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Beat Again

"Beat Again"
Single by JLS
from the album JLS
B-side"Umbrella"
Released12 July 2009
Recorded2009
Genre
Length3:19
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Steve Mac
JLS singles chronology
"Beat Again"
(2009) 		"Everybody in Love"
(2009)

"Beat Again" is the debut single by English boy band JLS. It was released on 12 July 2009 as the lead single from their self-titled debut studio album JLS (2009).[2] The song was written by Wayne Hector and Steve Mac and produced by Mac. The song's B-side is a cover of "Umbrella" by Rihanna, which JLS covered during the semi-finals of the fifth series of The X Factor in December 2008.

The song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart. It also peaked at number three in the Republic of Ireland. It has sold over 574,000 copies in the United Kingdom as of August 2018, making it the band's best-selling song.[3]

Background and composition

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After finishing as runners-up to Alexandra Burke on the fifth series of The X Factor in December 2008, JLS signed a record deal with Epic Records.[4] Epic managing director Nick Raphael said, "JLS are the best boy band to emerge from a TV talent show. The band already have an incredible fan base, and I look forward to launching their recording career."[4]

"Beat Again" was unusual for being a debut single from reality show contestant in that was not a cover version, following in the footsteps of Girls Aloud, Shayne Ward and Leona Lewis.[5] Instead, this song written especially for JLS by Wayne Hector and Steve Mac. The song was originally titled 'No Beat' and supposedly took only two hours to write.[6] Mac himself had originally presented the song to Nick Raphael, JLS' A&R at Epic Records, as a potential single.[5] "Beat Again" is written in the key of A-flat minor. Raphael had originally been looking for a ballad in the vein of Boyz II Men's "End of the Road" and had in fact already asked Mac for another "Flying Without Wings".[6] However, according to co-writer Wayne Hector, Raphael's response upon hearing the new song was, "this is the single. I can feel it. It's fantastic."[5] Raphael had supposedly originally intended "Everybody in Love" to be the lead single but changed his mind at the last minute.[5]

Critical reception

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To date, "Beat Again" has garnered mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Giving the single three stars, Alex Fletcher of Digital Spy noted that JLS "have at least broken with X Factor convention on their debut single". Fletcher also drew positive comparisons to work by American R&B artist Ne-Yo. However, the reviewer went on to say the single is "cheesier than a Jennifer Aniston rom-com".[7] Another review, giving the single three stars out of five, said "Beat Again seems to lack originality".[8] It was included on the Popjustice song of the day.[9] The Daily Record wrote that the single had "the R&B electro sass of Justin Timberlake or Rihanna [and] will surprise many".

Rolling Stone ranked the song at number 69 in their list of 75 Greatest Boy Band Songs of All Time in 2020.[10]

Chart performance

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"Beat Again" made its chart debut on the Billboard Euro Digital Tracks chart at number 13,[11] and on the Euro Digital Songs at number 19.[12] The song debuted on the Irish Singles Chart at number four.[13] The song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart.[14][15] It sold 106,299 copies in its first week on sales, making it the second fastest-selling single of 2009, behind Dizzee Rascal's "Bonkers".[16] "Beat" Again" has sold over 574,000 copies in the UK as of July 2018.[3] The song was also released in the United States in July 2009, but failed to chart or garner commercial interest.

The song won Best British Single at the MOBO Awards 2009[17] and 2010 BRIT Awards.

Music video

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The music video was shot in May 2009 and released on 4 June 2009. It features various scenes of JLS dancing to the song in front of blue, red, yellow and green lights, all of which represent the different band members. The dance choreography involves moves revolving around heartbeats, alluding to the title "Beat Again".[18]

Track listing

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  1. "Beat Again" – 3:19
  2. "Umbrella" – 4:21

Charts and certifications

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Release history

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Region Date Format Label
Ireland[27][28][29] 12 July 2009 Digital download, CD single Sony Music, Epic Records
United Kingdom[30] 13 July 2009
United States[31][32] 14 July 2009 Epic Records
Australia[33] 31 July 2009 Sony Music, Epic Records

References

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  1. ^ Released on Monday, 9 November 2009 (9 November 2009). "Music - Album Review - JLS: 'JLS'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 24 December 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ "Beat Again – DOWNLOAD NOW". Epic Records. 12 July 2009. Archived from the original on 9 August 2009. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Official Charts Flashback 2009: JLS – Beat Again". Official Charts Company. 26 July 2018.
  4. ^ a b "X-Factor runners up JLS sign recording deal with Epic". Telegraph.co.uk. 20 January 2009.
  5. ^ a b c d "Interview With Wayne Hector" Archived 13 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, HitQuarters, 1 February 2010.
  6. ^ a b "Interview With Steve Mac". HitQuarters. 12 April 2010. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  7. ^ Fletcher, Alex. "JLS: 'Beat Again'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  8. ^ Appleton, Steve (2 July 2009). "Steve Appleton Reviews: JLS – Beat Again". FemaleFirst. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  9. ^ "Song of the Day – JLS — "Beat Again". Popjustice. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  10. ^ "75 Greatest Boy Band Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 24 July 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  11. ^ "Euro Digital Tracks – Beat Again – Chart Listing For The Week Of July 25, 2009". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
  12. ^ "Euro Digital Songs – Beat Again – Chart Listing For The Week Of Jul 25 2009". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
  13. ^ "Irish Singles Chart – week 29 (2009)". aCharts.us. Retrieved 17 July 2009.
  14. ^ Baker, Luke (19 July 2009). "X-Factor's JLS make No. 1 with debut "Beat Again"". Reuters. Archived from the original on 22 July 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  15. ^ mirror Administrator (19 July 2009). "The Charts: JLS debut single goes straight to number one". Daily Mirror.
  16. ^ "JLS score Number One debut". NME. IPC Media. 19 July 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  17. ^ "JLS, N-Dubz, Beyoncé win two MOBO Awards". Digital Spy.
  18. ^ "Beat Again music video". Music Television. Archived from the original on 22 June 2009. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  19. ^ "Bulgaria Airplay Top 5". Bulgarian Association of the Music Producers. Retrieved 20 December 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  20. ^ "Hits of the World: European Hot 100". Billboard. Vol. 121, no. 30. 1 August 2009. p. 47.
  21. ^ "Chart Track: Week 31, 2009". Irish Singles Chart.
  22. ^ "Media Forest – Weekly Charts. Media Forest. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 3 July 2018. Note: Select 'Songs – TV'. Romanian and international positions are rendered together by the number of plays before resulting an overall chart.
  23. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  24. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  25. ^ "Topul celor mai difuzate piese în România în 2010". România Liberă (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 6 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  26. ^ "British single certifications – JLS – Beat Again". British Phonographic Industry.
  27. ^ "Beat Again – single (Ireland)". iTunes. Apple Inc. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  28. ^ "JLS – "Beat Again" – single". iTunes. Apple Inc. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  29. ^ "Beat Again – MP3 EP". Play.com. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  30. ^ "JLS – Beat Again – single". HMV. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  31. ^ "Beat Again > Overview". AllMusic. Macrovision. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  32. ^ "JLS discography". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Archived from the original on 19 July 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2009.
  33. ^ "Sanity.com.au – JLS: Beat Again". Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2009.