Stickwitu
"Stickwitu" is a song by American girl group the Pussycat Dolls, taken from their debut studio album, "PCD" (2005). The song was written by Franne Golde, Kasia Livingston and Robert Palmer and produced by Ron Fair. The song is a pop ballad with soul influences and finds the group celebrating monogamous relationships, with music critics drawing comparisons to fellow girl groups, Cover Girls, Sweet Sensation, and the Spice Girls. It was chosen to released as the album's second single on September 26, 2005, to contemporary hit radio stations in the United States to appeal to younger audiences. A  remix featuring American singer Avant was released in December of that year. Upon its release, the single received mixed reviews from critics, with some complimenting the production and vocal performances, while others criticized its placement on the album. Commercially, "Stickwitu" was a chart success, becoming the Pussycat Dolls' second consecutive number one in New Zealand and the United Kingdom, as well peaking atop "Billboard"'s Mainstream Top 40 chart, the first girl group since Destiny's Child in 2001 to do so. On "Billboard's" Hot 100 chart it peaked within the top five, where it achieved similar positions on  record charts of Australia, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Scotland. It has been certified platinum in Australia and the US, and gold in New Zealand and the UK. Nigel Dick directed the music video for "Stickwitu" with photography taking place in various places around Los Angeles including the Orpheum Theatre. With the aim to make each member more identifiable, the music video depicts a day of the group's tour life. To further promote the single, it was performed during several televised appearances, and in two of their concert tours, their most recent, at the Doll Domination Tour (2009). "Billboard" magazine  regarded "Stickwitu" as one of the greatest girl group songs of all time and received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Composition and release. "Stickwitu" was written by Franne Golde, Kasia Livingston and Robert Palmer in the key of A major and a slow tempo, swinging 72 beats per minute. The song was composed using time and follows a simple chord progression of D - A(9)/C♯ – Bm – A – Bm and A/C♯. Production was overseen by Ron Fair with co-producer Tal Herzberg, who engineered the song with Mike Hogue's assistance . The Pussycat Dolls' vocals were recorded by Mike "Angry" Eleopoulos, which span F♯ – E. Lead singer Nicole Scherzinger was noted for using the "thin end of [her] alto-into-soprano register". Fair arranged and conducted the strings which were recorded by Allen Sides. Moreover, it is accompanied by bass, harmonica, organ, piano, and the Rhodes piano. The song was eventually mixed by Peter Mokran at The Record Plant in Hollywood, California. "Stickwitu" is a pop song with soul influences. Kalefah Sanneh of "The New York Times" found the melody to be simple adding, "the beat keeps dropping out and returning  and growing and shrinking, confounding expectations". Chuck Taylor of "Billboard" magazine noted that "Stickwitu" is reminiscent to the works of fellow girl groups Cover Girls and Sweet Sensation, while Tony Heywood from "musicOMH" compared the song to the works of the Spice Girls. An ode to monogamous relationships, the Pussycat Dolls croon during the chorus, "Nobody gonna love me better / I'ma stickwitu forever". In July 2005 MTV News reported that "Beep" featuring will.i.am was a "potential second single". However, on September 26, 2005, A&M Records and Interscope Records serviced "Stickwitu" to contemporary hit radio stations as the  second single from "PCD". Jeff Leeds of "The New York Times" noted the release of the song coincided with the label strucking a deal with the toymaker Hasbro to create a line of dolls modeled after the group. "Stickwitu's" aim was to appeal to a wider and younger demographic, managing to receive airplay on outlets such as Radio Disney. In response to "Stickwitu's" release, Scherzinger felt it was a strong move for them, as opposed to coming out with "Beep", noting: "occasionally we get the skeptical people, but we go, 'Give us a chance'." An urban remix featuring  Avant singer Avant was released in December 2005. The remix has identical credits to the original "Stickwitu" with the addition of Avant as a songwriter and Mokran as a remixer. Scherzinger recorded new vocals and duets with Avant in a similar way Avant sang with Keke Wyatt on "My First Love". The remix was included on "PCD"s reissue, "PCD: Tour Edition" (2006) and on Avant's fourth studio album, "Director" (2006). Critical reception. Jim Carroll of the "Irish Times" wrote that "Stickwitu" is "one of the best pop ballads of recent years". Taylor was surprised of "Stickwitu"'s release following  Don't Cha and praised for being "beautifully sung, craftily produced and refreshingly gimmick-free". He continued praising the "catchy" chorus noting the "track is unlike anything else on the air". Sanneh felt that the song "might be even better" than 'Don't Cha'. Paul Scott of "Stylus Magazine" agreed with Sanneh adding that it's "pretty enough but just sort of mills around without getting up the courage to go [over the top], and that's actually a good thing". Although "musicOMH"s John Murphy appreciated the group's vocal performances and harmonies, he noted that "[none of the group  members] have a particular strong vocal" and the song "doesn't particularly stick in the mind very much". Spence D. of IGN shared similar thoughts with Murphy writing that although Scherzinger "has a pleasing enough voice" she "never really presents anything that could come close to being called a signature sound". Spence D. also criticized the song's placement on the album. Similarly, Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine lamented the inclusion of "Stickwitu" in the album. ""PCD" seems like it will be that rare thing: a mainstream club/dance album devoted to nothing but dance songs. Then, reality comes crashing  in with the fourth song, 'Stickwitu', the inevitable romantic slow jam whose sappiness undercuts the joyous carnal celebration of the first three songs." Sal Cinquenmani from "Slant Magazine" found it difficult to take the album's ballad's seriously—"Stickwitu" and "How Many Times, How Many Lies"— , "when followed by a song that begs a man to 'loosen up my