This isn't really news and probably belongs in the Music thread but I wonder if E's team will be releasing a third single. With Idol returning tonight and the focus on past contestants, it seems like a good time. I hope the failure of One Word on Top 40 isn't the end for this album. His team may be happy with gold and ready to move on.

Elliott will hopefully be back on Idol this season and it's a great opportunity to promote another single.

Oops, Mods can you change up to one in the title? I'm home with a cold and the cough syrup has obviously affected me.

I'm really confused. Why is 'One Word' being called a failure when it has hardly been around. How long was 'WFY' around before it actually started getting any kind of play...seems a lot longer than 'OW' is being given. I'm sure this has probably been discussed plenty and there are good reasons that everyone has explained, but I'm old and don't retain information very long...I also realize I'm off topic but I'm cranky today (withdrawal) and just don't care. lol

I don't want to fight the One Word battle but it's done on Top 40. It gets a handful of plays on HAC and AC. Songs either make it or they don't on Top 40 radio and once they fall off the chart, that's it about 99% of the time.

I guess we won't be able to talk honestly about OW until 2009 but it's obviously struggling. I think people here can deal with that reality as the music business is very tough and Elliott will have his ups and downs like any other artist. One Word had not in any way followed the path of Wait for You. At this point in time, WFY was a huge hit and OW isn't.

I agree that you never know. And just because you launch something else doesn't mean you wouldn't keep hoping that the previous launch would catch on, or not keep its video out there and so on.

But Wait for You really performed very differently than One Word is doing -- while it didn't start climbing high for quite a while, it did keep being played very consistently by a few stations for the whole time, never dropped off the chart or even off the roster of the stations playing it before the steep climb began, kept picking up new stations even if very slowly for a long time. At this point, unfortunately, One Word has basically dropped off Top 40 altogether and doesn't seem to have attracted any stations at all in that format that keep repeatedly playing it.

The thing is, I think it's very hard if not impossible to relaunch a song in the same format you already launched it in. You already announced it and put your launching efforts into it, doing your best to sell it as a song they'll want to play.

So if you tried to launch it again, what would you say? Presumably the stations made their choice the first time, and the choice was not to do much with it. Seems like you'd have to pitch it the second time by saying, Hey! You were wrong! Well, maybe they were wrong, of course, but, nevertheless, that pitch isn't going to work -- the program directors won't want to hear that!

To me, that makes it seem that the better use for a new infusion of labor and cash into cracking Top 40 is a different song.

I'm in the middle, I guess. OW has certainly not done what WFY did, but I don't know if it's completely dead. I've been watching the view numbers on Youtube of the ElliottYaminMusic video. There were 3500 total views on the first week OW was on Youtube and 5,000 views yesterday alone. It would appear the song is gaining momentum. Now will that translate into more radio plays? Who knows? I have been adding a comment every couple of days at Youtube explaining that Elliott is an indie musician and people who like the song, which 99.99% of the comments are very positive, should request it like crazy at their local station. Being totally honest, I don't like OW as much as WFY, but I love Elliott and will support whatever he releases. This is just the beginning for Ellliott. With that voice and his sweet nature, he will be around for a long, long time! :elliottelliott:

I can agree with you.

Who Knew by Pink was performed on Idol last year, I believe in April. It really did not get airplay until mid summer timeframe. It could have been considered dead.....but it wasn't ---It was huge in the Fall.

Lots of time between its release and the take off. But I am no expert. but I truly do not think the song is dead. I think it got caught up in the seasonal stuff.

So as previously stated. If E's team says give up, I will,...but not until then.

I continue to request both WFY and One Word. If I at least get him played in some format...HE IS ON THE RADIO.

Songs on Top 40 radio are kind of like blockbuster movies. They have big opening weeks and become hits or not. After awhile, the ones that aren't hits disappear. AC radio is more like classic movies. A great movie like Casablanca is around forever.

OW is not a hit on Top 40 radio. The decision for Elliott's team now is to release another single from the debut album or call it a day IMO. I'm hoping for that third single but I understand it's a tough call. RCA gave up on Kat after her second single failed. Blake Lewis may or may not get a second single either so this is not an easy decision for even major labels let alone indies like Elliott.

Supporting OW as a video or in other outlets is fine as the album still sells in the thousands weekly and the song supports that.

I think that it sucks that OW actually got a decent video budget and flopped on Top 40. I really hope he gets out a third single soon and gets to perform it on AI.

I've been hoping for a third release from Elliott's album, hopefully one of the uptempo songs. But WFY's extended play in "recurrent" mode on HAC and being in the Top 10 in AC may be where TPTB hope to get the remaining sales to take EY's CD technically to Gold status.

With Elliott heading to Germany for the USO Tour I think that we'll be seeing just a few appearances until then. (Totally guessing.)

