In the interview, Castellon gave his opinion of
Timbaland's production, as well as his own production work:
In the case of '4 Minutes', Tim had a vision from the beginning of how
things should go, especially sonically. He's a real producer. He doesn't
look only at the music, he looks at the sounds as well. He's also a
great engineer and he has an incredible ear and he knows exactly how to
piece things together in the stereo spectrum. When I opened up the
session of '4 Minutes', there was so much going on that I knew right
away that the hard part would be to make sure that the vocals would cut
through and were right in the pocket. Beginning with working on the
vocals was the only way to achieve this. After that I formed all the
other parts around the vocals. The other challenge was to make sure that
everything in the track sounded clear and that you could hear every
instrument, every syllable, every breath. Also, I do almost always work
linear in time on a track. It's easier, because when you're done, you're
done. So I keep working on section after section, until I get to the
end of the track and then I know the whole mix is pretty close.
Castellon said that he did not want the SSL's internal automation to interfere with his blending of the music, which he said "has happened". Instead, the automation was from Pro Tools, with levels set using an eight-fader CM Labs Motormix controller belonging to Castellon. According to him, he "then ran everything through the SSL, on which [he] did EQ, compression and panning." The mixing of the track was made at The Hit Factory studio, in Miami, Florida, on a 96-channel SSL J-series desk. Considering the quantity of recorded backing tracks, a challenge in mixing "4 Minutes" was, according to Castellon, "making sure that the music didn't overwhelm the vocals." Castellon explained how he did this: "I started with the vocals, then I added in the music, and the drums were last. That's unusual for me, even though I don't really have a set way of mixing." Very few digital plug-ins were employed for the mix as Castellon preferred the sound of outboard gear. He tried to complete the song quickly, which took him a day of work to mix. After two days, he fine-tuned the mix.
After the mixes were done, Castellon began working with the vocals, he started with Timbaland's introduction part, continued with Madonna's voice, and finished with Timberlake's vocals. On Timbaland's vocals, he utilized the SSL's EQ to reduce "some bottom end", and he set input levels to avoid clipping when the singing was very loud. For Madonna and Timberlake he used a little of the SSL's dynamic range compression, and on Madonna's voice he applied "an eighth-note delay from a [Lexicon] PCM42", and a reverb from the Eventide H3500 for the verse and the [TC Electronic] TC3000 for the hook." These digital signal processors were employed to give Madonna's vocals a sense of stereophonic space. Castellon commended Timbaland and Danja's drum programming, but felt that it was "too good sometimes", requiring him to "turn down things a little bit." Castellon applied the Waves Audio "Renaissance Compressor" plug-in to control the level of kick drum. He said, "there was one particular kick sound there that clashed with the other tracks, so Tim replaced it with another kick that had a very different note and sound." Castellon said that using a Focusrite D2 EQ let him "match the sound of that new kick drum to the other kick drum sounds". Once the drums and percussion were added, the recording and mixing of "4 Minutes" was finished. Castellon concluded, "luckily everything came together in the end. I don't think the mix would have sounded the same if I had worked in the opposite way, starting with the drums and working up towards the vocals."
4 Minutes |
Music video
The music video was directed by French duo Jonas & François in
London, England. It featured choreography by Jamie King, who worked on
Madonna's Confessions, Re-Invention and Drowned World tours as well as
her video for the single "Sorry" (2006). Japanese hip hop dancing duo
Hamutsun Serve also made an appearance in the video. Before its release,
Rolling Stone said that in the video Madonna and Timberlake act as if
they were "superheroes" while they evade multiple obstacles. In the
video, Madonna wore a cream colored corset, glistening black boots and
styled her hair in platinum blond waves while Timberlake wore mainly
denims and a scarf around his neck. Regarding the idea behind the music
video, Madonna said that "it was conceptualistic". She explained that
the video was shot like a march past; "It's a movement, and we want to
take everybody with us." About the idea of a black screen devouring
everything, Madonna said,
None of us did [understand the concept of the black screen]. It was
just, you know, it's very conceptual. We basically gave the song to the
two French directors [Jonas & Francois] and they came up with the
only concept that I thought was interesting, with this black sort of
amorphous graphic line slowly eating up the world. I just liked that as a
concept.
The video used soft focus, gentle lighting and airbrushing looks on
Madonna. It starts with Timbaland chanting the opening line in front of a
giant timer screen that counts down from four minutes. As he sings, a
black geometric patterned screen comes from behind and engulfs all of
the musical devices present. Madonna and Timberlake enter a house but
run away from it after finding the screen there, which starts eating the
hands and legs of the inhabitants of the house, thus showing their
insides. After a number of shots showing Madonna and Timberlake jumping
on and over cars to escape from the screen, they finally move into a
supermarket. The screen follows them, consuming the long lines of stalls
and the people present there. As the second chorus starts, they arrive
in front of the screen where Timbaland is singing. After choreographed
dancing, Madonna performs a back arch as the timer reaches zero time.
The last "tick-tock, tick-tock" sound is heard, Madonna and Timberlake
dance again on a long stage; the black screen approaches them from both
sides. The video ends with both of them kissing, and the black screen
devouring them. Timberlake's bones and ribs, and Madonna's cheeks are
seen in the last shot.
