Toxic

"Toxic"
Single by Britney Spears
from the album In the Zone
Released	January 12, 2004 (2004-01-12) (see release history)
Format	CD, DVD, 12" Vinyl
Recorded	2003; Murilyn Studios, Stockholm, Sweden Record Plant, Hollywood, CA
Genre	Electropop
Length	3:21
Label	Jive
Writer(s)	Bloodshy & Avant, Cathy Dennis, Henrik Jonback
Producer	Bloodshy & Avant
Certification	Platinum (Australia, Norway) (see certifications)
Britney Spears singles chronology
"Me Against the Music" (2003) "Toxic" (2003) "Everytime" (2004)

"Toxic" is a Grammy Award-winning dance-pop song written by Bloodshy & Avant, Cathy Dennis, and Henrik Jonback for Britney Spears' fourth studio album In the Zone (2003). It was released as the album's second single in early 2004 (see 2004 in music). "Toxic" enjoyed critical acclaim and international success, topping many singles charts around the world. In 2005, it won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording, Spears' first and only Grammy to date.^[1] "Toxic" is considered to be one of Spears' signature songs.

Music and structure

The song's high-pitched hook.

"Toxic" is a dance-pop song composed in the key of C minor. It is written in common time and moves at 143 beats per minute. Spears' vocal range for the song spans nearly two octaves, from G₃ to F₅.^[2]

After the introduction repeats the hook four times, Spears sings the first two verses, each one followed by the hook. After singing the bridge, she sings the chorus. Spears sings the third verse and then the chorus. Following a break she sings the chorus twice and closes the song with an outro.^[2]

Reception

The song received positive reviews from critics and the industry. It earned Spears her first Grammy for Best Dance Recording in 2005. It also came 5th in the highly regarded Pazz and Jop Poll for single of the year.^[3] In addition, several popular music magazines have selected it one of the greatest songs to be released since the year 2000. Indie music websites Pitchfork Media and Stylus Magazine both named it one of the top songs to be put out between 2000 and 2005, Pitchfork ranked it 13th^[4] and Stylus ranked it 14th.^[5] Blender also ranked it on their list of the top 500 songs from 1980 to 2005 placing it 110th.^[6] The song was chosen as the second favorite song of the world (all time) in a global survey made by Sony Ericsson, in which 700,000 music fans of 66 countries contributed, behind "We Are the Champions" by Queen.^[7]

A negative review came from Blender magazine, saying "It’s got an irritating melody that sticks in your head like hot gum on your shoe", and almost appeared on the list "The 50 Worst Songs Ever".^[8]

Chart performance

"Toxic" became Spears' fourth top ten single in the United States, reaching number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 2004.^[9] It was her most succesful single since "Oops!...I Did It Again". The single also experienced strong downloads, and became her first number-one on the Hot Digital Tracks.^[10] In addition, it ranked at forty-eight on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart for 2004.^[11] "Toxic" also became an all-around hit on Top 40 radio, going top twenty on the Rhythmic Top 40, top ten on Top 40 Tracks and to number-one for four solid weeks on the Mainstream Top 40.^[9] The track was a club hit reaching number-one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart.^[9] On June 14, 2006, the Recording Industry Association of America certified the single gold after having sold over 500,000 digital downloads.^[12]

The single also became a huge success in the United Kingdom, selling 102,500 copies in its first week of release^[13] and debuting at number one in the official singles chart,^[14] charting ahead of Kylie Minogue's "Red Blooded Woman" which entered the chart at number five.^[14] The chart battle between the two divas was highly popularized in the U.K.^[15] Ironically, the song had originally been offered to Minogue for inclusion on her 9th studio album Body Language, but she turned it down.^[16] "Toxic" sold a total of 268,000 copies in the U.K.^[17] and became the 9th best-selling single of 2004.^[18] In the rest of the European continent, "Toxic" peaked within the top ten in every single country it charted,^[19] including big markets such as France and Germany.^[19] Eventually, the track topped the European Hot 100 singles chart for two consecutive weeks.^[20]

