Turn Off the Light explained

Turn Off the Light
Cover:Turnofflightnellyfurtado.jpg
Caption:International retail artwork, also used for enhanced CD release and one of US promotional materials
Type:single
Artist:Nelly Furtado
Album:Whoa, Nelly!
B-Side:"I'm Like a Bird" (acoustic)
Studio:
Length:
  • 4:36 (album version)
  • 3:36 (radio edit)
Label:DreamWorks
Producer:
Prev Title:I'm Like a Bird
Prev Year:2000
Next Title:Shit on the Radio (Remember the Days)
Next Year:2001

"Turn Off the Light" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado from her debut studio album, Whoa, Nelly! (2000). Written by Furtado, and produced by Gerald Eaton, Brian West, and Furtado, the song was released as the album's second single on 2 July 2001, reaching number one in New Zealand, Portugal, and Romania, as well peaking within the top 10 in several other countries, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Music video

There are two music videos for "Turn Off the Light": the underground version and the regular version.

The regular version was directed by Sophie Muller and was filmed in Chinatown's Central Plaza in Los Angeles, California.[1] The music video for the regular version of "Turn Off the Light" begins in a swamp where Furtado is sitting on the edge of a log and people are swimming in the swamp. She begins to sing the first verse and when the chorus commences the people in the swamp pull her in and they start dancing in the swamp. When the second verse begins Furtado is seen at a temple singing while dancers jump out and dance with Furtado. During the second part of the chorus, she is surrounded by a group at the temple and they dance around her while she sings. During the bridge Furtado is shown at an old house singing and playing the guitar, with the flag of the Azores both behind her and on her guitar (this scene is interpolated with shots of a DJ playing, also with the Azorean flag behind him, and topless men dancing while using skirts that resemble those used in Sufi whirling). The video ends with Furtado back at the temple eating noodles.

The underground video features Furtado playing the guitar in a wooden shed, wearing a white top and jeans. She is also seen buying flowers. Behind the scenes footage of the photoshoot for the Whoa, Nelly! cover is interwoven throughout the video.

Chart performance

The song became Furtado's most successful song at the time of its release. In New Zealand, it became her first number-one single and stayed on the chart for 27 weeks. "Turn Off the Light" was certified Gold by Recorded Music NZ for sales greater than 5,000 copies. The song became the second-most successful song of New Zealand in 2001, behind Craig David's "Walking Away". It peaked at number 5 on the US Billboard Hot 100 on 10 November 2001. A remix featuring rappers Ms. Jade and Timbaland was also released, and a dance remix topped the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. In Australia, although the song peaked at number 7, it remained in the top 50 for 21 weeks and was certified Platinum for sales exceeding 70,000 copies. The song debuted and peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Furtado's second top-5 single there, and reached number 2 on the UK R&B Chart.

Track listings

UK CD maxi-single[2]

  1. "Turn Off the Light"
  2. "Turn Off the Light" (remix featuring Ms. Jade and Timbaland)
  3. "I'm Like a Bird" (acoustic version)
  4. "Turn Off the Light" (video)

UK 12-inch single[3]

A1. "Turn Off the Light" (remix featuring Ms. Jade and Timbaland)

A2. "Turn Off the Light" (So Solid Crew remix)

B1. "Turn Off the Light" (album version)

B2. "Turn Off the Light" (Sunshine Reggae mix)UK cassette single and European CD single[4] [5]

  1. "Turn Off the Light" (radio edit) – 3:36
  2. "I'm Like a Bird" (acoustic version) – 3:50

Australian and European CD maxi-single[6]

  1. "Turn Off the Light" (radio edit)
  2. "Turn Off the Light" (Sunshine Reggae mix)
  3. "I'm Like a Bird" (acoustic)
  4. "Turn Off the Light" (underground video)

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the Whoa, Nelly! album booklet.[7]

Studios

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2001–2002)Peak
position
Canada CHR (Nielsen BDS)[8] 6
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[9] 10
Hungary (Mahasz)[10] 3
Poland (Nielsen Music Control)[11] 6
Portugal (AFP)[12] 1
Romania (Romanian Top 100)[13] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (2001)Position
Australia (ARIA)[14] 38
Canada Radio (Nielsen BDS)[15] 26
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[16] 61
Ireland (IRMA)[17] 48
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[18] 31
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[19] 76
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[20] 2
Romania (Romanian Top 100)19
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[21] 69
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[22] 15
UK Singles (OCC)[23] 81
US Billboard Hot 100[24] 70
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[25] 38
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[26] 36
US Rhythmic Top 40 (Billboard)[27] 74
Chart (2002)Position
US Billboard Hot 100[28] 92
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[29] 59
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[30] 55
US Rhythmic Top 40 (Billboard)[31] 33

