Butterfly is the tenth studio album by Taiwanese singer Jolin Tsai. It was released on March 27, 2009, by Warner Music Taiwan. Tsai worked on the album with various record producers, including Adia, Paul Lee, Peter Lee, and Paula Ma. The album featured several musicians including Alice Gernandt, Christian Lindberg, Billy Mann, Real Huang, Yi Jet Qi, and Albert Leung. Although critics reacted negatively, the album was a commercial success. With more than 120,000 copies pre-ordered in Taiwan, it became the album has the most pre-ordered copies in the region's history. It has sold more than 210,000 in Taiwan, and it was the best-selling album of the year in the region.
Background and development
On September 21, 2007, Tsai released her ninth studio album Agent J, it has sold more than 200,000 copies in Taiwan, and it became the best-selling album of the year in the region. On December 14, 2007, Tsai continued with her Dancing Forever World Tour.In July 2008, Tsai's manager Howard Chiang said Tsai would begin to work on her tenth studio album in August. In October 2008, media reported Tsai would sign a recording deal with Warner Music Taiwan in December, it reported Tsai had learnt new dance moves and filmed music video in New York City in September, and Howard Chiang said: "She is actively working on the album, and hope it would be released before the year end." On October 31, 2008, Tsai released an album titled Love Exercise, in which Tsai covered ten English classic songs, and it complements a book under the same title. The album alongside the book were scheduled to be released on March 7, 2008, and they were postponed the release date due to the personnel change in Tsai's record label. The album has sold more than 30,000 copies in Taiwan, and it became the best-selling Western-language album of the year in the region. In November 2008, Tsai said her tenth studio album would be released around the Spring Festival of 2009. On December 16, 2008, Tsai signed a recording deal with Warner Music Taiwan in the Beijing National Aquatics Center. On the same date, Tsai said she had completed the recording and would begin to film music videos for the album, and she added: "The album includes ten tracks based on dance-pop, and it merges different genres which I've never tried before, I also worked with F.I.R.'s Real Huang, he wrote a rock ballad for me, and it sounds very good." In January 2009, Tsai said the album would be released in late March. On February 8, 2009, Tsai concluded her Dancing Forever World Tour in Uncasville. Comprising 28 shows, the concert tour grossed NT$1 billion and played in front of 500,000 people from 21 cities in Asia, Oceania, and North America. On February 9, 2008, Tsai held a press conference for her fashion brand Seventy Two Changes in New York City, and she said she would release the fall/winter 2009 collection in July. On February 27, 2009, Tsai said the album would include a duet with Warner Music Taiwan's new artist Nick Chou. On the same date, Warner Music Taiwan indicated the budget for the album would be more than NT$60 million.
Writing and production
On March 9, 2009, Tsai released the album's lead single "Real Man". The song was written by Issac Chen, Jonas Jeberg, Mikkel Remee Sigvardt, Mich Hansen, and Nina Woodford, and it was produced by Golden Melody Award winner for Single Producer of the Year Adia. It is the Chinese cover of Lexington Bridge's song under the same title, and it featured Warner Music Taiwan's new artist Nick Chou's vocals on the rap part. The song merged dance-pop with hip-hop, and it depicted modern women's criteria for ideal partner. On March 18, 2009, Tsai released the song "Compromise". Produced by Golden Melody Award winner for Best Composition Peter Lee, the track was written by Howard Chiang, F.I.R.'s Real Huang, and Real Band. The track described a helpless but common phenomenon in modern people's emotions, and Tsai described: "The concept of love