One thing is for sure, having an impact date during the holidays didn't help OW. SOTS stole the show.

I was one of the people that wanted Alright to be the second single, but I've really fallen in love with OW. It's not my all-time favorite track on the cd, but it really is a nice song. lol I hope OW has more life to it. :)

I completely agree that the Xmas album overshadowed OW. But it was wonderful hearing Elliott's Xmas songs on NYC radio and made up for their failure to play OW. That's why I'm extra antsy for another single.

One Word's peak on Top 40 was during the week before Thanksgiving day, when it got 438 spins and reached #48 on the charts, but it was in trouble even before that. Certain stations that had increased spins rapidly started cutting back in a pretty drastic fashion, making the spin count slow down and stall. It was bad luck and bad timing. I strongly believe this song could have been a top 10 hit under the right circumstances. While it's not my favorite track on the cd, it's a masterpiece compared to lots of the stuff on Top 40 radio.

I hope we get a third single - one that shows another side of Elliott and his music.

Thanks, as usual, for the data, PoorMe. ...

It reminds me that, in fact, reaching #48 on Top 40 is not actually failure, either. Hardly anybody has all their songs get into the top actual top 40 or higher, and when a song hits #48, that's listed on the resume as at least a limited success, so far as I've seen. Could've been a *lot* worse.

Good discussion, but I'm not going there.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

ok you know it is hard for me to stay out so I'll just say this:

Who Knew took off big after U + Ur Hand, without U + Ur Hand it would not have taken off again. Sometimes when a song is released after another hit or remixed it can take off, but that is rare as well. Hey There Delilah was released in 2006 with no airplay. When Hollywood signed them they bought the rights to their old stuff and sent HTD back out. Without Hollywood's team it would have died a big death. That goes to show you just how hard it is to get your song played if you are an indie act.

I was of the opinion that One Word wasn't getting airplay because Elliott was indie and had to work harder than the average bear but now I'm not so sure. Look at Blake Lewis... Supposedly Clive absolutely LOVED his cd and was very excited about his single Break Anotha. It has had zero big market airplay. Where's the big AI machine? No payola? Check it out on the top 40 charts.. # 50 and dropping... so what gives? Anyone?

I enjoy this discussion, so in the interest of allowing people to "split hairs" I'm moving this to the Music Forum.

My "gut" tells me there will be no more singles from this CD. This is especially true if Elliott goes back into the studio this spring. I don't know why OW was shunned by Top 40 - but I'm sure there's probably some backroom reason we don't know about - as for Blake's single, didn't he trash AI pretty publicly in the past few weeks? One thing we have learned is that the "magic" promotion has to happen somehow for Top 40 radio to get behind it, and if the AI attached label didn't promote it (I didn't seem them promoting it, did you?) then it's not going to get picked up. This reminds me of the "support" that Taylor's single got (although his song was far less Top 40 friendly than Blake's)

As for being a failure, if OW is picked up at all in other formats, then it is not a failure over all - just not wildly successful in the Top 40 format. I'm not sure I'd count on seeing Elliott on AI this season. Without a hit single, they seem to have forgotten his name during all the pre-AI7 interviews. Maybe something will happen with the Randy CD - maybe they get E & K to perform their duet.

When I think of all the good music out there that never sees the light of day because of the politics that are played in every aspect of our lives it makes me sick. (Yes, I know this is minor in light of the world situation) but nontheless.. I love 'I'll Make You Dance' (I know it's not on the CD) but I think it would be wildly popular, especially with the younger ones, but that's just one example of 'we'll never know'...very frustrating.

I think that sooner or later this thread will focus (again) on the topic "which song should be the next single?".
I would suggest to pick a song with a great beginning. Most songs on the CD are much better at the end so if a music director is not patient he/she may never get to the good part.
I always thought that OW (and "I'm the Man") is really boring at the beginning but
Elliott has some songs that are great from the start.

The best example is "If I Ever Leave You Baby" (unfortunately - it's not from the CD so it can't be the next single) or "Believe". Both these songs allow him to show off his voice within the first couple of seconds.

I went through the CD and listened to the first 30 seconds of each song trying to decide which of them would attract my attention if I heard only a sample that short.
I think that Free, Train Wreck, You are the One and Movin'on have the best beginning.
(My husband who is not Elliott's fan just came into the room when I was listening to "Free" and said, without being asked, that he liked this songs asked what it was. I said "it's Elliott". He said "REALLY?? "
So I'm voting for "FREE")

Well.... actually Blake's Break Anotha has been getting a LOT of tv time - New Year's Eve show, Leno, Kimmel, Ellen, to name a few. It's very surprising to me that it appears to be tanking. Although when he performs it live he acts and sounds like a big monkey - sorry but he does.

