The Fear (Lily Allen song)

"The Fear"
Single by Lily Allen
from the album It's Not Me, It's You
B-side
  • "Fag Hag"
  • "Kabul Shit"
Released 9 December 2008
Format
  • CD single
  • digital download
  • 7"
Genre Electropop, dance-pop
Length 3:27
Label Regal
Writer(s)
Producer(s) Greg Kurstin
Lily Allen singles chronology
"Drivin' Me Wild"
(2007)		 "The Fear"
(2008)		 "Not Fair"
(2009)

"The Fear" is a song by British recording artist Lily Allen from her second studio album, It's Not Me, It's You (2009). Written by Allen and Greg Kurstin, the song was released as the lead single of 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, while the demo (which was then titled "I Don't Know") leaked onto the Internet in April 2008. The song incorporates electropop music as the lyrics articulate problems with celebrity lifestyles and include metaphors for recognised tabloid national newspapers such as The Sun. "The Fear" also references, albeit indirectly, the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Contemporary critics complimented the song and its themes of consumerism and the postmodern condition. "The Fear" was number one on the UK Singles Chart, where it remained for four weeks. The single peaked also inside the top 20 of the charts of some European countries and Australia. It is also Allen's second chart entry in the US Billboard Hot 100.

The accompanying music video portrayed a fantasy theme, with Allen dancing with giant wrapped gifts and balloons. It was shot at Wrest Park 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 on BBC Radio 1 and during Allen's 2009 concert tour. "The Fear" was awarded with Best Track prize at the 2009 Q Awards,[1] and also won Allen two Ivor Novello Awards in 2010, for best song musically and lyrically, and most performed work.[2]

Background and composition

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".[3][4] 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."[5] 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.[6] The singer declared about the inspiration for the song, which has to do with materialism and the pressures of being rich and famous:

[I'll] tell 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.[7]

Musically, Allen adopts a more mature electropop groove for the song, which has been described to have "a pulsing, sleekly modern electro dance backing",[8] while coming through a "flood of soft synths"[9] and being "eminently danceable and slightly trancey".[10] It is set in common time and in the key of F major and has a metronome of 134 beats per minute.[11] Allen's voice spans from F3 to A4.[11] Lyrically, the song is a satire of materialism "sung in the voice of a would-be starlet",[12] and tackles societal consumerism and overnight-fame-hunting.[13] 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, which often report on Allen.[14] The synthesiser parts were written by Greg Kurstin using Apple's Logic Studio, using its built-in instruments.[15]

Critical reception
"The Fear"
A 30-second sample of "The Fear", in which Allen sings the chorus.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Michael Menachem from Billboard commented on the song, saying it "packs another lyrical punch", while complimenting Allen's vocals.[16] The BBC interpreted the song, in which Allen " apologises for her avarice, confidently blaming the system", but also complimented the "exquisite" production.[10] Neil McCormick from The Daily Telegraph 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.[8] Clash reporter Natasha Arico concluded that "The Fear" is somewhat trite, though "sickeningly catchy and dance friendly",[9] while Rolling Stone magazine failed to detect the song's sarcasm and criticised the song for being a "cliché" delivered by Allen "with sneer".[12] James Montgomery of MTV gave a good review, saying it is a relatively scathing indictment of today's glossy, "celeb-ified culture".[17] Ryan Dombal from Pitchfork Media 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 [Allen]".[18]

Other reviews were also positive; Sal Cinquemani form Slant Magazine 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."[13] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly 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."[19] 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 [are] a clumsy attempt to inject politics amongst the celeb-woe naval-gazing",[20] while About.com praised the song for being a "pop masterpiece", Allen's "witty intelligent lyrics" and compared it to Pink's "Stupid Girls".[21]

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, "The Fear" debuted at number 168 on the UK Singles Chart on 25 January 2009 ― for the week ending dated 31 January 2009. The following week, the song climbed 167 places to reach number one, thwarting Lady Gaga's "Just Dance" from the summit of the chart.[22] 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".[23] The song managed to remain on top for four weeks, throughout the whole of February,[24] until it was dethroned by Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You".[25] It thus earned Allen's second chart-topper, since her debut single, "Smile", achieved the feat in July 2006.[22] "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 topped the UK Albums Chart, 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 are once again celebrating the best of British music."[26]

