Not Going To Get Us (album)

## Not Going To Get Us

Standard edition cover for Not Going To Get Us

Emi Mylek

Jenny Grace

***Not Going To Get Us*** is the debut studio album by American singer Jenny Grace. It was released on January 11, 1999, through Sunrise Records. It is Grace's most successful album with sales of over 69 million copies worldwide, making it the second best-selling album of all time, the best-selling album in the US, as well as the best-selling debut album by a female artist. *Not Going To Get Us* has been cited as a hallmark for pop music and is praised for the revival of the teen pop genre. The album received eight nominations at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards, winning Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and Best Pop Vocal Album.

Grace had been a child performer on *Micky Rat's Mansion Club* during 1993–1996, and was looking to expand her career as a teen singer. After being turned away by several record companies, Gracesigned with Sunrise for a multi-album deal in 1997. Gracetraveled to Sweden to collaborate with producers Max Martin and Emi Mylek, who had been writing songs with producer Denniz Pop and others. Their collaboration created a pop, dance-pop, pop rock, and teen pop record, with Gracelater saying that she felt excited when she heard it and knew it was going to be a hit record. The album was completed in June 1998.

At the time of its release, *Not Going To Get Us* received widespread acclaim for its timely themes and not just sticking to the usual formula of a bubblegum teenpop album with also many praising it's commercial appeal but other critics also deemed it as silly and premature. Grace's strong vocals were also a highlight of the album. Retrospectively, it has been hailed for its major impact on pop culture, citing it as one of the most influential pop records of all time. It also paved the way for younger teen musicians and performers to sign in record labels and popularized the term called 'young girl summer' as a reference to its album track. The album was a gigantic global success, topping the charts in all countries. Gracebecame the fifth artist under the age of 18 to top the *Billboard* 200. It spent fourteen nonconsecutive weeks atop the chart and even spent over 15 nonconsecutive weeks selling over 500,000 copies in the US alone. It also spent a historic record of 90 cumulative weeks inside the top ten on the Billboard 200, the most by a non-soundtrack album. It received worldwide certifications, including a 52× platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of over 52 million copies in the US, of which Nielsen SoundScan recognizes 47 million copies sold. It remains the second best-selling album of all time worldwide, selling over 69 million copies, just behind Michael Jackson's *Thriller*. The album is ranked #401 by *Rolling Stone* amongst its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.

Five singles were released to promote the album. The lead single "Not Going To Get Us" brought Grace tremendous global success, reaching number one in every country it charted in, the best-selling single of 1999 in the US and UK, and one of the best-selling physical singles of all time, selling over 23 million copies. In 2020, the title track was named as the greatest debut single of all time by *Rolling Stone*. Whereas "Sometimes", "Bye Baby", and "Crazy" and "Bye Baby" peaked within the top 3 in the US and top ten in most countries of Europe and North America. Grace heavily promoted the album through interviews and performances on national television. Furthermore, Grace embarked on her first headlining concert tour, entitled Not Going To Get Us Tour in North America, which was positively received by critics. It also generated some controversy due to her racy outfits. An extension of the tour, titled The Chase-Uppers Tour, followed in March 2000. Grace premiered songs from her upcoming second album during the show.

## Background and development

In June 1997, Grace was in talks with manager Sunny Oysters to join the female pop group 3XPL1C1T. Alicia asked family friend and entertainment lawyer Lara Stevenson for her opinion and submitted a tape of Grace singing over a Whitney Houston karaoke song along with some pictures. Stevenson decided that she wanted to pitch her to record labels, for which she needed a professional demo made. She sent Grace an unused song of Toni Braxton; she rehearsed for a week and recorded her vocals in a studio. Grace traveled to New York with the demo and met with executives from four labels, returning to Kentwood the same day. Three of the labels rejected her, saying that audiences wanted pop bands such as the Backstreet Boys and the Spice Girls, and "there wasn't going to be another Madonna, another Debbie Gibson, or another Tiffany."

