Lemonade (Alexandra Stan song)

"Lemonade" is a song recorded by Romanian singer and songwriter Alexandra Stan for her Japan-only reissue, Cliché (Hush Hush) (2013). It was released for radio airplay in Italy on 12 June 2012, followed by its digital release on 14 June 2012 through MediaPro Music in Romania and on 1 August 2012 in Japan. Written and produced by Marcel Prodan and Andrei Nemirschi, the single incorporates EDM, reggae-pop and dubstep into its composition; it makes use of harmonica and accordions. Upon its release, "Lemonade" was met with positive reviews from music critics, with them naming it "catchy", "fresh" and a highlight, while one of them foresaw it as having a strong radio performance. It also drew comparations to the works of Britney Spears, Kelis and Lady Gaga. At the Radio România Actualități Awards gala in 2013, the recording received a nomination for Radio România Junior.

"Lemonade"
Stan posing in a kitchen while cutting a lemon.
Single by Alexandra Stan
from the album Cliché (Hush Hush)
Released12 June 2012
Genre
Length3:30
Label
Songwriter(s)
  • Marcel Prodan
  • Andrei Nemirschi
Producer(s)
  • Prodan
  • Nemirschi
Alexandra Stan singles chronology
"1.000.000"
(2012)		 "Lemonade"
(2012)		 "Cliché (Hush Hush)"
(2012)

An accompanying music video for the recording was posted onto YouTube on 4 June 2012; it was shot by Iulian Moga in Buftea, Romania, and portrays Stan walking through the city and being present at a block party. Commercially, "Lemonade" peaked on some European record charts, becoming a number-one hit in Bulgaria and reaching the top thirty in Romania, Italy, Japan and Slovakia. It was as well certified Gold by the Federation of the Italian Music Industry (FIMI) for selling 15,000 copies in Italy.

Composition

Winston Cook-Wilson from Inverse called the song an EDM, reggae and "sunny" pop recording featuring a "nonsensical" harmonica.[1] Bradley Stern, writing for MuuMuse, named the genre of the track "Ace of Base-esque reggae-pop", while labeling its lyrics as "completely nonsense" and noticing the use of accordions.[2] Furthermore, Stern pointed out a "stuttering" dubstep breakdown throughout "Lemonade", which, according to him, was inspired by Britney Spears' "Hold It Against Me" (2011).[2] Jonathan Hamard from Pure Charts felt that the recording was of dance-pop genre, auguring "a major musical turn with reggae sounds".[3]

Romanian website Urban.ro stated that the single was a mixture of 1990's music, Kelis' "Milkshake" (2003), Lady Gaga's "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say) (2009) and some dubstep influences.[4] The same portal also pointed out the change of Stan's artistry, with them explaining the departure from her previous popcorn styles.[4] According to Stan's label, MediaPro Music, "Lemonade" portrays a positive lyrical message about enjoying life in every moment.[5]

Reception

Upon its release, "Lemonade" received generally positive reviews from music critics. Website Inverse's Winston Cook-Wilson praised the track for being complex.[1] Cook-Wilson continued into saying that the recording "is just something to sip on a hot day – also, a way to cool down when thinking about a loved one".[1] Kevin Apaza, writing for Direct Lyrics labelled the single "fresh and funky", confessing that he likes it better than its predecessors "1.000.000" (2012) and "Get Back (ASAP)" (2011).[6] Furthermore, Apaza foreseed "Lemonade" as a club hit with the help of "a few killer remixes".[6] MTV declared the song as being "catchy", while stating that "you'd be hard-pressed to turn down a glass of what Stan's serving this summer".[7] Music channel Utv applauded the single, foreseeing it successful on radio.[8] At the Radio România Actualități Awards gala in 2013, the recording received a nomination for Radio România Junior.[9]

"Lemonade" debuted at number 74 on the Italian Singles Chart,[10] with it eventually reaching its peak position at number 25.[11] It was certified Gold by the Federation of the Italian Music Industry (FIMI) for selling 15,000 copies in that territory.[12] The recording remained a number-one hit in Bulgaria,[13] while peaking at number 70 in Czech Republic,[14] number 38 in Hungary,[14] number 18 in Slovakia[15] and number 27 on the Japan Hot 100.[16] On native Airplay 100, "Lemonade" managed to peak at number 22.[17]

Music video
Shot from the music video, with Stan walking down a street wearing a lemon-printed dress. Direct Lyrics compared this outfit to gipsy culture.[6]

An accompanying music video for "Lemonade" was posted onto the YouTube channel of Stan's label, Maan Studio, on 4 June 2012[18] after it was previewed one day before.[19] It was shot by Iulian Moga in April 2012[19] at the MediaPro Pictures studios in Buftea, Romania.[4][5] The clip commences with Stan entering a kitchen wearing a red-white striped dress.[6] Subsequently, she is portrayed cutting lemons and making lemonade, following which she makes a phone call and walks down the street sporting a lemon-printed yellow dress and smiling into the camera. Next, Stan is seen singing in front of a red car, flirting with a man, which is followed by the appearance of two police men. They enter a store and the singer is presented selling lemons in the street. Afterwards, the video switches from color to sepia, as she is present at a block party; it closes with Stan posing in front of a backdrop designed with different types of shoes.[18]

Kevin Apaza from Direct Lyrics praised the clip, naming it one of her best works yet.[6] He went on into calling the video "cute" and comparing one of Stan's outfits to gipsy culture.[6] Urban.ro was positive towards the music video, stating that it "illustrates the single beautifully" and that they like "the colors, the styling, all".[4] Los 40 Principales cited the clip in their list of Stan's best videos along with "Dance" (2014), "Cherry Pop" (2014), "Thanks for Leaving" (2014), "Cliché (Hush Hush)" (2012), "Get Back (ASAP)", "1.000.000" (2011), "Mr. Saxobeat" (2011), "Lollipop (Param Pam Pam)" (2009) and "All My People" (2013).[20]

