Reclassified

Reclassified is the reissue of Australian rapper Iggy Azalea's debut studio album, The New Classic (2014). It was released internationally on 21 November 2014 by Virgin EMI Records, and in the United States on 24 November 2014 by Def Jam Recordings. Released seven months after its parent album, Reclassified featured five newly recorded songs. Azalea announced the re-release in the caption of an Instagram post with the official artwork.

Reclassified
Studio album (reissue) by
Released21 November 2014 (2014-11-21)
Recorded2013–2014
GenreHip hop
Length41:00
Label
Producer
Iggy Azalea chronology
The New Classic
(2014)
Reclassified
(2014)
Survive the Summer
(2018)
Singles from Reclassified
  1. "Beg for It"
    Released: 24 October 2014
  2. "Trouble"
    Released: 24 February 2015

Upon its release, Reclassified received generally positive reviews from music critics, who complimented the new material adding cohesiveness to the project.

It peaked at number sixteen on the US Billboard 200 becoming her second consecutive entry on the chart, also charting in countries such as Australia, Denmark, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Reclassified was preceded by "Beg for It", featuring , and "Trouble", featuring Jennifer Hudson the latter peaked at no.7 in the UK Singles Chart

Background

In April 2014, Azalea released her debut album The New Classic. Following its release, The New Classic debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 and in the top five of several international markets. The album also topped the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Rap Albums charts. It was met with mixed reviews from music critics. The album's fourth single "Fancy" became a breakthrough hit for Azalea, peaking at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, holding the top spot for seven consecutive weeks. It went on to become the longest running number one single from a female rapper as a lead artist surpassing "Lady Marmalade", which featured American rapper Lil' Kim. The following single "Black Widow" peaked at number three on the US Hot 100.

On 4 September 2014, Azalea announced that she would be reissuing her debut studio album The New Classic.[1] She commented that a collaboration with English recording artist Ellie Goulding would be included on the forthcoming project,[2] and previewed the tracks "Beg for It" and a scrapped solo recording from The New Classic recording sessions titled "Cheeks".[3] Azalea later revealed that she would be collaborating with Ellie Goulding on a track called "Heavy Crown" featured in the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.[4] In October, a friend of Azalea uploaded a video on her Instagram account. The video featured her and Azalea in a car, listening to the new song "Beg for It".[5] Another song was also teased via Instagram entitled "Iggy SZN".[6] Azalea then confirmed that "Beg for It", featuring Danish singer , would be her next single.[7] The album was recorded in Los Angeles.

New material

Jennifer Hudson (left) features on "Trouble", while Ellie Goulding (right) contributes vocals to "Heavy Crown"

During an interview with Extra at the Vevo Certified SuperFanFest on 8 October 2014, Azalea commented that she was "really excited" about her upcoming release saying that the new material was "uptempo and fun," adding that she "did a lot more collaborations because I felt like I had doors open for me and I had the opportunity to collaborate with artists that I didn't have before when I made my first album, so this time I got to kind of call whoever I wanted up and do my dream collaborations – it's really exciting!"[8] During yet another interview with Radio.com backstage at the CBS Radio We Can Survive concert at the Hollywood Bowl on 24 October 2014, Azalea mentioned her longtime desire to work with Ellie Goulding and after meeting several times she was approached by Goulding about a song that would become "Heavy Crown", recalling "she played it for me and I was in love with it and just felt it was so kind of appropriate for this to be our collaboration," because it "brings out something different in both artists that you don't usually see." Most notably, the track shows off an edgier side of Goulding, whose voice Azalea called "unique and ethereal sounding." "She loved it because she felt like she doesn't do things that are as aggressive as our song together," Azalea explained.

