Special [With Poster][B&N Exclusive]

by Lizzo

Overview

With Cuz I Love You, Lizzo experienced the kind of award-winning, platinum-selling, culturally omnipresent success that could make artists wither in the spotlight, uncertain of their next move. Fortunately, that's not the case on Special. Having finally won the fans she richly deserved before her breakthrough album, she trusts them to follow her as she steps up to fame's demands by being even more real. As she was making her name, the unstoppable swagger of hits like "Juice" was necessary, but on Special she reveals she doesn't have it all figured out in the wake of her incredible success. For every song like "About Damn Time," a perfectly constructed piece of celebratory disco-pop that's classic Lizzo, there's another where she confesses that even she can't always be that confident. Special's songs are tempered with quirks and flaws, and even when they sound like they're shouting from the rooftops, Lizzo's vulnerabilities bring her listeners closer. There's an undercurrent of melancholy on the driving opener "The Sign," hinting that the twerking and smoothies she's been using for self-care might not be enough to deal with the same old heartache; on "2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)," she can't trust the process, singing "I did the work/It didn't work" before huge '80s synths almost drown out her self-doubt. Prior to Special's release, Lizzo described it as a love album in the most encompassing sense of the word, but she saves most of her affection for her friends, whom she celebrates on "Birthday Girl" and "I Love You Bitch," and the LGBTQ+ community, for whom she provides a safe space on "Everybody's Gay," which evokes the Mary Jane Girls in its smoothly funky moves. When it comes to loving herself or being able to love someone else, however, things get more complicated, and these conflicts make for some of Special's standout songs. On the soulful title track, she's unflinchingly honest about her place in the world as someone who's "Black and heavy" as well as a celebrity whose words and actions are frequently taken out of context. "Naked" -- one of the few times on the album where she reaches out to someone -- hides one of the record's most poignant lyrics in its sultriness: "I wish we could live without no body expectations." Lizzo matches Special's soul-baring with adventurous musical choices, adding shades of vintage folk and psychedelic soul to the all-or-nothing ballad "If You Love Me" and flexing her songwriting chops on "Coldplay," a jazzy, stream-of-consciousness look at why intimacy is hard for her that provides a welcome counterpoint to the big hooks and catchphrases in the making elsewhere on the album (like calling herself a "C-E-ho" on the Beastie Boys-sampling "Grrrls"). Far from a rehash of Cuz I Love You, Special finds Lizzo revealing new layers to the genuine songwriting and generous spirit that has defined her music since the beginning. ~ Heather Phares

Product Details

Release Date:	07/15/2022
Label:	Atlantic
UPC:	0075678633270

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lizzo   Primary Artist,Flute,Vocals
Ian Hendrickson-Smith   Saxophone
Daphne Chen   Violin
Leah Katz   Viola
Donald Hayes   Saxophone
Larry Gold   Conductor
Victor Indrizzo   Drums,Percussion
Mark Ronson   Keyboards
Wayne Bergeron   Trumpet
Melissa Reiner   Violin
Ryan Cross   Cello
Max Martin   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Vocals,Percussion,Vocals (Background)
Dan Higgins   Saxophone
Thomas Pridgen   Drums
Emma Kummrow   Violin
Tommy "TNT" Brenneck   Guitar
Michael Pollack   Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Marisa Kuney   Violin
Luigi Mazzocchi   Violin
Benny Blanco   Vocals,Keyboards
Charlie Bisharat   Violin
Adrienne Woods   Cello
Andrew Martin   Trombone
Nick Movshon   Bass
Dave Guy   Trumpet
Leon Michels   Keyboards
Songa Lee   Violin
Andrew Hey   Horn Engineer
Theron Thomas   Vocals (Background)
Richard Adkins   Violin
Jenny Takamatsu   Violin
Radu Pieptea   Violin
Kid Harpoon   Piano,Mellotron,Synthesizer
Peter Karlsson   Drums,Guitar,Percussion
Johan Carlsson   Organ,Piano
Rickard Goeransson   Bass,Guitar
Jordan Johnson   Keyboards
Ian Kirkpatrick   Keyboards
Chris Woods   Viola
Terrace Martin   Vocoder
Lemar Guillary   Trombone
Nate Mercereau   Bass,Drums,Piano,Guitar,Guitar (Bass),Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Aryanna Platt   Vacuum Cleaner
Jonathan Kim   Viola
Jonah Sirota   Viola
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Vocals (Background)
Raymond J. Mason   Trombone
Quelle Chris   Vocals
Jonathan Bellion   Vocals (Background)
Natasha Colkett   Violin
Ricky Reed   Bass,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards,Synthesizer,Glockenspiel
Blake Espy   Violin
Michael Cordone   Trumpet
Gared Crawford   Violin
Phoelix   Bass
Jesse McGinty   Trombone,Saxophone
Jarvis Benson   Viola
Pop Wansel   Keyboards
Blake Slatkin   Vocals,Keyboards
Jasper Harris   Piano
Daoud   Piano,Guitar,Keyboards,Saxophone,Fender Rhodes
ILYA   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Vocals (Background)
Yoshihiko Nakano   Viola
Chawnta Marie Van   Vocals
Doshiniq Green   Vocals
Shelbeniece Swain   Vocals
Myke Wright   Vocals
Chris Jesel   Violin

