New Soul

For the genre, see Neo soul.
"New Soul"
Single by Yael Naïm
from the album Yael Naim
Released February 15, 2008 (Europe)
February 18, 2008 (UK)
March 4, 2008 (U.S.)
Format Digital download
Recorded 2007
Genre Folk, gospel
Length 3:34 (Album Version)
3:44 (Single Version)
Label Tôt ou tard[1]
Writer(s) Yael Naïm
Producer(s) Yael Naïm, David Donatien
Yael Naïm singles chronology
"Toxic"
(2007)		 "New Soul"
(2008)		 "Too Long"
(2008)

"New Soul" is a song by the French-Israeli indie folk singer Yael Naïm, from her self-titled album. The song gained popularity in the United States following its use by Apple in an advertisement for their MacBook Air laptop. In the song Naïm sings of being a new soul who has come into the world to learn "a bit 'bout how to give and take." However she finds that things are harder than they seem. The song, also featured in the films The House Bunny and Wild Target, features a prominent "la la la la" section as its hook. It remains Naïm's biggest hit single in the U.S. to date, and her only one to reach the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100.

"New Soul" was mixed and mastered by S. Husky Höskulds at Groundlift Studios, Reykjavik and Los Angeles.

Music video

The video shows Naïm moving into an empty apartment. She covers the walls in wallpaper depicting a lake surrounded by forest. She then begins unpacking several other things, including furniture, a piano, a goldfish in a bowl and a number of photographs of people, which she hangs on the wall. As she hangs the photographs, the people in the pictures are shown in real life, in the setting depicted in the pictures. Naïm then begins painting on the photographs, and whatever she paints appears with the people in real life. She removes one of the pictures to discover a hole in the wall, revealing the actual forest setting shown in the wallpaper. She pushes on the wall, and it falls away into the lake. The remaining walls fall onto the water leaving the floor of the apartment like a raft floating on the lake, together with her furniture. The people from her pictures reach her by boat. They climb onto the makeshift raft with her, as they all celebrate, dancing and playing instruments, whilst she empties the goldfish bowl into the lake.

In 2008, the video received strong airplay on MTV.

Chart performance

In the issue dated February 16, 2008, "New Soul" debuted on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 at number 9, giving Naïm her first single ever to enter any U.S. chart. It reached #7 on the Hot 100 before falling to #42 the following week making it one of the largest falls from the top 10 in Billboard history. It later rebounded into the top 50 due to being featured on the Apple MacBook Air commercials, but nonetheless the song spent a total of 19 weeks on the chart. It debuted at #44 on the Canadian Hot 100, and jumped to #7 on the chart the following week. In her birth country of France, the single reached #2 on the French Singles Chart. In February 2008, it debuted on the UK Singles Chart at #42 and reached #30 one month later.

Charts

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[2] 29
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[3] 2
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[4] 7
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[5] 1
Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)[6] 3
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[7] 7
France (SNEP)[8] 1
Hungarian Airplay Chart[9] 7
Italy (FIMI)[10] 6
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[11] 21
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[12] 5
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[13] 30
US Billboard Hot 100[14] 7
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[15] 9
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[16] 16

Year-end charts

Chart (2008) Rank
German Singles Chart[17] 33

See also

References

  1. ↑ Yael Naim - Keep listening
  2. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Yael Naim – New Soul". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Yael Naim – New Soul" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  4. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Yael Naim – New Soul" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  5. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Yael Naim – New Soul" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  6. ↑ "Yael Naim – Chart history" European Hot 100 for Yael Naim. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Yael Naim – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Yael Naim. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Yael Naim – New Soul" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  9. ↑ Hungarian Airplay Chart. mahasz.hu. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  10. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Yael Naim – New Soul". Top Digital Download. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  11. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Yael Naim – New Soul". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  12. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Yael Naim – New Soul". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  13. ↑ "Yael Naim: Artist Chart History" Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  14. ↑ "Yael Naim – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Yael Naim. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Yael Naim – Chart history" Billboard Adult Alternative Songs for Yael Naim. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Yael Naim – Chart history" Billboard Adult Pop Songs for Yael Naim. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  17. ↑ http://www.mtv.de/charts/Jahrescharts2008
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