Lady

The word lady is a civil term of respect for a woman, specifically the female equivalent to gentleman or lord, and in many contexts a term for any adult woman. Once confined to usage when specifically addressing women of high social class or status; over the last 300 years, the term may now be used to refer to any respectable adult woman.

Etymology

The word comes from Old English hlǣfdige; the first part of the word is a mutated form of hlāf, "loaf, bread", also seen in the corresponding hlāford, "lord". The second part is usually taken to be from the root dig-, "to knead", seen also in dough; the sense development from bread-kneader, or bread-maker, or bread-shaper, to the ordinary meaning, though not clearly to be traced historically, may be illustrated by that of "lord".

Lady (group)

Lady (Hangul: 레이디) was a Korean pop group, noted as the first transgender group from that country. The band consisted of Sinae, Sahara, Binu and Yuna. According to the official story, they were the best out of hundreds who tried out to be part of this band. Although only three were supposed to be in the group, a fourth was added at the last minute.

Their formation was inspired by the emergence of Harisu, a Korean singer and actress, who is also transgender. Sinae has previously appeared in commercials with a female dance group as well as a music video by Cho PD, and Sahara is a 2003 beauty pageant winner in Thailand and a former jeans model.

Lady released their first, self-titled album in 2005, consisting of eight tracks, many of them being remixes of their first two singles, "Attention" and "Ladies Night". There was much attention given to them by the press, given their unique status as a transgender band in a conservative country. However, they were able to perform on Korean music shows only a handful of times, while their music and videos were not well received. In order to drum up more publicity, they released a photobook featuring nude shots of all the Lady members; this also failed to catapult them into stardom, however.

Lady (D'Angelo song)

"Lady" is a song co-written, co-produced and performed by American neo soul singer D'Angelo, issued as the third single from his debut studio album Brown Sugar. A remixed version of the song (titled the Clean Street Version) was also released, featuring vocals from American hip hop musician AZ. Separate music videos were created for both versions of the song.

"Lady" is D'Angelo's biggest hit single to date in the United States, peaking at #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1996. It was certified gold by the RIAA on June 4, 1996. The song was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1997, but lost to "Your Secret Love" by Luther Vandross.

The Game's 2013 single "All That (Lady)" uses a clear vocal sample of "Lady".

Music videos

The official music video for the original version of the song was directed by Hype Williams. The video for the remix version was directed by Brett Ratner. In addition to AZ, the remix video features appearances from singers Faith Evans and Joi; as well as Erykah Badu in her first music video appearance.

Lady (Styx song)

"Lady" is a 1973 rock ballad written and performed by the rock band Styx. It was first released on Styx II and was a local hit in the band's native Chicago, but initially failed to chart nationally. The song gained success shortly after Styx left Wooden Nickel Records to move to A&M Records in 1974 as it began picking up airplay nationwide, eventually peaking at #6 on the Billboard Top 40 in March 1975. The track was later re-recorded for the 1995 Styx compilation Greatest Hits due to a contractual dispute between A&M and Wooden Nickel.

Background

"Lady" was written by Dennis DeYoung for his wife, Suzanne Feusi, the first song he ever wrote for her. DeYoung recounted to Contemporary Keyboard magazine for the January 1981 issue that the first time he ever played acoustic piano was when the band arrived at the recording studio to record "Lady" and saw the piano in the studio; DeYoung had written the song on an electric piano, but decided to try it out on the piano instead, and liked the sound so much that he switched to the piano for the recorded version. It didn't get much promotion and went nowhere until a DJ named Jeff Davis on WLS in Chicago rediscovered the song when he heard it on a jukebox at a pizza place on the north side of Chicago. Determined to make it a hit, Davis convinced management to let him play the song on his Saturday Night show, which had an audience in 38 states and a few foreign countries.

Lady (Kenny Rogers song)

"Lady" is a song written by Lionel Richie and first recorded by American country artist Kenny Rogers. It was released in September 1980 on the album Kenny Rogers' Greatest Hits.

It is listed at #47 on Billboard's All Time Top 100.

Song history

The song was written and produced by Lionel Richie, recorded in 1980, and ranks among Kenny Rogers's biggest hits. Rogers once told an interviewer, "The idea was that Lionel would come from R&B and I'd come from country, and we'd meet somewhere in pop." Lionel wrote the second sentence of the song while he was at the bathroom.

The success of "Lady" also boosted Richie's career. The production work on the song was his first outside the Commodores and foreshadowed his success as a solo act during the 1980s. Rogers was also a featured vocalist on "We Are the World", co-written by Richie. Richie performed the song himself on his 1998 album, Time, and he and Rogers performed the song as a duet on Richie's 2012 release "Tuskegee".

Chart success

Lady (Lenny Kravitz song)

"Lady" is the final single from the 2004 album Baptism by American rock musician Lenny Kravitz. It was released on November 23, 2004. The song is believed to be written about Kravitz's then-girlfriend, Nicole Kidman. The track was used heavily in the GAP ads. The commercials featured Kravitz dancing and singing the song with his guitar to Sarah Jessica Parker.

Track listing

Chart performance

"Lady" was the most successful song from Baptism on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at #27.

Music video

The video was directed by Philip Andelman. It consists of Kravitz playing guitar and singing in a circular stage, while women are dancing around him. There are lights that change depending on the intensity of the sound of the song.

In popular culture

ABC made use of the song to promote its hit television series Alias in commercials that appeared in full length in movie theaters and in edited form on the network.

External links