''What's Your Pleasure?'' is the fourth studio album by English singer-songwriter

Jessie Ware Jessica Lois Ware (born 15 October 1984) is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence following the release of her debut studio album, '' Devotion'' (2012), which peaked at number five on the UK Albums Chart and produced the sing ...

, released on 26 June 2020 by

PMR Records PMR Records is an independent record label founded by Ben and Daniel Parmar in 2011. Initially building recognition as a quintessentially British outlet plugged in to local dance/electronic music culture, with a keen awareness of the trajectory ...

and

Virgin EMI Records Virgin EMI Records was a British record label owned by the Universal Music Group that was formed in 2013. In June 2020, the label was rebranded as EMI Records, and operates Virgin Records as an imprint of the new EMI Records. History Virgin ...

. Ware and co-producer James Ford co-wrote all tracks, along with writers and producers

Benji B Benjamin Benstead, known professionally as Benji B, is a British DJ, radio presenter, and record producer. A longtime BBC Radio producer and presenter, he has presented a weekly show on BBC Radio 1 since 2010 that highlights an eclectic mix of ...

Joseph Mount Metronomy are an English electronic music band, formed in Totnes in 1999. Their lineup consists of founding member and leader Joseph Mount (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Oscar Cash (keyboards, backing vocals, guitar, saxophone), Anna Prior (drums, ...

Kindness Kindness is a type of behavior marked by acts of generosity, consideration, or concern for others, without expecting praise or reward in return. It is a subject of interest in philosophy, religion, and psychology. It can be directed towards o ...

Morgan Geist Morgan Geist (born November 5, 1972) is an American music songwriter, producer, mix engineer and DJ from Wayne, New Jersey. Among mainstream music consumers, he is best known for his UK number one song " Look Right Through," recorded under the al ...

, Matthew Tavares and Midland. The album received widespread critical acclaim. It was also a commercial success, earning Ware her first top-three entry and, to date, her highest peak position on both the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

and

Scottish Albums Chart The Scottish Albums Chart is a chart compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) which is based on how physical and digital sales towards the UK Albums Chart fare in Scotland. The official singles chart for Scotland, the Scottish Singles Chart, ...

. Five singles have been released to promote the album. In April 2021, ''What's Your Pleasure?'' was nominated for Album of the Year at the Brit Awards. A reissue subtitled ''The Platinum Pleasure Edition'', was released on 11 June 2021 and preceded by the singles "Please" and "Hot n Heavy".

Background

After the promotional cycle for her previous album '' Glasshouse'', Ware felt pressured to quit music due to low album sales and her exhaustion with touring. However, Ware's podcast ''Table Manners'' gained a larger following of 13 million listeners and soon became Ware's main priority. Speaking to ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', Ware described the podcast's success as a "turning point" that changed her outlook of herself: "I suddenly felt more comfortable in my skin." With the podcast, Ware discusses more personal topics that she felt forced to publicise with her music. Upon the announcement of the release of the album in February 2020, Ware described the album as a "two-year labour of love", further citing the album as her visions of "escapism nd

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station ...

". The twelve tracks on ''What's Your Pleasure?'' move away from her usual "melancholy" sound in her previous releases, to focus on

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by its fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the four-on-the-flo ...

, and

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

. With Ford co-producing the album, Ware intended to pay homage to what the duo called "wedding jams", along with the

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

of late American singer-songwriter

Minnie Riperton Minnie Julia Riperton (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American soul singer and songwriter best known for her 1974 single " Lovin' You", her five-octave vocal range, and her use of the whistle register. Born in 1947, Riperton grew ...

, and the

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

underground disco scene.

Release

''What's Your Pleasure?'' was initially scheduled to be released on 5 June 2020; however, the date was moved to 19 June due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Ware then announced that she would be pushing the release date back another week so as not to conflict with

Juneteenth Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States, federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the End of slavery in the United States, ending of slavery in the United States. The holiday's n ...

