Angel (Amanda Perez song)

"Angel" is a song by American singer-songwriter Amanda Perez. Written by Perez and produced by Mike Quinn, "Angel" was released as a single in August 2002 and was included on Perez's second studio album of the same name, released later the same year. In the United States, the single reached the top five of the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart and the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. "Angel" was also a top-five hit in Australia and New Zealand, peaking at number one in the latter country for two weeks.

"Angel"
Single by Amanda Perez
from the album Angel
B-side	"Love Is Pain"
Released	August 26, 2002 (2002-08-26)
Length	3:38
Label	Virgin
Songwriter(s)	Amanda Perez
Producer(s)	Mike Quinn
Amanda Perez singles chronology
"Never" (2002) "Angel" (2002) "I Like It" (2003)

Release

The song was released to US rhythmic contemporary radio on August 26, 2002.^[1] The D-Lo Urban Remix was released to US radio as a Single Mix for Promo.^[2] It was also released digitally.^[3]

Reception

Critical

The review by AllMusic praised her vocal performance and named it the best song on its parent album.^[4]

Commercial

In the United States, it reached number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100, spending 19 weeks on the chart.^[5] On the Rhythmic chart, the song reached number 13.^[6] The song was most successful in the US on the Mainstream Top 40, where it reached number three and spent 25 total weeks.^[7] The track also hit number seven on MTV's Total Request Live.^[8] Billboard ranked the song as the 69th most-successful of 2003 in the US.^[9]

The song was also successful in Canada, where it peaked at number 12 in June 2003.^[10] On the New Zealand Singles Chart, the single reached number one, spending for two weeks atop the chart in June 2003.^[11] The following month, "Angel" reached number two on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart.^[12] "Angel" was ranked at number 13 on ARIA's list of top 100 songs of 2003 and number 15 on the New Zealand year-end chart for 2003.^[13][14]

Perez's subsequent singles failed to break the top 40 in any country, essentially making Perez a one-hit wonder (though she also scored a minor hit with "Never," which peaked at number 79 on the Billboard Hot 100).^[5] Additionally, it was the last song to be played as a long-distance dedication on American Top 40 in January 2004, as Ryan Seacrest replaced Casey Kasem a week later, though long-distance dedications continued on American Top 20 and American Top 10 until both shows ended in 2009.

Music video

A music video was released, featuring Perez having flashbacks of her boyfriend (implied to be dead), and footage of her lighting candles. The video shows a thug who is a getaway driver for a gang and wishes to leave his criminal life behind while his girlfriend packs her things and waits for him. The gang stops and attempts to steal a car but the thug flees on foot from the theft and gets into his own car, thinking that he’s safe. However, the gang leader catches up to him and kills him in his car and flees. The music video was dedicated to two of her family members who had passed, Michael and Benitez Perez.^[15] The music video received substantial play on MTV's "Total Request Live."^[16]

Track listings

US CD single^[17]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Angel"	3:38
2.	"Love Is Pain"	3:21
3.	"Angel" (dance remix)	4:21
4.	"Angel" (the video)	3:57

European and Australian CD single^[18][19]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Angel"	3:38
2.	"Love Is Pain"	3:21

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2003) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[12] 2 Australian Urban (ARIA)[20] 1 Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[10] 12 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[11] 1 US Billboard Hot 100[5] 20 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[21] 57 US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[7] 3 US Rhythmic (Billboard)[6] 13

Year-end charts Chart (2003) Position Australia (ARIA)[13] 13 Australian Urban (ARIA)[22] 8 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[14] 15 US Billboard Hot 100[9] 69 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[23] 20 US Rhythmic Top 40 (Billboard)[24] 57

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[25]	Platinum	70,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[26]	Gold	5,000*
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
United States	August 26, 2002	Rhythmic contemporary radio	Virgin	[1]
	January 13, 2003	Contemporary hit radio		[27]
Australia	July 14, 2003	CD		[28]

References

1. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1467. August 23, 2002. p. 24. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
2. "Angel [US CD-5] overview". AllMusic. RhythmOne. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
3. ""Angel" Digital Release". AllMusic. RhythmOne. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
4. Angel at AllMusic. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
5. "Amanda Perez Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
6. "Amanda Perez Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
7. "Amanda Perez Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
8. Bendix, Trish (August 14, 2013). "Is it getting better for gay women in hip-hop and R&B?". After Ellen. Totally Her. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
9. "Billboard Top 100 – 2003". Billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
10. "Amanda Perez Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
11. "Amanda Perez – Angel". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
12. "Amanda Perez – Angel". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
13. "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2003". ARIA. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
14. "End of Year Charts 2003". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
15. "amanda perez angel video". YouTube. May 18, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
16. "Biography". MTV. Viacom. Archived from the original on September 8, 2014. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
17. Angel (US CD single liner notes). Amanda Perez. Virgin Records. 2003. 7243 5 47265 0 7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
18. Angel (European CD single liner notes). Amanda Perez. Virgin Records. 2003. VUSCDE 268, 7243 5 47138 2 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
19. Angel (Australian CD single liner notes). Amanda Perez. Virgin Records. 2003. 5471922.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
20. "Issue 705" ARIA Top 40 Urban Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
21. "Amanda Perez Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
22. "ARIA Charts – End of Year Charts – Urban Singles 2003". ARIA. Archived from the original on March 9, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
23. "Year in Music: Hot Mainstream Top 40 Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 115, no. 52. December 27, 2003. p. YE-80.
24. "The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Rhythmic Top 40 Songs". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 11, no. 51. December 19, 2003. p. 26.
25. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2003 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
26. "New Zealand single certifications – Amanda Perez – Angel". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
27. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1486. January 10, 2003. p. 23. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
28. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 14th July 2003" (PDF). ARIA. July 14, 2003. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 6, 2003. Retrieved May 14, 2021.

External links

• View the music video on YouTube