"2 Times" is the debut single of English singer

Ann Lee Ann Lee (29 February 1736 – 8 September 1784), commonly known as Mother Ann Lee, was the founding leader of the Shakers, later changed to United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing following her death. She was born during ...

. It was released in Italy in December 1998 by X-Energy as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999), and was issued worldwide the following year. The single peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, reached number one in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

, and entered the top 10 in several countries, including Australia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and New Zealand.

Background and composition

Ann Lee's previous work on a large number of

Eurodance Eurodance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of Hip-hop, rap, techno and Eurodisco. This genre of music is heavily influenced by the use ...

projects would help her receive a contract with Alfredo Larry Pignagnoli, with whom she had already worked with on many projects such as

Whigfield Whigfield is an Italian dance act fronted by Danish singer, former model, songwriter, and record producer Sannie Charlotte Carlson (born 11 April 1970), known by her various stage names, including Whigfield, Sannie, or simply Naan. She is best ...

, Ally & Jo, amongst others. He worked on a track with Marco Sorcini called "Two Times". The song is played in a

F major F major is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat.Music Theory'. (1950). United States: Standards and Curriculum Division, Training, Bureau of Naval Personnel. 28. Its relati ...

key in

common time A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates the ...

at a BPM of 132, and throughout follows chord progression F-C7.

Critical reception

A reviewer from '' Daily Record'' wrote, "This sounds like a line-dancing song reworked for the

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

market, but it's worked for Ann Lee who has already topped the charts across Europe." ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' described it as "giddy".

Commercial performance

The song achieved success in many European countries where it was a top-10 hit, particularly in Denmark, Scotland, and the

region of Belgium, where it reached number one. It peaked number two in Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom; it has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK as of 2014. It was also a top-10 hit in Australia after initially receiving frequent airplay on Melbourne radio station KIX FM.

Music video

The song's accompanying music video was released in 1999 by Energy Productions. It sees Ann Lee performing the song during a day in her life, beginning with her waking up in the morning in her hut. She cooks, plays with her doll, takes a stroll on the beach and has a bath in her bathtub. The video ends with Lee sleeping in her bed. The singer has noted that the structure and cinematography of the video was very similar to that of

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and human rights activist. He came to prominence as the original frontman of the rock band Genesis. He left the band in 1975 and launched a solo career wit ...

's "

Sledgehammer A sledgehammer is a tool with a large, flat, massive, often metal head, attached to a long wooden or solid handle. The long handle is combined with a heavy head which allows the sledgehammer to pick up momentum during a swing and applying a large ...

"; "The two videos were similar! I remember perfectly the 'sledge video' (love Peter Gabriel!) and my movements are in fact very similar - but I think the similarity ends there". Parts of the music video were filmed in

Whitstable Whitstable () is a town on the north coast of Kent, England, at the convergence of the The Swale, Swale and the Greater Thames Estuary, north of Canterbury and west of Herne Bay, Kent, Herne Bay. The town, formerly known as Whitstable-on-Se ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

Track listings

* Italian 12-inch single :A1. "2 Times" (original extended mix) – 6:32 :A2. "2 Times" (G. side) – 5:32 :B1. "2 Times" (GambaClub) – 5:14 :B2. "2 Times" (GambaDub) – 4:15 :B3. "2 Times" (original edit mix) – 3:46 * Italian and Australian CD single # "2 Times" (original edit mix) – 3:46 # "2 Times" (original extended mix) – 6:32 # "2 Times" (G. side) – 5:32 # "2 Times" (GambaClub) – 5:14 # "2 Times" (GambaDub) – 4:15 * German maxi-CD single # "2 Times" (original edit mix/radio edit) – 3:46 # "2 Times" (Gamba club) – 5:14 # "2 Times" (original extended mix) – 6:32 # "2 Times" (Gamba dub) – 4:15 # "2 Times" (G. Side) – 5:32 * German and Dutch CD single # "2 Times" (original edit mix) – 3:46 # "2 Times" (original extended mix) – 6:32 * UK CD single # "2 Times" (original radio edit) # "2 Times" (Gamba club) # "2 Times" (Bulletproof Euro mix) * UK 12-inch single :A1. "2 Times" (original extended mix) :B1. "2 Times" (Gamba club mix) :B2. "2 Times" (Bulletproof Euro mix) * UK cassette single # "2 Times" (original radio edit) # "2 Times" (Gamba club)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1998 songs 1998 debut singles Number-one singles in Denmark Number-one singles in Scotland Songs written by Ann Lee (singer) Songs written by Dhany Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles ZYX Music singles