described in the song is quite similar to mine when I fall in love, because I'll compromise a lot to my partner and finally get hurt, I don't dare to speak problems, and it's easy to lose myself, it's my biggest shortcoming. So interaction is very important to each other, not just unilateral compromise." Another track produced by Adia, "Butterfly" was written by Matthew Yen, Anders Kjer, David Clewett, and Alice Gernandt. The track described modern women should insist to be themselves and not be afraid of other people's views. "Love Attraction" was written by Sunny Lee, Michel Daudin, and Matthieu Arnaud Chedid and produced by Paul Lee. It is a French-style romantic and sweet song, and it is the Chinese cover of Vanessa Paradis's "Divine Idylle". Produced by Adia, "The Shadow Dancer" was written by Issac Chen, Christian Lindberg, Ivar Lisinski, and Billy Mann. The track is based on the concept of "dancing in the dark", and it described some people think only of their other half, just like the dancers in the dark can be only seen their shadow. "Parachute" was written by Zyan Tan and produced by Paula Ma. Tsai wished people who expect love can have love falling from the sky like parachute, and Tsai added: "I like to express my views on love in a figurative way." The track "Slow Life" was written by Issac Chen and Thomas Hans Eriksson and produced by Adia. The track is the Chinese cover of Lena Philipsson's "Det gör ont", and Tsai described: "Modern people are in a hurry to deal with a lot of things, constantly changing relationships and jobs, we should actually slow down and enjoy the slow pace of life." Produced by Paula Ma, the track "Accompany with Me" was written by Golden Melody Award winner for Best Lyrics Daryl Yao and Yi Jet Qi. The song is a tender and affectionate positive love song, and Tsai described: "This song is sweet and suitable for playing on the wedding day. It tells the other half that you are my dependence, and I am willing to accompany you through life, age, illness, and death, it is very sweet." The track "You Hurt My Feelings" was written by Golden Melody Award winner for Best Lyrics Albert Leung and Tan Vui Chuan, and it was produced by Paul Lee. The song is a bitter and poignant love song described the lasting emotional hurt of one party in a love triangle. Produced by Adia, "Hot Winter" was written by Jimmy Chou, Howard Chiang, Gino Chen, Mikkel Remee Sigvardt, and Thomas Troelsen. The track is the Chinese cover of Monrose's "Hot Summer", and it is a hardcore heavy beat dance song. It takes environmental issues as the starting point to describe modern people's positive love attitude.
Title and artwork
In February 2009, Tsai announced the album title is "Butterfly", and Warner Music Taiwan described the title implies Tsai "breaking into a butterfly", Tsai added: "I want to tell all the girls through the album, you should insist to be yourself, don't be afraid of other people's views, and be a beautiful butterfly." In the same month, Tsai released the first series of promotional photos, and they were taken at Soho, New York City by the camera crew of Sexy and the City who also has collaborated with Lee Ang, Steven Spielberg, and Richard Gere. Tsai wearing a vintage jazz blazer in the series of photos, and she added: "The outfit looks like it fits me well, but it's actually too big and I had to use clothespins on the back, but photos look great." In the same month, Tsai released the second series of promotional photos. The photos featured Tsai wearing a pink tube top designed by herself together with another designer, and in one photo Tsai upside down lying on a wire to make the figure appear as if it were a flying butterfly. In March 2009, Tsai released the third series of promotional photos, and it featured Tsai wearing a colorful corset designed by The Blonds.In the same month, Tsai released the album's cover art, and it featured Tsai wearing a pastel mini dress designed by The Blonds.
