Speakerphone (song)
{{Short description|2007 song by Kylie Minogue}}
{{Use Australian English|date=December 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Speakerphone
| cover =
| alt =
| border = yes
| type =
| artist = Kylie Minogue
| album = X
| released = 21 November 2007
| format =
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = {{Flat list|
| length = {{duration|m=3|s=54}}
| label = Parlophone
| writer = {{flat list|
- Christian Karlsson
- Pontus Winnberg
- Henrik Jonback
- Klas Åhlund}}
| producer = Bloodshy and Avant
| misc = {{External music video|type=Song|{{YouTube|IzAkOmENcsc|"Speakerphone"}}|header=Audio video}}
}}
"Speakerphone" is a song by Australian singer Kylie Minogue for her tenth studio album X (2007). It was produced by Bloodshy & Avant duo Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg, who co-wrote it with Henrik Jonback and Klas Åhlund. The song featured dance, electronic, and funk elements. It heavily used Auto-Tune and vocoder, which caused some critics to liken it to music by Britney Spears and Daft Punk. "Speakerphone" received mixed responses from critics. The song appeared on the Canadian Hot 100 and the Hot Canadian Digital Singles Billboard charts.
"Speakerphone" was performed on the KylieX2008 and For You, for Me concert tours. In 2008, Fanny Pak performed to the song for the season two premiere of America's Best Dance Crew. In 2009, a competition was held for fans to create a video for the song, which was won by Hungarian animator Rudolf Pap.
Background and release
Bloodshy & Avant duo Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg produced "Speakerphone" and co-wrote it with Henrik Jonback and Klas Åhlund.{{cite AV media notes|title=X|type=liner notes|others=Kylie Minogue|publisher=Parlophone|year=2007|id=5139522}} Kylie Minogue talked about the song, which was included on her tenth studio album X, in an interview, "Xposed – Interview with Kylie".{{cite interview|last=Minogue|first=Kylie|subject-link=Kylie Minogue|title=Xposed – Interview with Kylie|work=X|publisher=Parlophone|date=21 November 2007}} She described the song as catchy, and said she particularly enjoyed the lyrics. She likened her vocals to a "quite straight delivery", which she compared to a person singing or humming around their home.
"Speakerphone" was released on 21 November 2007 as part of X; it was removed from the album's Chinese edition, along with "Like a Drug" and "Nu-Di-Ty", due to censorship laws.{{cite AV media notes|title=X|type=liner notes|others=Kylie Minogue|publisher=EMI|year=2007|id=50999 513952 0 9}} On 20 January 2015, the song was uploaded to Minogue's YouTube account as part of a X playlist.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_n1lh-G-SB1fJcsdv7QM7Gb1KKEPhJZsJU|title=X|via=YouTube|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708035040/https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_n1lh-G-SB1fJcsdv7QM7Gb1KKEPhJZsJU|archive-date=8 July 2019|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzAkOmENcsc|title=Kylie Minogue – "Speakerphone" – X|date=20 January 2015|via=YouTube|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608121839/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzAkOmENcsc|archive-date=8 June 2019|url-status=live}}
Composition and lyrics
{{listen
| filename = Kylie - speakerphone.ogg
| title = "Speakerphone"
|pos=right
| description = Critics noted the song's heavy use of Auto-Tune and vocoder.
| format = Ogg
}}
Opening with a harp instrumental, "Speakerphone" includes the lyrics "track repeat go on and on" and "set [our] mind on Freaky Mode".{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/10947-x/|title=Kylie Minogue: X Album Review|last=Ewing|first=Tom|date=30 November 2007|work=Pitchfork|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190217030140/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/10947-x/|archive-date=17 February 2019|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117308680/diva-delights/|title=Diva Delights|last=Sanneh|first=Kelefa|date=27 November 2007|work=The Chicago Tribune |page=33-27|access-date=2023-01-26|via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite web |last=Virtel |first=Louis |author-link=Louis Virtel |date=28 May 2017 |title=Kylie Minogue's 50 Best Songs, Ranked! |url=http://www.newnownext.com/kylie-minogue-best-songs-ranked/05/2017/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919125914/http://www.newnownext.com/kylie-minogue-best-songs-ranked/05/2017/ |archive-date=19 September 2018 |publisher=NewNowNext.com}} Critics labelled the song as a dance, electronic, and funk song. Writing for the New York Times News Service, Kelefa Sanneh called it a "meta-dance song intoxicated with itself". Likening the lyrics to a sexual version of Operation, NewNowNext.com's Louis Virtel said the song is about "connecting our collarbone to our neckbone to our jawbone".
