Ryan Tedder On Leona's Unhappy Happy
OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder has been responsible for many a hit these days, but for some unknown reason, the single he co-wrote for the stunning Leona Lewis, titled Happy, never broke in America.
And here is his reasoning:
On why Happy didn't perform better in the States:
"I know exactly why and I actually told the label what was going to happen. In the US, unless you're Justin Timberlake or Beyoncé, you cannot put out a song and not be in the country when it comes out. Leona was gone for six weeks when 'Happy' came out because she was promoting the record in other countries - it wasn't her fault; she just couldn't be two places in once. I had radio stations telling me that they thought 'Happy' was the single biggest ballad they'd come across in ten years, but that if Leona didn't come over here and promote it, it was going to fall. On top of that, America's consumed with Lady GaGa and dance music right now, so it's not the best time for ballads anyway. When everything on the radio is blasting out at 120 bpm, a song like 'Happy' almost sounds out-of-place."On whether they should have released the song later:
"Yes. I asked them to do what they did with 'Bleeding Love'. They should have waited until it became a proper hit in loads of different countries and then put it out in the States. For whatever reason, it had already been decided that the release was going to be simultaneous. From the day 'Happy' came out I never felt completely confident. It was very disheartening because I've never put so much time into one song."On being too late:
"The only way 'Happy' will work in the States now is if Leona has another hit first. For example, Kings of Leon put out 'Sex On Fire' over here and it did OK, but then they put out 'Use Somebody' and it took forever but became massive. Guess what they just put out again? 'Sex On Fire'. If Leona has a substantial hit with her next US single - and I don't know what song it's going to be - 'Happy' might have a chance off the back of it."
You make us Happy, Leona!
[Image via WENN.]
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A nice ballad, but not a great one. A great ballad would overcome her not promoting it.
whaaa? happy is a pretty big song here isn't it? i love it, and it's always being played like constantly lol.
I dont know what they classify as a big hit anymore because Happy has done pretty well here and I hear it on the radio all the time. It was even on the soundtrack to the movie Precious, so……
"I had radio stations telling me that they thought 'Happy' was the single biggest ballad they'd come across in ten years"
Pure bullshit. A good song…but not the best ballad in the last decade FOR SURE!
Or Ryan, the SONG SUCKS! Did you consider that?? Maybe we have better taste in America.
WHO CARESSS!! THE TRACKED SUCKED. GET OVER IT TEDDER! AMERICA IS RUN BY TWEENY BOPPERS AND DANCE/CLUB/HIP HOP TRACKS IS THE IN "THING". SHE'S NOT EXACTLY AN UP TEMPO CLUB BANGING SINGER AND JUST STANDS THERE. WE ALREADY HAVE A MEDIOCRE MARIAH CAREY LIP SYNCING TRAIN WRECK WITH ZIP STAGE PRESENCE… WE DONT NEED 2. JUST SAYIN.
Perez you are such a sell-out, a year ago you would have totally ripped this interview to shreds. Its not a hit because its a SHITE single!!!
Much prefer to read RumerMills.com for an honest opinion these days.
www.rumermills.com
Please… The song is simply not that good. Funny when you look back at Perez' first post about the song where he wrote that it "brought tears to his eyes" and that it would be a bigger hit than Bleeding love. Fail!
lol no
Oh Please, if the song is good, just put the damn thing on a movie soundtrack and it will blow up. Amy Winehouse never spent a day here in the U.S. and her CD was a smash, sounds like this guy is just bummed because he wrote a song that bombed.
It was not a great song.
It wasn't on the same level as her big hit..excuses excuses.
It didn't catch here because it wasn't catchy or special.
"America's consumed with dance music right now"… oh really? Like we even get a choice? The hit music stations don't play slow songs anymore, haven't you noticed? All they play is hip-hop and dance. We have no say!
… I actually really liked this song. And I usually HATE ballads.
I usually loathe these mainstream pop-stars, but Leona Lewis is something special. So talented and lovely, and so different from the rest of her peers. Oh yeah, and she's vegetarian. I wish her HUGE success on both sides of the pond.
i really liked the song however it was not a better song than Bleeding Love. I really like Leona Lewis and wish her the best. Much rather listen to her than horrible Lady GaGa. Oh crap, I hope that I would not have to read her name today and I myself mentioned it. Devil!
Eh..maybe it just didn't do well because it was an average song that sounded like everything they're playing on the radio. There's so much more better stuff from the UK that hasn't done all that well here either (Florence & the Machine, Amy MacDonald, La Roux). Would love to see a another British Invasion.
I love this song!
maybe the real reason is that no-one wants to listen to this FUGLY Waxy looking BIAAAATCH! NEXT
I liked it. Unfortunately we live in a time where the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus dominate the airwaves. Most of my fellow Americans aren't very good judges of talent and have bad taste.
Re: swedensays – I remember that as well. I think maybe Perez jinxed the song by playing it up so much! Hilarious!
100% correct. its the same over here happy went to number 2 which is good but if she had promoted it fully (she only the x factor) it would have gone number 1. simon cowell needs to promote her more like her did with her album spirit and bleeding love
LEONA IS AN AMAZING VOCALIST, SO FUCK EVERYONE ELSE WHOS DOESN'T APPRECIATE HER TALENT, SHE IS WAY MORE TALENTED THAN HALF THESE HEFFAS TRYING TO BE SOMEONE.
The song is simply a bomb, it wasn't a major hit in any european country., tough leona was around here all the time. Bleeding love was just a different league!
i love this song
Okay…I'm sorry but does anyone else think this girl looks like a transvestite? It's all I can see when I look at her!
lol He said we are into Lady GaGa and dance music right now. So doesw that mean she will fade when dance music does? I think so! Don't get me wrong, I like GaGa's music but I hate her crazy antics to get attention and stealing a lot of Madonna's style. And oh ya-Perez's crazy obsession with her.
I LOVE this song!!!!! I have LOVED it since I heard it… its pretty popular in Canada its always on the radio… Leona Lewis is incredible and she could sing every curse word known to man in a song and I would love it!
i like the song, its done well all over the world, no big deal. and sex on fire has sold millions and millions so i doubt kol are crying into their pillows at night over the fact their countrymen dont appreciate them
"I had radio stations telling me that they thought 'Happy' was the single biggest ballad they'd come across in ten years"
LMFAO. Oh my god. That's funny. Like the first comment said, if it's such a great ballad, it would do great whether she promotes it or not.
too bad the rest of the album sucks ass, doubt she'll get any hits from it.
If America is consumed with dance music, then why didn't they release "Outta My Head"? That's as dance-y as Leona's ever going to get!
How about this reason, Ryan?
It's not a very good song, period.
Re: crazie – agreed and this pisses me off so much because leona has talent has anyone heard "i see you"? her fucking voice is just amazing!
It's not a hit because it's a song Tedder has written at least 3 times before for better singers. Lewis is shit with her wailing, depressing, OTT voice and just wants to cram as many notes into each track as she can, never mind if the song suffers for it… And that 'Avatar' song is HIDEOUS!