Diary (Alicia Keys song)

This article is about the Alicia Keys single. For the single by Tino Coury of the same name, see Diary (Tino Coury song).

"Diary"
Single by Alicia Keys featuring Tony! Toni! Toné!
from the album The Diary of Alicia Keys
Released	June 2004
Format	CD single, 12" single, digital download
Recorded	Kampo Studios (New York City, New York)
Genre	Soul, R&B
Length	4:44
Label	J
Writer(s)	Alicia Keys, Kerry Brothers, Jr.
Producer	Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys singles chronology
"If I Ain't Got You" (2004) "Diary" (2004) "My Boo" (2004)
Music video "Diary" on YouTube

"Diary" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys from her second studio album, The Diary of Alicia Keys. Written by Keys and Kerry Brothers, Jr., the song features the American group Tony! Toni! Toné!, and was released in June 2004 as the album's third single. It was nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 2005 Grammy Awards.

At one time, "Diary" had been released as a double A-side with "If I Ain't Got You".^[1] The song's Hani remixes gave Keys her first—and so far only—chart-topper on the Hot Dance Club Play in late 2004. It also peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Keys and Tony! Toni! Toné!, never sang the song live together, to date.

Music video

The single's music video, directed by Lamont "Liquid" Burrell, Rod Isaacs, Jeff Robinson, and Brian Campbell, contains footage of several live concerts from both 2004's Verizon Ladies First Tour, which Keys took part in, and her own 2005 The Diary Tour. Tony! Toni! Toné! does not appear in the video, and their parts are instead performed by Jermaine Paul, but he was not credited with being just a backing vocal Keys.

The phone number

The song's lyrics tell listeners that they can reach Keys by calling a particular number, 489-4608, which was her former telephone number minus the area code when she lived in New York City, according to Keys' publicist, Lois Najarian. Callers who used the correct code (347) would have received a voicemail from Keys herself. However, after listening to the song, fans tried calling the number with different area codes, and one of them, 912, turned out to be the number of a retired pastor from Statesboro, Georgia, named J.D. Turner. He claims to have received more than twenty calls a day from Keys' fans in the weeks after the song's release. This led to a $95 phone bill resulting from charges associated with the *69 last-call return option, which he used to track down each caller. Turner has declined to change his number, having held it for over fourteen years, and is using other methods to block unwanted calls.^[2][3]

Track listings and formats

U.S. promo CD single "Diary" (Radio Edit) — 4:28 "Diary" (Instrumental) — 4:45 "Diary" (Call Out Hook) — 0:10 "Diary" (Radio Edit) (MP3 format) — 4:28 12"Promo / Maxi-Single[4] A1 "Diary" (Radio Edit) — 4:28 A2 "Diary" (Instrumental) — 4:45 B1 "Diary" (Album Version) — 4:45 B2 "Diary" (Acappella) — 4:45

12"Promo - Hani Mixes[5] A "Diary" (Hani Extended Club Mix) — 9:00 B1 "Diary" (Hani Mixshow) — 5:11 B2 "Diary" (Hani Dub) — 6:11

Personnel

• Alicia Keys – lead vocals, backing vocals, piano, producer
• Elijah Baker – bass
• Tony Black – engineer
• Kerry "Krucial" Brothers – digital programming
• Stockley Carmichael – backing vocals
• Manny Marroquin – mixing
• Ann Mincieli – engineer
• Jermaine Paul – backing vocals
• Herb Powers Jr. – mastering
• Tim Christian Riley – piano
• John "Jubu" Smith – guitar
• Carl "Rev" Wheeler – Wurlitzer, organ
• Dwayne "D. Wigg" Wiggins – guitar

Charts

Chart positions Chart (2004) Peak position U.S. Billboard Hot 100[6] 8 U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[6] 2 U.S. Hot Dance Club Play[6] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2004) Position U.S. Billboard Hot 100[7] 34 U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[8] 4 Chart (2005) Position U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[9] 53 Decade-end charts Chart (2000–09) Position U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[10] 21

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by "Everyman... Everywoman..." by Ono

U.S. Hot Dance Club Play number-one single November 20, 2004

Succeeded by "Sand in My Shoes" by Dido

See also

• Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 2004

References

1. ^ "Alicia Keys – If I Ain't Got You/Diary". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070929204716/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/discography/index.jsp?pid=433721&aid=916196. Retrieved June 3, 2007. 
2. ^ "Dear Diary". Snopes. http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/diary.asp. Retrieved October 22, 2007. 
3. ^ "Keys' Fans Reach Out, Touch Wrong Man". E! Online. Yahoo! Music. August 12, 2004. http://new.music.yahoo.com/tommy-tutone/news/keys-fans-reach-out-touch-wrong-man--12177390. Retrieved August 17, 2010. 
4. ^ http://www.discogs.com/Alicia-Keys-Diary/release/365716
5. ^ http://www.discogs.com/Alicia-Keys-Diary-Hani-Mixes/release/334335
6. ^ ^{a b c} "The Diary of Alicia Keys – Alicia Keys – Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-diary-of-alicia-keys-r667520/charts-awards/billboard-single. Retrieved January 20, 2008. 
7. ^ "2004 Year End Charts – The Billboard Hot 100 Singles & Tracks". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 25, 2004. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/yearendcharts/2004/hsititl.jsp. Retrieved November 8, 2010. 
8. ^ "2004 Year End Charts – Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 25, 2004. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/yearendcharts/2004/bsititl.jsp. Retrieved November 8, 2010. 
9. ^ "2005 Year End Charts – Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. November 26, 2005. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/yearendcharts/2005/bsititl.jsp. Retrieved June 26, 2011. 
10. ^ "Decade End Charts – R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/decadeendcharts/chart_display.jsp?&f=R%26B%2FHip-Hop+Songs&g=Decade-end+Singles. Retrieved November 8, 2010.