Amazing (Inna song)

"Amazing" is a song recorded by Romanian singer Inna for her debut studio album, Hot (2009). It was released as the fourth single from the record on 6 August 2009. Written and produced by Play & Win members Sebastian Barac, Radu Bolfea and Marcel Botezan, "Amazing" is a techno track with a Spanish guitar and beats in its instrumentation. One reviewer regarded the song as being similar to Inna's past work, however, with the addition of new elements. Other music critics gave positive reviews of the single, and praised its construction and foresaw its commercial success.

"Amazing"
One of the various cover artworks used to commercialize "Amazing" worldwide.
Single by Inna
from the album Hot
Released6 August 2009
GenreTechno
Length3:31
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Barac
  • Bolfea
  • Botezan
Inna singles chronology
"Déjà Vu"
(2009)		 "Amazing"
(2009)		 "10 Minutes"
(2010)

Play & Win were involved in a breach of contract controversy in August 2009, with Romanian singer Anca Badiu sustaining that "Amazing" had been originally intended for her before released by Inna. The song was aided by an accompanying music video premiered on 10 September 2009. Shot by Tom Boxer at the Atlantic ocean and near Lisbon, it portrays the singer surfing and being saved from drowning by a lifeguard. For further promotion, Inna also performed "Amazing" on several occasions, including at the 2010 Eska Music Awards and the MAD Video Music Awards. Commercially, the song topped the charts in Romania and Bulgaria, while reaching the top 20 in multiple other countries. It was also nominated in two categories at the 2010 Romanian Music Awards, and won in the Pop/Dance Song of the Year section at the 2010 Radio România Actualități Awards.

Background and composition

"Amazing" was written and produced by Romanian trio Play & Win members Sebastian Barac, Radu Bolfea and Marcel Botezan.[3] It was released on Inna's official website on 6 August 2009,[2] as the fourth single from her debut studio album Hot (2009).[3] The Guardian's Paul Lester noted a Spanish guitar and beats in the song's instrumentation, and called its genre "half-bad Castillian techno".[1] An editor of Romanian website Divercity Cafe wrote that the track was club-oriented and reminiscent of Inna's past work, while incorporating new elements.[2]

Reception and accolades

Upon its release, "Amazing" received generally positive reviews from music critics. An editor of Divercity Cafe praised the harmony between Inna's vocals and the instrumental, and foresaw the single's commercial success.[2] Neeti Sarkar, writing for The Hindu, thought that the song was "quite amazing in the sense it captures a whirlwind of emotions, musically and otherwise."[4] Pro FM listed "Amazing" in their list of "16 hits with which Inna made history".[5] At the 2010 Romanian Music Awards, the track was nominated in the Best Song and Best Dance categories,[6] and won Pop/Dance Song of the Year at the 2010 Radio România Actualități.[7]

Commercially, "Amazing" topped native Media Forest chart in October 2009 and the Bulgarian charts in December 2009, becoming Inna's second single to reach number one in the first region after "Hot" (2008).[8][9][10] In France, "Amazing" debuted at number two on the SNEP chart in June 2010,[11] where it sold 100,000 registered copies as of September 2010.[12] The track opened at number 10 as the highest new entry on Switzerland's Schweizer Hitparade,[13] while other top 10 placements were achieved in Russia,[14] United Kingdom's dance chart,[15] Greece and the Polish dance chart.[16][17]

Controversy
Play & Win were involved in a breach of contract controversy in August 2009.[18][19]

In August 2009, "Amazing" sparked controversy when Romanian singer Anca Badiu accused Play & Win of "stealing" her song and breach of contract. According to Badiu and MediaPro Music, the label she was signed to at that time, they had paid the production trio €1,500 in advance for "Amazing". However, a few days after Baidu recorded the track and the alleged money transfer occurred, Inna released "Amazing" as a single. Play & Win defended their decision: "We signed the contract with MediaPro Music, but at one point we realized that Anca's version could not be a hit, so we chose Inna."[18][19] A Showbiz.ro editor questioned the credibility of their pretext in court, but thought that "since in Romania, the copyright laws and contractual obligations of artists and producers are not clearly defined, everything is possible." They also compared the case to a similar one between Romanian musicians Adrian Sînă and Edward Maya regarding the single "Se Thelo" (2009)[18] Sarkar of The Hindu thought that the case was a reason for the song's commercial success.[4]

Music video

An accompanying music video for "Amazing" was premiered on 10 September 2009 on the website of Romanian radio station Radio 21.[20] It was shot by Tom Boxer in late August 2009 at a beach of the Atlantic ocean and near Lisbon, Portugal in the span of two days.[21][22] Behind-the-scenes footage was published on Urban.ro on 1 September 2009.[21] Inna recalled of the filming: "It was the first time [Boxer and I] worked together and we understood excellent. I did everything I could to make the video come out well. It was a joy to shoot this clip. I traveled in a beautiful area and I met real surfers. I fell in love with their crazy and unobtrusive style[...].[20] For the clip, the singer was also required to learn a few surfing moves, which she managed to do in the first day.[22]

