| "Taken by a Stranger" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byLena | ||||
| from the albumGood News | ||||
| B-side | "That Again" (CD single) | |||
| Released | 22 February 2011 | |||
| Genre | Electropop | |||
| Length | 3:25 (single version) 3:02 (Eurovision version) | |||
| Label | We Love Music | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers |
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| Lena singles chronology | ||||
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 "Taken by a Stranger" | |
|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2011 entry | |
| Country | |
| Artist | |
| As | Lena |
| Language | English |
| Finals performance | |
| Final result | 10th |
| Final points | 107 |
| Entry chronology | |
| ◄ "Satellite" (2010) | |
| "Standing Still" (2012) ► | |
"Taken by a Stranger" is a song recorded by German singerLena for her second studio albumGood News (2011), released as aCD single on 22 February 2011 by We Love Music. Gus Seyffert,Nicole Morier andMonica Birkenes wrote the song, while production was handled byStefan Raab and Reinhard Schaub. Seyffert had originally penned the track for Birkenes to record, but her label rejected it and it was eventually given to Lena. Musically, "Taken by a Stranger" is a1980s andgrufti-influencedelectropop song characterized bysynthesizer sounds. Lyrically, it revolves around the connection between two strangers. While compared to the works of English bandThe Cure by onereviewer, other speculated lyrical themes weresadomasochism,psychosexual development,kidnapping andsexual fantasy.
The track wasGermany's entry for the2011 Eurovision Song Contest inDüsseldorf, Germany, after winning the pre-selection showUnser Song für Deutschland. Lena had represented the country at Eurovisionone year earlier, winning the contest. In Düsseldorf, the singer finished in tenth place with a total of 107 points. During her show, Lena performed on a dark stage enhanced with light rays. She wore a black outfit and heavy make-up, accompanied by background dancers and backing vocalists sporting silver body suits. Her performance was well-received by publications that noted its sexual elements.
Music critics gave the song mixed reviews, praising its unusual style and picking it as a highlight in the contest, but also criticizing its lack of catchiness. Several publications pointed out that the recording was a departure from Lena's past good girl public image. At the 20111Live Krone Awards, "Taken by a Stranger" was nominated in the Best Single category. Commercially the track fared moderately onrecord charts reaching number two in Germany and peaking within the top 50 in Austria, Switzerland and Ireland. Its promotion consisted of various live performances, as well as the release of an accompanying music video on 24 February 2011. Filmed inBerlin by Wolf Gresenz, it portrays Lena involved in various activities in a hotel room. In 2012, the visual was nominated for anEcho in the Best Video National category. "Taken by a Stranger" has been covered by acts such as German groupThe BossHoss.
Gus Seyffert, Nicole Morier and Monica Birkenes wrote "Taken by a Stranger", while Stefan Raab and Reinhard Schaub handled its production.[1] The song was originally penned by Seyffert in 2010 for Birkenes to record for a new studio album, but her label rejected it and eventually gave it to Lena.[2][3] In an interview, Seyffert spoke of the song's development: "[Morier and I] squatted together and came up with a tempo and some chords to sing along to. We programmed a beat and I recorded a fast bass and guitar track. Then we took turns singing our melody ideas. When we finally had a tune, we began writing the lyrics."[4] We Love Music released "Taken by a Stranger" as aCD single on 22 February 2011 in Germany.[1]UMG made it available fordigital download in various countries later in 2011.[5] With a length of three minutes and twenty-five seconds on its initial release,[1] the song was shortened to three minutes and two seconds to comply with Eurovision's contestrules and to enable Lena's participation.[6][7]
"Taken by a Stranger" has been described as a "sombre", "mystical" and "mysterious"1980s andgrufti-influencedelectropop song characterized bysynthesizer sounds.[2][8][9][10][11] It is composed in a4
4 metre, with its instrumentation consisting of "weird, spooky and confusing" sounds.[7][12] An editor of German websiteEurovision.de likened "Taken by a Stranger" to the material released by English bandThe Cure.[13] Christina Rietz, writing forDie Zeit, noted the lyrics' complexity and called the song a "sado-hymn".[12]The Guardian's Andrew Khan considered the recording a "wild-eyed piece ofpsychosexual drama".[14]
Lyrically, "Taken by a Stranger" revolves around a male and a female who have come close to each other. The man wants to pursue a relationship but the woman leaves.[12] Seyffert spoke of the song's lyrical message: "We decided on a story of a stranger, who seems a little threatening, or to whom the singer might become threatening. I think it is about expressing a fantasy to be together with a stranger."[4]The Guardian speculated that "Taken by a Stranger" dealt withkidnapping.[15] During the track's "mysterious" refrain, Lena sings several clipped sentences thatcross rhyme: "Taken by a stranger/Stranger things are starting to begin/Lured into the danger/Trip me up and spin me round again." Lena sings selected words in the chorus in a way that matches the accentuation of two beats in the song's4
4 metre.[12] Masen Abou-Dakn, then-lecturer at theUniversity of Popular Music and Music Business inMannheim, praised the song's hook as "[one] on which the listener gets stuck". He felt the mention of chairs andblindfolding in the song supports his view that it discussessexual fantasy.[12]