With the expanded re-release, Azalea also got to team up with Jennifer Hudson for a second time, after being featured on Hudson's song "He Ain't Goin' Nowhere" off her third studio album JHUD, "It kind of has a doo-wop feel," Azalea said, also mentioning her desire to do something different from her musical style and being excited about performing it; "It's kind of something you'd picture Aretha Franklin singing."[9]

In contrast to the new material, some of the tracks from the original album were left off in favor of the newer songs. Older discarded songs included the Mavado-assisted "Lady Patra", "Impossible Is Nothing", "New Bitch", and intro track "Walk the Line".

Release and promotion

The artwork for Reclassified was revealed on 9 October 2014.[10] Azalea then premiered an album track, "Iggy SZN", made available with the album pre-order on iTunes stores worldwide. She performed the first single "Beg for It", featuring MØ, for the first time in the fourth episode of Saturday Night Live's season 40, hosted by Jim Carrey.[11] On 12 November, Azalea uploaded on her YouTube channel a preview of the first track on Reclassified, "We In This Bitch".[12] On 14 November, another preview of "Heavy Crown" was also uploaded on the channel.[13] On 17 November, a final album track preview for "Trouble", featuring Jennifer Hudson, was also unveiled.[14] The reissue was released internationally on 21 November 2014[15] and in the United States on 24 November 2014.[16] Azalea also performed "Beg for It" during a medley with "Fancy", featuring Charli XCX, at the 2014 American Music Awards at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles on 23 November 2014, where she won two awards for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album and Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist.[17] On 24 November 2014, an official lyric video for the track premiered on her Vevo channel.[18] She also teamed up with The Roots for a performance at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on 26 November 2014.[19]

Singles

"Beg for It" was released as the first single from the reissue in the United States on 24 October 2014. It debuted at number ninety-two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week ending 8 November 2014,[20] peaking at number twenty-seven and becoming Azalea's sixth top 40 hit on the chart in 2014. In Australia, the song debuted at number seventy-three on the ARIA Singles Chart for the week ending 10 November 2014,[21] and jumped to number twenty-nine on the following week.[22]

"Trouble", featuring Jennifer Hudson, was released as the album's second single.[23] On 4 February 2015, Azalea and Hudson performed the song for the first time by teaming up with The Roots on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.[24] The song was serviced to mainstream radio stations in the US on 24 February 2015 and an accompanying music video was also shot earlier that month, having premiered on 27 February 2015 through Azalea's VEVO channel.[25][26]

Besides the two new singles, all five singles from The New Classic re-appeared on Reclassified: "Work", "Change Your Life", "Bounce", "Fancy" and "Black Widow". The track "Iggy SZN" was also released as a promotional single prior to the album's release.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[27]
Idolator[28]
New York Daily News[29]
NME6/10[30]
State[31]

Reclassified received mostly positive reviews upon its release. Jim Farber of the New York Daily News gave Reclassified three and a half out of five stars, praising the new tracks "We in This Bitch", "Heavy Crown", "Trouble", and "Iggy SZN", stating "Luckily, most of the tracks on "Reclassified" actually are worth it. That's vital, since only five of the songs qualify as genuinely new." Despite praising a majority of the new tracks, he expressed distaste towards "Beg for It", expressing that it seems lazy as it "merely turns the hook from "Fancy" on its side." He concluded, "Though Azalea ends the album with an admission that the golden headdress of pop fame "comes and goes," she gleefully states, "bitch, I got it now." For the moment, it seems like she deserves it."[29]

Mark Beaumont of NME gave it a rating of six out of ten, a higher score than the original album version review by the same publication, claiming that "the Aussie rapper offers a slight improvement on her debut LP with this reissue."[30] Mike Wass of Idolator gave the album a 4/5 rating calling it "as good an opportunity as any to acknowledge that the femcee's debut is actually relentlessly enjoyable," adding that "there isn't a dud track" and "of the other new cuts, "Heavy Crown" stands out as another future hit".[28] Rory Cashin of State gave the album three out of five stars, commenting that "the new additions are mostly winners," but "just like her first time out with this album, Iggy has a problem; trying too hard to please herself and please commercial radio."[31] David Jeffries of AllMusic, who had also reviewed The New Classic, gave it three and a half out of five stars and said, "In the end, Reclassified is a better effort than The New Classic and offers more bang for the buck, but this "release it until you get it right" blueprint is concerning for consumers, who now have a choice between rebuying it all or seeking out the new numbers on their own."[27]