The clip begins with shots of the beach and Inna holding a surfboard in her hands, sporting a black wetsuit. She is then seen in a black and white swimsuit and subsequently meets friends to go surfing. Apparently drowning, she is saved by a previously shown "handsome" lifeguard,[21] who brings her to the beach and attempts mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. The video ends with them standing close to each other and a shadowed Inna with a surfboard. Scenes interspersed throughout the main plot show the singer performing to the song, as well as showering in front of teenage surfer boys eating ice cream while they stare in shock.[23]

Live performances and other usage

In 2010, Inna performed "Amazing" live on 23 April at the Eska Music Awards in Bulgaria,[24] at the MAD Video Music Awards on 24 June in Greece,[25] and on 10 July at the Romanian Music Awards.[26] In the same year, the singer also sang the track on 14 July at the Fun Radio in France,[27] and at French music event Starfloor on 23 October.[28] Inna's appearance at the Eska Music Awards was the subject of controversy due to a kiss between two male background dancers,[29] and she accidentally exposed one of her nipples at Starfloor.[28] She further performed the single during her Inna: Live la Arenele Romane gig in Bucharest on 17 May, where she arrived by helicopter "like a diva",[30] as well as at the NRJ Music Tour Beirut on 23 July 2011.[31] Romanian singer Andreea Bănică covered "Amazing" during Inna's appearance at the 2010 Romanian Music Awards.[32]

Track listing
  1. "Amazing (Play & Win Radio Edit Version)" - 3:31
  2. "Amazing (Play & Win Extended Version)" - 4:32
  3. "Amazing (UK Radio Edit Version)" - 2:21
  4. "Amazing (Buzz Junkies Radio Edit)" - 3:34
  5. "Amazing (Buzz Junkies Club Remix)" - 6:14
  6. "Amazing (Buzz Junkies Dub)" - 6:14
  7. "Amazing (DJ Feel Radio Edit)" - 3:37
  8. "Amazing (DJ Feel Original Club Remix)" - 6:12
  9. "Amazing (DJ Feel Vox Dub)" - 6:18
  10. "Amazing (DJ Feel Instrumental)" - 6:18
  11. "Amazing (Almighty Radio Edit)" - 3:58
  12. "Amazing (Almighty Club Remix)" - 7:07
  13. "Amazing (Almighty Dub)"- 7:06
  14. "Amazing (Almighty Instrumental)" - 7:06
  15. "Amazing (Frisco Radio Edit)" - 3:15
  16. "Amazing (Frisco Club Remix)" - 5:01
  17. "Amazing (Klubfiller Radio Edit)"- 3:07
  18. "Amazing (Klubfiller Club Remix)" - 5:18

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Hot and Urban.ro.[3][21]

Charts

Release history
Region Date Format Label
Romania[2] 6 August 2009 N/A N/A
France[55] 21 June 2010 CD single Airplay
United Kingdom[56] 23 August 2010 AATW
Germany[57] 24 September 2010 B1 Recordings

See also

Notes
  1. This acts as a summary of all versions of the single found on Hot and its digital and CD releases.