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)
Australia2 July 2001CDDreamWorks[32]
United States17 July 2001Contemporary hit radio[33]
United Kingdom20 August 2001[34]
Germany27 August 2001CDUniversal[35]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Nelly Furtado Central – Videos. NellyCentral. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20070810134837/http://www.nellycentral.com/videos.php. 10 August 2007.
  2. Turn Off the Light. Nelly Furtado. 2001. UK CD single liner notes. DreamWorks Records. DRMDM50891.
  3. Turn Off the Light. Nelly Furtado. 2001. UK 12-inch single vinyl disc. DreamWorks Records. DRM1250891.
  4. Turn Off the Light. Nelly Furtado. 2001. UK cassette single sleeve. DreamWorks Records. DRMCS50891.
  5. Turn Off the Light. Nelly Furtado. 2001. European CD single liner notes. DreamWorks Records. 450 903-2.
  6. Turn Off the Light. Nelly Furtado. 2001. Australasian CD single liner notes. DreamWorks Records. 450 904-2.
  7. Whoa, Nelly!. Whoa, Nelly!. Nelly Furtado. 2000. Canadian CD album booklet. DreamWorks Records. 0044-50285-2.
  8. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20050407223203/http://www.crosscanadacountdown.com/pdfs/2001.pdf. April 7, 2005. Canadian Top 20 in 2001. Cross Canada Countdown. November 13, 2023.
  9. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 18. 42. 11. 13 October 2001. 10 February 2020.
  10. Top National Sellers. Music & Media. 19. 47. 29. 17 November 2001. 9 June 2020.
  11. Web site: Nielsen Music Control. https://web.archive.org/web/20071024120630/http://www.pifpaf.com.pl/airplay/lista_03_2002.html. 24 October 2007.
  12. Top National Sellers. Music & Media. 18. 48. 7. 24 November 2001. 10 February 2020.
  13. Web site: Top of the Year 2001. Romanian Top 100. ro. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20021209050311/http://www.rt100.ro/2001.html. 9 December 2002.
  14. Web site: ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2001. ARIA. 6 January 2021.
  15. Web site: BDS CHART : Top 100 of 2001. Jam!. https://web.archive.org/web/20020701174353/http://jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/100_2001.html. 1 July 2002. 26 March 2022.
  16. Year in Focus – Eurochart Hot 100 Singles 2001. Music & Media. 18. 52. 14. 22 December 2001. 10 February 2020.
  17. Web site: Ireland – Top Singles for 2001. Allcharts. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120505011812/http://allcharts.org/music/years/ireland-singles-2001.htm. 5 May 2012. 16 December 2018.
  18. Web site: Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2001. Dutch Top 40. 8 February 2020.
  19. Web site: Jaaroverzichten – Single 2001. nl. 25 May 2018.
  20. Web site: End of Year Charts 2001. Recorded Music NZ. 10 February 2020.
  21. Web site: Årslista Singlar, 2001. Sverigetopplistan. sv. 3 May 2020.
  22. Web site: Swiss Year-End Charts 2001. de. 25 May 2018.
  23. Web site: The Official UK Singles Chart 2001. UKChartsPlus. 25 May 2018.
  24. Web site: Billboard Top 100 – 2001. Billboardtop100of.com. 17 December 2023.
  25. The Year in Music 2001: Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks. Billboard. 113. 52. YE-82. December 29, 2001.
  26. Most-Played Mainstream Top 40 Songs of 2001. Airplay Monitor. 9. 51. 60. 21 December 2001.
  27. Most-Played Rhythmic Top 40 Songs of 2001. Airplay Monitor. 9. 51. 48. 21 December 2001.
  28. Web site: Billboard Top 100 – 2002. Billboardtop100of.com. 17 December 2023.
  29. Most-Played Adult Top 40 Songs of 2002. Airplay Monitor. 10. 51. 16. 20 December 2002.
  30. Most-Played Mainstream Top 40 Songs of 2002. Airplay Monitor. 10. 51. 12. 20 December 2002.
  31. Most-Played Rhythmic Top 40 Songs of 2002. Airplay Monitor. 10. 51. 22. 20 December 2002.
  32. Web site: The ARIA Report: ARIA New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 2nd July 2001. ARIA. 25. 2 July 2001. dead. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20020220130000/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/23790/20020221-0000/www.aria.com.au/issue592.PDF. 20 February 2002. 21 April 2021.
  33. CHR/Pop: Going for Adds. Radio & Records. 1410. 41. 13 July 2001.
  34. New Releases – For Week Starting August 20, 2001: Singles. Music Week. 33. 18 August 2001. 16 August 2021.
  35. Web site: Turn Off The Light [+Bonusvideo]

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