Unlocked (Alexandra Stan album)

Background and development

After releasing her debut album Saxobeats (2011), Stan started to work on material for a follow-up record with Marcel Prodan and Andrei Nemirschi, her long-time composers and managers. In 2012 and 2013 she released three singles intended for her next album: "Lemonade", "Cliché (Hush Hush)" and "All My People". The new album was scheduled to be released in September 2013, but an alleged physical altercation with Prodan led to a delay. Stan also accused Prodan of physically attacking and blackmailing her. About this cycle of events, the singer confessed, "Difficult experiences like that always change you and the beautiful thing is that you get to choose how you let them change you. I had to take some time to figure everything out, in both my personal and professional life. And with the help of my friends and family, I made the right decisions, chose my new path and became stronger in the process."

Cliché (Hush Hush), the singer's last album under Prodan's label, Maan Records, was made available for purchase in October 2013; it was a re-issue of Saxobeats with the addition of the three singles that had been intended for Stan's second studio album. Cliché (Hush Hush) was only released in Japan, where it entered the top 60 on the Oricon Albums Chart, and sold over 6,100 units.

In late 2013, Stan worked with another team, including record producers and songwriters Alex Cotoi and Erik Lidbom, on what would become her second studio album, Unlocked. Describing this experience, she stated that, "Working with new people is always good, it can become very creative. It comes with a new positive vibe, you get to have new experiences. I enjoyed the studio hours and I loved working with these amazing people. When we're all there in the studio we have so much fun that it doesn't feel like work. That's why we work till sunrise, almost every time." She left Prodan's label and signed a record deal with Fonogram Records. The singer took part in the FonoCamp 2013, a songwriting camp held in Azuga, Romania, where she continued to work on material for Unlocked with Romanian singers and producers. Stan was involved in the writing process for all of the songs featured on Unlocked, except for "Thanks for Leaving", "Set Me Free" and "Trumpet Blows". In July 2014, the singer stated in an interview with Direct Lyrics that "[she's] launching a new album this year, quite soon actually. [They're] not revealing the launch date yet, but it's safe to say you won't have to wait for too long" and that the album was "almost done, [they're] working on the final touches right now".

Release and artwork

Unlocked was released on 27 August 2014 to Japanese digital outlets, preceded by a preview of the album lasting eight minutes and 34 seconds uploaded onto YouTube. Its digital and physical availability followed in various other countries later that year, and a bonus DVD and deluxe edition were made available in Japan. The Spanish version of Unlocked incorporates both original tracks and remixes divided on two separate track lists, while "We Wanna", a track featuring Romanian singer Inna and American performer Daddy Yankee, was added to the main track list of digital versions distributed in Germany. The cover art for Unlocked was photographed by Dimitri Caceaune and shows Stan sporting a multicolored jacket in front of a neon light. In the alternative sepia artwork for the Japanese edition of the album only one of Stan's eyes is visible, as the left one is covered by her hair; her eyes were made up to look larger because the singer felt that the Japanese were "very obsessed by big eyes".

Promotion

Unlocked was supported by two tours: the Cherry Pop Summer Tour and the Unlocked Tour. The first one kicked off in Russia on 5 July 2014 and continued in Mexico on 11 July 2014. This was followed with Stan performing in two hotels in Turkey; she subsequently held two concerts in Japan. She returned for three performances in Turkey. The tour ended on 29 July 2014. Romanian dance group StanBoyz accompanied Stan for her Unlocked Tour, which visited the same countries.

"Thanks For Leaving" was released, with its accompanying music video, on 28 April 2014 as the first single from Unlocked. Commercially, the track peaked at number 42 on Romania's Airplay 100, and at number one on FDR's pop component chart. On 28 May 2014, "Cherry Pop" was made available as the second single from the record. For promotion, an official music video, showing the singer playing tennis against herself in a futuristic setting, was shot by Khaled Mokhtar in Buftea, Romania and uploaded onto YouTube. The track was moderately successful in Japan, where it charted at number 64 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100. The album's highest-charting single on that chart, "Dance", was released as the third single from Unlocked on 18 July 2014. Aided by a music video also shot by Mokhtar, the recording peaked at number 25 in Japan and at number 70 in Austria. The album's fourth single, "Give Me Your Everything", was released on 20 August 2014. The accompanying clip was directed by Mokhtar and portrays Stan chasing a man in a dark landscape. It eventually caused some controversy for a scene in which the singer is seen wearing a white robe with masonic symbols inscribed on its back; website Urban.ro called the visual "her most bizarre video ever". "Vanilla Chocolat" was released on 24 December 2014 as the fifth single from Unlocked; it includes vocals from Romanian rapper Connect-R. The accompanying selfie video shows Stan singing and performing in various live shows, and includes shots of her with Connect-R at Roton Music. "We Wanna", a bonus single available only on German digital editions of Unlocked, features Inna and Daddy Yankee. The track—later included on Alesta (2016)—reached the top 30 in Argentina, Poland and Turkey, and the top 60 in Italy, Romania and Slovakia.

