Greatest Works of Art (traditional Chinese: 最偉大的作品; simplified Chinese: 最伟大的作品; pinyin: Zuì Wěidà de Zuòpǐn) is the fifteenth studio album by Taiwanese singer Jay Chou, released on 15 July 2022 by JVR Music. It is Chou's first album since his fourteenth studio album Jay Chou's Bedtime Stories and was preceded by six singles released from 2018 to 2022—"Waiting for You" with Gary Yang, "If You Don't Love Me, It's Fine", "Won't Cry" with Mayday vocalist Ashin, "Mojito", and the title track. The song "I Truly Believe" was released in 2019 as the theme for the 2019 Chinese action film Skyfire. The title track and "Still Wandering" also had music videos shot for them, which were released in July 2022.[1]
| Greatest Works of Art | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 15 July 2022 | |||
| Genre | Mandopop | |||
| Length | 44:18 | |||
| Language | Mandarin | |||
| Label | JVR Music | |||
| Producer | Jay Chou | |||
| Jay Chou studio album chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Greatest Works of Art | ||||
The album was the best-selling album of 2022 worldwide,[2] and holds the record for highest first-week sales, selling five million copies upon release in China in July 2022.[3]
Background
editThe album, named for its title track, is an homage to modern European art and culture; Chou himself is an avid art collector.[4] Prior to its release, Chou said the material would be "old sounds recorded with vintage instruments".[1]
Greatest Works of Art attracted attention due to users leaving low ratings for the album on Douban prior to its release, which Douban later removed and apologised for allowing in a post on Weibo.[5]
Promotion
editChou first released the album in June 2022 in a vlog filmed in Paris, where he also shot the music video for the title track.[1] The album was promoted on Spotify billboards in New York City, Toronto and Taiwan, with Chou also releasing a track-by-track commentary edition of the album on Spotify.[6]
Commercial performance
editAccording to a report released by the IFPI in March 2023, Greatest Works of Art was the best-selling album in pure sales worldwide in 2022 with 7.2 million of copies sold.[2][7][8] The album sold five million copies in China in its first week, the highest first-week sales for an album worldwide, a record previously held by Adele's album 25, which sold 3.38 million copies in its first week of availability in the United States in 2015.[3] It also sold 200,000 copies in Taiwan in its first week.[3]
The album also became Chou's first album to chart in Australia,[9] where it debuted at number 29 on the chart dated 25 July 2022.[10]
Track listing
editAll music is composed by Jay Chou
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | 0:29 | |
| 2. | "Greatest Works of Art" (最偉大的作品) |
| 4:04 |
| 3. | "Still Wandering" (還在流浪) | Vincent Fang | 4:25 |
| 4. | "Won't Cry" (說好不哭; with Ashin) | Fang | 3:40 |
| 5. | "Cold Hearted" (紅顏如霜) | Fang | 4:17 |
| 6. | "If You Don't Love Me, It's Fine" (不愛我就拉倒) | 4:06 | |
| 7. | "Mojito" | Huang | 3:05 |
| 8. | "You Are the Firework I Missed" (錯過的煙火) | Fang | 4:17 |
| 9. | "Waiting for You" (等你下課; with Gary Yang) | Chou | 4:30 |
| 10. | "Pink Ocean" (粉色海洋) | Fang | 3:06 |
| 11. | "Reflection" (倒影) | Fang | 3:54 |
| 12. | "I Truly Believe" (我是如此相信) | Fang | 4:25 |
| Total length: | 44:18 | ||
Charts
edit| Chart (2022) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[10] | 29 |
| Hong Kong Albums (HKRMA)[11] | 1 |
| Japanese Download Albums (Billboard Japan)[12] | 32 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[13] | 40 |
| US World Albums (Billboard)[14] | 13 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Gwee, Karen (6 July 2022). "Jay Chou shares music video for new single 'Greatest Works Of Art' featuring Chinese pianist Lang Lang". NME. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Jay Chou, BTS, Stray Kids, Seventeen, and more have the top-selling albums in the world in 2022". Bandwagon Asia. 27 March 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ a b c Jiang, Ming-yan; Huang, Frances (22 January 2023). "Jay Chou's latest album a hit after 6-year hiatus". Focus Taiwan. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ Peiyue, Wu (14 July 2022). "Jay Chou Professes His Love for Art in New Music Video". Sixth Tone. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ Yan, Lim Ruey (5 July 2022). "Jay Chou's new album receives 'reviews' on Chinese site before official release". The Straits Times. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ Faseeh (15 July 2022). "Jay Chou and Spotify collaborate on Enhanced Album edition of 'Greatest Works of Art' – listen". Bandwagon Asia. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ McIntyre, Hugh. "Taiwanese Music Star Jay Chou Scores The Bestselling Album Of 2022 Globally". Forbes. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
- ^ McIntyre, Hugh. "BTS, Seventeen, Stray Kids And Blackpink: The 10 Bestselling Albums Globally In 2022". Forbes. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
- ^ "Will Lizzo topple chart king Harry Styles?". Australian Recording Industry Association. 20 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ a b "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ "Made In Hong Kong Episode 829769". Made In Hong Kong (in Cantonese). 29 July 2022. 35 minutes in. RTHK. Archived from the original on 4 July 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023. Written list of Top Ten Rankings
- ^ "Download Albums [2022/07/20 公開]". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). 20 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
- ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ "Jay Chou Chart History (World Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 July 2022.