In the song, Minogue's voice is heavily processed through Auto-Tune and vocoder.{{cite web|url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/kylie-minogue-x/|title=Review: Kylie Minogue, X|last=Hughes|first=Dave|date=18 February 2008|work=Slant Magazine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328185715/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/kylie-minogue-x/|archive-date=28 March 2019|url-status=live}}Mathieson (2009): p. 7 Critics compared the style to the "robotic hypno-funk" of Daft Punk and noted that its use of "array of robo voices" had similarities with the music of Britney Spears.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117308829/kravitz-gets-lost-in-love-kylie/|title=Kravitz gets lost in love|last=Campbell|first=Chuck|date=15 February 2008|work=The Record |page=G20 |access-date=2023-01-26 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117308932/quick-hits-and-misses-x/|title=Quick Hits (and Misses)|last=Sperounes|first=Sandra|date=1 December 2007|work=Edmonton Journal |page=39 |access-date=2023-01-26 |via=Newspapers.com}} Music journalist Craig Mathieson described Minogue's vocals as "taken to fetishistic levels, wiping the person and leaving the digital construct", and said she had "disappear[ed] into the ether". In 2013, the composition was a subject of a lawsuit in which Salsoul Records claimed Minogue and Warner Bros. duplicated the "entire rhythm" of Gaz's 1978 song "Sing Sing" for "Speakerphone".{{cite web|url=https://www.law360.com/articles/479467/kylie-minogue-stole-rhythm-for-speakerphone-suit-says|title=Kylie Minogue Stole Rhythm For 'Speakerphone,' Suit Says|date=9 October 2013|publisher=Law360|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417212608/https://www.law360.com/articles/479467/kylie-minogue-stole-rhythm-for-speakerphone-suit-says|archive-date=17 April 2019|url-status=live}}
Reception
The song received mixed responses from critics. Music journalist Robert Christgau and the Scripps Howard News Service's Chuck Campbell cited it as one of the album's high points.{{cite web|url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=5943&name=Kylie+Minogue|title=Consumer Guide Reviews: X|last=Christgau|first=Robert|publisher=robertchristgau.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150301040244/http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=5943&name=Kylie+Minogue|archive-date=1 March 2015|url-status=live}} British GQ
Some critics identified the song as one of the album's low points. The Morning Call
Despite never being released as a single, "Speakerphone" charted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number 87 based on high downloads from the album.{{cite magazine|url={{BillboardURLbyName|artist=kylie minogue|chart=Billboard Canadian Hot 100}}|title=Kylie Minogue – Chart history: Billboard Canadian Hot 100|magazine=Billboard|accessdate=4 February 2014}} It also peaked at number 56 on the Hot Canadian Digital Singles Billboard chart on 15 December 2007.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/kylie-minogue/chart-history/cns/|title=Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales: "Speakerphone"|magazine=Billboard|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708035420/https://www.billboard.com/music/kylie-minogue/chart-history/hot-canada-digital-song-sales/song/557701|archive-date=8 July 2019|url-status=live}}
Promotion
File:KylieX2008 July Berlin.jpg tour|alt=A picture of a woman singing on stage while sitting in a gold hoop.]]