In the Pacific, "Toxic" was also a huge success. It went straight to number-one in Australia knocking Jamelia's "Superstar" off the top,^[21] after having spent two weeks in the penthouse the track was replaced by Usher's "Yeah!".^[22] The Australian Recording Industry Association certified the single platinum for shipping 70,000 copies.^[23] Meanwhile, in New Zealand the single peaked at number two being held off the top spot by Eamon's "Fuck It (Don't Want You Back)".^[24] In addition, the track was certified gold, selling over 7,500 copies.^[25]

Music video

The video for "Toxic" features Spears entirely nude aside from several strategically-placed crystals and a G-string.

The music video was directed by Joseph Kahn, who had previously worked with Spears on "Stronger".^[26] The video was shot on December 21 and December 22, 2003 in Los Angeles.^[27] The video features models Matthew Felker, Tyson Beckford and actor Martin Henderson.^[28] According to MTV News, the project got a very high budget, approximately 1 million USD.^[27] As Spears did before with the music video for "...Baby One More Time",^[29][30] she came up with a fully formed idea for the "Toxic" video as well.^[27] The video made its world premiere on MTV's "Making the Video" on January 13, at 6:30 p.m. EST and debuted on Total Request Live two days later.^[31]

Notably, the video clip is intercut with sequences of Spears with hundreds of diamonds glued to her body and wearing only a G-string. She made Kahn clear the entire set for the shoot.^[27] The scene was widely considered controversial, MTV Network thought the music video was too racy for daytime rotation and moved it, along with another five videos, to late-night rotation, from 10 p.m. through 6 a.m.^[32] An MTV spokeswoman told Reuters the network was not engaging in self-censorship or responding to pressure from its corporate parent, Viacom Inc. She stated that:^[32]

The futuristic video depicts Spears as a kind of villainous agent or assassin. At the beginning, Britney appears as a stewardess on an airplane. She seduces a passenger (who actually turns out to be an attractive agent disguised as an ordinary, somewhat unattractive man) in the bathroom of the airplane and steals a black pass from his pocket. In the next scene, Spears is dressed in a tight black leather suit and bright red hair. She takes a ride on a motorcycle through the streets of Paris to "Toxic Industries" before gaining entry to a vault (using the item which she stole from the man) from which she steals a vial of toxic green poison. She accidentally triggers a laser trap that she evades with elaborate dance moves (in which Spears does a back handspring over a laser). In the conclusion of the video, her costume evokes that of a superhero as she scales a building and gains entry to the residence of her cheating boyfriend (Martin Henderson). She kisses him just before pouring the poison into his mouth, presumably killing him. She kisses him again, closes his eyes and jumps out the window appearing to land back in the plane, once again sporting her flight attendant outfit.

The music video was nominated in four categories at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Female Video, Best Dance Video, Best Pop Video, and Video of the Year.^[33] Visual effects supervisors Chris Watts and Bert Yukich were awarded for their work on "Toxic" at the 3rd Annual Visual Effects Society Awards on February 16, 2005 in the category of "Outstanding Visual Effects in a Music Video".^[34]

Awards

Release history

Track listings and versions

Major formats released for "Toxic":

Remixes

• Main Version 3:21
• Instrumental 3:21
• Armand Van Helden Remix 9:34
• Armand Van Helden Remix Edit 6:25
• Armand Van Helden Radio Mix 3:46
• Bloodshy & Avant's Intoxicated Remix 5:37
• Felix Da Housecat's Club Mix 7:07
• Junior Vasquez Marathon Mix 10:08
• Junior Vasquez Sound Factory Remix (Extended) 10:07
• Junior Vasquez Sound Factory Remix 6:26
• Junior Vasquez Sound Factory Remix (TV Track) 6:27
• Lenny Bertoldo's 2008 Electro Club Mix
• Lenny Bertoldo Club Mix
• Lenny Bertoldo Mixshow 5:44
• Lenny Bertoldo Radio Mix 3:32
• Lost Daze Club Mix 5:55
• Peter Rauhofer Reconstruction Mix 7:57
• Peter Rauhofer Reconstruction Mix Edit 6:46
• Peter Rauhofer Radio Mix 4:29
• The Circus: Starring Britney Spears Simon Ellis Remix

Cover versions

Along with "…Baby One More Time", "Toxic" has become one of Spears' most covered songs.

