Birthday Sex
Encyclopedia
"Birthday Sex" is the debut single by American recording artist Jeremih
. It is the lead single
from his debut album, Jeremih
. The song was written by Jeremih and Keith James and produced by Mick Schultz. "Birthday Sex" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100
and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
. The single has been certified Platinum.
Bam of Chicago's Power 92
for selecting "Birthday Sex" for radio play. The song is based on his own birthday experience. He thought that "someone would've written a song like that already—one that caters to females on their day". Meanwhile, during his first international press interview, Jeremih told noted UK R&B writer Pete Lewis of 'Blues & Soul': "I do think the lyrical concept really did help the song out! To where I feel it's gonna be a timeless record that'll still be played YEARS from now - simply because it's become a new birthday anthem!"
for "Birthday Sex" was filmed in Los Angeles
, California
, and was directed by Paul Hunter
. In the video, Jeremih is shown with his love interest, Brazilian model Alessandra Cardoso with a Handycam to capture their intimate moments. He proceeds to feed her fruit and desserts while she is blindfolded.
The music video managed to appear at #3 on BET
's Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2009 countdown.
called it a "fantastic single", while comparing it to songs by R. Kelly
, as
it "clips his lines short like a rapper and writes bedroom songs that verge on parody". Amos Barshad of New York
magazine dubbed the song a "summer jam". According to Sean Ross of Edison Media Research, the title of the song generated its success.
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
at number 93 on the week of March 21, 2009. In May 2009, the song topped the Billboard Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop chart after ascending from number five to one, the greatest rise for a new artist since Tweet's
"Oops (Oh My)
" in 2002. "Birthday Sex" displaced Jamie Foxx
's "Blame It
" from its 12-week streak atop the chart. "Birthday Sex" also displaced "Blame It" from its 14-week reign atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. On the issue date May 14, 2009, "Birthday Sex" became the first song in several years outside of the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100
to simultaneously have the greatest airplay gain and digital download
gain. The song peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100
.
Jeremih
Jeremiah Felton who performs under the mononym Jeremih , is an American recording artist and producer signed to Def Jam Recordings. Jeremih's debut single, "Birthday Sex" , peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100...
. It is the lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
from his debut album, Jeremih
Jeremih (album)
Jeremih is the eponymous debut studio album by American recording artist Jeremih, released on June 30, 2009, under Def Jam Recordings. It debuted at number six on the Billboard 200, selling 59,000 copies in its first week.-Background:...
. The song was written by Jeremih and Keith James and produced by Mick Schultz. "Birthday Sex" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
. The single has been certified Platinum.
Background
Jeremih wrote and recorded "Birthday Sex" in September 2008, initially calling it "Birthday Text" but later revising the name. Initially, a song entitled "My Ride" was scheduled to be released as the first single. Jeremih credited deejayDeejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
Bam of Chicago's Power 92
WPWX
WPWX is a mainstream urban radio station that serves the Chicago area. WPWX is owned by Crawford Broadcasting, and broadcasts at 92.3 megahertz...
for selecting "Birthday Sex" for radio play. The song is based on his own birthday experience. He thought that "someone would've written a song like that already—one that caters to females on their day". Meanwhile, during his first international press interview, Jeremih told noted UK R&B writer Pete Lewis of 'Blues & Soul': "I do think the lyrical concept really did help the song out! To where I feel it's gonna be a timeless record that'll still be played YEARS from now - simply because it's become a new birthday anthem!"
Music video
The music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Birthday Sex" was filmed in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and was directed by Paul Hunter
Paul Hunter (director)
Paul Hunter is a music video director known for his high-budget, visually distinctive videos for popular music singles. He has directed over 100 music videos, many television advertisements and was nominated for an Emmy for Nike's Freestyle commercial...
. In the video, Jeremih is shown with his love interest, Brazilian model Alessandra Cardoso with a Handycam to capture their intimate moments. He proceeds to feed her fruit and desserts while she is blindfolded.
The music video managed to appear at #3 on BET
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
's Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2009 countdown.
Critical reception
"Birthday Sex" has received generally favorable reviews from critics. Jon Caramanica of The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
called it a "fantastic single", while comparing it to songs by R. Kelly
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
, as
it "clips his lines short like a rapper and writes bedroom songs that verge on parody". Amos Barshad of New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
magazine dubbed the song a "summer jam". According to Sean Ross of Edison Media Research, the title of the song generated its success.
Chart performance
"Birthday Sex" debuted on the BillboardBillboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
at number 93 on the week of March 21, 2009. In May 2009, the song topped the Billboard Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop chart after ascending from number five to one, the greatest rise for a new artist since Tweet's
Tweet (singer)
Tweet is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter.-Early years:The youngest child of Tom and Shirley Keys, Tweet was born in Rochester, New York on January 21, 1972, and grew up singing in the church along with her parents and her four older siblings...
"Oops (Oh My)
Oops (Oh My)
"Oops " is a song by American R&B-soul singer–songwriter Tweet, featuring American rapper Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. It was written by Tweet and Elliott and produced by Timbaland for Tweet's debut album, Southern Hummingbird . Released as the album's lead single in February 2002, the song...
" in 2002. "Birthday Sex" displaced Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
's "Blame It
Blame It
"Blame It" is a song by American singer Jamie Foxx, released as the second official single from his third studio album, Intuition. It features singer T-Pain and was written by Christopher "Deep" Henderson, Nate Walker, James T. Brown, John Conte Jr., and Brandon Melanchon and produced by...
" from its 12-week streak atop the chart. "Birthday Sex" also displaced "Blame It" from its 14-week reign atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. On the issue date May 14, 2009, "Birthday Sex" became the first song in several years outside of the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
to simultaneously have the greatest airplay gain and digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
gain. The song peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
.
Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|
End of year charts
| Charts (2009) | Position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
187 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
37 |