Commercial performance

In Australia, Reclassified debuted at number thirty-two on the ARIA Albums Chart for the week ending 1 December 2014,[32] while appearing at number nineteen on its digital sales-only based version, the ARIA Digital Albums Chart,[33] and also peaking at number 3 on the ARIA Urban Albums Chart.[34] In the United States, it debuted at number twenty-seven on the Billboard 200 chart, with 33,638 album-equivalent units, while its parent album The New Classic also climbed back up to number seventy, with 14,155 units, for the week ending 30 November 2014.[35] It peaked at number sixteen on the Billboard 200 chart for the week ending 4 January 2015, with 29,461 units, entering the top twenty for the first time due to a big boost as a function of album streams and single song sales.[36] On the following week, it remained in the top twenty dropping two spots to number eighteen.[37] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number one hundred eighteen[38] and charted at number fifty-nine on the Official UK Albums Chart Top 100[39] and number four on the UK R&B Albums Top 40 for the week ending 10 January 2015.[40] On 10 May 2015, Reclassified climbed eighty places re-entering the Official UK Albums Chart Top 100 at a new peak of thirty-eight,[41][42] after appearing at number twenty-two on the Official Midweek UK Albums Chart Update on 6 May 2015.[43]

Track listing

Reclassified – Standard edition[44]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."We in This Bitch"
4:10
2."Work"
  • Kelly
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Trocon Markous Roberts
  • Natalie Sims
3:43
3."Change Your Life" (featuring T.I.)
The Messengers3:40
4."Beg for It" (featuring )
2:58
5."Black Widow" (featuring Rita Ora)
  • Stargate
3:29
6."Trouble" (featuring Jennifer Hudson)
  • The Invisible Men
  • Salt Wives
2:46
7."Don't Need Y'all"
  • Kelly
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Turner
  • Jon Mills
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:33
8."Rolex"
  • Kelly
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Turner
  • McKenzie
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:23
9."Iggy SZN"
  • Kelly
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Darryl Reid
  • Turner
  • The Invisible Men
  • Darryl Reid
3:20
10."Fancy" (featuring Charli XCX)
  • Kelly
  • Aitchison
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Turner
  • McKenzie
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:19
11."Heavy Crown" (featuring Ellie Goulding)
  • Kelly
  • Goulding
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Salt Wives
  • Turner
  • The Invisible Men
  • Salt Wives
3:52
12."Bounce"
  • Reeva & Black
2:47
Total length:41:00
Reclassified – Japan deluxe edition (bonus tracks)[45]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
13."Walk the Line"
  • Kelly
  • Mckenzie
  • Astasio
  • Shave
  • Pebworth
  • Turner
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:38
14."100" (featuring Watch the Duck)
  • Kelly
  • Harris, Jr.
  • O. White
  • Jesse Rankins
  • Eddie Smith III
  • Johnathan Wells
Watch the Duck4:09
15."New Bitch"
  • Kelly
  • Shave
  • Sims
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Joey Dyer
  • The Invisible Men
  • Dyer
3:37
16."Impossible Is Nothing"
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:10
17."Goddess"
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:10
18."Lady Patra" (featuring Mavado)
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
3:56
19."Fuck Love"
  • Kelly
  • Turner
  • Mills
  • Theron Thomas
  • Timothy Thomas
  • Shave
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • The Invisible Men
  • The Arcade
2:39
20."Just Askin'"
  • Kelly
  • Shave
  • Sims
  • Pebworth
  • Astasio
  • Ryan Woodcock
  • Roberts
  • The Invisible Men
  • WoodysProduce
2:58
21."Fancy" (Dabin & Apashe Remix)
  • Kelly
  • Aitchison
  • Dabin & Apashe
 
