FLY (HILARY DUFF SONG)


"'Fly'" is a pop rock song recorded by Hilary Duff for her third album, ''Hilary Duff'' (2004). It was released as the album's first single single in 2004 (see 2004 in music) in the United States. It was not released until 2006 (see 2006 in music) in the UK, where it was released as the second single from Duff's compilation album, ''Most Wanted'' (2005). It was co-written by Kara DioGuardi and John Shanks, whose production work on the song was partly responsible for his winning a Grammy Award.

Contents
Theme
Commercial release
Charts
Formats and track listings
Notes

Theme


The song's protagonist encourages listeners to "let go of your yesterday" and "reach for something when there's nothing left". Duff has described it as "an uplifting song in the face of all the negativity going around these days. It's about how people are scared to open up and show who they are inside because they're afraid of what others are going to say".Sony Music. "Hilary Duff - ''Hilary Duff''". ''The Star''. Retrieved October 27 2006. "Fly" was used as the theme song for the 2004 film ''Raise Your Voice'', in which Duff starred.
''Stylus'' magazine said the song was very similar to one of Duff's previous singles, "Come Clean" (2004), but called it "an easily excusable offense, as it improves on the template ... [it] rightfully leads off the album."[1] ''Blender'' magazine said the song is "Urgent and theatrical" and "sounds like Evanescence — but the inspirational lyrics are pure Duff."[2] John Shanks received a 2005 Grammy Award for "Producer of the Year, Non-Classical" for his work on "Fly" and recordings by Ashlee Simpson, Kelly Clarkson, Sheryl Crow, Robbie Robertson and Alanis Morissette."47th Annual Grammy Awards - Winners: Production". VH1.com. Retrieved October 27 2006.

Commercial release


"Fly" was released to CHR/Top 40 radio in the U.S. in the week of August 9 2004,[3] and at one point more radio stations were adding it to their playlists than any other song. In spite of this initial success, "Fly" peaked outside the top twenty on the ''Billboard'' Top 40 Mainstream chart and failed to chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100."Hilary Duff - Billboard Singles". All Music Guide and ''Billboard''. Retrieved October 27 2006. It had minor success as a digital download, reaching the top forty on the Hot Digital Tracks chart,''Billboard''. October 16 2004. but download sales statistics weren't included in Hot 100 calculations until February 2005.[4]
One reader of ''Billboard'' sent in a letter to the magazine comparing the chart performance of "Fly" with that of Ciara's "Goodies"; it said that "what the public buys is definitely not reflected on the Hot 100" because in spite of the number-one success of "Goodies" and the absence of "Fly" on the chart, Ciara's album ''Goodies'' was ranked lower on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart than the album ''Hilary Duff''. ''Billboard'' "Chart Beat" columnist Fred Bronson wrote that the reader's point about album sales was "well taken, but just because Hilary Duff's album outranks Ciara's on The Billboard 200 doesn't mean that "Goodies" shouldn't be more popular than ["Fly"] on the Hot 100 ... The fact that Duff's album sold so well doesn't give "Fly" a pass on the Hot 100; it will have to earn a place on that chart on its own merits."Bronson, Fred. "Chart Beat Chat - The Sales and Airplay Debate Continues". ''Billboard''. October 8 2004. Retrieved July 10 2007. Bronson said the reason that sales statistics had little influence on the Hot 100 was because the U.S. singles market had "shriveled up to almost nothing", but he said that the then-impending incorporation of paid digital download data into the Hot 100 "should give sales more weight on this chart." A later letter to the magazine stated that the low radio airplay of "Fly" compared to sales of ''Hilary Duff'' was "a great example of the fact that radio simply does not play what music buyers want to hear", a point with which Bronson agreed, writing "I've written about the disparity between the sales and airplay charts many times ... [but] "Fly" hasn't earned a berth on the singles and tracks chart, despite the popularity of its parent album. A free pass for "Fly" really would destroy the credibility of the charts."[5]
Duff performing "Fly" in the music video.

In Australia, where the single was released in November 2004, it was more successful: it reached number twenty-one in its second week of release and stayed on the chart for fourteen weeks. It also reached the top forty in New Zealand and the Netherlands."Hilary Duff - Fly". MusicSquare. Retrieved March 23 2007. In the British Isles, where the album ''Hilary Duff'' was not released, "Fly" was not released as a single until March 2006, when it served as the second single from Duff's 2005 compilation album, ''Most Wanted''. It peaked at number twenty on the UK Singles Chart, failing to match the success of the album's first single, the top ten hit "Wake Up"; it spent five weeks on the chart. The single reached the top ten in the Republic of Ireland.
The single's music video, directed by Chris Applebaum, combines black-and-white backstage footage with color shots of Duff performing the song. It was filmed in Worcester, Massachusetts.[6] The video premiered on MTV's ''Total Request Live'' on August 26 2004, debuted on the show's countdown on August 30 and reached number one on the countdown for one day. It spent twenty-eight days on the countdown, until October 27.[7] Scott Chitwood called it "your standard forgettable pop music video. I'm just amazed that Hilary Duff could perform in front of as big a crowd as is in the video. Is it CGI?".[8]

Charts



Chart (2004)Peak
position
Australia ARIA Singles Chart21
Dutch Top 4036
México Top 100[9]11
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart24
U.S. ''Billboard'' Top 40 Mainstream29
U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Digital Tracks24
Taiwan Top 10[10]10


Chart (2006)Peak
position
Irish Singles Chart10
Italian Singles Chart13
UK Singles Chart20


Formats and track listings


These are the formats and track listings of minor single releases of "Fly".

;UK CD single 1
(Released March 13, 2006)
# "Fly" – 3:43
# "Fly" (live AOL Session) – 3:44

;UK CD single 2
(Released March 13, 2006)
# "Fly" – 3:43
# "Metamorphosis" – 3:28
# "Fly" (remix) – 3:44
# "Fly" music video – 3:43

Notes


1. Burns, Todd. "Hilary Duff". ''Stylus''. September 24 2004. Retrieved October 27 2006.
2. "Editors' Picks: October 2004". ''Blender''. September 24 2004. Retrieved February 23 2007.
3. "Going For Adds - CHR/Top 40". Radio & Records. August 9 2004. Retrieved October 27 2006.
4. "Music downloads get own Billboard chart". Associated Press. February 10 2005. Retrieved March 23 2007.
5. Bronson, Fred. "Chart Beat Chat - Taking Issue". ''Billboard''. October 29 2004. Retrieved July 10 2007.
6. "Creating the Video and Concert" [on the DVD '']. November 16 2004. United States: Hollywood Records.
7. "The TRL Archive - August 2004", "The TRL Archive - September 2004", "The TRL Archive - October 2004". popfusion.net. Retrieved March 23 2007.
8. Chitwood, Scott. DVD Reviews - Raise Your Voice". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved March 23 2007.
9. "México Top 100". AmericanTop100.com. November 15 2004.
10. "Hilary Duff - Fly". top40-charts.com. Retrieved July 10 2007.


This article provided by Wikipedia. To edit the contents of this article, click here for original source.

psst.. try this: add to faves