"Favorite Girl" is a song by Canadian singer Justin Bieber. The song was written and produced by D'Mile, and Antea Birchett, Anesha Birchett, and Delisha Thomas also receive writing credits. Bieber debuted the acoustic version of his song in his official YouTube account after American singer Taylor Swift used Bieber's single "One Time" as background music in one of her video tour diaries. The song was later released exclusively to iTunes as the second promotional single from his debut studio release, My World on November 2, 2009.
| "Favorite Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Promotional single by Justin Bieber | ||||
| from the album My World | ||||
| Released | November 2, 2009 | |||
| Genre | Teen pop | |||
| Length | 4:15 | |||
| Label | Island, RBMG | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Dernst Emile II, Antea Birchett, Anesha Birchett, Delisha Thomas | |||
| Producer(s) | Dernst Emile II | |||
| Justin Bieber promotional singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The song is mid-tempo and merges teen pop and R&B elements. It debuted at number 12 and 26 in Canada and the United States, respectively. It also charted at number 92 Australia, and at numbers 76 and 27 in the United Kingdom and the UK R&B chart, respectively. Bieber performed the song on several occasions, most of them being the acoustic version of the song, including as a supporting act on Swift's Fearless Tour.
Background
edit
Singer Taylor Swift used Bieber's "One Time" as background music and music that she and her friends were dancing to in a tour video diary that she posted on her official YouTube account in August 2009.[1] In response to Swift using his song, Bieber posted an acoustic rendition of the then never-before heard "Favorite Girl" on his YouTube.[1] When asked about his learning of Swift using his song, Bieber stated, "It was really funny because I heard about it from a fan. I watched it and it was hilarious!" Bieber and Swift then met in person at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, and she later invited him to be a special guest on her Fearless Tour when she returned to the United Kingdom.[1]
The song was written by Dernst "D'Mile" Emile II, Antea Birchett, Anesha Birchet, and Delisha Thomas. Emile also has production credits. The song was recorded by Blake Eisemen at Icon Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, where Bieber's career is based. Mixing was done by Dave Pensado and Jaycen-Joshua Fowler, at Larrabee Studios in North Hollywood, California.[2] The song became a popular trending topic on Twitter on the day of its release.[3] "Favorite Girl" be is a teen-pop song, which integrates characteristics of R&B music.[4] According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing, Ltd., "Favorite Girl" is set in common time, and has a moderate tempo of 88 beats per minute.[4] It is composed in the key of E minor with Bieber's vocals spanning from the low-note of G3 to the high-note of B4. The song follows in the chord progression of C–Em–G[4]
Chart performance
editThe song had hot shot debuts and limited stays on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and Canadian Hot 100 due to the single being released via iTunes only. It debuted in the U.S. at number twenty-six on the week ending November 21, 2009, and remained on the chart for two weeks.[5] The same week it debuted at number fifteen in Canada, remaining on the chart for two weeks. The song returned to the Canadian Hot 100 at number ninety-nine on the week ending January 9, 2010.[6] In 2010, the chart also appeared on the UK Singles Chart at seventy-six, and on the UK R&B Chart.[7][8]
Performances
editMost Bieber performances of the song are of the acoustic rendition. Bieber originally performed the song for the first time, acoustically, when he appeared for a second time on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on November 3, 2009, the same day the song was released to iTunes. Regarding the performance, MTV News praised the song as a "funky, groovy, swaggerific jam".[9] Bieber performed the song on the Fearless Tour, during Winter 2009 while performing at radio station-hosted Jingle Ball concerts, and during a live session with MTV, in which he was named MTV's Artist of the Week.[10] During the live session with MTV, he performed the song while playing the keyboard.[11] In a review of his acoustic performance of the song at Z100's 2009 Jingle Ball, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times called it his best performance of the night.[12]
Charts
edit| Chart (2009–2022) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[13] | 92 |
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[6] | 15 |
| Indonesia (Billboard)[14] | 16 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[7] | 76 |
| UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[8] | 27 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[5] | 26 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[15] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[16] | Gold | 500,000* |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c "The TRUTH behind Taylor Swift & Justin Bieber's friendship REVEALED!". Bop. 2009-10-27. Archived from the original on 2013-01-02. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
- ^ My World digital album booklet via iTunes.
- ^ "Current Twitter trends: 'Unseen prequels,' 'Favorite Girl', Melbourne Cup". The Independent Media. 2009-11-04. Archived from the original on November 5, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
- ^ a b c Dernst Emile, Antea Birchett, Anesha Birchett, and Delisha Thomas (Composers and Lyricists) (2009). "Favorite Girl: Justin Bieber Digital Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. Universal Music Publishing, Ltd. MN0086487 (Product Number).
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "Justin Bieber Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
- ^ a b "Justin Bieber Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
- ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- ^ a b "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Justin Bieber Charms On Ellen". MTV News. Archived from the original on 2012-07-11. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
- ^ Ryan, Chris (2009-11-10). "MTV Featured Artist: Justin Bieber". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 12, 2009. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
- ^ "Favorite Girl (Live)". MTV. Archived from the original on November 12, 2009. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
- ^ Caramanica, Jon (2009-12-13). "20-Year-Old Fogy Cedes Audience to 15-Year-Old". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
- ^ "The ARIA Report: Issue 1053 (Week Commencing 3 May 2010)" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
- ^ "Justin Bieber Chart History (Indonesia Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2024 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
- ^ "American single certifications – Justin Bieber – Favorite Girl". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 5, 2023.