22."Black Widow" (86 Remix)
  • Kelly
  • Hermansen
  • Eriksen
  • Levin
  • Perry
  • Hudson
  • 86
 

Personnel

Credits for The New Classic adapted from Barnes & Noble[46]

Performance credits

Technical credits

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Poland (ZPAV)[61] Gold 10,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[62] Silver 60,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label Catalogue no. Ref.
Australia 21 November 2014 CD Virgin EMI 4709676 [63]
Digital download None [64]
New Zealand [44]
United Kingdom 24 November 2014 CD [65]
Digital download [66]
United States CD Def Jam Recordings [67]
Digital download [68]
Argentina 25 November 2014 Universal Music Argentina [69]
Japan 10 December 2014 CD Universal Music Japan UICR-1115 [45]

References

  1. "IGGY AZALEA on Twitter". Twitter.
  2. "IGGY AZALEA on Twitter". Twitter.
  3. Carley, Brennan (18 September 2014). "Iggy Azalea Previews a New Song With Charli XCX in London". Spin. Spin Media. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  4. Navjosh. "'Kingsman: The Secret Service' Film Trailer Feat. New Iggy Azalea & Ellie Goulding Song". hiphop-n-more.com.
  5. "Instagram".
  6. "Instagram".
  7. Wass, Mike (10 October 2014). "Iggy Azalea Is Going To Perform On 'SNL' And Release 'Beg For It' (Featuring MØ and Charli XCX) As Her Next Single". Idolator. Spin Media. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  8. "Iggy Azalea on 'Work' Passing 100 Million Views, Meeting Demi Lovato and New Music". Youtube.com (extratv). 14 October 2014.
  9. "Interview: Iggy Azalea on Working With Ellie Goulding & Jennifer Hudson on 'Reclassified'". radio.com. 14 November 2014. Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  10. Gracie, Bianca (9 October 2014). "Iggy Azalea Reveals Cover Art For 'The New Classic' Re-Release". Idolator. Spin Media. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  11. "Iggy Azalea Performs on 'SNL'". Rap-Up.com. 26 October 2014.
  12. Bianca Gracie (12 November 2014). "Iggy Azalea Previews "We In This Bitch": Listen To The 'Reclassified' Snippet". Idolator. Spin Media. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  13. "New Music: Iggy Azalea f/ Ellie Goulding - 'Heavy Crown' [Snippet]". Rap-Up.com. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  14. "New Music: Iggy Azalea f/ Jennifer Hudson - 'Trouble' [Snippet]". Rap-Up.com. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  15. "Iggy Azalea Releases New Album 'Reclassified' After Big AMAs Win," Hollywood Life, 21 November 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  16. "Tracklisting: Iggy Azalea - 'Reclassified'". Rap-Up. 19 October 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  17. "Iggy Azalea Performs 'Fancy' And 'Beg For It' At AMAs". Rap-Up.com. 24 November 2014.
  18. "Iggy Azalea - Beg For It (Lyric Video) ft. MØ". Youtube.com (VEVO). 24 November 2014.
  19. "Iggy Azalea gives Thanksgiving performance on Fallon — watch". consequenceofsound. 27 November 2014.
  20. Trust, Gary (29 October 2014). "Meghan Trainor Tops Hot 100 For Eighth Week, Hozier Hits Top 10". Billboard. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
  21. Ryan, Gavin (8 November 2014). "Ed Sheeran Spends Fourth Week Topping ARIA Singles". Noise11. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  22. "Ed Sheeran Spends 5th Week On Top Of ARIA Singles". Noise11. 15 November 2014.
  23. Menyes, Carolyn (28 December 2014). "Iggy Azalea Scraps "Beg For It" Music Video Due to Jingle Ball: "Trouble" Will Be Next 'Reclassified' Single". United States: musictimes.com. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  24. "Iggy Azalea and Jennifer Hudson Bring 'Trouble' to 'Tonight Show'". Rap-Up. 5 February 2015.
  25. "Top 40/M Future Releases". All Access Music Group. Archived from the original on 18 February 2015.
  26. Wass, Mike (3 February 2015). "Iggy Azalea, Jennifer Hudson play cops & robbers". New York Post. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  27. David Jeffries. "Reclassified – Iggy Azalea | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  28. Wass, Mike (24 November 2014). "Iggy Azalea's 'Reclassified': Album Review". idolator.com. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  29. Farber, Jim (21 November 2014). "Iggy Azalea "Reclassified" album review". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  30. Beaumont, Mark (24 November 2014). "NME Reviews - Iggy Azalea - 'Reclassified'". nme.com. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  31. Rory, Cashin (25 November 2014). "Iggy Azalea - Reclassified". state.ie. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  32. Ryan, Gavin (29 November 2014). "Taylor Swift 1, Veronicas 2 on ARIA Album Chart". noise11.com. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  33. "ARIA Australian Top 40 Digital Albums Chart – ARIA Charts". 1 December 2014. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014.
