Demi (album)
Demi is the fourth studio album by American singer Demi Lovato. It was released on May 10, 2013, by Hollywood Records. Looking to transition from her self-described "generic" third album Unbroken (2011), Lovato wanted her fourth album to "have songs that excited her".[2] Demi is primarily a pop record with elements of synthpop, and bubblegum pop.
Demi
May 10, 2013
47:48
- Mitch Allan
- Jason Evigan
- Battleroy
- Carl Falk
- Andrew Goldstein
- Jonas Jeberg
- Emanuel Kiriakou
- The Monsters and the Strangerz
- Anne Preven
- David Quiñones
- Matt Rad
- Rami Yacoub
- Jarrad Rogers
- Matt Squire
- Ryan Tedder
- Noel Zancanella
Demi received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who complimented Lovato's vocal performance. The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 110,000 copies, and has been certified 2× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[3] The album also reached the top five in Canada, Ireland, Italy, Mexico and Spain.
The album's lead single, "Heart Attack" peaked at number ten on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Lovato's third US top-ten single, and has been certified 5× platinum by the RIAA.[4][5] The second single "Made in the USA" peaked at number 80 and was certified gold, while later singles "Neon Lights" and "Really Don't Care" both reached the top 40 peaking at 36 and 26, respectively, and both have been certified 2× platinum by RIAA. Lovato supported the album in two concert tours: The Neon Lights Tour in early 2014 and the Demi World Tour between late 2014 and early 2015.
Background[edit]
In April 2012, Lovato began writing songs for her fourth studio album, following the commercial success of her third studio album Unbroken (2011). The album was recorded during Lovato's appearance as a mentor during the second season of The X Factor.[6] Lovato chose the title of the album Demi, because it was her first album intended for a more mainstream audience, and those who did not know her music.[7] Lovato also explained a "sequel" of the song "Skyscraper" (2011) is included. After the album was released, it was revealed that "Warrior" was intended to be a sequel of "Skyscraper".[8] She stated, "I'm incredibly proud of this album" and "It's better than anything I have ever done! I experimented with a variety of different sounds and poured my heart into writing these songs. I'm so excited for everyone to finally get the chance to hear them!"[9] On May 6, 2013, Lovato asked her Twitter followers to "unlock" the entire album by putting song titles in hashtags. A special website lovaticsspeeduptime.com was launched, displaying all the songs next to a clock that would turn as tweets would be sent. Once a song became a trending topic, its YouTube video was made available on VEVO. All the songs were unlocked within four hours.[10][11] An iBooks-exclusive e-book titled Demi: The Book was released on June 11, 2013. The book gives fans behind-the-scenes access to the singer, including never-before-seen footage and interviews. In one clip, she says that being honest and open is not only the message she is sending her fans in the book but also on her album. She said, "This album I've had enough time to really reflect on personal experiences and look back at my life after having overcome a bunch of things. I've been more aware of myself; therefore, when you listen to the album, you can really tell in the lyrics and in the emotion and everything I worked really, really hard on this album, and hopefully you'll be able to hear that."[12]
Commercial performance[edit]
The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 110,000 copies, behind Vampire Weekend's Modern Vampires of the City and George Strait's Love Is Everything, thus becoming the highest selling opening week of Lovato's career.[33] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number ten on the UK Albums Chart, with sales of 10,658 copies sold in its first week.[34] With the debut, it became Lovato's first album to breach the Top 40 in the country.[34] The album was certified Gold in the US on September 16, 2014.[35]
Singles[edit]
"Heart Attack" was released as the album's lead single on February 25, 2013. The song was written by Mitch Allan, Jason Evigan, Sean Douglas, Nikki Williams, Aaron Phillips and Lovato and produced by The Suspex.[36][37] The song debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, with first week sales of 215,000 copies, becoming a sales record for Lovato at the time.[38] The song reached number 10 on the chart, becoming Lovato's third song to do so. The song also reached a peak at number 3 in the United Kingdom, her first single to reach the top ten in the country. The music video was filmed on March 14, 2013[39] and released on April 9, 2013.[40] Lovato performed the song live on several shows, including The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Good Morning America and Jimmy Kimmel Live!.[41][42] The song has since been certified 5× platinum in the United States, 2× platinum in Canada, as well as platinum in Denmark, New Zealand and Sweden, gold in Australia, Mexico and Ireland, and silver in the United Kingdom.
"Made in the USA" was released as the album's second single on July 16, 2013. Lovato performed the song live at several concerts including the 2013 edition of Wango Tango on May 11, 2013[43] and Good Morning America's Summer Concert Series on June 28. The music video was released on July 17, 2013.[44] It peaked at number 80 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified gold, and also managed to peak within the top 20 in Lebanon, as well at number 40 on the US Mainstream Top 40 and number 45 on the US Digital Songs charts.
"Neon Lights" was released as the album's third single on November 19, 2013. On September 29, 2013, Lovato announced the name of her concert tour, the Neon Lights Tour, and soon after that "Neon Lights" would become the third single from the album.[45][46][47] The song, with its prominent EDM influences, covered new ground for Demi, who had been previously known for her pop ballad singles. The accompanying music video was released on November 21, 2013.[48] In New Zealand, the song peaked at number 12 and was certified gold. It reached number 36 on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at this position for three non-consecutive weeks. It topped the US Hot Dance Club Songs and became Lovato's third top 10 single on the Mainstream Top 40, by reaching at number 7. It was certified 2× platinum in the United States.
"Really Don't Care", featuring British recording artist Cher Lloyd, was released as the fourth single from the album on May 20, 2014. The week before it was officially serviced to US radio, it charted at number 7 at Mainstream Top 40, being Lovato's fourth top 10 single on the chart. It later on peaked at number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs. The song debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at number 98, and has peaked at number 26. Lovato performed the song on several occasions before its official release as a single. Once released in May 2014, Lovato performed the song on the Season 13 live final of American Idol,[49] Good Morning America Summer Concert Series, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and the 2014 Teen Choice Awards.[50] "Really Don't Care" was later certified 2× platinum in the United States.