buttons'". Kat Bein of the "Miami New Times" wrote that the song was "in the running for most trite lyrics of all time". Nathan Rabin from "The A.V. Club" described it as a "saccharine, sleepy ballad". Writing for Sputnikmusic, Nick Butler  described "Stickwitu" as a "limp, lifeless ode". However he did note that "it's nowhere near as sickly or disgustingly submissive and sexist as something like Destiny's Child's 'Cater 2 U'". Kevin Courtney of the "Irish Times" gave "Stickwitu" two out of five stars, noting that "they don't want to be one-hit wonders". Accolades. On "Billboard"s 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks, the single was placed at number 68. Taylor Weaterby wrote that the Pussycat Dolls "created one of the most heartfelt ballads in modern girl group history". Weaterby added, "the song  is likely still making couples everywhere sway along and fall deeper in love" for years to come. In 2007, "Stickwitu" was nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards. The remix featuring Avant was nominated for Best R&B/Soul Single – Group, Band or Duo at the 21st Annual Soul Train Awards. In May, the song was listed as one of the recipients of BMI Pop Awards. Chart performance. In the United States, "Stickwitu" debuted on the "Billboard" Hot 100 at number 85 on the issue dated October 22, 2005. On  the issue dated November 26, 2005, it leaped from 18 to nine entering the top ten. In its eleventh week, the song peaked at number five. The song became the Pussycat Dolls' first number one on the Mainstream Top 40, making the group the first girl group to peak atop since Destiny's Child in 2001. On the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, the remix featuring Avant charted, debuting at number 73 with 3.6 million audience impressions (up by 37%); it ultimately peaked at number 63. In May 2007, the song received a BDS Certified Spin Award for  receiving 300,000 radio spins in the United States. Across Europe, "Stickwitu" performed strongly, debuting at number two on the European Hot 100 Singles and attaining the same position in Ireland, the Netherlands, and Scotland, number three in Norway, number five in Belgium (Flanders), number six in Italy and Switzerland, number seven in France, and number eight in the Czech Republic. On the UK Singles Chart, "Stickwitu" debuted at number one with sales of 43,989 copies for the week of December 10, 2005, becoming the Pussycat Dolls' second consecutive number-one song in the region after "Don't Cha" debuted atop  12 weeks before. In its second week, the song remained at number one for a final week, with a 28.8% sales decrease, selling 31,311 copies. The Official Charts Company (OCC) ranks "Stickwitu" as the Pussycat Dolls fourth most successful song on their singles chart, and the 74th best-selling song by a girl group. "Stickwitu" also peaked at number one in New Zealand for two non-consecutive weeks. It received platinum certifications in Australia and the United States, and gold certifications in New Zealand the United Kingdom. Music video. The song's music video, directed by Nigel Dick, premiered on  MTV.com on October 13, 2005. According to MTV, the clip was filmed in different places across Los Angeles including the Orpheum Theatre over the course of two days. The Pussycat Dolls enlisted Dick to direct the video as they wanted to maintain their momentum garnered from their debut single, "Don't Cha". Dick admitted that he felt pressure to deliver. "This video establishes the way they want to be seen from now on. But that's the way it's always been for me. I've been very lucky in my career to do videos for people that are very  crucial in artist's careers." The group felt "Stickwitu" would help each girl be more identifiable by showing different sides of their personalities. Scherzinger elaborated that "this video shows much more vulnerability. Part of it is [showing] the strength to do what we do [as performers]; the other is to show that we have our vulnerabilities in life with trying to hold up relationships while we're on the road. We wanted to make sure that each of us was identifiable in this video, that you got to know each girl a little bit more, and get to see what  we're like on and off tour." MTV's James Montgomery said that the video manages to be "high-fashion and low-brow, glamorous and, um, gritty at the same time", where, according to Scherzinger, it's "a day in the life of the Pussycat Dolls on the road." The director added that the music video is "a photographic [rendition of] the life of the Pussycat Dolls: traveling around, getting ready for gigs, being on the tour bus, doing a photo session, waking up in a motel, talking to the boyfriend on the phone, sound-checking. It's informal but  beautiful. It's not rock and roll; it's the urban-pop world." Live performances. On December 7, 2005, the Pussycat Dolls performed at the annual KIIS-FM Jingle Ball at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California with some members wearing "festive candy-cane-striped belly shirts and red-and-green capri pants." The set list included "Stickwitu", "Don't Cha", and "Wait a Minute". On March 4, 2006, the Pussycat Dolls and Avant performed "Stickwitu" at the 20th Soul Train Music Awards. On June 30, 2006, the group performed "Don't Cha", "Buttons" and "Stickwitu" on "Good Morning  America" as part of its "Summer Concert Series". On July 7, 2007, the Pussycat Dolls together with other artists performed at the Live Earth Concerts, which were held to raise awareness of global warming. They performed "Don't Cha", "Stickwitu", and "Buttons". "Stickwitu" was included on the group's first live album "PCD Live from London" (2006). The song was part of the set list while opening for The Black Eyed Peas' Honda Civic Tour (2006), Christina Aguilera's Back to Basics Tour (2007), and The Circus Starring Britney Spears (2009) as well as their own headline tours, PCD World  Tour (2006–07) and Doll Domination Tour (2009). While reviewing the latter tour, Alex Macpherson of "The Guardian" praised Scherzinger's "inventive and versatile" vocals which are "gently crooning the sweet ballad." In 2012, Scherzinger performed "Stickwitu" as part of a Pussycat Dolls medley throughout her first solo tour in support of her debut studio album, "Killer Love" (2011). Credits and personnel. Credits adapted from the liner notes of "PCD". Mixing Personnel