Technical Credits

Serban Ghenea   Mixing
Stephen Hague   Composer
Damien Lewis   Engineer
James Johnson   Composer
Lauryn Hill   Composer
Larry Gold   Arranger,String Arrangements
Jonny Buckland   Composer
Jeff Chestek   Recording,String Engineer
Robert "Kool" Bell   Composer
Mark Ronson   Arranger,Composer,Producer,String Arrangements
Jerry Hey   Horn Arrangements
Robert "Spike" Mickens   Composer
Ronald Bell   Composer
Brandon Davis   A&R
Ray Chew   Arranger,String Arrangements
Rick Rubin   Composer
Max Martin   Arranger,Composer,Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer,Instrumentation
Mike Dean   Composer
Tommy Peltier   Assistant Engineer
Guy Berryman   Composer
William Bell   Composer
Z-Ro   Composer
Manny Marroquin   Mixing
Malcolm McLaren   Composer
Michael Pollack   Composer
Bill Malina   Engineer
Booker T. Jones   Composer
Benny Blanco   Engineer,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Dennis "D.T." Thomas   Composer
Will Champion   Composer
Peter Svensson   Composer
Richard Westfield   Composer
Adam Horovitz   Composer
Jon Kubis   Arranger,String Preparation
Nick Movshon   Composer
Leon Michels   Composer
Thomas Brenneck   Composer
Savan Kotecha   Composer
Benjamin Levin   Composer
Theron Thomas   Composer
Michael Neil   Composer
Larry Price   Composer
Amy Allen   Composer
Jeremy "J Boogs" Levin   Production Coordination
Michelle Mancini   Mastering
Kid Harpoon   Composer,Producer,Drum Programming
Theron M. Thomas   Composer
Sam Holland   Engineer
Alton Taylor   Composer
Jens Jungkurth   Engineer,Recording
Jordan Johnson   Composer,Musician,Instrumentation
James Kirk   Assistant Engineer
Eric Frederic   Composer
Ian Kirkpatrick   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Emily Warren   Composer
George "Funky" Brown   Composer
Chris Key   Producer
Chris Martin   Composer
Terrace Martin   Producer,Additional Production
Lemar Guillary   Horn Arrangements
Nate Mercereau   Composer,Producer,Additional Production
Aryanna Platt   A&R
Claydes Smith   Composer
Joseph McVey   Composer
Andrew Wansel   Composer
Stefan Johnson   Composer,Engineer,Musician,Instrumentation
Jeremy Hatcher   Engineer
Ronald Larkins   Composer
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Arranger,Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Quelle Chris   Producer
David Silberstein   Production Coordination
Christian Johnson   Production Coordination
Jaynell Grayson   String Contractor,Strings Contractor
Virgilio Tzaj   Design,Art Direction
Jonathan Bellion   Composer
Ricky Reed   A&R,Mixing,Arranger,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation,Horn Arrangements,Associate Producer,Additional Production
Lizzo   Executive Producer
Gavin Tennille   Composer
Melissa Jefferson   Composer
The Monsters & Strangerz   Producer
Ira Grylack   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Chris Keys   Producer
Phoelix   Producer,Programming
Patrick Kehrier   Engineer,Recording,Vocal Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Pop Wansel   Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Chad Gordon   Assistant Engineer
Jacob Ferguson   Engineer,Recording
Blake Slatkin   Composer,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Gregg Golterman   Production Coordination
Omer Fedi   Composer,Producer
Daoud   Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Bryce Bordone   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Daoud Anthony   Composer
ILYA   Arranger,Engineer,Producer,Programming,Instrumentation
Trey Pearce   Assistant Engineer
Zach Pereyra   Mixing Assistant
AB+DM   Photography
Anthony Vilchis   Mixing Assistant
Piece Eatah   Assistant Engineer
Trey Station   Mixing Assistant
Myke Wright   Cover Design
Nate Ramer   Assistant Engineer
Christian DeVivo   Composer