"Handle Me" is a song by Swedish recording artist Robyn, taken from her self-titled fourth studio album. It was written and produced by Klas Åhlund. The song was initially released as a promotional single in Sweden in 2005. It received a proper single release on 22 October 2007, as the album's third international single and fifth overall. It was later released as the second single in the United States on 1 April 2008. The song was described as a feminist anthem about a man who believes he is cool, but Robyn thinks he is not and she wants to tell him that. The song utilizes thudding beats and string instruments, including violas, violins and guitars.
The song received generally positive reviews from critics, who noted its potential of becoming a hit. Commercially, the song reached the top twenty in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. It also peaked at number five on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart. It charted moderately elsewhere, peaking at number thirty-six in the Flanders region in Belgium, and reaching the lower half on the charts in Ireland, the Netherlands, and Germany. A low budget music video was made for the song for the album's release in Sweden and features Robyn and her friends outside at night. In 2007, Robyn made a new video with director Johan Renck. The clip sees Robyn standing in colored boxes of different shapes and sizes.
"Handle Me" and "Crash and Burn Girl" were released as promotional singles in Sweden, in 2005.[1] "Handle Me" was released via digital download as the album's third single in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 22 October 2007.[2][3] A CD single was later released in the UK on 29 October 2007,[4] and on 7 March 2008 in Germany.[5] The song was released as the second single from the album in the United States on 1 April 2008.[6] The song was written and produced by Klas Åhlund.[7] In an interview with British newspaper Metro, Robyn spoke about "Handle Me", saying, "It’s a fun song about any guy who thinks he’s really cool but really isn’t and I’ve got to tell him."[8]
Composition
Robyn – "Handle Me"
"Handle Me" is a pop song in which Robyn proclaims that a man can't handle her.
Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly considered the song "a less nasty but even hookier version of Pink's lounge-lizard-repelling 'U + Ur Hand'."[9] The song begins with thudding beats, accompanied by "serious-sounding" violas and violins.[10][11] David Hyland of WMUR-TV wrote that it utilizes "cheesy guitar flourishes" in the chorus.[10] Hyland referred it to as a feminist anthem due to the "brutality and directness to the lyrics". He wrote, "Robyn sounds undeniably sweet as she defies and then details the seedy exploits of a controlling bar owner who seeks to be her paramour. She trounces him in a manner we're not accustomed to in normally breezy confines of pop music."[10] Danny Corvini of Australian website Samesame.com.au wrote that the song is about "boyfriends who can’t keep up".[12] In the chorus, Robyn tells the man, "You’re a selfish, narcissistic, psycho-freaking, bootlicking Nazi creep/And you can’t handle me."[13] The North American version of Robyn censors the word "Nazi".[13]
Reception
Critical reception
Nick Levine of Digital Spy awarded "Handle Me" four out of five stars, and wrote, "[Robyn]'s on rum old form on 'Handle Me', her follow-up tune [to "With Every Heartbeat"], taking it upon herself to put a very arrogant young man in his place." He concluded his review, saying that due to the song's backdrop, beats and blips, "Robyn sounds as if she's been beamed in from Mars. In the best possible way, of course."[14] Talia Kraines of BBC Music wrote that "Jamelia would kill for a ballad as elegant as 'Handle Me'."[15] Dan Cairns of The Sunday Times wrote that it includes the "unforgettable put-down: “You’re a selfish narcissistic psycho freaking bootlicking Nazi creep.” The line comes, it should be noted, at the end of a killer chorus. A killer pop chorus."[16] David Hyland of WMUR-TV wrote, "The record's most striking track is "Handle Me," not only because of it has the potential to be a monster hit, but also because it's an interesting combination of contradictory impulses."[10]
Chart performance
"Handle Me" debuted at number forty-three on the UK Singles Chart on the issue dated 3 November 2007.[17] The following week, it reached its peak of number seventeen. The song spent a total of eleven weeks on the chart.[17] In New Zealand, the song entered at number thirty-six on the issue dated 10 December 2007. After ascending on the chart for several weeks, the song reached its peak of number nineteen on the issue dated 21 January 2008, and stayed in that position for two weeks.[18] In the United States, "Handle Me" debuted on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart at number forty-nine on the issue dated 24 May 2008. The song steadily ascended during the following weeks and reached its peak of number five on the issue dated 26 July 2008.[19] In the Flanders region in Belgium, the song peaked at number thirty-six and spent four weeks on the chart.[20] "Handle Me" also reached number fifty-seven in Ireland,[21] sixty-seven in the Netherlands,[22] and eighty-six in Germany.[23]
Music videos
Robyn standing in front of colored boxes in the second music video for "Handle Me"
The first music video for "Handle Me" was directed by Fredrik Skogkvist for the album's Swedish release.[24] Speaking of the video, Robyn said, "It's an older video and it was done at a point where all the videos that I made for the album were made here in Sweden. They were made here when the album was first released and were very low budget videos. Which I think is great – I don't mind working with low budget kind of videos."[25] Robyn asked director and singer Johan Renck for advice when she started her own record label. At the time, Robyn said that she "hardly had any money to make music videos – and [Renck] doesn't do low-budget stuff – so he hooked me up with people who could help me out."[26] The video begins with Robyn and a group of people outside at night. Robyn wears a tank top and several gold necklaces around her neck. Other scenes show her wearing a hooded sweatshirt, and others wearing a red dress while bicycling.
