"7 Seconds" is a song performed by Senegalese singer-songwriterYoussou N'Dour and Swedish singer-songwriterNeneh Cherry. The pair also wrote the lyrics, with music composed by producersCameron McVey (Booga Bear) andJonathan Sharp (Jonny Dollar). The song achieved success upon release as a single on 7 June 1994 viaColumbia Records, reaching the top 10 in numerous countries; in France, it stayed at number one for 16 weeks, a record at the time. N'Dour featured the song on his seventh album,The Guide (Wommat) (1994), while Cherry included it on her 1996 albumMan. "7 Seconds" also won theMTV Europe Music Award in the category for Best Song of 1994.[1]Stéphane Sednaoui directed the accompanying music video for the song, which was shot in black-and-white and filmed inNew York City.NME magazine ranked "7 Seconds" number 40 in their list of the 50 best songs of 1994.[2]
According to Swedish music producerChristian Falk, he produced the track, played bass and programmed the drums and other instruments. However, he received no credit and had to hire lawyers to get the money due to him.[3] The song is trilingual as N'Dour sings in three languages:French,English and the West African languageWolof. Cherry sings only in English.[4] The English chorus was actually recorded by another singer as Youssou was ill during the production of the song.[citation needed]
The title and refrain of the song refers to the first moments of a child's life; as Cherry put it, "not knowing about the problems and violence in our world".[4] Shocked by the single's enormous commercial success, she toldThe Independent in an interview: "We did it as an experiment. The tune grew on its own, completely out of proportion. It was out there doing its own thing. But that is a dream when you write a song."[5]
SwedishAftonbladet complimented the song as a "floating airy and heavenly beautiful synthballad".[6] Peter Stepek fromAllMusic called it a "vaguely menacing duet".[7]Larry Flick fromBillboard magazine felt it is "unique and thoroughly pleasing", noting that the "haunting tune is padded with cushiony synths and a richly soulful bass line.Cherry offers a sweet and charming contrast toN'Dour's gritty vocal."[8] Troy J. Augusto fromCashbox wrote that the "compelling duet nicely swirls N'Dour's husky vocals and Cherry's sweet, angelic voice into a nifty,down-tempo stroll that has broad radio potential." He added further that it is "powered by a rolling bass line and layers of passive synthesizer strains".[9] Dave Sholin from theGavin Report viewed the song as "music to stir the senses combined with lyrics that make a powerful case for our common humanity." He remarked that it "is especially powerful in light of recent events in South Africa and it's made that much more riveting by the melding of these two voices. Its worth spending some time with this amazing track."[10]
In his weekly UK chart commentary,James Masterton praised it as a "gorgeous ballad".[11] Pan-European magazineMusic & Media complimented Cherry as "again brilliant" and described the song as "afro-hop",[12] complimenting it as "melodic, synthy, sexy and with a slow beat."[13] Wendi Cermak fromThe Network Forty described it as "haunting".[14]Dele Fadele fromNME named '7 Seconds' Single of the Week, noting that N'Dour duets with Cherry "to quite surprising results". He added that the voices "are pearls at 300 feet below sea level" and the arrangements "work wonders".[15] In a separate review, Fadele opined that the song "makes like a future African sci-fi rumination on colour prejudice, with Yossou N'Dour's beguiling tones on show."[16] Emma Cochrane fromSmash Hits gave it a top score of five out of five and named it Best New Single, saying that "whoever came up with the idea of putting them on the same record was a genius." She concluded: "Hopefully in the charts for a very long time."[17] David Sinclair fromThe Times wrote: "Built around a gentle boombox beat overlaid by drifting synthesizer chords, the song achieves the same seductive combination of rhythm and rumination that informedBruce Springsteen's recent hit 'Streets of Philadelphia'."[18]
"7 Seconds" was a worldwide hit, peaking within the top 10 of the charts in several countries, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands (number two), Sweden, Paraguay and the United Kingdom. It climbed to the top position in the Walloon region of Belgium, Finland, France, Iceland, Italy and Switzerland. It stayed at number one for 16 consecutive weeks on theFrench Singles Chart,[19] which was the record for the most weeks at the top position at the time. On theEurochart Hot 100, the song reached number two. It was awarded with agold record in Austria, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
The black-and-white music video for "7 Seconds" was directed by French director, photographer, film producer and actorStéphane Sednaoui.[20][21] It was filmed inNew York City[22] and features people of different ethnicities walking by while the two are singing. When N'Dour and Cherry sing the chorus, different kinds of people's faces appear. The video receivedheavy rotation onMTV Europe and was A-listed on Germany'sVIVA in August 1994.[23][24]
NME magazine ranked "7 Seconds" number 40 in their list of the 50 best songs of 1994.[2] It was included in the 2010 book1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die. Eloise Parker remarked that "the soul of '7 seconds' is N'Dour's heartfelt vocals, sung inWolof and French, enhanced by Cherry's haunting English-language chorus."[25]
In 1994, the same year of the original one, Lover's released a cover of "7 Seconds" that peaked at number four on the Spain Singles Chart.[26] In 2010, the song was covered byThomas D under the title "Million Voices (7 Seconds)" and reached number 16 on the German Singles Chart and number 64 on the Swiss Singles Chart.[27]