The song shared similar success in Australia, where it peaked at number three on the ARIA Singles Chart and stayed eight consecutive weeks in the top ten,[27] and was certified Platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association.[28] In Ireland, "The Fear" entered at thirty nine on the Irish Singles Chart, making a slow rise to number five, where it remained for one week after descending the chart.[27] The song became a success in Europe, having entered the top 20 in most of its countries,[27] which resulted in a peak of three on the European Hot 100.[29] Also, in New Zealand, Allen scored her fourth top 40 hit with the song placing itself at a peak of fourteen on the New Zealand Singles Chart.[27]

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 US[30] Despite low positions in the main chart, the single managed to become the singer's first Hot Dance Club Play number-one single, topping it for one week.[31] In Canada, it debuted at 57 in late 2008, afterwards leaving the chart for seven weeks; it returned in 2009, peaking at 33.[27] It was certified Gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association for shipments of over 20,000 copies.[32]

Music video

Allen with the butlers and dancing balloons in the music video for "The Fear".

The music video was principally at shot at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire and directed by Nez.[33] It premiered on Channel 4 on 4 December 2008.[3] It starts off 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.[17] The chorus starts and she walks down the hall, surrounded by butlers, all making synchronised moves and starting a choreography with Allen.[33] 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.[33] 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.[33] The camera zooms out showing the estate tied in a giant ribbon, but also grey, melancholic clouds, which contrast the cheerful party from before.[33] Allen stated that she hoped the music video would convey parts of the song's sarcasm.[17]

The video reportedly cost £50,000.[3] During the shoot, the video was documented by MTV; in the interview, Allen declared:

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.[17]

Live performances

While being invited to the BBC show hosted by Scott Mills, Allen talked about her struggles with the paparazzi and also premiered the song by performing it live.[34] Other live performances of the song include the Sound on BBC 2 with Nick Grimshaw and Annie Mac,[35] Friday Night with Jonathan Ross,[35] the Orange unsignedAct,[35] and The Sunday Night Project.[35] In February 2009, she was invited at The Today Show with Matt Lauer, where she performed the song after an interview.[36] The same month, she made an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and while she was singing, DeGeneres freely dispensed copies of It's Not Me, It's You to the audience.[37] Afterwards, both Allen and DeGeneres performed a rendition of the song "Womanizer" by American singer Britney Spears.[37] Allen included the song on her 2009 concert tour setlist, as part of the encore. "The Fear" was also performed at the 2010 BRIT Awards, as the opening song. Allen arrived on stage sitting on a rocket hoisted in the air, while wearing a black corset dress. She was later joined on stage by paratroopers dressed in pink military camouflage and women with Silver Cross prams.[38]

Media appearances

The song was featured in the fourth episode of series three of the TV drama Skins,[39] and, also, an instrumental version is used as accompanying music by Match of the Day 2 during the review segment showing the goals.[40] "The Fear" was parodied by the character playing Kevin Rudd on the TV show Double Take, in which the lyrics are altered to deal with the voting campaign for Prime Minister in Australia.[41] The song was covered by JLS for BBC Radio 1's "Live Lounge" segment of Jo Whiley's show on 15 September 2009, featuring an interpolation of the Beyoncé hit "Halo".

Track listing

  • UK CD1 (Cardsleeve)[42]
  1. "The Fear" – 3:26
  2. "Fag Hag" – 2:57
  • UK CD2 (Slim Case)[43]
  1. "The Fear" – 3:26
  2. "The Fear" (StoneBridge Radio Edit) – 3:26
  3. "The Fear" (Wideboys Prime Time Radio Edit) – 3:56
  4. "The Fear" (Dresden & Johnston Radio Edit) – 3:35
  • UK Promo (Standard Case)[42]
  1. "The Fear" – 3:26
  2. "Fag Hag" – 2:57
  • 7" Limited Edition Picture Disc[44]
  1. "The Fear" – 3:26
  2. "Kabul Shit" – 3:45
  1. "The Fear" – 3:26
  2. "The Fear" (Fearless Mix) – 5:18
  3. "The Fear" (Runnin' Mix) – 4:03
  4. "Fag Hag" – 2:57
  5. "Kabul Shit" – 3:45
  • Digital download (2009)[47]
  1. "The Fear" – 3:29
  2. "Fag Hag" – 2:55
  3. "Kabul Shit" – 3:45
  4. "Fuck You" (Clean) – 3:40