In an interview with About.com in February 2008, Robyn explained that the album's UK release in 2007 inspired her to make new music videos for "Handle Me" and "Be Mine!"[25] She enlisted Renck for the new video for "Handle Me" because she wanted a challenge. She said, "I like people I work with to challenge me and that's what I get with Johan. He is unafraid to take risks. Some directors are so focused on their original idea that they freak out as soon as you try something new. They miss out on the possibilities."[26] The clip features various solo shots of Robyn while she is dancing in colored boxes and others showing only her head. Several shots include showing her in silhouette and with various props such as a chair, life jackets and smaller boxes.
The second music video premiered on 9 October 2007.[27] A writer for music website Stereogum praised Robyn for making good videos. The writer said, "This must be why [her eyebrows are] black while the top’s not in this vid for “Handle Me,” one of Robyn's many vid-worthy songs. In it she's doing her “I’m fly” boasting, representing your inability to handle her via breaking out of boxes and jump cuts to her humping a stuffed animal and a dancing ninja. Don't analyze, just enjoy."[28]
^Handle Me (Promo CD single liner notes). Robyn. Konichiwa Records. 2005. Konichiwa Promo 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^ abc"Handle Me (Radio Edit) – Single by Robyn". iTunes Store. Apple, Inc. January 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
^ ab. 7digital. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
^ ab"Handle Me: Robyn". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
^ abc"Handle Me: Robyn" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
^ abc"Handle Me: Robyn". Amazon. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
handle, song, swedish, recording, artist, robyn, taken, from, self, titled, fourth, studio, album, written, produced, klas, Åhlund, song, initially, released, promotional, single, sweden, 2005, received, proper, single, release, october, 2007, album, third, in. Handle Me is a song by Swedish recording artist Robyn taken from her self titled fourth studio album It was written and produced by Klas Ahlund The song was initially released as a promotional single in Sweden in 2005 It received a proper single release on 22 October 2007 as the album s third international single and fifth overall It was later released as the second single in the United States on 1 April 2008 The song was described as a feminist anthem about a man who believes he is cool but Robyn thinks he is not and she wants to tell him that The song utilizes thudding beats and string instruments including violas violins and guitars Handle Me Single by Robynfrom the album RobynReleased22 October 2007 2007 10 22 Recorded2004StudioApmamman Stockholm SwedenGenrePop electropopLength3 47LabelKonichiwaSongwriter s Klas AhlundProducer s Klas AhlundRobyn singles chronology Konichiwa Bitches 2007 Handle Me 2007 Cobrastyle 2007 The song received generally positive reviews from critics who noted its potential of becoming a hit Commercially the song reached the top twenty in the United Kingdom and New Zealand It also peaked at number five on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart It charted moderately elsewhere peaking at number thirty six in the Flanders region in Belgium and reaching the lower half on the charts in Ireland the Netherlands and Germany A low budget music video was made for the song for the album s release in Sweden and features Robyn and her friends outside at night In 2007 Robyn made a new video with director Johan Renck The clip sees Robyn standing in colored boxes of different shapes and sizes Contents 1 Background 2 Composition 3 Reception 3 1 Critical reception 3 2 Chart performance 4 Music videos 5 Track listing 6 Personnel 7 Charts 8 Release history 9 References 10 External linksBackground Edit Handle Me and Crash and Burn Girl were released as promotional singles in Sweden in 2005 1 Handle Me was released via digital download as the album s third single in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 22 October 2007 2 3 A CD single was later released in the UK on 29 October 2007 4 and on 7 March 2008 in Germany 5 The song was released as the second single from the album in the United States on 1 April 2008 6 The song was written and produced by Klas Ahlund 7 In an interview with British newspaper Metro Robyn spoke about Handle Me saying It s a fun song about any guy who thinks he s really cool but really isn t and I ve got to tell him 8 Composition Edit Robyn Handle Me source source Handle Me is a pop song in which Robyn proclaims that a man can t handle her Problems playing this file See media help Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly considered the song a less nasty but even hookier version of Pink s lounge lizard repelling U Ur Hand 9 The song begins with thudding beats accompanied by serious sounding violas and violins 10 11 David Hyland of WMUR TV wrote that it utilizes cheesy guitar flourishes in the chorus 10 Hyland referred it to as a feminist anthem due to the brutality and directness to the lyrics He wrote