Bittersweet

Album: Back to Me (2010)
Charted: 74
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This is the first single from American singer Fantasia's third album, Back to Me. The song, penned by "My Life Would Suck Without You" writer Claude Kelly and "Russian Roulette" hitmaker Chuck Harmony, was released on May 11, 2010. RCA/Jive Label Group senior VP of A&R Keith Naftaly told Billboard magazine that Kelly has an "amazing way of decoding things in Fantasia's head and turning them into incredible songs."
  • The music video was directed by Lenny Bass and features wide receiver for the Washington Redskins, Devin Thomas, as Fantasia's love interest. "It's all my concept," Fantasia told MTV News. "I was scared when I called the record label, because, of course, they had their own concepts. And I was like, 'No, can I do it this way?' And [Lenny Bass] was totally open to all that stuff."

    Fantasia also helped choose Devin Thomas as her co-star. "We actually sat on the computer for about three days just going through [potential] guys. I wanted somebody tall, you know, a man. Once I saw him, I knew I wanted to have him in the video," she said.
  • It was comedian, actor and radio personality Steve Harvey who came up with the album title after a radio interview with Fantasia. "Steve Harvey suggested the album title and it describes perfectly where I am in my life right now," stated the songstress. "I've willingly let the world into my life through my book, the Lifetime television movie and now the VH1 reality show. Now, it's time to go back to how things used to be when America first laid their eyes on me on American Idol. I want to focus everyone's attention back to me and back to music that everyone can relate to and enjoy."
  • Kelly constructed the song, which finds Fantasia reminiscing about a past love, by tapping into the American Idol winner's private life. "In the case of Fantasia, I put myself in the position of a woman who felt angry, hurt and vulnerable and longing for a man who she could no longer be in a relationship with," he explained to The Boombox. "That's not something I've ever dealt with; really what it takes overall is fearlessness."
  • This earned Fantasia the Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance in 2011. It was also nominated for Best R&B Song, but lost to "Shine" by John Legend and The Roots.
  • Chuck Harmony, who also produced the track, told You Know I Got Soul what it was like to watch Fantasia win the Grammy for the song. "It was great," he said in the 2011 interview. "The vocal performance Grammy was because that was a special vocal. Fantasia was crying when she was singing that song. I remembered the magic that actually happened and the talking part and how we turned down the lights. We did all the things that took for her to get that perfect performance out. It was really a magical moment just to hear that, just what we were doing in the studio to be recognized at that level."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

John Parr

John ParrSongwriter Interviews

John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," Kiss

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," KissSong Writing

After cutting his teeth on hardcore punk videos, Paul defined the grunge look with his work on "Hunger Strike" and "Man in the Box."

Carl Sturken

Carl SturkenSongwriter Interviews

Hitmaker Carl Sturken on writing and producing for Rihanna, 'N Sync, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, Donny Osmond, Shakira and Karyn White.

Deconstructing Doors Songs With The Author Of The Doors Examined

Deconstructing Doors Songs With The Author Of The Doors ExaminedSong Writing

Doors expert Jim Cherry, author of The Doors Examined, talks about some of their defining songs and exposes some Jim Morrison myths.

Crystal Waters

Crystal WatersSongwriter Interviews

Waters tells the "Gypsy Woman" story, shares some of her songwriting insights, and explains how Dennis Rodman ended up on one of her songs.

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.