Live versions

Several versions of the track were made during some artists' live concerts, while being on a radio station or on TV talent show contests.

• Indie band Hard-Fi covered the song for the Radio 1. Established 1967. The song is fused with The Clash's Brand New Cadillac. Lead singer Richard Archer is quoted as saying their cover will "send Britney mad".^[39]
• The progressive rock band Marillion recorded a live version of the song for their 2007 album Friends.^[40]
• Progressive bluegrass group Nickel Creek is known to cover the song in concert, with mandolinist Chris Thile imitating Spears' dance moves at select parts of the song.^[41]
• The Jerusalem-based indie rock band missFlag regularly covers the song in concert^[42] and has a new version on their MySpace page.^[43]
• Indie-pop band Those Dancing Days covered the song in August, 2008.^[44]
• Singer-songwriter Tristan Prettyman has played an acoustic version of the song many times in concert.^[45] In 2008, she released a Live Session via iTunes which includes a cover of "Toxic".^[46]
• Electro-pop band Metronomy covered it, restyling it in an electro/polka vein.^[47]
• Chloe Lattanzi, daughter of Olivia Newton John, covered this song on the semi-final of the MTV reality show Rock the Cradle.^[48]
• Alexandra Burke covered this song on the quarter-finals of the British reality TV show The X Factor.^[49]
• Pop punk band Quietdrive often covers it toward the end of the show, or during their encore performance. Lead singer Kevin Truckenmiller plays the violin live during the song.
• Australian singer/songwriter Kate Miller-Heidke has covered the song in few live shows, using her opera voice (rather than a violin) to sing the high riff.^[50]
• The web site of Boston-based Count Zero features an mp3 download of the band covering this song live.

Studio versions

Other versions have been commercially available with previously recorded vocals at a studio.

• A Static Lullaby, a post-hardcore group, has covered the song, even having a fake Britney Spears in their music video for it. It is a pre-order exclusive track on their album Rattlesnake!,^[51] and is also available on the compilation album Punk Goes Pop 2.
• Mark Ronson uses a sample of Spears' "Toxic" in his own hip-hop version of the song (titled simply "Toxic"). It features Ol' Dirty Bastard, Tiggers and Nick Catchdubs and can be found on his second studio album Version.^[52]
• Northern Irish singer-songwriter Juliet Turner covered the song for the Irish charity album "Even Better than the Real Thing Vol. 2" released on November 12, 2004.^[53]
• The song was covered by alternative rock band Local H.^[54]
• The song was covered by Norwegian band Hurra Torpedo and is found on their album "Kollossus of Makedonia." Their version is played at roughly half speed on a variety of kitchen appliances.^[55]
• Monsters from Mars has released an instrumental surf version.^[56]
• French-Israeli singer Yael Naïm has released a pop-soul acoustic version on her eponymous album.^[57]
• Mark Ronson has released in his album, Version, in 2007, an other version of the song.
• The Salem, Oregon band Moothart does a Techno / Hardcore version of "Toxic".^[58]
• Tony Yayo samples "Toxic" at the start of the song "Love My Style" from his 2005 album "Thoughts of A Predicate Felon".^[59]
• In 2007, Israeli-American jazz act Yaron Herman Trio recorded a version on their album "A Time for Everything".^[60]
• Portland Cello Project's self-titled debut album includes a version of "Toxic".^[61]
• Gunzoo, a death metal band from California, did a cover of "Toxic".^[62]
• The song is mashed up with Linkin Park's hit "Faint" by MTV
• The PlayStation 2 video game Karaoke Revolution Volume 2 has a cover of the song by WaveGroup Sound.^[63]
• The WaveGroup cover was remixed by Shoichiro Hirata for another PS2 game, Beatmania.^[64]
• Sarah Jane Morris covers the song on her 2008 album "Migratory Birds".
• Stevie Ann, a Dutch singer, has covered it.
• Another band, Alesana, made a screamo version of this song.
• "French folkpop experimentalist Løzninger’s comprehensive melodic and tonal deconstruction of the otherwise over-covered tune turns the Britney Spears original into something delicious, almost unrecognizable, and not yet heard: swirling and moody, an underwater city draped with softly rippling seaweed." ^[65]