Release and promotion
The album was available for pre-order at 7-Eleven on March 4, 2009 and at all record stores and online marketplaces on March 12, 2009 in Taiwan. On March 12, 2009, Tsai held an album preview session in Taipei. On March 15, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Ximending in Taipei. On March 21, 2009, Tsai held two signing sessions at South Park in Tainan and Hanshin Department Store in Kaohsiung. On March 22, 2009, Tsai held two another signing sessions at Far Eastern Department Store in Taoyuan and Huang San Sogo in Taichung. On March 23, 2009, Warner Music Taiwan and Chunghwa Telecom jointly announced they would release a digital edition of the album, it included a behind-the-scenes clip and the music video of "Butterfly" in addition to ten tracks, and it became the first digital album in Taiwan's history. On the same date, Tsai announced she would embark Butterfly Campus Tour, which was planned to have a total of ten show dates. On March 27, 2009, the album was officially released. On the next date, Tsai embarked Butterfly Campus Tour at Chung Hua University in Hsinchu. On March 29, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Ximending in Taipei, and Warner Music Taiwan announced the album had sold more than 120,000 copies in Taiwan. On April 3, 2009, the album reached number one at the weekly record charts of Chia Chia, Five Music, and G-Music in Taiwan. On the same date, Tsai held a signing session at Gongu KTV in Wuhan. On April 4, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at FAB in Beijing. On April 5, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Xin Liang Ge Fang KTV in Changsha. On April 12, 2009, Tsai held two signing sessions at Dream Mall in Kaohsiung and Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Tainan. On April 24, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Super Brand Mall in Shanghai. In the same month, Tsai decided to cancel a planned concert tour which would embark in the same year. Media reported that the tour was planned to begin in September and have 10 show dates in Asia, and Tsai's manager Howard Chiang said: "She's probably going to take a long break since September." On May 1, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Tuen Mun Town Plaza in Hong Kong. On May 3, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at Red Box in Hong Kong. On May 9, 2009, Tsai held Butterfly Concert at Taichung Civic Square and performed all ten tracks from the album. On May 22, 2009, Tsai released the deluxe edition of the album, and it included five music videos in addition to the original ten tracks. Tsai held a signing session at Lot One Shoppers' Mall on May 29, 2009 and another one at Jurong Point on the next date in Singapore. In the same month, Tsai cancelled the remaining show dates of Butterfly Campus Tour due to reoccurrence of her old injury, and the tour finally comprises only four shows. On June 2, 2009, Tsai held a press conference in Beijing and announced the album had sold more than 1 million copies in Asia. On June 5, 2009, Tsai held a signing session at 1Borneo Hypermall in Kota Kinabalu, and she held another at Berjaya Times Square on the next date in Kuala Lumpur.As of December 31, 2009, the album has sold more than 210,000 copies in Taiwan, it reached number one at the year-end record charts of Five Music and G-Music, and it became the best-selling album of the year in the region.
Live performances
On March 11, 2009, Tsai recorded the Taiwanese television show 100% Entertainment and performed "Real Man", "Compromise", and "Butterfly" on the show. On March 12, 2009, Tsai performed "Real Man" on the Taiwanese television show Lollipop. On March 23, 2009, Tsai recorded the Taiwanese television show Blackie's Teenage Club and performed "Compromise" on the show. On March 26, 2009, Tsai recorded 100% Entertainment again and performed "Butterfly" on the show. On April 2, 2009, Tsai recorded Chinese television show Star Magic 2009 and performed "Butterfly", "Real Man", and "Compromise" on the show. On April 3, 2009, Tsai performed "Butterfly", "Slow Life", and "Compromise" on the Chinese television show Yin Yue Ji Jie Hao. On April 5, 2009, Tsai recorded Chinese television show Happy Camp and performed "Real Man" and "Compromise" on the show. On April 26, 2009, Tsai performed "Butterfly" and "Real Man" at the Music Radio China Top Chart Awards. On May 2, 2009, Tsai performed "Real Man" at the J.S.G. Selections Part 1. On July 11, 2009, Tsai performed "Butterfly" at the Chinese television show The Same Song in Jinan. On August 8, 2009, Tsai recorded the Chinese television show Pepsi's Voice of the New Generation and performed "Compromise" on the show. On August 9, 2009, Tsai performed "Compromise", "Real Man" and "Hot Winter" at the Metro Radio Mandarin Hits Music Awards. On September 2, 2009, Tsai performed "Compromise" at Chinese television show Super Talk Show. On January 24, 2010, Tsai performed "Compromise" at KKBox Music Awards.On February 12, 2010, Tsai performed "Real Man" and "Compromise" at the Hualien Happy New Year Concert.On April 24, 2009, Tsai performed "Butterfly" at the Music Radio China Top Chart Awards. Since then, Tsai performed songs from the album at a series of other events.
