Tell Me (Mel B Song)
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"Tell Me" is a song by English singer
Melanie B Melanie Janine Brown, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 29 May 1975), commonly known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the mid 1990s as a member of the Pop mus ...
from her debut solo album '' Hot'' (2000). It was written by Melanie B in collaboration with LaShawn Daniels and Fred Jerkins III, and produced by the latter. It was released as the
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
from the album in the United Kingdom on 25 September 2000, by
Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...
. "Tell Me" is an R&B song whose lyrics are directed at the singer's former husband, Jimmy Gulzar. The track received generally positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
, who complimented its production. "Tell Me" was commercially successful, debuting at its peak position of number four on the UK singles chart, while topping the UK Hip Hop/R&B chart; it has sold a total of 109,000 copies in the region as of June 2017, becoming the singer's third biggest selling solo single. "Tell Me" also peaked at number seven in Scotland and reached the top 20 in Belgium's Flemish and Walloon regions.
Nigel Dick Nigel Dick (born 21 March 1953) is an English music video director and filmmaker. Originally from Catterick, North Yorkshire, he is based in Los Angeles, California. He has directed music videos for artists such as Britney Spears, Toto, Ba ...
directed a
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
that depicts Melanie B accompanied by her dancers. To further promote "Tell Me", she performed the track on televised shows and events.


Background and composition

In March 1998, Melanie B began a relationship with Dutch dancer Jimmy Gulzar and married him six months later at a highly publicised wedding ceremony in
Little Marlow Little Marlow is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. History The Church of England parish church of Saint John the Baptist lies at the heart of the village, not far from the river and next to th ...
,
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
. As a couple, they had a daughter, Phoenix Chi, born on 19 February 1999. She eventually filed for divorce in 2000, and the divorce was finalised later that year. The singer won custody, and reportedly paid a settlement of £1.25m to Gulzar. Meanwhile, Melanie B worked on her debut solo effort, titled '' Hot'', which she described as "like a documentary of all the things that I've been going through in the last two years". "Tell Me" was the last song to be written and recorded for the album in March 2000. The singer chose it as the
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
as it was "very up-to-date ndvery now for me personally". It was released as in the United Kingdom on 25 September 2000, by
Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...
. According to David Sinclair in the book '' Spice Girls Revisited: How The Spice Girls Reinvented Pop'', the release was seen as a "fatal mistake" by her record company, as the Spice Girls' third studio album ''
Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama, based on the novel by Judy Blume * '' ...
'' was due the following month. "Tell Me" was written by Melanie B in collaboration with Fred Jerkins III and LaShawn Daniels; the former was also in charge of the music production and mixing for the track, while the latter did the vocal production. It was recorded by
recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproducti ...
Paul Foley at
The Record Plant The Record Plant was a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and last operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it produced highly influential albums, including the New York ...
in Los Angeles, while mixing was done by Jerkins and Dexter Simons at
Larrabee Sound Studios Larrabee Sound Studios is a recording studio complex in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, North Hollywood, California, originally established in 1969. Facilities Located at 4162 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood, Larrabee has six studios, thre ...
in North California. Musically, "Tell Me" is an R&B song which features a "background of squelchy keyboards and fractured beats", as well as "slinky beats and Psycho stabs of strings". The lyrics of the song are directed at her former husband Gulzar: "What made you think I would be a fool/I now see through you/And you're the fool… You didn't have no self-esteem/And all you loved was Mel B's money". She explained, "That song's about a relationship… about when a relationship goes wrong. In other words, I'm saying he didn't love me"; however, the singer stated that she did not see "Tell Me" as controversial, as she was a "very honest person and I want to sing things with conviction so I write from the heart". Nigel Packer from the
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
stated that Melanie B sings in "typically no-nonsense style" on the track. According to ''
Dotmusic ''Dotmusic'' was a music webzine that existed as a standalone website from 1 June 1995 to December 2003. Initially intended as the web complement to the UK music industry trade magazine ''Music Week'', the site was relaunched in December 1998 as a ...
''s Jackie Flying, the singer referencing herself in the third person on the lyrics was "a sure sign that you've qualified as a fully blown member of the so-famous-they're-bonkers glitterati".