References
  1. Lester, Paul (20 May 2011). "New band of the day – No 1027: Inna". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  2. Scris de Mircea (6 August 2009). "Amazing Inna" (in Romanian). Divercity Cafe. Archived from the original on 10 August 2009. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  3. Hot (Liner notes/ CD booklet). Inna. Bucharest, Romania: Roton (Barcode: 5948204431327). 2009.CS1 maint: others (link)
  4. Sarkar, Neeti (12 December 2011). "Beat street – Inna – Hot". The Hindu. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  5. "16 hituri cu care Inna a facut istorie" [16 hits with which Inna made history] (in Romanian). Pro FM. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  6. "Nominalizarile la Romanian Music Awards 2010" [Nominations at Romanian Music Awards 2010] (in Romanian). 1 Music. 5 April 2010. Archived from the original on 14 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  7. "Premiile Muzicale Radio Romania Actualităţi 2010 au fost decernate! Vezi câştigătorii…" [The Radio Romania Actualităţi 2010 were handed out! See the winners...] (in Romanian). Radar de Media. 15 March 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2018.
  8. "Media Forest – Weekly charts". Media Forest. Archived from the original on 7 April 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2016. Note: The chart of Romanian and international songs are rendered together by the number of radio plays before resulting an overall chart.
  9. "Top 20 by Nielsen – week 50". Romanian Top 100. Uniunea Producătorilor de Fonograme din România. Archived from the original on 21 December 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  10. "Week 52 – 21.12-27.12.2009" Airplay Top 5. Bulgarian Association of Music Producers.
  11. "Lescharts.com – Inna – Amazing" (in French). Les classement single.
  12. "Play & Win, cei mai bine platiti compozitori din Sud-Estul Europei" [Play & Win, the best paid producers from Southern Europe] (in Romanian). Antena 1. 14 September 2010. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  13. "Swisscharts.com – Inna – Amazing". Swiss Singles Chart.
  14. "Amazing – Tophitru.com". Tophit. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  15. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  16. "Inna – Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  17. "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Dance Top 50. Retrieved 22 December 2011.
  18. "Scandal in showbiz: Anca Badiu vs. Inna" (in Romanian). Showbiz.ro. 20 August 2009. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  19. "Scandal intre Anca Badiu, Inna si Play & Win, totul pentru melodia "Amazing"" [Scandal between Anca Baidu, Inna and Play & Win, all because of the track "Amazing"] (in Romanian). Cod Roșu. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  20. Scris de Valy (10 September 2009). "Videoclip Inna: "Amazing"" (in Romanian). Urban.ro. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  21. Scris de Adi (1 September 2009). "Filmari videoclip Inna - "Amazing"" [Filming of the Inna video – "Amazing"] (in Romanian). Urban.ro. Archived from the original on 27 June 2017. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  22. "Amazing, noul videoclip Inna" ["Amazing", Inna's new video] (in Romanian). Stiumuzica. 10 September 2009. Archived from the original on 12 December 2009. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  23. "Inna – Amazing ( Official Video )". YouTube. 14 September 2009. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  24. "On the road with Inna #66 Poland – Amazing (live @ Eska Music Awards 2010)". 24 April 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  25. "On the road with Inna #85 Greece – Hot & Amazing @Mad VMA 2010". 24 June 2010. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  26. "On the road with Inna #89 Romania, Craiova – Romanian Music Awards 2010". YouTube. 11 July 2010. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  27. "On the road with Inna #91 France, Paris – Inna live @ Fun Radio". 14 July 2010. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  28. Lalande, Julien (2 November 2017). "Inna en mauvaise posture en direct sur W9" [Inna in a bad posture live on W9]. PureMédias. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  29. "Sarut patimas gay intre dansatorii Innei! Mai ceva ca Britney si Madonna" [Gay kiss between Inna's backup dancers! Britney Spears and Madonna who?] (in Romanian). Pro TV. 27 April 2010. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  30. Coman, Alina (18 May 2011). "Inna a uimit publicul prezent la Arenele Romane" [Inna has impressed the audience present at the Arenele Romane] (in Romanian). InfoMusic. Archived from the original on 20 March 2017. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  31. "The NRJ Music Tour 2011". NRJ. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  32. "Andreea Banica On the road with Inna – Live medley @ RMA 2010". YouTube. 24 August 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  33. "Austriancharts.at – Inna – Amazing" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  34. "Ultratop.be – Inna – Amazing" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  35. "Ultratop.be – Inna – Amazing" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  36. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 201004 into search.
  37. "lescharts.com – Français" (in French). Les classement de telechargement single.
  38. "Offiziellecharts.de – Inna – Amazing". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  39. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Dance Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  40. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  41. "Chart Track: Week 28, 2010". Irish Singles Chart.
  42. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Inna" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  43. "Dutchcharts.nl – Inna – Amazing" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  44. "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201033 into search.
  45. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  46. "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  47. "Dance Top 100 - 2009". Mahasz. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  48. "Airplay Detection Tophit 200 Yearly". Tophit. Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  49. "Rapports Annuels 2010" (in French). Ultratop 50. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  50. "Artists – Inna – Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  51. "Classement des 100 premiers Singles Fusionnés par GfK Music" (PDF). SNEP (in French). Disqueen France. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  52. "Classement des titres les plus écoutés en radio au cours de l'année 2010" (PDF). SNEP (in French). Disqueen France. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  53. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2010". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  54. "Top cele mai difuzate piese in Romania in 2010" [The most played singles of 2010 in Romania] (in Romanian). Beatfactor. 3 January 2011. Archived from the original on 6 January 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  55. Amazing (Liner notes). Inna. France. (Barcode: 600753289341): Airplay Recordings. 2010.CS1 maint: others (link) CS1 maint: location (link)
  56. Amazing (Liner notes). Inna. United Kingdom. (Barcode: 5037128142324): All Around the World Productions. 2010.CS1 maint: others (link) CS1 maint: location (link)
  57. Amazing (Liner notes). Inna. Germany. (Barcode: 0602527513805): B1 Recordings. 2010.CS1 maint: others (link) CS1 maint: location (link)
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