If You Cried

"If You Cried" is a single by pianist/singer Victor Strong, released as the second single from his debut solo album "Great Expectations". The single was released on October 1st, 2012, following on from simultaneous top 2 hits "Mask" and "Ground Zero". It became Victor's third consecutive top 2 hit as a lead artist. In America it was released as the first single from the album and his US solo debut single, as "Mask" was not released and neither was his Ben Johnston collaboration.

Background
"If You Cried" was written in 2012, during the May 17th studio sessions Phoenix Rising met up for in 2012. The song was written during the same sessions as previous single "Mask". Victor drew from events of 2011, when he was acting head of Saturdays Records, and was forced as label head to respond to a nude photo scandal surrounding label signee Elice Claire. Victor also made reference to the night of Elice Claire's launch party for rarities album "Mademoiselle", when Ben Johnston left his phone behind at Saturdays offices while attending the party and Victor, who was working late, found the phone which had Elice's nude photos sent to it. Since a relationship between Victor and Ben has never been confirmed, Victor took the opportunity to further confuse the issue by seemingly directing the vengeful break-up anthem to Ben. Victor added further subtext to the song by referencing his 2010 Christmas #1 single with Ben in the lyrics. Victor took the song in a rock direction, much harder than anything else on his album and more purely rock than any work with Phoenix Rising. The song was produced by James Moss, who produced the entire album.

Reception
"If You Cried" was a major hit with critics, who deemed it one of the strongest tracks from the album. MUSE declared it single-worthy after hearing the demo version from the promo album sampler. The single announcement was met with great favour, and the single was received by the public with open arms. Chart competition fell away as the date rolled closer, which helped Victor chart high with massive sales. The single was not as successful on the digital chart, despite a respectable peak. It was also well-received on airplay, becoming Victor's highest-peaking solo single to date.

Promo CD

 * 1) If You Cried (Radio Edit)
 * 2) If You Cried (Pop Mix)
 * 3) If You Cried (Orchestral Mix)

CD1

 * 1) If You Cried (Radio Edit)
 * 2) Heartless
 * 3) If You Cried (Orchestral Mix)
 * 4) If You Cried (Radio Instrumental)

CD2 (Remixes)

 * 1) If You Cried (DJ Paulo & Alain Jackinsky Tribal Mix)
 * 2) If You Cried (Tiesto's Seasons Of Life Mix)
 * 3) If You Cried (Cahill Club Mix)
 * 4) If You Cried (Robbie Rivera After Hours Mix)
 * 5) If You Cried (Mark Picchiotti Club Mix)
 * 6) If You Cried (DJ Chuckie Double Dutch Re-Rub)

Digital EP

 * 1) If You Cried (Album Version)
 * 2) Heartless
 * 3) If You Were My Boyfriend (Live @ Mask Of Eternity Tour)
 * 4) Seasons Of Ice (Live @ Mask Of Eternity Tour)
 * 5) White Collar (Demo)

Music Video
The video opens to an empty apartment – really empty, completely devoid of furniture. The picture is out of focus as Victor walks into frame and approaches the window. It comes back into focus as he stares out at the city skyline. He sings along to the song as he stares out the window, then turns around to leave. Victor spots an unmarked envelope lying on the apartment floor, and he picks it up. Inside is a letter, and he continues to sing the song as he reads the letter. The video fades back to earlier that same day; the apartment is filled with boxes which are being moved out. A girl sits on the floor writing the letter that Victor would later find. A phone on top of one of the boxes starts ringing; she picks it up and realizes that it’s not her phone. Victor is sitting in a cab on the way to the apartment, having found pictures on his girlfriend’s phone of her with another man, and he is calling his own number knowing she has it. She refuses to answer as she leaves the empty apartment, hoping to be long gone when Victor gets there.

The scene changes to a sandy desert; it is hot and Victor is sweating. As the desert wind blows, he approaches a wooden and metal structure, which he climbs all over as he continues to sing the song. He removes his top due to the heat, putting his muscles on display as he moves. He is chasing down his girlfriend, who is also here. Victor looks moody and sexy as he pursues her while singing to her. Victor catches up to his girlfriend, and they begin to wrestle each other; it’s heavily choreographed and very sensual. The girlfriend tries to get out of his grasp while he tries to hold her down, pulling her clothes off in the process until she’s topless like him (although they’re always positioned so you can’t see her breasts). Victor’s anger is spent as the song winds down, and he lays back in the desert sun as his ex-girlfriend picks up her clothes and runs off.

Chart Performance
"If You Cried" was initially faced with competition from Taylor, Bloom, L'Mondrea, Romo and Ruby & The Gems at different times, making its chart potential highly questionable. The competition dropped away however, with acts cancelling or rescheduling their releases until the date became a two-person showdown between Victor and L'Mondrea. The chart battle was a close call, but L'Mondrea edged out for the #1, with Victor debuting at #2. However, Victor debuted with 121k which is Victor's biggest sales week ever. On the digital charts, the song did not outperform "Mask", somewhat disappointing for such a big chart hit. The song has had a healthy run on the airplay chart, peaking within the top 3. In America, the song got off to a slow start prior to its official impact on radio, but is currently gaining traction after its adds date. After performing the single at the 2012 American Music Awards, the song received a major spike on the iTunes chart. It has currently peaked in the top 30 of the Hot 100 due to its sales spike.

Chart Run
TOTAL: 267,357+
 * Week 1: #2 - 121,393
 * Week 2: #7 - 53,496
 * Week 3: #12 - 22,779
 * Week 4: #18 - 15,444
 * Week 5: #20 - 11,221
 * Week 6: #22 - 11,767
 * Week 7: #17 - 13,510
 * Week 8: #29 - 8,404
 * Week 9: #23 - 9,343