Crush (Jennifer Paige song)

In April 1998, soon after Paige recorded "Crush", producer Andy Goldmark played the song at top pop Los Angeles radio station KIIS-FM, where it met with a hugely positive reaction from programmers and was added to the station's playlist within days. During the first week of May, KIIS-FM became the first radio station to begin playing "Crush" and it began its meteoric rise up the charts, without typical record company promotion or release. Paige said "we had no pictures, photography, hadn't gotten it mastered or mass-produced it, nothing."^[2] Edel Records, Paige's initial label, made an initial press run of 20,000 copies of "Crush" which sold out quickly, and it soon became KIIS-FM's most requested song.

The song, written by Paige's producer Andy Goldmark along with the songwriters Mark Mueller, Berny Cosgrove and Kevin Clark, was inspired by Paige's personal experiences and observations in her love life. "Crush" is written in the key of C♯ minor and follows a tempo of 115 beats per minute. Paige's vocal range extends from G♯3 to C♯5.^[3]

Billboard wrote that Paige "succeeds in the nearly impossible task of oozing smoldering sensuality without resorting to typical groans and moans. Instead, she uses her notably flexible vocal range to convey the emotion of the tune, quickly soaring to lilting high notes and then dropping to the lowest point of her register to accentuate within the space of several seconds." They stated further that "as a result, she breathes a refreshing intensity into the song that renders it far more sexy than it would have been had she simply taken the easy route. Fortunately, this talented new artist is given a substantial song to work with," adding that producers Andy Goldmark and Jimmy Bralower "surround Paige with tense shuffle beats and twinkly synths".^[4] Blender put "Crush" at 189th place on their list of 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born. They described the song as "an unusually supple and sophisticated teen-pop hit informed by the level-headed sass of great R&B... swept along by a breathy chorus, pulsing groove and Paige's exquisite multilayered vocals."^[5]

"Crush" was an international hit that peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100,^[6] earned a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America,^[7] and sold 700,000 copies by the end of 1998.^[8] It reached number one in three countries: Australia (two weeks),^[9] Canada (five weeks)^[10] and New Zealand (one week).^[11] In Australia, the song is certified 2× platinum for more than 140,000 copies shipped,^[12] while in New Zealand it is certified gold for sales of over 5,000.^[13] In Europe, "Crush" reached number four in France and the United Kingdom,^[14][15] going gold in both countries,^[16][17] and number six in Ireland,^[18] the Netherlands and Norway.^[14] It also became a top-ten hit in Austria, Walloon Belgium, Denmark, Hungary and Spain,^{[14][19][20][21]} and it reached the top 20 in Flanders, Germany, Iceland, Sweden and Switzerland.^[14][22]

In August 1998, Paige made her debut TV appearance singing "Crush" on the ABC TV show Live with Regis and Kathie Lee.^[23] Paige also performed the show live on the Australian prime time TV show Hey Hey It's Saturday where she was presented an award for platinum sales of "Crush" in Australia.^[24] On September 11, 1998, Paige was featured and performed "Crush" on Top of the Pops, which was performed live.^{[25][unreliable source]}

• Jennifer Paige – lead and backing vocals
• Kevin Dukes – guitars
• Andy Goldmark – keyboards and drum programming
• Jimmy Bralower – additional drum programming
• Alex Acuna – percussion

In 2016, a cover of "Crush" by jazz keyboardist John Novello featuring R&B saxophonist Gerald Albright on the chorus reached number eight on the US Billboard Smooth Jazz Airplay chart.^{[citation needed]} It entered at number 45 on the Smooth Jazz chart the week of January 26, 2016.^[78] As of the March 26, 2016, chart, it had spent a total of seven weeks in the top 30.^[79][80] A cover of "Crush" appears on Jai Paul's album Leak 04-13 (Bait Ones), released in 2019.^[81] In 2025, singer-songwriter Katy Perry performed a medley of the song with her own song of the same title, "CRUSH", as part of her Lifetimes Tour.