"Taken by a Stranger" received mixed reviews frommusic critics.[16] Tilmann Aretz ofn-tv praised the song's power and picked it as one of his highlights onUnser Song für Deutschland.[11] Sebastian Leber, writing forDer Tagesspiegel, praised the track for being "unusually modern" and predicted it would stand out among several uptempo songs at Eurovision.[17] German actressBarbara Schöneberger and singerAdel Tawil, along with several publications, noted that "Taken by a Stranger" contradicted Lena's previous good girl public image.[18][19][20][21] In a mixed review,Bild called "Taken by a Stranger" a great "electropop-hymn" but criticized its lack of a catchy melody.[20] Vebooboo Nadella fromWiwibloggs criticized the song's long build-up to the refrain and questioned whether it would impress voters at Eurovision.[22] At the 20111Live Krone Awards, "Taken by a Stranger" was nominated in the Best Single category.[23]
Commercially, the track fared moderately onrecord charts. It debuted and peaked at number two in Germany in March 2011, lasting for 16 consecutive weeks on the chart.[24] In Austria, "Taken by a Stranger" opened theÖ3 Austria Top 40 chart at number 32, eventually reaching its peak position at number 18 in May 2011; it spent eight weeks in the ranking.[25] The song also peaked within the top 30 in Switzerland, the top 50 in Ireland and the top 100 in the Netherlands.[26][27][28] In Belgium, "Taken by a Stranger" failed to enter theUltratop chart in the Flanders and Wallonia regions, instead reaching the top 40 on theUltratip extension in both territories.[29][30]
An accompanying music video for "Taken by a Stranger" premiered onARD on 24 February 2011,[31] and was later uploaded toMySpassde'sYouTube channel on 2 March 2011.[32] Wolf Gresnz filmed it inBerlin, Germany.[31] The video begins with a mirror breaking; Lena picks up the keys for a hotel room from its shards. Entering the room, the singer dances and looks around "grumpily". Following this, she gets ready in front of the bathroom mirror and "wrestles" with her reflection. The music video ends with Lena jumping into a mirror that breaks, with her disappearing. Scenes are interspersed throughout the clip's main plot, showing female background dancers wearing silver bodysuits, as well as the singer lying on a bed with apug in her hands.[31][32] At the 2012Echo Awards, the video was nominated in the Best Video National category.[33] "Taken by a Stranger" was promoted through several live performances.[34] German groupThe BossHoss covered the song in arock version during the fourth season of the German reality television seriesSing meinen Song – Das Tauschkonzert (2017).[35]
After Lena won theEurovision Song Contest 2010 with her song "Satellite", theNorddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) confirmed that she would represent Germany a second time and opened a submission period for composers to submit their entries. Lena's song for Eurovision was selected by public televoting duringUnser Song für Deutschland, which consisted of two semi-finals, one final and the super final. "Taken by a Stranger" qualified from the first semi-final on 31 January 2011 with three other songs. It advanced to the super final from the final on 18 February 2011 alongside "Push Forward". "Taken by a Stranger" was ultimately selected as Germany's entry for theEurovision Song Contest 2011 after receiving 79% of the televotes in the super final.[36][37]
The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 took place at theEsprit Arena inDüsseldorf, Germany, and consisted of two semi-finals on 10 and 12 May, and the final on 14 May 2011. According to Eurovision rules all participating countries, except the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom), were required to qualify from one semi-final to compete in the final; the top ten countries from their respective semi-final progressed to the final.[39] There, Lena performed 16th, preceded byMoldova and followed byRomania.[39]
During her show, Lena sang "Taken by a Stranger" on a dark stage in a "temple of white rays of light", sporting a black outfit and "skyscraper-high" high heels. She wore heavy make-up and hadsmoky eyes. Two female backing vocalists and three female background dancers accompanied the singer, each sporting silver elastic body suits.[20][21][38]TV Today praised Lena's performance, noting her "most erotic hip swings" and "her lascivious look".[9] An editor at Eurovision.de lauded the singer's facial expressions, feeling they enhanced the song's impact.[40]Oberösterreichische Nachrichten noted Lena'ssex appeal,[41] whileThe Guardian compared her stage show to ones conducted by English singersKate Nash andCheryl. The newspaper likened the background dancers' outfits to those worn by Norwegian bandHole in the Wall.[15] In her bookPerforming the 'New' Europe, Karen Fricker wrote that Lena portrayed afemme fatale, comparing her sexualized appearance to German playwrightFrank Wedekind 1895Lulu play series.[42]
Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Germany in the Grand Final of the contest. The country finished in tenth place with a total of 107 points, including ten awarded byAustria, and eight fromBelarus,Denmark,Latvia andSwitzerland.[43] Overall, Germany came ninth by the public televote with 113 points and tenth by the juries with 104 points.[44]
| Points awarded to Germany (Final) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany[1] | 22 February 2011 | CD single | We Love Music |
| Various[47] | N/A 2011 | Digital download | UMG |
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