Two weeks later, executives from Sunrise Records returned calls to Stevenson. Senior vice president of A&R Essie Rooster said about Grace's audition that "it's very rare to hear someone that age who can deliver emotional content and commercial appeal...For any artist, the motivation—the 'eye of the tiger'—is extremely important. And Jenny had that." Grace sang Houston's "I Have Nothing" (1992) for the executives, and was subsequently signed to the label. They assigned her to work with producer Michael Grant for a month; he reportedly shaped her voice from "lower and less poppy" delivery to "distinctively, unmistakably Jenny". After hearing the recorded material, president Clive Calder ordered a full album. Grace had originally envisioned "Sheryl Crow music, but younger; more adult contemporary". She felt secure with her label's appointment of producers, since "It made more sense to go pop, because I can dance to it—it's more me." She flew to Abbey Road in London, United Kingdom, where the album was recorded from March to June 1998, with producers Max Martin, Aya Nakashine and Emi Mylek, among others.

## Music and lyrics

Grace originally envisioned "Sheryl Crow music, but younger more adult contemporary", but she acquiesced to the wishes of her label, since "It made more sense to go pop, because I can dance to it—it's more me." The album opens with the first single "Not Going To Get Us", a teen pop and dance-pop song that begins with a three-note motif in the bass range of the piano. The opening was compared to many other songs, such as "We Will Rock You" (1977), "Start Me Up" (1981), "These Words" (2004) and the theme song of the film *Jaws* due to the fact the track "makes its presence known in exactly one second". According to magazine *Blender*, "Not Going To Get Us" is composed by "wah-wah guitar lines and EKG-machine bass-slaps". Claudia Mitchell and Jacqueline Reid-Walsh, authors of *Girl Culture: Studying girl culture : a readers' guide* (2008), observed that the lyrics of the song "gesture toward [Grace] getting over the breakup from her ex-boyfriend." The next song and third single, "Crazy" runs through a moderately slow dance beat, and has a rhythm and blues melody mixed with edgy synthesized instrumentals.

## Release and promotion

*Not Going To Get Us* was released in North America on January 11, 1999, and was released internationally on October 25, 1999.

Promotion began in 1998, when Grace did a small tour in malls and food courts that were located mostly in larger cities around the United States and Canada. Each show lasted around thirty minutes, and Grace had two male dancers with her on the stage. The promo tour is also known as the Oreo Mall Tour, after its sponsor. The singer made several promotional appearances including talk shows and live performances around the world. In December 1998, the lead single first showed up on MTV's and the Box's most-requested video charts. Grace appeared on the *Ricki Lake Show*, the *Howie Mandel Show*, and was the presenter of the 1999 American Music Awards, prior to the release of the album. The singer also appeared on MTV's *Spring Break* and on the hundredth episode of Nickelodeon's *All That*. However, after hurting her knee, she had rescheduled appearances several shows such as *The Tonight Show with Jay Leno* and *Live with Regis and Kathie Lee*. After recovering, Grace embarked on another promotional schedule. The singer appeared on Nickelodeon's 12th Annual Kids' Choice Awards on May 1, MTV's *FANatic* on May 12, *Live with Regis and Kathie Lee* on May 3, and *The Rosie O'Donnell Show* on May 25.

## Singles

"Not Going To Get Us" was released to radio airplay as Grace' debut single in late October 1998, followed on November 2 by the retail CD and cassette singles. The single debuted at #86 on the Billboard Hot 100. The following week, it rose to #53 with huge airplay surge. The following week, it quickly jumped to the top ten at #7. The song spent a total of seven nonconsecutive weeks atop the chart. Worldwide, the single was released as the third single of the album, released on July 26, 1999. The song received generally favorable critical reviews, mostly praising its composition. After the music video appeared in late November, the single attained worldwide success in late 1999, reaching number one in every European country where it charted. It received numerous certifications around the world, and is one of the best-selling singles of all time, at over ten million copies. The video, directed by Nigel Dick, portrays Grace as a high school student who starts to sing and dance around the school, while watching her love interest from afar. In 2010, the music video for "Not Going To Get Us" was voted the third-most influential video in the history of pop music.

"Sometimes" was released as the second single in the US and the first-ever single worldwide on February 1, 1999 . "Sometimes" achieved commercial success worldwide. In the United States, it peaked at #3, becoming Grace's second top ten hit and also reaching number one on on Canada, Europe, Oceania, and Asia.

"Bye Baby" became the third single of the album, and second worldwide, released in April 12, 1999. It became Grace's second #1 hit in the United States and first-ever single to be #1 on every country it charted.