Robyn sounds undeniably sweet as she defies and then details the seedy exploits of a controlling bar owner who seeks to be her paramour She trounces him in a manner we re not accustomed to in normally breezy confines of pop music 10 Danny Corvini of Australian website Samesame com au wrote that the song is about boyfriends who can t keep up 12 In the chorus Robyn tells the man You re a selfish narcissistic psycho freaking bootlicking Nazi creep And you can t handle me 13 The North American version of Robyn censors the word Nazi 13 Reception EditCritical reception Edit Nick Levine of Digital Spy awarded Handle Me four out of five stars and wrote Robyn s on rum old form on Handle Me her follow up tune to With Every Heartbeat taking it upon herself to put a very arrogant young man in his place He concluded his review saying that due to the song s backdrop beats and blips Robyn sounds as if she s been beamed in from Mars In the best possible way of course 14 Talia Kraines of BBC Music wrote that Jamelia would kill for a ballad as elegant as Handle Me 15 Dan Cairns of The Sunday Times wrote that it includes the unforgettable put down You re a selfish narcissistic psycho freaking bootlicking Nazi creep The line comes it should be noted at the end of a killer chorus A killer pop chorus 16 David Hyland of WMUR TV wrote The record s most striking track is Handle Me not only because of it has the potential to be a monster hit but also because it s an interesting combination of contradictory impulses 10 Chart performance Edit Handle Me debuted at number forty three on the UK Singles Chart on the issue dated 3 November 2007 17 The following week it reached its peak of number seventeen The song spent a total of eleven weeks on the chart 17 In New Zealand the song entered at number thirty six on the issue dated 10 December 2007 After ascending on the chart for several weeks the song reached its peak of number nineteen on the issue dated 21 January 2008 and stayed in that position for two weeks 18 In the United States Handle Me debuted on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart at number forty nine on the issue dated 24 May 2008 The song steadily ascended during the following weeks and reached its peak of number five on the issue dated 26 July 2008 19 In the Flanders region in Belgium the song peaked at number thirty six and spent four weeks on the chart 20 Handle Me also reached number fifty seven in Ireland 21 sixty seven in the Netherlands 22 and eighty six in Germany 23 Music videos Edit Robyn standing in front of colored boxes in the second music video for Handle Me The first music video for Handle Me was directed by Fredrik Skogkvist for the album s Swedish release 24 Speaking of the video Robyn said It s an older video and it was done at a point where all the videos that I made for the album were made here in Sweden They were made here when the album was first released and were very low budget videos Which I think is great I don t mind working with low budget kind of videos 25 Robyn asked director and singer Johan Renck for advice when she started her own record label At the time Robyn said that she hardly had any money to make music videos and Renck doesn t do low budget stuff so he hooked me up with people who could help me out 26 The video begins with Robyn and a group of people outside at night Robyn wears a tank top and several gold necklaces around her neck Other scenes show her wearing a hooded sweatshirt and others wearing a red dress while bicycling In an interview with About com in February 2008 Robyn explained that the album s UK release in 2007 inspired her to make new music videos for Handle Me and Be Mine 25 She enlisted Renck for the new video for Handle Me because she wanted a challenge She said I like people I work with to challenge me and that s what I get with Johan He is unafraid to take risks Some directors are so focused on their original idea that they freak out as soon as you try something new They miss out on the possibilities 26 The clip features various solo shots of Robyn while she is dancing in colored boxes and others showing only her head Several shots include showing her in silhouette and with various props such as a chair life jackets and smaller boxes The second music video premiered on 9 October 2007 27 A writer for music website Stereogum praised Robyn for making good videos The writer said This must be why her eyebrows are black while the top s not in this vid for Handle Me one of Robyn s many vid worthy songs In it she s doing her I m fly boasting representing your inability to handle her via breaking out of boxes and jump cuts to her humping a stuffed animal and a dancing ninja Don t analyze just enjoy 28 Track listing EditDigital download 2 Handle Me Radio Edit 3 16Digital EP 29 Handle Me 3 47 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Extended Mix 5 57 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Dirty Dub 8 27 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Radio Edit 3 01 Handle Me Williams Dub Instrumental 7 33 Handle Me Williams Vocal Mix 7 32 Handle Me OrtzRoka Death to Disco Remix 3 47 Handle Me Chewy Chocolate Cookies Psycho Freakin Dub 4 53 Handle Me Bjorn