For You (Selena Gomez album)

Background

Gomez first signed with Hollywood Records in 2008, and formed her band Selena Gomez & the Scene the following year. The group released three studio albums together, all of which were commercially successful and spawned multiple hit singles. The band initially performed rock and punk influenced tracks, though their later releases began to feature more pop and dance themes. Gomez announced the group would take a hiatus in 2012, as she would be focusing on her acting career. Despite this, Gomez later began working on both a Spanish album and her solo debut album; the Spanish album went unreleased. Gomez released her debut album, Stars Dance, in 2013. Following the cancellation of the planned third single from Stars Dance, rumors began circulating that Gomez would be parting ways with Hollywood Records. Gomez later cancelled the Australian and Asian legs of her Stars Dance Tour (2013), claiming she wanted to spend time with her family. In January 2014, Gomez entered a rehabilitation center, though a representative confirmed that it was not for substance abuse. Despite initially neglecting to comment, Gomez confirmed in 2015 that she had been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease named lupus, and that she had cancelled the tour and entered rehab to undergo chemotherapy.

Rumors of Gomez releasing a greatest hits album began circulating as early as July 2014. Early reports claimed that Gomez planned to release the album to fulfill her contract with Hollywood Records, which required Gomez to release one more album through the label. Gomez later fired her parents as her managers, signing with the WME and Brillstein companies. This decision fueled the rumors of Gomez leaving her label, and speculation began to arise that she was in talks with Interscope Records. The album was confirmed on October 17, when it appeared on Universal Music Group's official website as an upcoming release. The site revealed the album's release date, and confirmed two new songs would appear on the compilation album. Despite this, neither Gomez or her label confirmed the release of the album. The track listing for the album was revealed on October 31, when Amazon.com in France temporarily posted the album on their site. Gomez appeared on On Air with Ryan Seacrest to debut the lead single, "The Heart Wants What It Wants" (2014), and officially announced that For You was available for pre-order through digital retailers. Gomez hoped that the release of the single and subsequent album would provide her with a "clean slate" going into 2015.

Content and artwork

"The Heart Wants What It Wants" was written by Gomez, alongside Antonina Armato, Tim James and David Jost; Gomez worked with longtime collaborators Rock Mafia to produce the song. The song was initially recorded for inclusion on Stars Dance (2013), though was not featured on the album for unknown reasons. "The Heart Wants What It Wants" differs from Gomez's previous releases, featuring elements of R&B music and a minimal electropop beat. The song lyrically speaks of a troubled romance, and was inspired by Gomez's publicized relationship with Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber. Gomez premiered the song on November 6 during an interview with Ryan Seacrest, and said "It's also a step for me knowing like, 'Ok, this is what I'm about to say, and I need to say it when I'm ready' [...] And I think after this year, it's the perfect way to end the year, it's the perfect way to end a chapter in a way. It's like, this is what I'll say about every single person that has judged me for every decision that I've made, for every person, [and] heart that is being judged for something they've done, and now I just want to release it."

"Do It" was also written by Gomez, Armato, James, and Jost; production was handled by Rock Mafia, Dubkiller, and Thomas Armato Sturges. The song is much lighter than "The Heart Wants What It Wants", being an upbeat song that has been described as "sexy" by critics. "Do It" features sexual innuendos and hidden meanings, and sees Gomez singing about her desire to "do it every single day". The song leaked online days prior to the release of the album, and garnered media attention for its themes. Gomez compared the song to releases from Lily Allen, and described "Do It" as a "cute little catchy song and I thought it'd be a great little bonus track for the album." "My Dilemma 2.0" is a previously unreleased remix to a song taken from Selena Gomez & the Scene's album When the Sun Goes Down (2011). The Rock Mafia produced remix was set to be released as the fourth and final single from the album, featuring a guest rap from Flo Rida; the single's release was cancelled for unknown reasons, and the release of the remix was scrapped. The version featured on For You has omitted the rap verse, and is credited solely to Selena Gomez & the Scene. "Forget Forever", taken from Stars Dance (2013), is also featured in remixed form. The fifth and final new release is "Más", the Spanish language version of a song taken from the Selena Gomez & the Scene album Kiss & Tell (2009). The song was reportedly recorded for Gomez's first Spanish spoken album, which went unreleased.