I so wish we could get one more song from Elliott's cd - an upbeat one (Movin On, I'll Make You Dance or Alright). I wonder if I'm the only one here that likes his Xmas cd more than the other. I love them both but I LOVE the smooth, jazzy, rockin, sexy feel of that Xmas cd. It's got it all IMO.

It is frustrating, but the good thing is that if you can hang around as an artist long enough, the good songs you do will eventually be known by a lot of people. Many of the songs we now think of as the best songs in history didn't get played on the radio. ....

Of course, this was true in the old days when people bought albums.... Today, with nobody buying albums any more maybe it won't happen. ... So much for the good news....

Well, I'm hoping the days of buying albums eventually come back. I suppose that's a "dream on" situation, but I'm hoping for it anyway.

Wow, this especially makes me wish that the second single had shown a different side of Elliott's talent, then. ... If you're only going to do two, I'd think you'd want to show your versatility a bit. But I guess they must have had research showing that One Word was the most likely or something.

As for the E&K duet -- I'm a little worried about Katharine singing that song live!

This is so true. The industry is in so much flux right now, I feel sure only the strong will survive. I think that everybody involved in the industry is afraid of making a mistake, since so much is not working. Luckily, Elliott has true talent and versatility - not just a "sound of the moment" to keep him through. If he can keep working and making a living as a musician, he should come out the other side ok. I sure hope we see the day when we listen to whole albums again - that's where the best music hides.

Lu, you're not the only one. I actually think the B grade that Elliott's first CD got from most reviewers was right on, and maybe generous from unbiased listeners. It was Good - based on the singer's talent and the songs that would never make the radio (ie - Trainwreck) but I'm looking forward to the next one, as Elliott has talked about a more thought out concept for it. He will be less pressured in his own mind to record his own songs, which he fully admits will be something that grow as he grows as an artist. I'm really anxious for the next chapter.

IF One Word is done on Top 40, then my only complaint would be the fact that we never really got to see any of the "tricks" that Elliott's team apparently had in store for us. There were talks of a duet version and of a remix, yet his team has been completely mum on that issue. If they believe that One Word still has a shot (Top 40 or otherwise) then they should start doing some of their tricks, as soon as possible.

As for a third single, I don't know if we're getting another one. Isn't Elliott going to be returning to the studio in February? That leaves very little time for him to promote a third single. Besides, if they're planning for a July or August release for the sophomore album, then that means we might be hearing the new single as early as May.

I would love it if they could release a third single, just because this album still has a lot of life in it. However, if they do release a third single, I want them to support it the same way that they supported WFY. And I agree with what has already been said: an uptempo song would be perfect, preferably MO, but Alright would be great as well.

Oh My........I really hope they "DO" release another single from the album!!!

My pick would be Alright.
I have absolutely LOVED that song from the moment I first heard it.

If not Alright then I would go for Movin On.

Upbeat for sure!

I prefer Movin On, it's more of his personality. I love Alright as well, but it's a tad more Usher than Elliott. Argh, why can't I'll Make You Dance be a non-bonus track?

Here's a quote about the first single several years ago from Season 7 Idol hopeful (and former signee to a $2 million MCA contract) Carly Hennessy. Seems to show how hard to figure and maybe totally arbitrary radio play is, even for major labels:

I mean, "didn't seem to have that sound that seemed like it would kick in at that time," which this program director concluded after *never* playing the song even once, apparently..... So how would he know?

And this one: "a little too mature for regular top-40 radio and a little too pop-sounding for adult top-40 radio" -- Makes it sound as if there's some incredibly precise sound that is the only one that listeners like, and if we deem that you've missed it by a hair's breadth on either side, well, then, we'll never even try your record ...

Really, it's obviously a miracle for someone to get any song played by stations at all.


http://blog.mattgoyer.com/stories/2002/02/...SpentByMCA.html

On my drive down to Florida, I tuned in to a Richmond station, don't remember which one, but , after hearing Alicia Keys, and Avril Lavigne being played, let me tell you that OW would have fit in just fine on a Pop station ! Still can't figure it out, and I still LOVE ONE WORD !

Really, a lot of it seems to be based on a few people's whims that then become national fads because nobody wants to try something that others aren't playing.

I listened to Carly Hennessy's stuff that was shopped to radio, and I'd say the same is true there as of One Word, when it comes to the style, which seems to be what people in the story claim as the basis for decisions not to play her stuff. It sounds every bit as contemporary-poppy as the stuff they do play.

I know they sometimes have callout data that dooms a particular song, or a particular song isn't as "good" as what gets played. But I don't get the impression that they always do what the callout data says, and there are certainly a lot of things that get played that aren't so great or even particularly catchy. There's a certain arbitrariness to it, although I suppose that's not surprising considering how many songs are released.