"Tears Always Win" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...

for her fifth studio album, '' Girl on Fire'' (2012). It was written by Keys, along with

Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is known for his three-octave tenor vocal range, live performances, R ...

Jeff Bhasker Jeffrey Nath Bhasker (born March 4, 1974) is an American record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles. He won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year in 2016 and was nominated for the award in 2013. Bhasker cam ...

and Phillip Lawrence, and produced by Keys and Bhasker. It was digitally released on May 7, 2013, as the fifth single from ''Girl on Fire''. Keys debuted the single during a performance on ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...

'' on May 9, 2013. The song had positive critical reaction. Keys included the song in the setlist for her fifth concert tour, the

Set the World on Fire Tour The Set the World on Fire Tour was the fifth concert tour by American recording artist Alicia Keys to promote her fifth studio album, '' Girl on Fire'' (2012). The tour ranked 22nd on Pollstar's annual "Top 100 Worldwide Tours – Year End". It e ...

. It is being released as the second Top 40/Mainstream single following the lead single " Girl on Fire". Keys also performed the song on the May 9, 2013 episode of ''

''.

Background and release

''Girl on Fire'' is Keys' fifth studio album and a follow-up to ''

The Element of Freedom ''The Element of Freedom'' is the fourth studio album by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys, released on December 11, 2009, by J Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during May to September 2009 at the Oven Studios in Lon ...

'' (2009). It is her first release under

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...

, after a re-organization at parent company

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

led to her previous label

J Records J Records was an American record label owned and operated by Bertelsmann Music Group until it was transferred to Sony Music Entertainment when they acquired all of BMG's record labels in late 2008 at the end of their merger. It was distribut ...

roster being absorbed into RCA. After 2009, Keys married record producer and rapper

Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in the Bronx borough of New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ in 1994. At the age ...

, became a mother, began co-managing her own career, produced and directed both a Broadway Play and short film, in addition to designing a line of

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for

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. Keys revealed the inspiration behind the song during one of her live performances while on tour, stating, "Some things don't always work out the way that you wish that they would, but ..you have to give it a try, and at the very least, I have a song for that too." It was digitally released on May 7, 2013, through the iTunes Store and serves as the fifth single from ''Girl on Fire''. Keys officially debuted the single during her performance of the song on ''

'' on May 9, 2013. The single was supposed to impact Top 40/Mainstream radio in the U.S. on July 1, 2013, however, its release was scrapped at the last minute. This is the third push back of the song to radio, it previously had two impact dates: May 21, 2013 and June 11, 2013.

Critical reception

The song was met with general critical acclaim. While

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did not name it one of the standout tracks on the album, they reacted positively to it. ''

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'' said of the song, "In Keys' hands alone, this missing-my-baby ballad might have fallen victim to overly sappy platitudes about life on the road without her man by her side. But with a little help from Bhasker and songwriting partners Bruno Mars and The Smeezingtons, "Tears Always Win" becomes an anthemic, soaring winner worthy of Keys' heroes

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

." ''

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'' also reacted positively to the track and deemed it a highlight of the album. The co-writing credits shared partially by Bruno Mars and Philip Lawrence was met positively, with some critics,

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in particular, saying, "this song has a nice doo-wop touch, a welcome turn with the album sometimes threatening to veer towards Alicia's middle-of-the-road R&B comfort zone."

Chart performance

Upon release the album ''Girl on Fire'', "Tears Always Win" debuted at the top of the South Korean

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for international singles with 56,340 sold. That same week, every song on the album charted in South Korea. The following week it remained at number one with 62,799 units sold. In its third week, it dropped to number two with 46,212 sold and to number three in its fourth week with sales of 40,825. In 2013, "Tears Always Win" charted for a further 24 weeks on the South Korean Gaon International Download chart, * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * selling 285,213 units. Between 2012 and 2013, "Tears Always Win" sold 531,161 units in South Korea. Following Keys' announcement that the song would be a single and its debut live performance on season twelve of ''

'', "Tears Always Win" sold 15,000 copies in the United States.

Music video

The official video for "Tears Always Win" was filmed in May 2013 by director Robert Hales. The video was released June 13, 2013.

Charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2010s ballads Alicia Keys songs Songs written by Alicia Keys Songs written by Jeff Bhasker Songs written by Bruno Mars RCA Records singles Pop ballads Contemporary R&B ballads 2013 singles