Maps of Music

Lotus (2012)

Where the lyrics of Lotus take you, and where it was really made.

Lotus was pitched as Aguilera's rebirth, yet its first-week sales were the lowest of her career.

Key places

Westlake Recording Studios, Los Angeles (2012)

Recording site Westlake Recording Studios — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. The point uses the studio building's coordinates. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

The Red Lips Room, Beverly Hills (2012)

Recording site The Red Lips Room (Beverly Hills) — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. Only the Beverly Hills city-center coordinate is known, so the point is not the exact room. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Radley, Los Angeles (2012)

Recording site Radley — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. The point uses the coordinate of the matched Radley Street address. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Mux Music, London (2012)

Recording site Wild Bunch Studios (London) — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. Only the London city-center coordinate is known, so the point is not the exact studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

MXM Studios, Stockholm (2012)

Recording site Master Plan — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. Only the Stockholm city-center coordinate is known, so the point is not the exact studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Chalice, Los Angeles (2012)

Recording site Chalice — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. The point uses the coordinate of the matched Torrance address. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Luminous Sound, Dallas (2012)

Recording site Luminous Sound — Listed as a recording location for Lotus. The point uses the coordinate from the Dallas studio match. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Lotus is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Christina Aguilera
• RCA Records released it on November 9, 2012
• It is Aguilera's first album made after her divorce from Jordan Bratman
• Lotus is a pop album with elements of dance-pop and rock, combining upbeat songs and piano-driven ballads
• Aguilera called the album a rebirth, drawing on her life events, her appearance on The Voice, and her divorce
• Aguilera worked as executive producer and collaborated with a wide range of producers
• New partners on the album included Alex da Kid, Max Martin, Lucas Secon and Tracklacers

Background

• Her sixth studio album, Bionic (2010), failed to generate her usual sales
• After Bionic she divorced Jordan Bratman, starred in the film Burlesque, and recorded its soundtrack
• She then became a coach on NBC's singing contest The Voice
• She was a guest vocalist on Maroon 5's single Moves like Jagger (2011), which spent four weeks atop the US Billboard Hot 100
• She said she wanted high-quality and personal songs for the album
• On The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 2012, she said recording took a while because she likes songs that come from a personal place
• Alex da Kid had first teamed with Aguilera on Castle Walls from T.I.'s No Mercy (2010)

Recording

• The album was recorded at Aguilera's home studio
• The opening track Lotus Intro was inspired by her passion for chill-out electronica
• Army of Me was described by Aguilera as an updated version of her single Fighter (2003)

Cover

• The album artwork was shot by fashion photographer Enrique Badulescu
• Aguilera announced the title Lotus via Twitter on September 12, 2012
• Aguilera unveiled the artwork on October 5
• The cover shows Aguilera emerging from a lotus flower with her arms outstretched

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• Born December 18, 1980, in Ocean Breeze, New York; American singer, songwriter, and actress.
• Appeared on The All New Mickey Mouse Club (1993–1994); recorded "Reflection" for Mulan (1998) and signed with RCA Records.
• Debut album Christina Aguilera (1999) topped the US Billboard 200 and produced three Hot 100 number-one singles.
• Stripped (2002) and Back to Basics (2006) reinvented her image; Back to Basics was her second US number-one album.
• Known for a four-octave range, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register; ranked among the greatest singers of all time by Rolling Stone.
• Sold over 100 million records worldwide; five Grammy Awards.
• Acted in Burlesque (2010), The Emoji Movie (2017), and Zoe (2018).
• Coached The Voice (2011–2016); named a Disney Legend in 2019.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Upon release the album received generally mixed reviews from music critics
• Metacritic gave an average score of 56 out of 100, based on 12 reviews
• The Boston Globe: called it a good start in refocusing attention on Aguilera's skills, but found several tracks mindlessly repetitive
• Q: called it generic and said nothing really stands out
• The A.V. Club: said the album often plays it safe and accused Aguilera of dumbing down her voice or lyrics
• Entertainment Weekly: found its self-empowerment anthems as contradictory as they are unoriginal, and criticized the production for digitally smothering her vocals
• The New York Times: said the conventional direction was its biggest problem
• Rolling Stone: dismissed it as a vitriol-tsunami of a record
• AllMusic: editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that Aguilera feels comfortable in this familiar, slightly freshened territory
• The Independent: said its best moments were its electro-pop numbers
• The Observer: said the subject matter was wiffle of the highest order, while praising her use of polysyllables
• Exclaim!: found her reinvigorated and said she shines most when direct, honest and vulnerable
• Hot Press: said the safer direction made it an improvement over Bionic

Reappraisal

• Spin ranked it number 17 on its 20 Best Pop Albums of 2012 list
• Entertainment Weekly named it the worst album of 2012
• Fuse voted it one of the best albums of 2012

Records

• Billboard 200 debut at number seven with first-week sales of 73,408 units
• Lowest first-week sales of Aguilera's career, below Bionic's 110,000
• Second week fell 26% to number 17, with about 54,000 copies sold
• UK Albums Chart: debuted and peaked at number 28 with 9,422 sales, her lowest chart position there
• Canada: peaked at number seven and certified gold by Music Canada for 40,000 shipments
• Russia, Switzerland and Venezuela: reached the top ten
• As of August 2019, sold over 303,000 copies in the United States according to Nielsen SoundScan
• Certified gold for 500,000 album-equivalent units
• Nominated for Best Album at the 2014 World Music Awards
• Nominated for Album of the Year at the 2013 Spetteguless Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album was first announced via Twitter on September 12, 2012, under the title Lotus.
• Lotus Intro was originally meant to include a sample from M83's Midnight City, but the interpolation is not heard in the final track.
• Aguilera described Army of Me as a Fighter 2.0, an updated version of her 2003 single Fighter.
• Around the World refers to her 2001 hit Lady Marmalade as she whispers a line from it.
• The album was ranked number 17 on Spin's list of the 20 Best Pop Albums of 2012.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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