Remix 2 57Germany CD single 5 Handle Me Original Radio Edit 3 16 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Radio Edit 3 01 Handle Me VooDoo amp Serano Radio Edit 5 47 Handle Me Bjorn Remix 2 57 Konichiwa Bitches Trentemoller Remix 6 25 Handle Me Video Germany digital EP 30 Handle Me Original 3 16 Handle Me Original Radio Edit 3 16 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Radio Edit 3 01 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Remix 5 57 Handle Me Soul Seekerz Dirty Dub 8 27 Handle Me OrtzRoka Death to Disco Remix 3 47 Handle Me Williams Dub Instrumental 7 33 Handle Me VooDoo amp Serano Remix 5 46 Handle Me VooDoo amp Serano Radio Edit 2 58 Handle Me Bjorn Remix 3 00 Handle Me Chewy Chocolate Cookies Psycho Freakin Dub 4 58 Handle Me Williams Vocal Mix 7 33 Handle Me Instrumental 3 49US digital download 6 Handle Me 3 47Personnel EditKlas Ahlund music lyrics production mixing Robyn mixing Ollie Olson and Henrik Edenhed mixingSource 7 Charts EditChart performance for Handle Me Chart 2007 2008 PeakpositionBelgium Ultratop 50 Flanders 20 36European Hot 100 Singles Billboard 31 61Germany Official German Charts 23 86Ireland IRMA 21 47Netherlands Single Top 100 22 67New Zealand Recorded Music NZ 18 19Scotland OCC 32 16UK Singles OCC 17 17US Dance Club Songs Billboard 19 5Release history EditList of release dates showing country formats released and record label Country Release date Format s LabelIreland 2 22 October 2007 Digital download IslandUnited Kingdom 3 Belgium 27 October 2007 Digital EPUnited Kingdom 4 29 October 2007 CD singleGermany 5 30 7 March 2008 Digital EP CD single Ministry of SoundUnited States 6 1 April 2008 Digital download InterscopeReferences Edit Handle Me Promo CD single liner notes Robyn Konichiwa Records 2005 Konichiwa Promo 2 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link a b c Handle Me Radio Edit Single by Robyn iTunes Store Apple Inc January 2007 Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Handle Me 7digital Archived from the original on 7 August 2011 Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Handle Me Robyn Amazon co uk Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b c Handle Me Robyn in German Amazon de Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b c Handle Me Robyn Amazon Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn booklet Robyn Konichiwa Records 2005 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link Williams Andrew 25 October 2007 60 Seconds Robyn Metro Retrieved 12 June 2011 Willman Chris 2 May 2008 Robyn Review Entertainment Weekly Time Inc Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b c d Hyland David 22 May 2008 CD Review Robyn s U S Debut Launches Another Pop Star s Career WMUR TV Archived from the original on 13 March 2012 Retrieved 7 July 2011 Norman Ben Robyn Robyn About com The New York Times Company Retrieved 3 July 2011 Corvini Danny 10 September 2007 Robyn s In The Hood Samesame com au Archived from the original on 15 March 2011 Retrieved 2 July 2011 a b Sanneh Kelefa 7 February 2008 The Reconquest of America by a Swedish Pop Royal The New York Times Retrieved 2 July 2011 Robyn Handle Me Digital Spy Hachette Filipacchi UK 31 October 2007 Retrieved 1 June 2011 Kraines Talia 5 April 2007 Review of Robyn Robyn BBC Music British Broadcasting Corporation Retrieved 1 June 2011 Carins Dan 6 January 2008 You got a problem with Robyn The Sunday Times Times Newspapers Retrieved 2 July 2011 a b c Robyn Artist Chart History Official Charts Company Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Handle Me Top 40 Singles Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Chart History Dance Club Songs Billboard Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Handle Me in Dutch Ultratop 50 Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Irish charts com Discography Robyn Irish Singles Chart Retrieved 19 January 2020 a b Robyn Handle Me in Dutch Single Top 100 Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Handle Me in German GfK Entertainment charts Retrieved 10 January 2021 Robyn Handle me Fredrik Skogkvist Archived from the original on 11 July 2011 Retrieved 13 February 2011 a b Slomowicz Ron 18 February 2011 Robyn Interview About com The New York Times Company Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Harries Rhiannon 27 April 2008 How We Met Robyn amp Johan Renck The Independent Archived from the original on November 11 2012 Retrieved 12 June 2011 Robyn Handle Me Video Myspace Retrieved 1 June 2011 New Robyn Video Handle Me Stereogum Buzz Media 2010 10 09 Retrieved 2 July 2011 Handle Me EP by Robyn iTunes Store Apple Inc Retrieved 1 June 2011 a b Robyn Handle me MP3 Single Download in German 7digital Archived from the original on 7 July 2011 Retrieved 2 July 2011 Robyn Chart Search Billboard European Hot 100 Singles for Robyn Retrieved 1 June 2011 dead link Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company Retrieved 10 January 2021 External links Edit Handle Me Original music video on YouTube Handle Me 2007 music video on YouTube Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Handle Me amp oldid 1122604584, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
