I'll Be Waiting (Lenny Kravitz song)
Encyclopedia
"I'll Be Waiting" is a rock
song written by Lenny Kravitz
and Craig Ross
for Kravitz's eighth studio album, It Is Time for a Love Revolution
(2008). It was released as the album's lead single
on December 6, 2007 (although "Bring It On" had been previously released as a radio-only single to U.S. rock stations). The iTunes
download release date for the song was November 6, 2007.
The song is a power ballad, where Kravitz sings of waiting for someone, heartbroken over a failed relationship, to realize he is the one who really loves her.
.
In Germany it was his first top-ten single and his best-selling single, reaching #6.
It saw mild success in North America, where it peaked at number 73 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
and number 45 on the Canadian Hot 100
. The single has not charted in Oceania.
in New York City
with Marc Webb
directing but that video was later shelved and a new version, which Kravitz co-directed with Philip Andelman, was filmed in Kravitz's New York City recording studio. The video which premiered on VH1's Top 20 Countdown at number three is shot entirely in black and white
. It features Kravitz in the studio recording the song. He is shown playing the piano
, the drum
s, the guitar
, and the bass
, and simply singing the song throughout the video. He is also shown towards the end directing the orchestra on the track.
and on the 2008 Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve
. This song is also featured in the ending credits of the film L: Change the World
.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
song written by Lenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz
Leonard Albert "Lenny" Kravitz is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and arranger, whose "retro" style incorporates elements of rock, soul, R&B, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk and ballads...
and Craig Ross
Craig Ross
Craig David Ross is an American guitarist best known for performing and recording with Lenny Kravitz.-Biography:Ross was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Craig Ross picked up the guitar at age 8, following a path that he hasn't deviated from since...
for Kravitz's eighth studio album, It Is Time for a Love Revolution
It Is Time for a Love Revolution
It Is Time for a Love Revolution is the eighth studio album by American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and arranger Lenny Kravitz, released on February 5, 2008....
(2008). It was released as the album's 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...
on December 6, 2007 (although "Bring It On" had been previously released as a radio-only single to U.S. rock stations). The iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
download release date for the song was November 6, 2007.
The song is a power ballad, where Kravitz sings of waiting for someone, heartbroken over a failed relationship, to realize he is the one who really loves her.
Chart performance
"I'll Be Waiting" has been highly successful across Europe; it topped the charts in the Czech Republic and reached the top five in Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland and the top ten in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia, peaking at number 13 on a composite European Hot 100 SinglesEurochart Hot 100 Singles
The European Hot 100 Singles has been compiled by Billboard and Music & Media magazine since March, 1984. The chart is based on national singles sales charts in 15 European countries: Austria, Belgium , Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden,...
.
In Germany it was his first top-ten single and his best-selling single, reaching #6.
It saw mild success in North America, where it peaked at number 73 on the 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...
and number 45 on the 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...
. The single has not charted in Oceania.
Music video
The original video for "I'll Be Waiting" was shot in Central ParkCentral Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with Marc Webb
Marc Webb
Marc Preston Webb is an American music video, short film and major motion picture director. He directed the 2009 romantic comedy-drama Days of Summer and is currently directing the 2012 Spider-Man reboot The Amazing Spider-Man.-Life and career:Webb was born in Bloomington, Indiana, the son of...
directing but that video was later shelved and a new version, which Kravitz co-directed with Philip Andelman, was filmed in Kravitz's New York City recording studio. The video which premiered on VH1's Top 20 Countdown at number three is shot entirely in black and white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
. It features Kravitz in the studio recording the song. He is shown playing the piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, the drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s, the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, and the bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, and simply singing the song throughout the video. He is also shown towards the end directing the orchestra on the track.
In popular culture
Kravitz performed the song at the American Music Awards of 2007American Music Awards of 2007
The 35th American Music Awards took place on November 18, 2007 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.-Pop/Rock:Favorite Male Artist:*Akon*Timbaland*Justin Timberlake...
and on the 2008 Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve
Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve
Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest is a television program that airs every New Year's Eve on ABC. It has been hosted by Dick Clark since its first airing on Sunday, December 31, 1972. Ryan Seacrest has been the program's co-host since the December 31, 2005 telecast...
. This song is also featured in the ending credits of the film L: Change the World
L: Change the WorLd
is a 2008 Japanese film that is a spin-off to the Death Note film series. Although the film is inspired by the manga Death Note that was written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, it follows an original storyline...
.
Charts
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Singles Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
6 |
| Belgian Singles Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Flanders) |
5 |
| Belgian Singles Chart Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... (Wallonia) |
5 |
| 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... |
45 |
| Czech Airplay Chart Rádio Top 100 Oficiální Rádio Top 100 Oficiální is the name of the Czech national airplay chart published by the IFPI Czech Republic on a weekly basis.Besides the main Top 100 record chart, also two component charts are effective. While the Rádio CZ 50 Oficiální features songs released exclusively by Czech and/or Slovak... |
1 |
| Dutch Mega Top 50 | 4 |
| European Hot 100 Singles Eurochart Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles has been compiled by Billboard and Music & Media magazine since March, 1984. The chart is based on national singles sales charts in 15 European countries: Austria, Belgium , Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden,... |
13 |
| French Singles Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
27 |
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
6 |
| Italian Singles Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
4 |
| Romanian Top 100 Romanian Top 100 The Romanian Top 100 is the national airplay-based singles chart of Romania. It is weekly and it started running in 1996. It is recognized as an official chart by the European division of Billboard, Music & Media.... |
45 |
| Slovak Airplay Chart Rádio Top 100 Oficiálna Rádio Top 100 Oficiálna is the name of the Slovakian national airplay chart published by the IFPI Czech Republic on a weekly basis since the cancellation of the Slovakian national section on December 31, 2009.... |
9 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
16 |
| Swiss Singles Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
4 |
| 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... |
73 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Pop 100 The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009... |
51 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2008) | Rank |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
39 |