  34. "ARIA Australian Top 40 Urban Albums – ARIA Charts". 1 December 2014. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014.
  35. Balfour, Jay (3 December 2014). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Eminem, Rick Ross, Beyonce". hiphopdx.com. Archived from the original on 4 May 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  36. Balfour, Jay (7 January 2014). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Nicki Minaj, J. Cole & Iggy Azalea". hiphopdx.com. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  37. Balfour, Jay (14 January 2014). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Nicki Minaj, J. Cole & Iggy Azalea". hiphopdx.com.
  38. Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart: CLUK Update 6.12.2014 (wk48)". Zobbel.de. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  39. "FreezePage". freezepage.com. Archived from the original on 4 January 2015.
  40. "2015-01-10 Top 40 R&B Albums Archive". Official Charts Company.
  41. "Mumford & Sons knock Blur off the top of the Official UK Albums Chart". nme.com.
  42. "Official Albums Chart Top 100 - 10 May 2015 - 16 May 2015". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015.
  43. "The Official UK Albums Chart Update - 6th May 2015". BBC Radio 1. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015.
  44. "iTunes — Music – Reclassified by Iggy Azalea". New Zealand: iTunes Store. Archived from the original on 21 November 2014.
  45. "イギー・アゼリア / リ・クラシファイド【CD】 – Universal Special Store – Universal Music Store" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Archived from the original on 4 February 2015.
  46. "Reclassified by Def Jam, Iggy Azalea - Album Credits". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
  47. "Australiancharts.com – Iggy Azalea – Reclassified". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  48. "Danishcharts.dk – Iggy Azalea – Reclassified". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  49. "リ・クラシファイド - Iggy Azalea - Oricon Style". Oricon. 22 December 2014.
  50. May 2015/40/ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  51. "Swedishcharts.com – Iggy Azalea – Reclassified". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  52. "Iggy Azalea | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  53. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  54. "Iggy Azalea Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  55. "Iggy Azalea Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  56. "Iggy Azalea Chart History (Top Rap Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  57. "ARIA Top 50 Urban Albums 2014". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  58. "ARIA Top 50 Urban Albums 2015". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  59. "Top Billboard 200 Albums - Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  60. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  61. "Polish album certifications – Iggy Azalea – Reclassified" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  62. "British album certifications – Iggy Azalea – Reclassified". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 November 2018. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Reclassified in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  63. "Buy Reclassified Iggy Azalea, Hip-Hop, CD". Sanity. Archived from the original on 28 October 2014.
  64. "Reclassified". Bandit. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  65. "Reclassified: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  66. "Reclassified [Explicit]". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  67. "Reclassified: Music". Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  68. "Reclassified: Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  69. "Reclassified (F) – Iggy Azalea – Musicá". Yenny. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.