. The album was released on 26 June 2020, making it her first major release since ''Glasshouse'' (2017), and subsequently her first release after giving birth to her second child. Music videos were released for the title track, "Soul Control", "Step into My Life", "In Your Eyes", and "The Kill". The cover art for the record sees Ware sport red lipstick, a black shirt and a golden necklace, with ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' calling it a "spitting image" of Polaroids taken by American artist

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

of former actress

Bianca Jagger Bianca Jagger (born Blanca Pérez-Mora Macías; 2 May 1945)

. On 8 January 2021, Ware confirmed the forthcoming release of a deluxe edition of the album on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

. Just before the album's release, Ware announced that she would embark on the What's Your Pleasure? Tour, starting in April 2021. Ware promoted the album through virtual performances, aired by several television programmes, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ''What's Your Pleasure?'' features elements of disco,

post-disco Post-disco is a term and genre to describe an aftermath in popular music history circa 1979–1986, imprecisely beginning with the backlash against disco music in the United States, leading to civil unrest and a riot in Chicago known as the Dis ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

Italo disco Italo disco (variously capitalized, and sometimes hyphenated as Italo-disco) is a music genre which originated in Italy in the late 1970s and was mainly produced in the 1980s. Italo disco evolved from the then-current underground dance, pop, ...

, hi-NRG,

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mus ...

deep house Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard ...

acid house Acid house (also simply known as just " acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synt ...

, electro, new wave,

trip hop Trip hop is a musical genre that has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop and electronica with slow tempos and an atmospheric sound. The style emerged as a more experimental music, experimental var ...

, R&B,

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

chamber folk Folk baroque or baroque guitar is a distinctive and influential guitar fingerstyle developed in Britain in the 1960s, which combined elements of American folk, blues, jazz and ragtime with British folk music to produce a new and elaborate form ...

dream pop Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such ...

and soul. On 11 June 2021, a reissue subtitled ''The Platinum Pleasure Edition'' was released, with an original cover art in greyscale with a metallic silver background. The lead single from this edition, "Please". The single "Overtime" released in 2018, was originally going to be part of the original album, but ended up being taken off the original tracklist and was re-released with a different mix.

Critical reception

''What's Your Pleasure?'' received widespread critical acclaim. It was praised for its "disco-inspired" sound and cited as the singer's "finest" work. Ware earned praise for "going back to where she started" and for sounding "bolder, looser" compared to her previous releases. At

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 84, based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave ''What's Your Pleasure?'' 8.2 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus. Tara Joshi 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 ...

'' praised the upbeat nature of ''What's Your Pleasure?'' and compared it to other "grown-up disco" albums like

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

's '' Chromatica'' and

Robyn Robin Miriam Carlsson (; born 12 June 1979), known professionally as Robyn (), is a Swedish singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. Her 1995 debut album ''Robyn Is Here'' produced two Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 single ...

's ''

Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

''. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' editor Hannah Mylrea claimed the album was a return to Ware's club roots, which she had strayed away from since her debut ''

Devotion Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Catholic devotions, customs, rituals, and practices of worship ...

'', and called it "an intoxicating cocktail of seductive beats, exhilarating choruses and sleek production." Owen Myers of ''Pitchfork'' complimented the album's musical references to disco

diva Diva (, ) is the Latin word for a goddess. Diva is a name from Roman mythology, and is associated with the nouns divus, diva, which means god, goddess, and the adjective divinius, which means divine or heavenly. It has often been used to refer t ...

s of the past like

Donna Summer Donna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the "Queen of Disco", while her music ...

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...

, and

Anita Ward Anita Ward (born December 20, 1956) (sources differ) is an American singer and musician from Memphis, Tennessee. Beginning her professional music career in the late 1970s, Ward is best known for her 1979 million-selling chart-topper R&B/Disco hi ...

and awarded it the website's "Best New Music" distinction. Myers remarked positively on Ware's commitment to making uplifting music while allowing "a little of her signature

psychodrama Psychodrama is an action method, often used as a psychotherapy, in which clients use spontaneous Adaptation (arts), dramatization, role playing, and dramatic self-presentation to investigate and gain insight into their lives. Developed by Jaco ...

to creep into the nocturnal escapades she describes, and the flecks of ennui make the highs even higher." Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

singled out "Mirage (Don't Stop)" as a highlight, praising the

Bananarama Bananarama is an English pop group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey, and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when ...

-influenced production, as well as praising the production of the album as a whole. Kellman also praised the "

" of the album's closer " Remember Where You Are", calling it a "stirring finale". In July 2020, ''What's Your Pleasure?'' was included on ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...

''s list of the best albums of 2020 so far.

Accolades

Commercial performance

According to 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 ...