In popular culture

• The song was included in a 2005 episode of Doctor Who entitled "The End of the World", heard as a recording on an ancient jukebox that survived until the year five billion as an example of "a traditional ballad". It was used by the central villain of the story as background music for witnessing the destruction of the Earth.^[66]
• "Toxic" is played in a club in a first season episode of "Entourage" titled "Date Night".^[67]
• The track was used for the movie Knocked Up while Ben and Pete are driving to Las Vegas in their car.^[68]
• Derrick Barry, a twenty-four year-old finalist on America's Got Talent, impersonated Spears on "Toxic", receiving much applause from the judges and the audience.^[69]
• Mandy Moore guest starred in an episode of "The Simpsons" entitled "Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play", playing Tabitha Vixx, a Spears'-parody. She sings her latest song, "Trouble-Listic", which goes to the same tune.^[70]
• "Toxic" is covered and played in NBA Live 2008 on the Xbox 360.^[71]
• The PlayStation 2 video game Karaoke Revolution Volume 2 has a cover of the song by WaveGroup Sound.^[72]
• The WaveGroup cover was remixed by Shoichiro Hirata for another PS2 game, Beatmania.^[73]
• The instrumental version can be heard in the trailer for "Wild Child", a movie starring Emma Roberts.^[74]
• Professional wrestling tag team the Olsen Twins (Colin Delaney and Jimmy Olsen) used a slightly modified version of this song as their entrance music.
• The Columbia University Marching Band regularly plays an in-house arrangement of the song at football and basketball games, as does The Harvard University Band.
• The song was also featured in Ice Princess as a song Zoey Bloch (Juliana Cannarozzo) skated with, but only as an instrumental.
• This song was in the Ubisoft game Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party, being covered by the "Rabbids" on the fictional channel Top of the Flops.
• This song is also one of the karaoke versions in EA's Boogie SuperStar.
• Quest Crew Danced to this song ABDC where they had to perform a section of the routine blindfolded.
• There is a deleted scene in Family Guy where Peter is in a club and a remix of the song is being played.
• In the video game World of Warcraft, the female Blood Elf dance was copied from a video in which an amateur dancer is dancing to the song.
• This song was mashed together with "Love Shack" by The B-52's to become "Toxic Love Shack".
• The song is referenced in one of the captions that says, "Britney Spears' Last Video Cost $1,000,000", in the music video for Korn's song "Y'All Want a Single".
• The Dubstep duo 16 Bit have created a remix of the original featuring Yael Naim's vocals

Charts and certifications

Credits

• Written by Cathy Dennis, Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg and Henry Jonback.
• Produced and recorded by Bloodshy & Avant for Muryl Music AB.
• Arranged by Bloodshy & Avant and Steve Lunt Recorded at Muryl Studios, Stockholm, Sweden and Record Plant, Hollywood, California.
• Mixed by Niklas Flyckt at Khabang Studio, Stockholm, Sweden.
• Assistant Engineers — J. D. Andrew and Jonas Östman.
• Guitar — Henrik Jonback.
• Bass — Thomas Lindberg.
• All Other Instruments and Programming — Bloodshy & Avant.
• Vocals — Britney Spears
• Background vocals — Britney Spears, Cathy Dennis, Emma Holmgren and BlackCell.
• Strings Arranged and Conducted by Janson & Janson.
• Digital Editing — Bloodshy & Avant.

Footnotes

External links

• Britney Spears — official web site.
• Britney Spears — official web site at Jive Records.
• Music video for "Toxic" at MTV Overdrive.