"The Boy Does Nothing"
Single by Alesha Dixon
from the album The Alesha Show
Released10 November 2008
Genre
Length3:34
LabelAsylum
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Xenomania
Alesha Dixon singles chronology
"Knockdown"
(2006)		 "The Boy Does Nothing"
(2008)		 "Breathe Slow"
(2009)
Music video
"The Boy Does Nothing" on YouTube

"The Boy Does Nothing" is a song performed by British singer-songwriter Alesha Dixon. It is the lead single from her second studio album, The Alesha Show (2008). The song was written by Alesha along with the help of Brian Higgins, Miranda Cooper, Carla Marie Williams, and other members of Xenomania.[1] The single was her first since 2006 after "Knockdown" was released in October of that year. It was also her first since signing with her new record label Asylum Records.

The song, described as being "the stand-out track" on The Alesha Show,[2] received largely positive reviews and became a commercial success, charting within the top 10 on the majority charts it entered and entering the charts in over 20 different territories worldwide. The single was certified Gold in the United Kingdom and sold over 1 million copies worldwide.[3][4] Dixon stated that despite the title "The Boy Does Nothing", the song is "not a male-bashing kind of record,"[5] explaining that "the lyrical content is just cheeky more than anything".[5]

Background

Dixon had worked with Brian Higgins, of Xenomania, on her previous single, "Knockdown", but it failed to enter the top 40 on the UK Singles Chart, resulting in Dixon being dropped by her record label, Polydor Records. In early 2007, still with no recording contract, Dixon received a phone call from Higgins, who asked if she would like to continue working together.[6] Dixon stated, "The plan was to make the whole record with Brian without talking to any record labels, we were just going to wait until we had made something special and then approach people with a finished album."[6] However Dixon's profile was raised when she signed up to compete in Strictly Come Dancing, which she eventually won. Soon afterwards, Dixon signed a deal with Asylum Records.[7] "The Boy Does Nothing", by this time already written, was originally intended to be a jazz orientated track, but Dixon and Higgins decided to change the genre, incorporating mambo influences, due to her experience on Strictly Come Dancing.[6] Dixon described the song as "a very tongue-in-cheek record"[5] and Higgins likened the song to "bottled happiness".[5]

Music and lyrics

"The Boy Does Nothing" is a pop-mambo song with an up-tempo beat consisting of 88 beats per minute.[8] The original key is E♭ minor.[8] The instruments used were the bass guitar, drums, guitar and the keyboard.[9]

The lyrics focus on the men in Dixon's past relationships and their lazy attitudes. The chorus states her frustration with men not completing everyday housekeeping tasks; "Does he wash up? Never wash up/Does he clean up? No he never cleans up/Does he brush up? He never brushed up". In the final verse the lyrics state, "And if the man can't dance/He gets no second chance"; a reference to her refusal to date men if they cannot dance. In an interview Dixon explained in further detail about the lyric, saying "I have to be honest, I do like a man who can dance, but it's not a deal-breaker. It's nice if they can dance, but if they can't we'll just have to work on other areas!"[10]

Promotion

Dixon performed her new single on the results show of Strictly Come Dancing on 19 October 2008, with the show's professional dancers, including her professional partner whilst on the show in 2007, Matthew Cutler. On 8 November, Dixon performed a 5-song set at London's G-A-Y Club. On 14 November, she presented and performed for Children in Need 2008. She presented at the beginning of the show in the BT Tower, monitoring the calls and donations, and later performed in the BBC Television Centre. On Saturday 13 December, Dixon sang at Miss World 2008,[11] which is said to have been watched by over 2 billion people worldwide. She also performed at GMTV, and on 31 December 2008 she performed on the BBC as part of the New Year celebrations. On 20 February 2009 Dixon performed the single at Le Grand Journal on French TV to promote her single and album in France.[12] Alesha promoted the album in Spain, performing "The Boy Does Nothing" on Operación Triunfo,[13] a reality television show similar to Star Academy. She also performed on other Spanish television shows, such as El Hormiguero. In Australia, the song was used to promote the 2009 season of the Australian Dancing with the Stars and has since seen an Australian release, seeing regular radio play. On 20 November 2009, Dixon performed "The Boy Does Nothing" as the opener to Children in Need 2009, which she also co-hosted, alongside Terry Wogan and Strictly Come Dancing colleague Tess Daly.[14]

Critical reception

Nick Levine of Digital Spy gave the song stars:

"The Boy Does Nothing", a song that bears more than a passing resemblance to "Mambo No. 5", is a smart choice of comeback single from Dixon. She could easily have wiggled her hips to its salsa-pop rhythms on Strictly, and the cheeky, lighthearted lyrics suit her personality. "If the man can't dance, he gets no second chance," she sings towards the end. On this evidence, Dixon has grabbed hers by the horns.[15]