Credits and personnel

Charts and sales

Weekly charts

Chart (2008–09) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart[27] 3
Austrian Singles Chart[27] 20
Belgian Singles Chart (Flanders)[48] 1
Belgian Singles Chart (Wallonia)[48] 5
Canadian Hot 100[27] 33
Danish Singles Chart[27] 20
Dutch Top 40[27] 29
European Hot 100[29] 3
Finnish Singles Chart[27] 14
French Singles Chart[27] 15
German Singles Chart[27] 12
Hungarian Airplay Chart[49] 12
Irish Singles Chart[27] 5
Israeli Singles Chart[50] 1
Japan Hot 100[27] 9
New Zealand Singles Chart[27] 14
Swedish Singles Chart[27] 30
Swiss Singles Chart[27] 14
UK Singles Chart[24] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[30] 80
US Billboard Mainstream Top 40[30] 39
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs[31] 1
US Billboard Adult Top 40 16
Venezuela Pop Rock (Record Report)[51] 5

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[52] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[53] Gold 50,000^
France (SNEP)[54] 39,770[55]
United Kingdom (BPI)[56] Platinum 600,000double-dagger

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
double-daggersales+streaming figures based on certification alone

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Australian Singles Chart[57] 22
Hungarian Singles Chart[58] 50
Swiss Singles Chart[59] 75
UK Singles Chart[60] 14
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[61] 4

Preceded by
"Just Dance" by Lady Gaga featuring Colby O'Donis		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
1 February 2009 – 28 February 2009 		Succeeded by
"My Life Would Suck Without You" by Kelly Clarkson
Preceded by
"Diva" by Beyoncé		 U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one single
4 April 2009 – 11 April 2009 		Succeeded by
"God in Me" by Mary Mary featuring Kierra "KiKi" Sheard

