Mr. Saxobeat

"Mr. Saxobeat" is a song by Romanian singer Alexandra Stan, released on January 28, 2011 by Ego Records as the second single from her debut studio album, Saxobeats. The track was written and produced by Marcel Prodan and Andrei Nemirschi, and was recorded at their Maan Studio.

Musically, "Mr. Saxobeat" is a Eurodance and dance-pop song, with its instrumentation consisting of synths, techno beats, saxophone and horn. The lyrics echo the singer's vision of a perfect man; her vocal delivery has been likened to Barbadian singer Rihanna by a music critic.

Reviewers were positive towards the recording, with them praising its catchiness, the saxophone sequences and Stan's voice. "Mr. Saxobeat" received award nominations at the 2011 Romanian Music Awards and Los Premios 40 Principales 2011, as well as at the 2012 Echo Music Prize. Commercially, it became the singer's breakthrough single, reaching the top ten of the charts in more than 20 countries and being awarded various certifications. As of June 2013, the track sold almost one million units worldwide in less than a year.



Background and composition
"Mr. Saxobeat" is written in the key of B minor, while its tempo is set at 126 beats per minute. Stan's vocals span from F#3 to D5; Maura Johnston from Village Voice compared her delivery to that of Rihanna "in its weary hoarsines". The song is of the Eurodance and dance-pop genres. The instrumentation of the track consists of "twinkly" synths, techno beats, a "ridiculously catchy" saxophone loop, played by Cosmin Basasteanu, and horn. The saxophone prominently features a trill, "a very popular effect in sax house records", with it being digitally chopped to bits. Tris McCall from The Star-Ledger wrote, "The link between the saxophone and sexual expression is a long-standing one [...] Breath is tactile and sensuous, and the explosive sound of a sax in full blast carries with it some of the mad rush of desire." Regarding the saxophone, Stan said when interviewed, "I consider saxophone a very hot and sexy instrument which is also very used in my region." Josh Baines from Vice described the track as a "Balkanized club ballad", further comparing its sound to Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP's "We No Speak Americano" (2010). Billboard called "Mr. Saxobeat" a "one-off mainstream dance single" along with "We No Speak Americano".

During the lyrics, Stan sings, "You make me this, bring me up, bring me down, plays it sweet/Make me move like a freak, Mr. Saxobeat", which Baines wrote was Stan's "vision of the perfect man". He also wrote, "The second verse informs us that he's a 'sexy boy' who can set Stan 'free,' but that he's just as 'shy' as he is 'dirty.' Mr. Saxobeat, so it would seem, contains multitudes." Echoing this thought, Stan stated that "Mr. Saxobeat" was only her vision of the perfect man when on German television ARD.

Reception and accolades
The song was met with positive reviews by music critics. During a review of Saxobeats, Celeste Rhoads from AllMusic saw "Mr. Saxobeat" as a club sensation along with "Lollipop (Param Pam Pam)" and "Get Back (ASAP)". Rodrigo of Yam Magazine wrote, "One day, I heard "Mr. Saxobeat" by accident and I was instantly hooked. Thanks to its insanely catchy saxophone riffs and Stan's voice, "Mr. Saxobeat" is a very fun, upbeat song that you can smile and dance to no matter where you are. Plus, the song works like a charm for parties." McCall of The Star-Ledger associated the song with the revival of the saxophone in music. The Hollywood Reporter's Shirley Halperin listed the saxophone sequences in "Mr. Saxobeat" in her list of "12 Awesome Sax Solos". Johnston, writing for Village Voice, said "the way they're employed" sounded like Pitbull's "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)". In his book Stars of 21st Century Dance Pop and EDM: 33 DJs, Producers and Singers ... author James Arena listed it in his "range of sounds that make up the world of the twenty-first century dance music". Fans of the recording include British singer Ellie Goulding, who praised it in a Twitter post in November 2016. At the 2011 Romanian Music Awards, "Mr. Saxobeat" won Best Song and was nominated for Best Dance Song. The track also received a nomination for Best International Song at the Los Premios 40 Principales 2011, and for Hit of the Year at the 2012 Echo Music Prize.