Pop Justice gave the song a positive review and rated the song :

Starts off like "Mambo No. 5". Ends up like Perez Prado's "Guaglione". Has a brilliant "HEY!" bit in it. Has about 28 different hooks and catchy bits. Will appeal as much to Strictly Come Dancing viewers as it does to annoying self-appointed internet pop 'sophisticates' like us lot.[16]

Music video

Dixon flanked by her dancers in the video of "The Boy Does Nothing"

The video for "The Boy Does Nothing" is directed by the art director from the film Moulin Rouge!, Michael Gracey, and Pete Commins. The choreography for the music video was created by Ashley Wallen.[17]

The video, filmed in Tottenham Town Hall,[18] takes place in a theatre style ballroom, where two children are spying from a balcony onto the stage below, with one worrying that they shouldn't be watching. Dixon is dancing on a stage with six other girls dressed in pink. There are also around fifty other audience members, dressed in 1950s style clothing, dancing along as well enjoying the show. Towards the end of the video, everyone starts to sing the last lines of the songs a cappella, and various male dancers try to impress Dixon with their dancing while everyone repeats the verse "If the man can't dance, he gets no second chance".

"The Boy Does Nothing" was nominated in the 'best video' category at the 2009 MOBO Awards,[19] however the award was given to "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" by Beyoncé.[20]

Chart performance

"The Boy Does Nothing" debuted at No. 84 on the UK Singles Chart. The single became her first solo single to reach the top 10, following a 76 spot jump from No. 84 to No. 8 on downloads alone, selling 27,683 copies. On 16 November 2008, "The Boy Does Nothing" had advanced to No. 5 on the chart after the physical release of the single.[21] The song spent 16 weeks in the UK Top 40. On the Irish Singles Chart, the song peaked at No. 19 on 11 November 2008 and falling to No. 20 the following week.[22]

On the Swedish Singles Top 60 the song debuted at No. 30, becoming her first ever chart appearance in Sweden. The following week, it jumped a further eight places to No. 22. On 12 February 2009 the song peaked at No. 11. "The Boy Does Nothing" debuted in the top twenty on the Finnish Singles Chart at No. 19. The following week, it jumped to the No. 5. It has now reached a peak of number No. 2. The single entered the French Single Charts at No. 2. In Spain, the song debuted at No. 35. It jumped in the following weeks to No. 16, but the massive success came when she performed live the single in Operación Triunfo, a famous talent show in Spain. After that performance "The Boy Does Nothing" jumped to No. 5, and peaked at No. 2 for three non-consecutive weeks. Finally it achieved 2× Platinum certification due to the 80,000 copies sold.

In the Netherlands, "The Boy Does Nothing" charted in the Dutch Top 40 28 February, at No. 35. The following week saw the chart rose to No. 26. The song continued to gain some popularity and gained more and more airplay, which resulted in a 12th place on the top 40. This fact means that "The Boy Does Nothing" became Dixon's first top-20 single in The Netherlands so far, after 3 attempts with Mis-Teeq which all peaked just outside the top-20. After 10 weeks the song peaked at a chart high of No. 17. The single was a major club and radio hit in Finland, charting No. 2, and spent eleven weeks at No. 1 in the Czech Republic.

In Australia, the song was a sleeper hit. It entered the Australian ARIA Singles Chart at number 43 on 3 August 2009. On 14 September, it peaked at number eight, where it stayed for one week, and spent a total of five weeks in the top ten. It peaked higher than Mis-Teeq's most successful Australian single "Scandalous", which reached No. 9 in June 2003.[23] In the United States it has been released digitally via the iTunes site, it was released on 20 February 2009.[24]

Formats and track listings

Credits and personnel

Charts and certifications

Release history

Country Release Date Format Label
United Kingdom 10 November 2008 CD Single, Maxi Single, Digital download Asylum Records
Ireland 22 November 2008
Sweden 8 January 2009 Digital download Warner Music
Norway 13 January 2009
Finland 18 January 2009[68] CD Maxi, Digital download
Italy 6 February 2009 Digital download
Spain 16 February 2009
United States 20 February 2009
Brazil 18 March 2009 Radio, Digital download
Germany 24 April 2009[69] CD Single, Maxi Single, Digital download