Singles
On March 8, 2009, Tsai premiered the music video of the lead single "Real Man" on the Asia's largest LED-screen, and she held a promotional event at The Place in Beijing. The music video was directed by Marlboro Lai who has collaborated with Tsai on the music videos of "Dancing Diva", "Bravo Lover", and "Sun Will Never Set", and it featured the Warner Music Taiwan's new artist Nick Chou. The choreography in the music video was choreographed by American dancer Jonte' Moaning who has collaborated with Beyoncé. On March 9, 2009, Tsai officially released the single "Real Man". The single alongside the track "Butterfly" reached number twenty-five and number ten on the Hit FM Top 100 Singles of the Year respectively.
Music videos
On March 23, 2009, Tsai released the music video of "Compromise". The music video was directed by Hsu Yun-hsuan, and it featured Taiwanese actor Ethan Juan. On March 30, 2009, Tsai released the music video of "Butterfly", which was directed by Marlboro Lai. The choreography in the music video was choreographed by American dancer Bobby Newberry who has collaborated with Eminem and The Pussycat Dolls. The music video also featured Tsai performing some stunning ballet routines, and she described: "Ballet is really hard to dance, ballerinas usually have to learn 10 to 20 years, and I only had three months to learn, so I only learned part of the essence, for instance the 32 fouetté from Swan Lake, but I can only do 20 fouetté, I really admire those ballerinas especially after I started to learn ballet, I also have a lot of room to improve, so I will also continue to practice." On April 14, 2009, Tsai released the music video of "Slow Life", and it was directed by Marlboro Lai. On April 24, 2009, Tsai released the music video of "Accompany with Me", which was directed by Hsu Jun-ting, and it featured Ivy Chen and Jason Tsou.
Critical reception
Writing for NetEase, Xiao Huanxiong described the album: "On the whole, Butterfly is absolutely a rare high quality commercial dance-pop album", and added: "We saw Tsai has not only improved her dancing skill, but her grasp and interpretation of ballads also raised to a higher level." Ai Diren from NetEase commented: "In fact, Tsai's current embarrassment is also a common symptom in the C-pop industry. On the one hand, dance-pop is another important music genre compared to ballad. On the other hand, Chinese-speaking production teams have no way to produce really good dance songs." Music critic Harry wrote: "I think she needs to spend some time on the music itself other than her dancing skill. Otherwise, in the end, everyone will only remember her excellent dancing skill and ignore her music, thus putting the cart before the horse." Freshmusic gave the album 5 out of 10 stars, and wrote: "If it were an album from a new artist, the critical reception might be not too bad. But when it is the album from our C-pop diva after signed with her new record label, what a disappointment." Writing for Smart Info Magazine, Fei Bi'an gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, and wrote: "The tracks are popular, but after waited for a long time, Tsai plays safe without surprise and sincerity. She's been the top C-pop female singer for years, but her breakthrough on music is far less than her extreme challenges on dancing."
Accolades
On May 3, 2009, the track "Real Man" won a J.S.G. Selections Part 1 for Most Popular Mandarin Song. On August 9, 2009, Tsai won three Metro Radio Mandarin Hits Music Awards for Best Singer of the Year, Best Dance-Pop Singer, and Best Stage Performance, the track "Real Man" won for Best Dance-Pop Song, and the track "Compromise" won for Songs of the Year. On December 20, 2009, Tsai won an Migu Music Awards for Best-Selling Female Singer, and the album won for Best-Selling Album. On January 23, 2010, the track "Real Man" won two My Astro Music Awards for Best Dance-Pop Song and Top 20 Songs of the Year. On January 24, 2010, Tsai won a KKBox Music Award for Top 10 Singers of the Year. On January 31, 2010, the track "Compromise" won a Baidu Boiling Point for Top 10 Songs of the Year. On April 11, 2010, Tsai won a Top Chinese Music Award for Top 10 Hong Kong/Taiwan Artists of the Decade, and the track "Butterfly" won for Top 10 Hong Kong/Taiwan Songs of the Decade. On April 24, 2010, Tsai won a Music Radio China Top Chart Award for Best Female Singer, and the album won for Best Hong Kong/Taiwan Album. In the same year, Tsai won a Hito Music Award for Longest Chart Topping Album, and the track "Real Man" won for Top 10 Songs of the Year.