Commercial performance
"Mr. Saxobeat" first experienced success in Stan's native country, where it reached number one on the Romanian Top 100 and stayed there for eight consecutive weeks. Subsequently, the single debuted at number 47 on Spain's PROMUSICAE chart, peaking at number three in May 2011 and gaining a Gold certification for exceeding sales of 20,000 units. The single further reached number six in France, where it sold 97,000 copies as of 2011. "Mr. Saxobeat" also notably reached number one in Austria, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Switzerland, and was awarded various Gold and Platinum certifications. "Mr. Saxobeat" also reached number three on the UK Singles Chart and number one in Germany. Certified three times Gold, the track was that year's second most successful single in the latter country behind Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull's "On the Floor".

Outside of Europe, "Mr. Saxobeat" debuted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number 72 and peaked at number 25 in that territory. The song spent 20 weeks on the chart and was certified Platinum by Music Canada. In the United States, "Mr. Saxobeats" sold 22,000 units in its first week of availability. On the week ending July 30, 2011, the song debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at number 92 and continued rising every week until peaking at number 21. It also managed to reach a number of Billboard's component charts, notably reaching number eight on the US Tropical Airplay chart and number 11 on the Hot Latin Songs chart. "Mr. Saxobeat" became the third Romanian song to top the Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart after Inna's "Hot" and Edward Maya and Vika Jigulina's "Stereo Love". By December 2016, the track was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA); it sold one million digital downloads in the United States as of January 2012.

Music video
An accompanying music video for "Mr. Saxobeat" was filmed in Buftea, Romania by Iulian Moga on November 1, 2010. The clip was uploaded onto YouTube on 14 November 2010. A behind-the-scenes video was previously aired in November 2010 by Romanian television Music Channel. Los 40 Principales cited the video for "Mr. Saxobeat" as one of Stan's best clips ever. The video begins with scenes of police officers bringing a handcuffed Stan into a room of a police station to interrogate her along with two of her female friends. When she and her friends refuse to give the police any information, they lock them in a jail cell. Stan coaxes and successfully seduces the guard, while her friends steal his police equipment before locking him inside the cell and escaping. The group enters a dressing room where they find police outfits and disguise themselves as officers. They locate the chief's office and hold the police chief and other workers at gun point while duct-taping their mouths and hands to the chief's desk. Stan and her friends exit the office and walk inconspicuously through the front lobby and out of the building. Cut scenes show Stan dancing in her cell or her with her friends in police uniform.

The music video for "Get Back (ASAP)" is a continuation of this music video.

Tracklistings
Digital download/French CD single
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Radio Edit) – 3:15
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Extended Mix) – 4:16

UK Digital EP
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (UK Radio Edit) – 2:31
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Extended Mix) – 4:15
 * 3) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Hi Def Radio Edit) – 3:00
 * 4) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Hi Def Mix) – 6:53
 * 5) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Kenny Hayes Mix) – 5:30

Italian CD single
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Paolo Noise Radio Edit) – 3:33
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Paolo Noise Extended) – 6:04
 * 3) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Gabry Ponte Radio Edit) – 3:02
 * 4) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Gabry Ponte Extended) – 6:03
 * 5) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Ali6 Remix) – 3:22
 * 6) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Wender Remix) – 5:55

German digital download
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Radio Edit) – 3:15
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Acoustic Version) – 3:01
 * 3) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Extended Version) – 4:16
 * 4) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Bodybangers Remix) – 5:51
 * 5) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Bodybangers Remix Edit) – 3:23

German CD single
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Radio Edit) – 3:17
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Acoustic Version) – 3:03

Remixes Album
 * 1) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Radio Edit) – 3:15
 * 2) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Acappella) - 3:02
 * 3) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Bodybangers Remix) - 5:50
 * 4) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Dj K-Jo Remix) - 3:18
 * 5) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Dj Max Remix) - 4:47
 * 6) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Dj Teos Electro Remix) - 4:06
 * 7) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Extasy Project Remix) - 4:30
 * 8) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Extended Version) - 4:16
 * 9) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Julyan Dubson & K-Liv Remix) - 3:56
 * 10) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Julyan Dubson & K-Liv at 65 Remix) - 3:56
 * 11) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Klein George Remix) - 5:08
 * 12) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Maan Studio Remix) - 3:42
 * 13) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Mario Pitch Private Remix) - 5:04
 * 14) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Paul Daniel Remix) - 4:28
 * 15) "Mr. Saxobeat" (Ural Djs Dance Remix) - 4:14