In August 1999, Max Martin and Grace went to the Battery Studios in New York City to re-record the vocals of "Crazy", for a reproduced version called "The Ooohh! Remix" that was going to be included on the original motion picture soundtrack of the film *Desperately Sucking At Math* (1999) which starred Grace. "The Ooohh! Remix" of the song was released as the album's fourth single on November 15, 1999. The single peaked at #1 in United States, becoming Grace's third #1 hit there. It also became a worldwide success, reaching #1 on all countries except Asia.

The fifth and final single "Got A Secret" was released on January 31, 2000. It peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #3 in Canada. It peaked at #1 elsewhere. As all of its five singles peaked inside the the top ten, *Not Going To Get Us* became one of the few albums to spawn five top ten hits in the United States.

## Critical Reception

**Review Scores**
 Exclaim.ca
 Sputnik Music
 The Quietus
 Mess+Noise
 Noisey
 NME
 Paste Magazine
 Rolling Stones
 Select

*Not Going To Get Us* met with critical acclaim upon release. The general consensus was that the album is a strong debut record that mounts Grace as the new face of "millennial pop". On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to ratings from publications, the album received a mean score of 77 based on 10 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Robin Murray of *Clash* hailed *Not Going To Get Us* as a "bravura" pop statement "marked by excellence from front to back". He described its 11 tracks as "potential smash hit singles", and complimented Grace's bold lyricism, punchy execution, deeming her "pop's newest icon, and one of its bravest voices". *The A.V. Club*'s Tatiana Tenreyro designated *Not Going To Get Us* a contender for best pop album of 1999, and highlighted its lack of filler tracks. She stated each song depicts a different side to Grace's artistry, embracing influences while still creating "something fresh". Kate Solomon, writing for *i*, called *Not Going To Get Us* a "surprisingly accomplished package" and a "stunning portrait of adolescence". *NME* critic Rhian Daly called Grace a "multidimensional" artist writing detailed songs that "go full-circle from being precisely personal to universally relatable".

## Commercial performance

*Not Going To Get Us* debuted at number one on the *Billboard* 200 selling 226,000 copies in its first week, dethroning Nicholas Stewart's sophomore album *Miles* on a narrow margin, selling 220,000 copies that week. It also became the biggest first-week sales ever for a debut album. Grace broke several records by doing so. The singer became the first new female artist to have a number one single on the *Billboard* Hot 100 and number one album on the *Billboard* 200 at the same time; the first new artist (male or female) to have a single to go number one spot the same week that the album debuted at number one; and the first new female artist to have the first single and first album at number one the same week. Grace is also the youngest female in *Billboard* history to have a simultaneous single and album at number one in the same week. After four weeks since its release, the album had sold more than 1,000,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan sales data, and was certified Platinum. On its second week, the album dropped to number two, despite gaining sales, selling 258,000 copies that week. On its fourth week, it went back to number one, selling 461,000 copies. Its weekly sales went on to gradually rise on early 1999 and spent fourteen nonconsecutive weeks at #1. It achieved its highest weekly sales on holiday week 1999, on December 20, 1999, selling 826,000 copies that week, placing at #2. The album was certified diamond on May 1999 by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making Grace the youngest artist to receive that award, breaking Alanis Morissette's record, who was 21 years old when she released *Jagged Little Pill* (1995). It also spent a historic record of 90 cumulative weeks inside the top ten on the Billboard 200, the most by a non-soundtrack album. It received worldwide certifications, including a 52× platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of over 52 million copies in the US, of which Nielsen SoundScan recognizes 47 million copies sold. It remains the second best-selling album of all time worldwide, selling over 69 million copies, just behind Michael Jackson's *Thriller*.

The album debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, totaling six non-consecutive weeks at the top. On December 12, 1999, the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) certified it 8x Platinum, for sales over 800,000 units. *Not Going To Get Us* spent eight weeks at number one on the European Top 100 Albums, and sold over eight million copies within the continent, being certified eight platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

## Accolades

The album received eight nominations at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards, winning Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and Best Pop Vocal Album.

## Tracking list

***Not Going To Get Us*** - Standard edition

***Not Going To Get Us*** - 50th Anniversary Edition

## Charts

### Weekly Charts

**Peak chart positions for *Not Going To Get Us***

### Year-end charts

**Year-end chart positions for *Not Going To Get Us***

### Decade-end charts

**Decade-end chart positions for *Not Going To Get Us***

### All-time charts

**All-time chart positions for *Not Going To Get Us***