Who Knew
"Who Knew" is a song by American singer Pink from her fourth studio album, I'm Not Dead (2006). Written by Pink, Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, the song was originally released on May 8, 2006, by the LaFace label to radio as the album's second single, but was only a moderate success. The song saw more success upon its re-release in the United States in June 2007. Musically, "Who Knew" is a pop song. Lyrically, it regards the loss of a good friend of hers.
For other uses, see Who Knew (disambiguation).
Upon its release, "Who Knew" was well received by music critics, who acclaimed it as a solid song on the album and lauded the lyrical content. It faced comparisons for having similarities with Kelly Clarkson's 2004 single "Since U Been Gone", also written by Martin and Dr. Luke. The song was commercially successful worldwide, where it peaked in the top five in countries including Australia, the United Kingdom, and component charts in the United States. The song is also Pink's longest chart runner on the Hot 100, spending 36 weeks on the chart. The song was later certified Platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The accompanying music video to the song was directed by Dragon and was released in May 2006, where it shows Pink singing at a county fair, with a storyline about two young lovers who end up being separated after the man begins using drugs. The song has been performed on many of Pink's world tours, including I'm Not Dead Tour, Funhouse Tour and its extension tour Funhouse Summer Carnival Tour.
Background and composition[edit]
The NY Daily quotes Pink as writing the song to a male friend (not a boyfriend) she lost to drug abuse.
"Who Knew" was written by Pink, Max Martin and Dr. Luke, while it was produced by Martin and Dr. Luke. "Who Knew" was released as the second single off the album worldwide in 2006, while it was re-released to U.S. radio as the album's fourth single in the United States in 2007, after the success of "U + Ur Hand".[3]
Pink has stated that "Who Knew" is her favorite song from her first compilation, Greatest Hits... So Far!!![4]
"Who Knew" is a pop song.[1][2] According to Musicnotes.com, which was published by Kobalt Music Publishing America, Inc., the song is written in the key of A major. Pink's vocal's span from E3 to D5.[5] Lyrically, Pink had explained that the song is about "the death of friendship",[6] as well as friends of hers who died as a result of drug overdoses.[7] The song is about several people.[8] The song features acoustic guitar, keyboards, drums, and electric guitars. Gottwald, Martin and Pink co-wrote another song on the album, "U + Ur Hand".
Music video[edit]
The single's video was directed by Dragon,[23] a team comprising Samuel Bayer, Robert Hales and Brian Lazzaro. It was filmed in the weekend beginning April 15, 2006, in Los Angeles, United States,[24] and it was released to the internet and to UK music channels in early May 2006. The video reached number one on MTV Germany's top ten and on TRL Italy. "Who Knew" was voted number one on TRL Germany twenty times, allowing Pink to earn the "Golden Tape". In the U.S. Total Request Live broadcast a "First Look" of the video on May 22, and it debuted on the show's top ten countdown the following day;[25] it spent eight non-consecutive days on the countdown (until June 9), peaking at number seven.[26]
It features a young couple visiting a fairground and going on the rides, and at one point the boy puts a necklace on the girl. The video flashes back to the boy secretly injecting himself with drugs on a previous night while the girl is sleeping. At the carnival, when the girl is playing a game, the boy walks away. The girl realizes he's gone and follows him, but when she tries to get him to stay with her he gets violent. He goes to the back of the fairground to inject himself with drugs and breaks into a sweat. His girlfriend wanders around looking for him, and finds him unconscious; he has overdosed. She gives him a kiss, gives back the necklace and phones for an ambulance; after it has arrived, she walks away crying. The final scenes depict flashback sequences showing the couple on several carnival rides together and both Pink and the lovers submerged underwater.