Reception and composition

Unlocked debuted at number 21 on the Japanese Oricon Albums Chart, selling 3,859 copies in its first week. It fell to number 39 after two weeks, bringing sales to 4,550 units. Over the following three weeks, sales continued to decline as the record fell to number 83 on the chart. However, it climbed five positions to number 78 for the week ending 7 October 2014, selling 1,030 copies. Unlocked exited the Japanese Albums Chart after 17 non-consecutive weeks, with total sales of 17,045 units.

Stan has said that the lyrical content of "Thanks for Leaving" is personal and refers to her recovery following an alleged violent incident with Prodan. Album tracks "Vanilla Chocolat" and "We Wanna" feature lyrics written in French and Spanish, respectively. "Thanks for Leaving" was described as a "modern" electropop song and a pop ballad, a departure from her previous dance styles. "Cherry Pop" is musically a J-pop and eurodance track whose lyrics describe Stan's first kiss. "Dance" incorporates dance and house genres and is accompanied by saxophone and acoustic guitar. While "Give Me Your Everything" contains Caucasian-flavored music, "Vanilla Chocolat" and "We Wanna" both are dance-pop songs; the latter is influenced by 90s electro music and Paul Johnson's "Get Get Down" (1999). According to Everything Express, "Little Lies" features "helium-lifted vocals and overwrought production", whilst "Digital" is "the perfect pop tune for teenage girls, bland and inoffensive". "Little Lies" is of the dance-pop genre, sampling elements from the song of the same name recorded by Fleetwood Mac in 1987. Everything Express' review continues describing "Celebrate" as "[going] all German disco, after Cascada's identikit Eurovision style; sadly ruined by Pinky and Perky on backing vocals". "Kiss Me Goodbye" is a Bhangra-influenced song, while "Back to Life" is described as Swedish EDM and "Trumpet Blows" as "Spanish-flavored".

Upon its release, the record received generally positive reviews from music critics. Dijei Zasin of music website Pop Shock commended Unlocked for its "infectious production, catchy absurd hooks and glossy vocals" and called the album's package and visuals "stunning". Zasin highlighted "Vanilla Chocolat" and "Holding Aces" as the best tracks on Unlocked, and wrote that the former was good enough to be a single by the winner of X Factor, a reality television music competition. Umberto Olivio of the Italian publication RnB Junk stated that the record is mainly oriented to dance music, an evolution of the singer's artistry. Critical commentary on the album mentioned the influence of several genres, including dance, techno, pop, R&B, and "good old fashioned" europop. According to Raluca Moisă of Adevărul and Zasin, Unlocked lyrically revolves around Stan's volatile relationship with her love interest and approaches themes such as liberation, rediscovery, and new beginnings. Robin Catling of website Everything Express provided a mixed review for Unlocked, stating that it was "clearly" influenced by the works of American singer Britney Spears, Barbadian recording artist Rihanna and Australian singer Sia. He also compared "Dance" and "Little Lies" to French disc jockey David Guetta and Spears' Britney Jean (2013) album, respectively. The portal further suggested that "Thanks for Leaving" could score highly in the annual Eurovision Song Contest. Catling concluded, "Unlocked has some highlights amongst the derivative, magpie-collected sparkle of pilfered pop, you might just find it difficult to remember by the end." Olivio of Rnb Junk was positive, commending the variety of genres featured on the album and its quality. He also praised Stan's vocals for "[their] various shades" and for proving that she has an "artistic soul". However, he called the track "Kiss Me Goodbye" "undoubtedly trash".

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Unlocked.

Sample credits

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Unlocked.

Recording