Beyoncé - "4"

Overview
By 2011, Beyoncé had already achieved a string of #1 albums, multiple hit singles and millions of records sold worldwide, and this was just during her solo career. Since the days of being part of Destiny's Child, Beyoncé gradually developed as an artist. Her debut album Dangerously in Love was a huge success and allowed her to take on a more mature sound compared to the music of Destiny's Child. Her follow-up album B'Day was constructed slightly differently, being filled with upbeat catchy tracks and a few ballads. Her third album I Am... Sasha Fierce was the first time that Beyoncé decided to follow a certain concept for an album, attempting to display the different sides of her personality. While this concept did not entirely work, it showed that she was interested in trying to put together album using a concept or theme rather than simply putting together a bunch of singles and filler. That being said, I Am... Sasha Fierce contained some of Beyoncé's most radio friendly singles of her career and did have its fare share of filler. Her first three albums all yielded a collection of iconic hits including Crazy in Love, Baby Boy, Irreplaceable, If I Were a Boy, Single Ladies, Halo & Sweet Dreams as well as many other hit singles. For this reason, there was a lot of expectation that her fourth album would follow suit and for this reason, 4 was labelled a "flop" after its release.

Unlike earlier albums, 4 did not spawn a #1 or even a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. In fact, 2011 was the first year since 1998 that Beyoncé did not manage to have at least 1 Top 10 hit. The album's lead single Run the World (Girls) stalled at #29 in the US and had modest success in other countries. It certainly felt like an underwhelming performance after her previous album had managed to spawn multiple Top 10 hits across the globe. She managed to have a couple of Top 20 hits with Best Thing I Never Had and Love on Top, but the other singles from the album struggled to get very far. At the time, many people were convinced that this was Beyoncé's "flop" era and wondered whether she would fizzle out from the charts altogether.

However, Beyoncé eventually proved the haters wrong. Since the album's release, she has gained critical acclaim for her self-titled fifth album and her newest release Lemonade, neither of which scored a large amount of hits like her first 3 albums but yet that doesn't seem to matter anymore. In hindsight, 4 can be viewed as a transitional record, it was a period of time when Beyoncé decided to part ways with her father's management and take control of her career. It was also a period in her career where she moved away from focusing on individual singles and instead decided to focus on her albums and to allow the music to speak for itself. While other pop stars have disappeared from the charts and have attempted to claw their way back, Beyoncé voluntarily dropped out of the chart races and has never looked back. Her albums continue to sell well and many people are willing to listen to her whole albums instead of just picking apart certain tracks. The general public is still perched for what Beyoncé will do next regardless of how well her singles sell.

4's traditional R&B sound felt very alien in the pop landscape of 2011, there were even rumours that Beyoncé's record label wanted her to re-record to album out of a fear that it would not be successful. 4 certainly was 'low-key' compared to her previous albums but it was also the last time that she was on the same level as her contemporaries. Her career and legacy have been elevated to levels that no one from 2011 would've expected but that's exactly what has happened. She no longer needs to battle with other pop stars over the success of her hits because it doesn't matter anymore, she has cemented her status and this process began with this album.


Track-by-Track

01. 1+1 - The album's opening track is fairly simple in its instrumentation but this doesn't make it any less effective as an opener. It begins with just a guitar followed by Beyoncé's emotive vocals which provide this song with a powerful atmosphere. I love the Prince-influenced sound of this track and the guitar solo is perfect. This song couldn't be any more different to Beyoncé's commercial hit singles of the past but that's why I love it so much.
 

02. I Care - While the previous song dealt with themes of being passionately in love, this song deals with the feelings of not being loved despite caring for that person. This track isn't necessarily upbeat but it does pick up the pace for the album. The song features a hand-clapping type rhythm with the use of Beyoncé's lower register for the verses before building up to a strong chorus. All I can say is that it continues the flow of flawlessness set by the opening track.

03. I Miss You - Despite being the shortest song on the album, it is by no means a weak track. The minimalist production coupled with Beyoncé's vocals (I know I keep mentioning her vocals but they are one of the big reasons why this album is so great) makes this song really effective in its intention to display a feeling of loneliness and missing the presence of a someone you care about.

04. Best Thing I Never Had - While this song was one of the more successful singles from the album (it even reached the Top 3 here in the UK), many Beyoncé fans don't seem to like this song very much, which is shame because I personally think this song is great. This track feels like a more obvious single choice compared to the first 3 songs and this is partially due it's more Pop-ish sound. It was considered a "Irreplaceable 2.0" at the time of its release and it's not hard to see why. The themes of moving on from a previous lover and finding new love shares a lot of resemblance to the themes of Beyoncé's 2006 Hit single. I'm not sure what it is about this song that makes so many Beyoncé fans dislike it but it's one of my personal favourites from this album and I would happily consider it a standout (even if it meant being attacked by the BeyHive).
 

