For Your Entertainment (song)
Encyclopedia
"For Your Entertainment" is the debut mainstream single by American recording artist and American Idol
season eight
runner-up Adam Lambert
.
It is also the title track to his debut studio album, For Your Entertainment
. The song was released commercially on November 3, 2009. The single was written by Claude Kelly
and Dr. Luke
. It's set to be his first U.K single and his third Australian single.
that his lead single from his debut album would be "For Your Entertainment", a song that was produced by Dr. Luke
. The following day, Lambert announced that the single would debut on Ryan Seacrest's radio show on October 30, 2009.
The song became available as a legal download in the United States
on November 3, 2009 and on November 15, 2009 in the United Kingdom
.
on November 22, 2009, at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles
, California
, which aired on ABC. The Parents Television Council
slammed the performance as being sexualized, and urged viewers to complain to the FCC if living in an area where the performance was shown before 10 p.m. local time. However, Lambert's performance reportedly was broadcast around 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time, "outside the FCC's usual 6am-10pm time frame". The performance drew 1,500 complaints to ABC, many of which probably came from the PTC. As a result, ABC announced that Lambert would not performing on Good Morning America
on November 25 as planned. CBS subsequently invited Lambert to perform instead on The Early Show
, on the same date in New York City.
Lambert told Rolling Stone magazine, "Female performers have been doing this for years — pushing the envelope about sexuality — and the minute a man does it, everybody freaks out. We're in 2009 — it's time to take risks, be a little more brave, time to open people's eyes and if it offends them, then maybe I'm not for them. My goal was not to piss people off, it was to promote freedom of expression and artistic freedom."
Lambert then went on a series of promotional interviews and performances to address the controversy, clear up rumors, discuss his rapid rise to fame, and promote the album. He was interviewed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show
, The View, and The Oprah Winfrey Show
.
E! Network in February 2010 aired a Commercial promoting their television line-up with a remix of "For Your Entertainment".
It was also featured in an advertisement for 4music in the United Kingdom in 2010.
In addition, the BBC used it in a montage of the 'best and worst of the crucible 2010'
Remixes - (Part of Remixes
Album)
. The video was filmed in a one-day shoot, on November 15 at The Alexandria, an old hotel which is now an apartment building in downtown Los Angeles.
The video opens with a nighttime street level shot in a city. As the camera pans down below the ground, Lambert is shown walking into an underground club, filled with scantily clad men and women. As he begins singing, he walks through the crowd and interacts and dances with others. Mixed with dancing are close up shots of Lambert and various dancers. Towards the end of the song, Lambert begins to play with his band and the video shows everyone in the club dancing. As the song ends, the camera pans back up to the street level where life is continuing on, completely oblivious of what is going on below the streets.
. In March, the song was also featured as a VIP Track on the UK's 4Music, prior to the album's upcoming release the end of April. To date, the song has been the most successful in Canada
and New Zealand
, where it achieved Platinum and Gold status respectively (see below). The song has sold approximately 333,000 digital downloads.
"For Your Entertainment" also managed to enter the UK Singles Chart
on May 2, 2010 at a current peak of #39. In its second week in the chart, the single remained at #39, on its third week, it climbed two more paces to its highest peak #37.
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
season eight
American Idol (season 8)
The eighth season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2009. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson continued to judge the show's contestants, along with Ryan Seacrest as host. The season introduced Kara DioGuardi as the fourth judge on the Idol...
runner-up Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert
Adam Mitchel Lambert is an American singer, songwriter, and actor from San Diego, California. In May 2009, he finished as the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol...
.
It is also the title track to his debut studio album, For Your Entertainment
For Your Entertainment (album)
For Your Entertainment is the debut studio album by Adam Lambert, the American Idol season 8 runner-up. It was released on November 23, 2009...
. The song was released commercially on November 3, 2009. The single was written by Claude Kelly
Claude Kelly
Claude Kelly is an American singer-songwriter. He has a prolific discography, well known for writing for artists such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Toni Braxton, Whitney Houston, Jordin Sparks, Kelly Clarkson, Jay Sean, Adam Lambert, Jessie J and Charice.-Career:He began playing the piano...
and Dr. Luke
Dr. Luke
Lukasz Gottwald , better known as Dr. Luke, is an American songwriter, record producer, and remixer. Luke performed with the Saturday Night Live Band for ten seasons until 2007. He has co-written and co-produced a string of commercially successful songs...
. It's set to be his first U.K single and his third Australian single.
Background
On October 28, 2009, Lambert announced via TwitterTwitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
that his lead single from his debut album would be "For Your Entertainment", a song that was produced by Dr. Luke
Dr. Luke
Lukasz Gottwald , better known as Dr. Luke, is an American songwriter, record producer, and remixer. Luke performed with the Saturday Night Live Band for ten seasons until 2007. He has co-written and co-produced a string of commercially successful songs...
. The following day, Lambert announced that the single would debut on Ryan Seacrest's radio show on October 30, 2009.
The song became available as a legal download in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on November 3, 2009 and on November 15, 2009 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Performances
"For Your Entertainment" made its live debut at the American Music AwardsAmerican Music Awards of 2009
The 37th American Music Awards took place on November 22, 2009 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California. The nominees were announced on October 13, 2009. For the first time in history, there was no host for the year's ceremony. Instead, various celebrities introduced the performers similar...
on November 22, 2009, at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, 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...
