Sex and Love

Background

In an interview Enrique explained the reason behind titling his new album as Sex and Love. He said: "It's one of the first things I thought about when I listened to the whole body of work. I think it's something we can all relate to no matter what religion no matter what personality, no matter what colour we can all relate to it."

No matter what race, nationality, or religion you are, you have experience with both and you like them!

Composition

Speaking about his album Enrique described his album as fun and obviously sexual, while some of it is more introspective and nostalgic. He then went on to say: "The words go together, but they can be separate and inspire different feelings and thoughts. It's all-encompassing. When you turn on the radio, what are the themes that everybody relates to? We all relate to sex and love. That's why when you hear music – 90% of the time – it derives from those two feelings."

Talking about his duet with Kylie Minogue, Iglesias said: "It happened really organically. Kylie heard it in the studio, and she ended up loving it. She sang her parts, and everything fit so well." He concluded saying that when people listen to the album, "I hope they can forget whatever's going on and just enjoy it."

Release and promotion

This album became available for pre-order on 15 February 2014 through Topspin Media. Two versions of the album (the standard containing 11 tracks and the deluxe with 5 bonus tracks) are available, both physically and digitally. A special deluxe edition for Target and Walmart is also available, which contains two bonus tracks. The album became available for pre-order via iTunes in the United States, Canada and Mexico on 4 March 2014. The pre-order was available for rest of the world on 5 March 2014. A 30-second sample was released on iTunes for each track.

Critical reception

The Daily Star gave the album 3 out of 5 stars stating that "Iglesias has turned all sleazy Robin Thicke slurring: 'I've been spending all my money on these pretty girls and alcohol, but honey, they got nothing on you' over the funky 'Let Me Be Your Lover'." However they praised "Loco", stating that it will have fans "getting their Latin freak on". AllMusic also gave the album 3/5, stating "Iglesias walks the line between the dancefloor jams of 2007's Insomniac and the romantic flavor of 2010's Euphoria." They chose "Bailando", "El Perdedor", "Let Me Be Your Lover" and "Loco" as the best songs from the album. Newsday gave the album a "B" grade and described the album as "slick, state-of-the-art Spanglish dance pop". Idolator gave the album 3/5 stars and called the album Euphoria's "older cousin". They stated that the album isn’t his greatest but there’s enough decent material to remind you of what Enrique is capable of at full flight. They named "You & I" and "Bailando" as the best singles from the album.

Jake Hamilton of Jake's Take gave the album a "B" grade stating that he went overboard on the Spanish tracks. He also praised Iglesias work in co-writing every song on the album. The Boston Globe gave a favorable review stating that Enrique "remains a heartthrob for a reason." They also said that "You and I" is "filled with romantic yearning," while his duet with Kylie Minogue, "Beautiful," "manages to be corny yet endearing." They concluded that "It’s the heat not the beat that brings out the best in Iglesias." Artistdirect gave a positive review and gave the album 5/5 stars stating that the new album is Enrique's biggest and boldest masterpiece yet. They described the song "Noche Y Dia" as one of the most powerful and potent Latin anthems ever. Culture Fix took note of the album's range of styles stating "The club-friendly tracks are slickly produced and filled with a high-octane energy, the ballads are complete with a raw charisma and emotion, and the mid-tempo tracks hark back to some of the singer's best work," scoring the album 4/5.

Commercial performance

Sex and Love debuted at No. 8 on US Billboard 200, selling 24,000 copies in its first week. It is Iglesias's third Billboard top 10 album after Euphoria (No. 10) and Escape (No. 2). The album also entered the top 10 of the Canadian Albums Chart. It peaked at No. 1 on the Top Latin Albums and Latin Pop Albums charts simultaneously. It peaked at No. 11 on the UK Albums Chart, selling an approximate of 7,500 copies in first week. It also peaked at No. 6 on the Spanish Albums Chart. The album received a gold certification within the second week of its release in Mexico. Sex and Love was certified double platinum by the RIAA in the Latin field for shipping over 120,000 copies; furthermore has sold 174,000 copies since its release in March in United States. The album has sold more than 2 millions copies worldwide and all the singles from the album has sold more than 12 millions copies worldwide.

Singles

Promotional singles

Other songs

"I Like How It Feels" was released as a digital download in Australia and some European countries on 23 September 2011. The song was released as a digital download in the United States on 4 October 2011. The song originally intended to be the lead single from a reissue of Iglesias' album Euphoria, however, the release was cancelled after poor chart performance from the song. The song was later included on the international deluxe edition of Sex and Love.

Tour

Iglesias started a promo tour on 14 February 2014, which took place in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The next day he performed at a sold-out concert at the Madison Square Garden in New York. He is set to perform in Dia Anahuac, Mexico on 27 February 2014.

The tour will officially kick-off from Santiago, Chile, where Iglesias will perform on 20 May 2014. Two days later on 22 May 2014 he performed at Luna Park in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A second leg of the tour will visit North America in Fall 2014, and will be co-headlined by Pitbull. This is the second time that the two Latino stars have toured together with Euphoria Tour being their first. Elsewhere he is performing in Mexico on 29 May 2014, 30 May 2014 and on 1 June 2014. Demi Lovato will be the opening act for few of the dates in the United Kingdom and Europe. Enrique Iglesias has grossed $194 million with Sex and Love Tour.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits for Sex And Love adapted from Allmusic