05. Party - If I'm being honest, I'd say this is one of my least favourite tracks on the album. It's not a bad song by any means but it doesn't really stand out like most of the other singles. This track has elements of 80s funk and soul music and I see why people might enjoy listening to this song if they want to listen to something fun while out drinking with friends (for example) but I'm not that type of person and I don't tend to enjoy listening to this track as much as most of the other songs.

06. Rather Die Young - This is probably one of the darker sounding moments of the album, it's by no means a depressing song but it's certainly not a happy song and it contrasts a lot with the happier atmosphere of the previous song. Thematically, it deals with the idea of loving someone who is a danger to themselves and to the protagonist, but yet they cannot stop loving them and can't imagine living life without them. This is the type of song that Lana Del Rey would sing if she ever decided to release a R&B/Soul album (although I can't see that happening). This song isn't one I listen to very much but it has its charm.

07. Start Over - This song used to be one of my favourites back when I first listened to this album. It begins with some synthesizers and drums followed by Beyoncé's vocals which become more powerful as the song progresses towards the chorus. The placement of this song on the tracklist can cause an issue since this song doesn't offer much that previous tracks haven't already given us, but it's still great for what it is, even though the opening is probably the most interesting part of the song.

08. Love on Top - This track may end up becoming the most well-remembered song from the album by the general public (apart from maybe "Run the World (Girls)") and I would argue that it is deserving of this distinction. It has the potential to be a big Beyoncé classic (if it isn't already) with it's throwback 70s/80s R&B style sound and how her vocals seem to get more and more powerful as the song develops even after you think she's hit her vocal peak. This makes it one of Beyoncé's hardest songs to sing but also proves how talented she is as a vocalist.
 

09. Countdown - Unfortunately this single was not a major success on the charts, a shame because it's flawless. Featuring marching band style sound mixed with a bunch of different genres ranging from funk to latin to dancehall. In a perfect world this would've been one of Beyoncé's biggest hits. I know it sounds like I'm exaggerating but this song packs a punch form the very start to the very end.

10. End of Time - Does anyone know what is being said at the beginning? "Don't fuck with me, don't fuck with me" is what I hear and it seems strangely fitting because by this point in the album you should know that it wouldn't be a good idea to fuck with Beyoncé because she can sing circles around your fave's career (oh dear I'm beginning to sound like an obsessive Bey stan, oh well). This song is similar in style to the lead single Run the World (Girls) but yet is much stronger. The stomping beat mixed with towering vocals make this song quite powerful and prove why this should've been the lead single.

11. I Was Here - After the 1-2-3 punch of the previous 3 songs, we have a ballad that feels like it wants to be another Halo but much grander. Unlike the previous songs about love, this song focuses on the idea of leaving a mark to be remembered for. I don't listen to this song very much but I think it's a good song for what it is and would've made a great closing track (although the 2013 reissue places this as the last song so I guess they eventually knew the tea).
 

12. Run the World (Girls) - This song feels like a bonus track coming straight after I Was Here and I don't care much for this song. It's certainly a cute track and is nice enough to listen to but I'm not fond of this being the lead single and I prefer the verses to the repetitive chorus.

Bonus Tracks
13. Lay Up Under Me - While this isn't my favourite bonus track, I still enjoy listening to this song. It features a retro R&B/Funk inspired sound and would've fitted well on the standard album. It's a shame that this was not included on the 2013 reissue but It apparently was a #1 hit on the South Korean International Singles Chart, South Korea seem to like Beyoncé's bonus tracks since Poison was a #1 on the same chart.

14. Schoolin' Life - This is hands down one of the best songs on the album and it's a mystery why it relegated to bonus track status. This track contains elements of disco and funk and is lyrically about giving advice to all types of people of different age groups. If only someone could've given Beyoncé some good advice on how to choose bonus tracks.

15. Dance for You - I used to find this song overrated but I appreciate this song a lot more now. The song has sensual atmosphere that reminds me of some of the work of Prince and Janet Jackson. 6 minute long songs can often be an issue since the song is at risk of getting too boring by the end but this song works well with the 6 minute time frame but it wouldn't have hurt to cut it down a little bit.

16. Dreaming - This song was only released on Japanese editions of the album and honestly I think this song is cute. Thematically it's no different to the rest of the album, but I like the optimism in this track, although it's not huge loss if you don't own this track.