References

  1. ↑ Scott, Elizabeth. "Lily, Lady Gaga and Muse Celebrate Q Awards". Sky News. British Sky Broadcasting. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
  2. ↑ Masters, Tim (20 May 2010). "Lily Allen wins three Ivor Novello songwriting awards". BBC News. London: BBC. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 "Lily Allen The Fear". Top Music Videos. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  4. ↑ "Lily Allen Tells Elton John and the Rest of Planet Earth "Everyone's at It"". The Insider. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
  5. ↑ NME Los Angeles Staff (29 October 2008). "Lily Allen announces US release of second album". NME. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  6. ↑ Gregory, Jason (21 April 2008). "Lily Allen Releases New Material Online". GigWise. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  7. ↑ Stevenson, Jane. "Lily Allen wins paparazzi fight". jam.canoe.ca. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
  8. 1 2 McCormick, Neil (22 January 2009). "Lily Allen – It's Not Me, It's You: Pop CD of the week review". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2 September 2009.
  9. 1 2 Arico, Natasha (23 January 2009). "Allen's second album sets many a record straigh". Clash. Retrieved 2 September 2009.
  10. 1 2 Davies, Lucy (23 January 2009). "Lily Allen It's Not Me, It's You Review". BBC – Music. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  11. 1 2 "Lily Allen – The Fear Sheet Music". Music Notes. Alfred Music Publishing. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  12. 1 2 Rosen, Jody (4 February 2009). "It's Not Me, It's You Review". Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  13. 1 2 Cinquemani, Sal (3 February 2009). "Lily Allen It's Not Me, It's You Review". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  14. ↑ "Music Lesson – Lily Allen 'The Fear'". LearnEnglish. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  15. ↑ Cellini, Joe. "Greg Kurstin: Producing Lily Allen". apple.com.
  16. ↑ Menachem, Michael (7 January 2009). "Single Reviews: "The Fear"". Billboard. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  17. 1 2 3 4 Montgomery, James (5 December 2008). "Lily Allen Dances In 'Fear' Video, Despite Being 'Rubbish at That Kind of Thing'". MTV. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  18. ↑ Dombal, Ryan. "Album Review: Lily Allen: It's Not Me, It's You". Pitchfork Media. pitchfork.com. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
  19. ↑ Greenblatt, Leah (4 February 2009). "Music Review: It's Not Me, It's You". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  20. ↑ Buckle, Chris (15 January 2009). "Lily Allen – The Fear". The Skinny. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  21. ↑ Slomowicz, Ron (26 January 2009). "Song of the Day: Lily Allen – "The Fear"". about.com. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  22. 1 2 "Lily Allen Asserts Control Over U.K. Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  23. ↑ "Lily is GaGa's number one". MTV. Viacom. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
  24. 1 2 "Chart Stats – Lily Allen – The Fear". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  25. ↑ "The Prodigy album invades chart". BBC News. 1 March 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  26. ↑ "Lily Allen makes it a double first". EMI. Terra Firma Capital Partners. Archived from the original on 6 November 2009. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Lily Allen – The Fear – Music Charts". αCharts.us. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  28. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  29. 1 2 "European Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. 7 March 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  30. 1 2 3 "Lily Allen Albums & Songs Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  31. 1 2 "Dance/Club Play Songs". Billboard. 4 April 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  32. ↑ "Gold & Platinum Certification". Canadian Recording Industry Association. April 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  33. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Fear – Lily Allen – Music Video". MTV. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  34. ↑ Mills, Scott (1 December 2008). "Lily Allen comes into see Scott Mills with her brand new single 'The Fear'". BBC. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  35. 1 2 3 4 "Lily Allen TV diary". Lily Allen Music. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  36. ↑ "Check out Lily on The Today Show". Lily Allen Music. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  37. 1 2 "Lily joins Ellen in her bathroom". Lily Allen Music. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  38. ↑ Johnson, Chris; Cable, Simon (17 February 2010). "Brit Awards 2010: Lily Allen finally wins her first Brit as emotional Lady Gaga cleans up with three gongs". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
  39. ↑ "Episode 4: Pandora (music)". Skins Music. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  40. ↑ "Ask us about:Music details". Match of the Day. BBC News. 9 June 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  41. ↑ "Double Take – Kevin Rudd's The Fear". CastTV. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  42. 1 2 "Lily Allen – The Fear – UK CD Single". Discogs. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  43. ↑ ""The Fear" Remixes". Capitol Records. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  44. ↑ "Lily Allen – The Fear – UK 7". Discogs. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  45. ↑ "Lily Allen – The Fear MP3 Downloads". 7digital. Retrieved 29 August 2009.
  46. ↑ "Lily Allen – The Fear – 12". Discogs. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  47. ↑ "iTunes – Music – The Fear – EP by Lily Allen". iTunes Store (GB).
  48. 1 2 ""The Fear" peak positions". ultratop.be. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  49. ↑ "Hungarian Airplay Chart". Mahasz. 22 June 2009. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
  50. ↑ "Media Forest: Airplay chart". mediaforest.biz.
  51. ↑ "Pop Rock" (in Spanish). Record Report. 21 February 2009. Archived from the original on 19 January 2009.
  52. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  53. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Lily Allen – The Fear". Music Canada.
  54. ↑ "French single certifications – Lily Allen" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  55. ↑ "InfoDisc: Les Singles les plus Vendus en 2009". Infodisc.fr. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  56. ↑ "British single certifications – Lily Allen – The Fear". British Phonographic Industry. Enter The Fear in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  57. ↑ "ARIA Charts – End of Year Charts – Top 100 Singles 2009". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  58. ↑ "Éves összesített listák – MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 (súlyozott)". Mahasz. Mahasz.
  59. ↑ "2009 Year End Swiss Singles Chart". Swiss Music Charts. 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  60. ↑ "Official Singles Chart 2009" (PDF). ChartsPlus. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  61. ↑ "YEAR END CHARTS : Dance Club Songs : Issue Date: 2009".

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