Track listings
Digital single[21]
No.TitleLength
1."Lemonade"3:30
Digital remixes EP[22]
No.TitleLength
1."Lemonade (Da Brozz Remix)"5:05
2."Lemonade (Fedo Mora and Oki Doro Remix)"4:56
3."Lemonade (Rudeejay Remix)"5:50
4."Lemonade (Rudeejay Radio Edit)"3:03
5."Lemonade (Topakabana Remix)"4:20
6."Lemonade (Karmin Shiff and Marco Zardi Remix)"4:46

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Cliché (Hush Hush).[23]

Recording
Technical and songwriting
  • Andrei Nemirschi –songwriter, producer
  • Marcel Prodan – songwriter, producer
  • Alexandra Stan – lead vocals

Charts and certifications

Release

Process

The track was first released for radio airplay in Italy on 12 June 2012,[21] following which it was made available for digital download in Romania on 14 June 2012 through MediaPro Music.[26] Subsequently, "Lemonade" was released in Italy through iTunes Store one day later,[27] with a remixes EP being premiered in that country on 24 July 2012 by Vae Victis.[22] From August to October 2012, the recording was released to Japan, Spain and the United States through Maan Studio, Blanco y Negro Music and Ultra Records, respectively.[28][29][30]

History
Country Date Format Label
Italy[21][22][27] 12 June 2012 Radio airplay —
15 June 2012 Digital single Vae Victis
24 July 2012 Digital remixes EP
Romania[26] 14 June 2012 Digital single MediaPro
Japan[28] 1 August 2012 Maan
Spain[29] 7 August 2012 Blanco y Negro
United States[30] 16 October 2012 Ultra

References
  1. Cook-Wilson, Winston (18 April 2016). "Why Beyoncé's "Lemonade" Won't Be the Best Song Called "Lemonade" Ever". Inverse. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  2. Stern, Bradely (7 July 2012). "Stanning for Alexandra Stan's "Lemonade"". MuuMuse. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  3. Hamard, Jonathan (5 June 2012). "L'été arrive, Alexandra Stan revient avec le clip "Lemonade"" [Summer is coming, Alexandra Stan returns with the clip "Lemonade"] (in French). Pure Charts. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  4. Scris de Edi (4 June 2012). "Alexandra Stan – Lemonade (videoclip nou)" [Alexandra Stan – Lemoande (new video)] (in Romanian). Urban.ro. Archived from the original on 21 June 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  5. "Alexandra Stan: "Cand viata iti da lamai, fa limonada."" [Alexandra Stan: "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade."] (in Romanian). MediaPro Music. Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  6. Apaza, Kevin (4 June 2012). "Alexandra Stan – 'Lemoande'". Direct Lyrics. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  7. Stern, Bradely (6 December 2012). "Sky Ferreira, Charli XCX, Wynter Gordon + More: Top 5 Must-Hear Pop Songs Of The Week". MTV. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  8. Scris de Cristina. "New Clip: Alexandra Stan – "Lemonade"". Utv. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  9. Cosmescu, Corina (20 February 2013). "Nominalizarile la Premiile Muzicale Radio Romania 2013" [Nominations at the Radio Romania Awards gala 2013]. Adevărul (in Romanian). Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  10. "FIMI: Classifica settimanale WK 24 (dal 2012-06-11 al 2012-06-17)". FIMI. Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  11. "FIMI – Search: Alexandra Stan" (in Italian). FIMI. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  12. "Italian single certifications – Alexandra Stan – Lemonade" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select "2012" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Lemonade" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  13. "Airplay Top 5 – 10.09.2012–16.09.2012" Airplay Top 5. Bulgarian Association of Music Producers.
  14. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 201234 into search.
  15. "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201231 into search.
  16. "Alexandra Stan Chart History (Japan Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  17. "Airplay 100 – 9 septembrie 2012" (in Romanian). Kiss FM. 9 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  18. "Alexandra Stan – Lemonade (Official Music Video)". YouTube. 4 June 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  19. Scris de Alex (3 June 2016). "Maine: Alexandra Stan lanseaza videoclipul Lemonade" [Tomorrow: Alexandra Stan releases the video for Lemonade] (in Romanian). Urban.ro. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  20. "Los mejores videoclips de Alexandra Stan" [The best videos of Alexandra Stan] (in Spanish). Los 40 Principales. 14 August 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  21. "Lemonade – Single di Alexandra Stan su iTunes". iTunes Store (in Italian). 15 June 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  22. "Lemonade (Remixes) – EP di Alexandra Stan su iTunes". iTunes Store (in Italian). 24 July 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  23. Cliché (Hush Hush) (Liner notes/ CD booklet). Alexandra Stan. Constanța, Romania: Maan Records (Barcode: 4 988002 658367). 2013.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Dance Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  25. "Media Forest – Know You Are On Air". Airplay 100. Media Forest. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  26. "Lemonade – Single by Alexandra Stan on iTunes". iTunes Store. 14 June 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  27. Bencivenga, Iliaria (8 June 2012). "Adesso si che è arrivata l'estate! Alexandra Stan – "Lemonade"" [Now that summer's here! Alexandra Stan – "Lemonade"] (in Italian). Ear One. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  28. "Lemonade – Single by Alexandra Stan on iTunes". iTunes Store (in Japanese). 1 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  29. "Lemonade (Radio Edit) – Single de Alexandra Stan en iTunes". iTunes Store (in Spanish). 7 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  30. "Lemonade – Single by Alexandra Stan on iTunes". iTunes Store. 16 October 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
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