Regarding the video, Madonna said it was like "goody goody gum drops,"
referring to the candy-oriented theme of the album. Virginia Heffernan
from The New York Times called the video heart-pounding, and compared
its momentum with the music video of "Thriller, "In the Air Tonight" and
"Shadows of the Night". However, Eric Wilson from the same newspaper
commented that the video did not yield a breakout Madonna look compared
to her videos from the 1980s. Singer Miley Cyrus created her own version
of the video and posted it on her YouTube channel. Madonna responded to
it in her own video and said, "All you people out there who are making
videos to my new single, '4 Minutes,' keep up the good work, nice job."
"4 Minutes" was nominated for an award at the 2008 MTV Video Music
Awards in the "Best Dancing in a Video" category, but lost to the
Pussycat Dolls single "When I Grow Up".
Chart performance
In the United States, "4 Minutes" debuted at number 68 on the Billboard
Hot 100 chart for the issue dated April 5, 2008, based solely on
airplay. Within a week, the song had jumped 65 places, reaching number
three on the chart. This leap was spurred by first-week digital sales of
217,000, enabling the song to enter Billboard's Digital chart at number
two, behind Mariah Carey's single "Touch My Body". The song became
Madonna's first top-ten single since "Hung Up" (2005), and was her 37th
Hot 100 top-ten hit, breaking the record previously held by Elvis
Presley. "4 Minutes" was also her highest-charting single on the Hot 100
since "Music" reached the top of the chart in 2000. For Timberlake, "4
Minutes" became his ninth top-ten hit. On the Pop 100 chart, the song
reached a peak of two. "4 Minutes" was a success on Billboard's dance
charts, topping both the Hot Dance Club Play and the Hot Dance Airplay
charts. Almost five months after its release, "4 Minutes" was certified
double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
for sales of two million paid digital downloads. "4 Minutes" was the
tenth most downloaded song in the United States in 2008 with sales of
2.37 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and has sold over three
million copies as of July 2012.
In Canada, Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems (BDS) confirmed that "4
Minutes" debuted at the top of the Canadian Contemporary Hit Radio
chart. This marked the first time any song entered at the top of the CHR
chart in BDS history. The song debuted at number 27 on the Canadian Hot
100 on March 27, 2008, and topped the chart the next week. By the end
of the year, "4 Minutes" was the fifth best selling digital song in
Canada with sales of 143,000 copies, and ranked fourth on the year-end
tabulation of the Canadian Hot 100.
"4 Minutes" was also a success in Australia and New Zealand. The song
debuted at number three on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, and
ascended to the number-one position two weeks later, where it stayed for
three consecutive weeks. "4 Minutes" was certified platinum by the
Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for the shipment of
70,000 copies. In New Zealand, "4 Minutes" made its debut at number 14
on the New Zealand Singles Chart, and ascended to the top ten, finally
peaking at number three. The song has been certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) for shipment of
7,500 copies.
In the United Kingdom, "4 Minutes" debuted on the UK Singles Chart at
number seven. The song became Madonna's 60th top-ten single in Britain.
It debuted on the airplay charts at number 19, with first week tallies
of 564 plays and 27.10 million listeners. The song rose to the top of
the chart on April 20, 2008 (for the week ending date April 26, 2008),
with sales of 40,634 copies, thus giving Madonna her 13th British
number-one single. It remained at the top for four weeks. According to
the Official Charts Company, it was the seventh best-selling song of
2008 and has sold 500,000 copies there. "4 Minutes" was also number one
on Billboard's European Hot 100 Singles for four weeks. Overall, "4
Minutes" reached number one in 21 countries worldwide.(Wiki)
Track listings and formats
UK CD 1
"4 Minutes" (Album Version) – 4:04
"4 Minutes" (Bob Sinclar Space Funk Remix) – 5:39
UK CD 2 / AUS Maxi / GER Maxi
"4 Minutes" (Album Version) – 4:04
"4 Minutes" (Bob Sinclar Space Funk Remix) – 5:39
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Remix) – 6:16
UK 12" Vinyl
"4 Minutes" (Edit) – 3:10
"4 Minutes" (Bob Sinclar Space Funk Edit) – 4:57
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Remix Edit) – 4:39
"4 Minutes" (Tracy Young House Radio) – 3:33
EU / US Maxi CD Single
"4 Minutes" (Bob Sinclar Space Funk Remix) – 5:39
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Remix) – 6:16
"4 Minutes" (Tracy Young House Mix) – 7:55
"4 Minutes" (Peter Saves Paris Remix) – 8:52
"4 Minutes" (Rebirth Remix) – 7:57
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Dirty Dub) – 4:52
US 2× 12" Vinyl
"4 Minutes" (Bob Sinclar Space Funk Remix) – 5:39
"4 Minutes" (Peter Saves Paris Remix) – 8:52
"4 Minutes" (Tracy Young House Mix) – 7:55
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Dirty Dub) – 4:52
"4 Minutes" (Album Version) – 4:04
"4 Minutes" (Rebirth Remix) – 7:57
"4 Minutes" (Junkie XL Remix) – 6:16
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