The previously released material featured on For You spans across the entirety of Gomez's music career. On the project, Gomez stated "I love my music so much and that’s the idea of this album…kind of collecting the past four years and my favorite songs that I’ve been able to do from when I was 15 to now being 22." The album features all of her singles both as a solo artist and with Selena Gomez & the Scene, excluding "Hit the Lights" (2012). Both "Naturally" (2010) and "A Year Without Rain" (2010) appear as the Dave Audé remixed versions. "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" (2008) is included on the album as the remixed featured on her band's debut album. For You also includes Gomez remix of the late Selena Quintanilla-Pérez single "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" (1994), which Gomez recorded as a duet with the deceased singer for the remix album Enamorada de Ti (2012). The artwork featured on both the album cover and its inner booklet is taken from the music video for "The Heart Wants What It Wants". The digital extended play features the same cover art with a blue tint.

Critical reception

For You received a generally mixed to positive reception upon its release. Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars, writing "Gomez might not be a belter or have the electric personality of some of her contemporaries; what she does possess is style, a winning voice, and lots of good songs -- as For You proves again and again." AXS gave the album a score of three and a half, claiming that "Instead of just packaging her hits, Gomez's For You is layered with elements of her personality. The album reflects Selena's highs and lows from the past five years in the industry and serves as closure to her time with Hollywood Records. She sneaks in a few last words with love and that's something any fan can appreciate." Idolator also gave the album a three and a half, and wrote "If you’ve slept on Selena’s music career, For You is a great starting point. For fans, it offers just enough new material to justify the purchase." The site went on to praise both "The Heart Wants What It Wants" and "Do It". The Times of India gave the album a score of three out of five, praising the new material but questioning whether Gomez's career warranted a compilation album at that point. They added, "For You really is all about growth. We've got the punky-emo cuts like "Falling Down" to salacious songs like "Come & Get It" and also uplifting anthems that have defined her musical career till date." Popology also praised the album, saying "At the end of it, For You shows us where she’s been, where she’s at right now, and where she’s going. It may not include every single release, but the new songs are what counts. They show that she has a vision for herself outside of Hollywood Records. We think we speak for all of her fans when we say we can’t wait to take the next step of her journey with her!"

Commercial performance

The album was released to a minimal amount of promo, excluding a performance of "The Heart Wants What It Wants" at the American Music Awards of 2014. Initial estimations saw For You selling 15,000 copies for its first week, though these numbers slightly increased as the week went on. The album debuted at number twenty four on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 35,506 equivalent album units. The album sold 17,139 copies in its first week. During its second week of release, the album fell to number forty four on the chart; it once more fell to number fifty two the following week, remaining there for two weeks. The album rose to number thirty nine the next week, aided in part to the ongoing success of the project's lead single. For You rose once more to number thirty one for its sixth week, with a total of 18,000 equivalent album units sold for the week. Billboard reported that 60% of these units were from "The Heart Wants What It Wants", with For You selling 7,200 copies for the week. The album rose once more to number twenty nine in its seventh week, though declined down the chart in subsequent weeks.

For You went on to spend a total of fifteen weeks on the Billboard 200 chart, the lowest of her album thus far. The album has sold 89,000 copies in the United States as of July 2015, according to Billboard. Despite the minor success of For You in the United States, it failed to achieve much success outside of the country. Initial reports claimed that the album would reach the top forty in the United Kingdom, becoming her fifth album to do so. Despite this, the album entered the chart at number sixty four, marking her lowest charting effort in the country to date. The album fell out of the top seventy five the following week, and failed to re-enter. The album fared similarly in Ireland, debuting and peaking at number ninety five in the country. For You had minor success in territories such as Italy, Norway, and Spain, reaching the lower part of the top forty in each country. The album went on to sell over 20,000 copies in Brazil, earning it a gold certification in the country. This serves as the albums only certification worldwide. The album has sold over 100,000 copies worldwide since it was released.

Track listing