, ''What's Your Pleasure?'' was the most downloaded album over the weekend upon its initial release on 26 June 2020. The album eventually debuted at number three on both the

and

, giving Ware her fourth consecutive top-ten entry on the former and her first top-three entry on both. By this, the album became Ware's highest peak position on both charts, surpassing the number five peak and number twenty-six peak achieved by her debut album, ''

'' (2012). The album is also Ware's first top-forty entry on the Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) chart since ''

Tough Love Tough love is the act of treating a person sternly or harshly with the intent to help them in the long run. People exhibit and act upon tough love when attempting to address someone else's undesirable behaviour. Tough love can be used in many sce ...

'' (2014), debuting at number thirty-six. It was also her first release to spend more than one week within the top ten of the UK Albums Chart, as it reached number seven upon its ''Platinum Pleasure'' re-release on 11 June 2021, nearly one year after its original release.

Track listing

Notes

* signifies an additional producer * The song "Mirage (Don't Stop)" contains elements of the song " Cruel Summer" performed by

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''What's Your Pleasure?''

Musicians

– vocals * James Ford – keyboards, percussion, programming (tracks 1–5, 7, 9–12); synths (tracks 1–5, 7, 9, 11, 12); guitar, bass, drums (tracks 5, 7, 9, 11, 12) * Dave Okumu – guitar (tracks 1–4, 8) * Leo Taylor – drums (tracks 1–4, 8) *

Shungudzo Alexandra Shungudzo Govere, better known as Shungudzo, is a Zimbabwean-American singer and reality television personality. She first attracted media attention by being the first black female gymnast to represent Zimbabwe in artistic gymnasti ...

– backing vocals (tracks 1–4, 12) * Danny Parker – backing vocals (tracks 1–4, 12) * Bim Amoako – backing vocals (tracks 1–4, 7–9, 11, 12) * Senab Adekunle – backing vocals (tracks 1–4, 7–9, 11, 12) *

– programming (track 4) * Midland – synths, programming (track 5) *

– keyboards, programming (track 6) * Dante Hemingway – string and brass arrangements, programming (tracks 1-4, 6, 12) * Adam Bainbridge – keyboards, programming (track 8) * Clarence Coffee Jr. – backing vocals (tracks 10, 11) *

Jules Buckley Julian "Jules" Buckley (born 8 January 1980) is an English conductor, composer, and arranger. Career In 2004, Buckley and producer/manager Chris Wheeler co-founded the Heritage Orchestra, with the intention of featuring an orchestra in a music ...

– string and brass arrangements, conducting * Tom Pigott-Smith (leader), Lizzie Ball, Marianne Haynes, Laura Melhuish, Kate Robinson, Charlie Brown, Nicky Sweeney, Jeremy Isaac, Hannah Dawson, Oli Langford – violins * Vicci Wardman, Helen Kamminga, Reiad Chibah – violas * Ian Burdge, Chris Worsey, Katherine Jenkinson – cellos * Richard Pryce – double bass * Richard Watkins, Nigel Black – French horns * Tom Walsh, Louis Dowdeswell, Andy Wood – trumpets, flugelhorns * Callum Au –

tenor trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the air column inside the instrument to ...

* Dave Stewart –

bass trombone The bass trombone (, ) is the bass instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments. Modern instruments are pitched in the same B♭ as the tenor trombone but with a larger bore, bell and mouthpiece to facilitate low register playing, and u ...

Technical

* James Ford – mixing (all tracks), recording (tracks 1–5, 7–12) * Joseph Mount – recording (track 6) *

Joe LaPorta Joseph J. LaPorta (born January 19, 1980) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in Edgewater, New Jersey. Career LaPorta was born in New York and grew up there; he graduated from New York University with a bachelor's degree in ...

– mastering * Billy Foster – engineering assistance * Matt Jaggar – engineering assistance * Lewis Jones – string and brass recording * George Oulton – engineering assistance

Artwork

Mat Maitland Mat Maitland is an English art director and visual artist who lives in London. He is renowned for his photo collage works and for co-creating numerous music campaigns. Career Maitland started his career at WEA (Warner Bros. Records) as a designer ...

– creative direction * Dan Sanders –

commission In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

, creative * Rory Dewar – artwork * Carlijn Jacobs – photography * Suzanne Beirne – set design

Charts

Certifications

Release history

Notes

References

{{Authority control 2020 albums Jessie Ware albums Albums postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Disco albums by English artists Funk albums by English artists Post-disco albums PMR Records albums Virgin EMI Records albums Albums produced by James Ford (musician) Albums produced by SG Lewis