Reception


Critical

"Tell Me" received positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
. According to a reviewer from the ''
Lancashire Telegraph The ''Lancashire Telegraph'', formerly the ''Lancashire Evening Telegraph'', is a local tabloid newspaper distributed in East Lancashire, England. It is edited by Richard Duggan. The ''Lancashire Telegraph'' prints Monday to Saturday. There a ...
'', the track was "loud, proud and upfront", whereas BBC Music's Nigel Packer described it as "vitriolic". For Sarah Dobbs of
Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...
, it was a "power-reclaiming anthem".
Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...
wrote, "Scary Spice embraced her inner
Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...
with the funky R&B tune." Jackie Flynn of ''Dotmusic'' stated that "Mel B is shaping up as the best pop star" of all the Spice Girls as "Tell Me" was "another great single, a sassy piece of spiteful R&B"; she went on to say that "her solo career's proving increasingly classy then even if nothing else about the young lady is." The staff from the ''
Birmingham Evening Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country and ''Birmingham Live'' online) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England, but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts of ...
'' felt that Jerkins "has brought out a first class vocal performance from Scary Spice on this autobiographical snapshot of her marital woes", whose "a strong beat and choppy instrumental breaks it will keep Spice Girls' fans satisfied until the group's new release". However, on another note, Caroline Sullivan of ''
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 ...
'' commented that the track "lacks the spite such a song demands".


Commercial

In the United Kingdom, "Tell Me" debuted at number four on the UK singles chart for the week dated 7 October 2000, spending 11 weeks on the tally; meanwhile, it topped the UK Hip Hop/R&B chart. In June 2017, the
Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...
revealed that the single was Melanie B's third biggest–selling solo single in the region, with 109,000 copies sold. Across Europe, "Tell Me" attained moderate success. While peaking at number seven in Scotland, it managed to reach the top 20 in Belgium's both Flemish and Walloon regions, as well as the top 50 in Italy and the Netherlands, and peaked at numbers 98 and 66 in Germany and Switzerland, respectively. Across the pan-
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...
, the track peaked at number 19. In Australia, the song debuted and peaked at number 43 on 15 October 2000.


Promotion

The
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for "Tell Me" was directed by
Nigel Dick Nigel Dick (born 21 March 1953) is an English music video director and filmmaker. Originally from Catterick, North Yorkshire, he is based in Los Angeles, California. He has directed music videos for artists such as Britney Spears, Toto, Ba ...
and filmed on 10–11 July 2000, at the Littlebrook Power Station in
Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames Estuary, is Thurrock in ...
. According to Melanie B, Dick did not want to describe the song in the video, instead portraying her and her dancers "enjoying hemselves. A total of 24 dancers auditioned for the video, and she chose her friends from college to participate. The visual starts with Melanie B putting a disc into a
CD player A CD player is an electronic device that plays audio compact discs, which are a digital audio, digital optical disc data storage format. CD players were first sold to consumers in 1982. CDs typically contain recordings of audio material such a ...
. As the music starts, she walks down an alley, where a crowd gathers and they all perform a synchronized dance as the chorus starts. As the video progresses, it shows her in many different settings, and as the song starts to fade, she is seen sitting where the first dance took place staring off-camera. To further promote "Tell Me", Melanie B performed the track on televised shows and events, such as ''
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...
'', and the 2000
TMF Awards The TMF Awards were an annual television awards show broadcast live on TMF (The Music Factory). The first Dutch TMF Awards were held in 1995, as a brand extension to the recently launched local Dutch music channel TMF. The show was very small a ...
.


Track listings

* UK CD1 # "Tell Me" – 3:55 # "Tell Me" – 4:20 # "Tell Me" – 4:05 # "Tell Me" – 3:54 * UK CD2 # "Tell Me" – 4:33 # "Tell Me" – 4:05 # "Tell Me" – 5:42


Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from ''Hot'' liner notes. *
Melanie Brown Melanie Janine Brown, MBE (born 29 May 1975), commonly known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the mid 1990s as a member of the pop group the Spice Girls, in which ...
– vocals, songwriting * LaShawn Daniels – songwriting, vocal production * Fred Jerkins III – songwriting, production, mixing *Dexter Simons – mixing *Paul Foley – recording engineer


Charts


Release history


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tell Me (Melanie B Song) 2000 songs 2000 singles Mel B songs Songs written by LaShawn Daniels Songs written by Fred Jerkins III Songs written by Mel B Music videos directed by Nigel Dick