References

  1. ↑ Van Der Kamp, Aufrett (13 October 2008). "The Xenomania Discography". GeoCities. Archived from the original on 22 October 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
  2. ↑ Gill, Andy (20 November 2009). "Album: Alesha Dixon, The Alesha Show – Encore (Asylum)". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 21 August 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  3. ↑ Sarah Swain (9 June 2011). "Alesha and I are a team ... it's like a second marriage!". Evening Times. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  4. ↑ "Photo by carlamarieuk". Instagram. 7 August 2014. Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Talking Shop: Alesha Dixon". BBC. 7 November 2008. Archived from the original on 10 November 2008. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
  6. 1 2 3 "This time it's strictly Alesha's show". Dudley News. 29 November 2008. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
  7. ↑ "Music – News – Alesha discusses record label axe". Digital Spy. 24 July 2008. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
  8. 1 2 "Alesha Dixon: The Boy Does Nothing". Sheet music direct.com. Archived from the original on 2 May 2009. Retrieved 7 March 2010.
  9. ↑ The Alesha Show liner notes. Asylum Records
  10. ↑ Nick Levine (19 October 2008). "Alesha Dixon". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 20 December 2009. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
  11. ↑ http://www.aleshadixon.co.uk/blog,happy-christmas-from-alesha_23.htm%5B%5D
  12. ↑ YouTube.
  13. ↑ http://www.aleshadixon.co.uk/news,alesha-dixons-classic-performance-at-operacion-triunfo-in-spain_97.htm%5B%5D
  14. ↑ "In pictures: Children in Need 2009". BBC News. 21 November 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  15. ↑ Nick Levine (19 October 2008). "Alesha Dixon: 'The Boy Does Nothing'". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 9 June 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
  16. ↑ "Popjustice – 100% Solid Pop Music". Popjustice. Archived from the original on 30 September 2008. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
  17. ↑ Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing [MAKING OF]. 17 October 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 – via YouTube.
  18. ↑ "RealPlayer and RealTimes Official Homepage – Real.com". uk.real.com. Archived from the original on 1 February 2009. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  19. ↑ Singh, Anita (26 August 2009). "Mobo Awards 2009 nominations unveiled". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 1 September 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  20. ↑ "MOBO history – 1996 to the present day – MOBO Awards".
  21. ↑ "Yahoo Celebrity UK". Archived from the original on 11 August 2012. Retrieved 10 November 2008.
  22. ↑ "Peak positions of The Boy Does Nothing". Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
  23. ↑ "Top 50 Singles Chart - Australian Record Industry Association". Archived from the original on 31 December 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
  24. ↑ "Connecting to the iTunes Store". Archived from the original on 28 July 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  25. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  26. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  27. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  28. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  29. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 200918 into search.
  30. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". Tracklisten.
  31. ↑ "Hits of the World: European Hot 100". Billboard. Vol. 121, no. 12. 28 March 2009. p. 46.
  32. ↑ "Alesha Dixon: The Boy Does Nothing" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat.
  33. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in French). Les classement single.
  34. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  35. ↑ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  36. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – The Boy Does Nothing". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  37. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". Top Digital Download.
  38. ↑ "Billboard Japan Hot 100 [2009/01/28 公開]". Billboard Japan. Archived from the original on 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  39. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 16, 2009" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  40. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  41. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". VG-lista.
  42. ↑ Romanian Top 100 Archived 25 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  43. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  44. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200919 into search.
  45. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing" Canciones Top 50.
  46. ↑ "Promusicae (Week: January 1, 2009)" (PDF). Retrieved 13 July 2009.
  47. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". Singles Top 100.
  48. ↑ "Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". Swiss Singles Chart.
  49. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  50. ↑ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  51. ↑ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  52. ↑ "Charts Plus Year end 2009" (PDF). Charts Plus. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 August 2010. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  53. ↑ "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Singles 2009". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 5 November 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  54. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2009". Ultratop. Archived from the original on 23 July 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  55. ↑ "Rapports Annuels 2009". Ultratop. Archived from the original on 31 January 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  56. ↑ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2009". Dutch Top 40. Archived from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  57. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2009". dutchcharts.nl. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  58. ↑ "Éves összesített listák – MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 (súlyozott)". Mahasz. Archived from the original on 1 May 2013. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
  59. ↑ "FIMI – Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana – Ricerche e dati di mercato". Fimi.it. 19 January 2010. Archived from the original on 23 January 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2010.
  60. ↑ "Chart: PROMUSICAE 2009" (PDF). Productores de Música de España. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2010. Retrieved 4 February 2010.
  61. ↑ "Årslista Singlar – År 2009" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  62. ↑ "2009 Year End Swiss Singles Chart". Swiss Music Charts. 2009. Archived from the original on 27 May 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  63. ↑ John, Alan (30 January 2010). "Bad Romance is back on top". Music Week. Archived from the original on 19 September 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2010. Total sales for 2009 was 882,059
  64. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  65. 1 2 "Alesha Dixon" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  66. ↑ "Spanish single certifications – Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  67. ↑ "British single certifications – Alesha Dixon – The Boy Does Nothing". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  68. ↑ "The Boy Does Nothing release dates". top40-charts.com. Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
  69. ↑ "Warner Music Germany - Alesha Dixon - Veröffentlichungen". Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
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