Minogue was initially concerned about how she would perform "Speakerphone" live due to its layered vocals. She performed the song on the KylieX2008 and For You, for Me concert tours in 2008 and 2009, respectively.{{cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/kylie-opens-tour-in-spectacular-style-20081215-gdt6nq.html|title=Kylie opens tour in spectacular style|date=15 December 2008|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708035303/https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/kylie-opens-tour-in-spectacular-style-20081215-gdt6nq.html?js-chunk-not-found-refresh=true|archive-date=8 July 2019|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2009/10/01/review-kylie-minogues-like-a-bad-madonna-impression/|title=Review: Kylie Minogue's like a bad Madonna impression|last=Harrington|first=Jim|date=1 October 2009|work=The Mercury News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170509042720/http://www.mercurynews.com/2009/10/01/review-kylie-minogues-like-a-bad-madonna-impression/|archive-date=9 May 2017|url-status=live}} It was the opening number for KylieX2008, in which Minogue descended on stage in a gold hoop. During the first Australian show, Minogue wore a gladiator-style dress, and for her Auckland performance, she had an Egyptian-inspired costume instead.{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/gig-reviews/753046/Gig-review-i-Kylie-Minogue-in-Auckland-i-pics|title=Gig review: Kylie Minogue in Auckland (+pics)|last=Schulz|first=Chris|date=31 January 2009|publisher=Stuff|location=New Zealand|accessdate=8 July 2019}}
During For You, for Me, "Speakerphone" was the second song on the set list after "Light Years" from the 2000 album of the same name.{{cite web|url=http://flavorwire.com/42897/review-kylie-minogue-hammerstein-ballroom|title=Review: Kylie Minogue @ Hammerstein Ballroom|last=Underwood|first=Brian|date=12 October 2009|work=Flavorwire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140428142643/http://flavorwire.com/42897/review-kylie-minogue-hammerstein-ballroom|archive-date=28 April 2014|url-status=live}} For the performance, Minogue was accompanied by backup dancers dressed like robots. Minogue's performances of "Speakerphone" were included in the video album KylieX2008 (2008) and the live album Live in New York (2009).{{cite web|url=http://www.arri.de/fileadmin/media/arri.com/downloads/Press_Release/ARRINEWS_AND_VISIONARY/2008_12_VisionARRI_1.pdf|title=Super 16 Captures KYLIE Concert|last=Smith|first=Michelle|date=December 2008|work=VisionARRI|publisher=ARRI Rental Group Marketing Department|accessdate=8 May 2008}}{{cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/266508/kylie-minogue-to-release-new-york-live-set|title=Kylie Minogue To Release New York Live Set|last=Smirke|first=Richard|date=4 December 2009|magazine=Billboard|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130213055106/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/266508/kylie-minogue-to-release-new-york-live-set|archive-date=13 February 2013|url-status=live}} The first half of For You, for Me was streamed live on 12 December 2009 via Minogue's YouTube account.{{cite web|url=http://www.kylie.com/news/1770208|title=Kylie|publisher=Kylie|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091207065548/http://www.kylie.com/news/1770208|archive-date=7 December 2009|url-status=dead}}
"Speakerphone" was also performed by Fanny Pak for the season two premiere of America's Best Dance Crew in 2008.{{cite web|url=https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2008/06/americas-best-2.html|title='America's Best Dance Crew 2': Step up for the season premiere|last1=Phillips|first1=Jevon|last2=Crabtree|first2=Sheigh|date=17 June 2008|work=Los Angeles Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150913024741/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2008/06/americas-best-2.html|archive-date=13 September 2015|url-status=live}} In 2009, a competition was held to make a video for the song; it was won by Hungarian animator Rudolf Pap.{{cite web|url=https://www.kylie.com/news/1767481|title=Kylie "Speakerphone" Competition Winner Announced!|date=10 May 2009|publisher=Kylie.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091008014641/https://www.kylie.com/news/1767481|archive-date=8 October 2009|url-status=dead}}
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| align="left"|Chart (2008)
! style="text-align:center;"|Peak |
|---|
| Canadian Hot 100
| style="text-align:center;"|87 |
References
=Citations=
{{Reflist}}
=Bibliography=
{{Refbegin}}
- {{cite book|last=Mathieson|first=Craig|author-link=Craig Mathieson|title=Playlisted: Everything You Need to Know about Australian Music Right Now|year=2009|publisher=UNSW Press|location=Sydney|isbn=9781742230177|ref=Mathieson2009}}
{{Refend}}
{{Kylie Minogue songs}}
Category:Songs about telephones
Category:Song recordings produced by Bloodshy & Avant
Category:Songs written by Klas Åhlund
Category:Songs written by Henrik Jonback