, which aired on ABC. The Parents Television Council
Parents Television Council
The Parents Television Council is a U.S. based advocacy group founded by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995 using the National Legion of Decency as a model...
slammed the performance as being sexualized, and urged viewers to complain to the FCC if living in an area where the performance was shown before 10 p.m. local time. However, Lambert's performance reportedly was broadcast around 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time, "outside the FCC's usual 6am-10pm time frame". The performance drew 1,500 complaints to ABC, many of which probably came from the PTC. As a result, ABC announced that Lambert would not performing on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
on November 25 as planned. CBS subsequently invited Lambert to perform instead on The Early Show
The Early Show
The Early Show is an American television morning news talk show broadcast by CBS from New York City. The program airs live from 7 to 9 a.m. Eastern Time Monday through Friday; most affiliates in the Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones air the show on tape-delay from 7 to 9 a.m. local time. ...
, on the same date in New York City.
Lambert told Rolling Stone magazine, "Female performers have been doing this for years — pushing the envelope about sexuality — and the minute a man does it, everybody freaks out. We're in 2009 — it's time to take risks, be a little more brave, time to open people's eyes and if it offends them, then maybe I'm not for them. My goal was not to piss people off, it was to promote freedom of expression and artistic freedom."
Lambert then went on a series of promotional interviews and performances to address the controversy, clear up rumors, discuss his rapid rise to fame, and promote the album. He was interviewed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
, The View, and The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
.
Song as promo
Starting December 22, [Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] started using "For Your Entertainment" as the official song highlighting their January television show line-up.E! Network in February 2010 aired a Commercial promoting their television line-up with a remix of "For Your Entertainment".
It was also featured in an advertisement for 4music in the United Kingdom in 2010.
In addition, the BBC used it in a montage of the 'best and worst of the crucible 2010'
Track listing
Digital download- "For Your Entertainment" – 3:35
Remixes - (Part of Remixes
For Your Entertainment (album)
For Your Entertainment is the debut studio album by Adam Lambert, the American Idol season 8 runner-up. It was released on November 23, 2009...
Album)
- "For Your Entertainment" (Bimbo JonesBimbo JonesBimbo Jones is a UK dance music group comprising producers Lee Dagger and Marc JB and vocalist Katherine Ellis. Known for their remix work and white label releases, they produced a remix of Meck's 2006 UK number-one single "Thunder in My Heart Again"...
Vocal Mix) - 6:29 - "For Your Entertainment" (Brad WalshBrad WalshBrad Walsh is an American singer and music producer best known for his dance remixes of pop artists including Britney Spears, Adam Lambert, and Lady Gaga as well as his own albums.-Career:...
Remix) - 4:56
Music video
The music video premiered on Lambert's official website on November 24, 2009. It was directed by Ray KayRay Kay
Ray Kay is a Norwegian director and photographer, based in Los Angeles.He is one of the most sought-after music video & commercial directors in the world now, and has directed the most watched video on YouTube, Justin Bieber's "Baby" . All in all, his videos have been viewed more than 1 billion...
. The video was filmed in a one-day shoot, on November 15 at The Alexandria, an old hotel which is now an apartment building in downtown Los Angeles.
The video opens with a nighttime street level shot in a city. As the camera pans down below the ground, Lambert is shown walking into an underground club, filled with scantily clad men and women. As he begins singing, he walks through the crowd and interacts and dances with others. Mixed with dancing are close up shots of Lambert and various dancers. Towards the end of the song, Lambert begins to play with his band and the video shows everyone in the club dancing. As the song ends, the camera pans back up to the street level where life is continuing on, completely oblivious of what is going on below the streets.
Release history
| Region | Date | Format |
|---|---|---|
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
October 27, 2009 | Digital Download |
| Belgium | October 31, 2009 | Digital Download |
| France | ||
| Luxembourg | ||
| Canada | ||
| Netherlands | ||
| Sweden | November 2, 2009 | |
| United States | November 3, 2009 | Mainstream airplay |
| Spain | November 3, 2009 | Digital Download |
| Italy | November 6, 2009 | Digital Download |
| Finland | November 9, 2009 | Digital Download |
| Norway | ||
| Portugal | ||
| Austria | November 13, 2009 | Digital Download |
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
April 23, 2010 | Digital Download |
| Ireland | ||
Chart performance
"For Your Entertainment" debuted at #84 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for the chart week of November 28, 2009. That same week, the song also debuted at #33 on the Canadian Hot 100Canadian Hot 100
The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007...
. In March, the song was also featured as a VIP Track on the UK's 4Music, prior to the album's upcoming release the end of April. To date, the song has been the most successful in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, where it achieved Platinum and Gold status respectively (see below). The song has sold approximately 333,000 digital downloads.
"For Your Entertainment" also managed to enter the 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 ...
on May 2, 2010 at a current peak of #39. In its second week in the chart, the single remained at #39, on its third week, it climbed two more paces to its highest peak #37.
Weekly Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2010) | Position |
|---|---|
| Japan Hot 100 Japan Hot 100 The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com .... |
34 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
98 |
Certifications
| Country | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|
| Australia ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
Gold |
| New Zealand Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
Gold |
| Canada Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... |
Gold |