Shoulda been huge: Michelle Williams’ ‘We Break the Dawn’
By Will Stroude
Believe it or not, there was a time when Michelle Williams was more than just a luckless internet meme – for much of the noughties she was also a luckless solo singer.
Poor Michelle probably wasn’t the one pushing for a Destiny’s Child hiatus back in 2002, but in between DC’s Survivor (2001) and reunion album Destiny Fulfilled (2005), the LaTavia and LeToya replacement actually managed to carve out a moderately successful niche for herself as a gospel artist, releasing two albums which soared into the top three (on the US Christian chart).
After the break-up of Destiny’s Child proper, though, Williams turned her gravelly vocals to dance-infused R&B with 2008 album Unexpected, which – in keeping with its title – received almost universal critical acclaim. The jewel in its crown was undoubtedly lead single We Break the Dawn, a synth-led midtempo banger which isn’t so much forgotten about as, well, never given a fair chance to begin with.
Opening with those cheap-yet-intoxicating synths that seemed to be on everything that Chris Brown and Ne-Yo released that year, the song’s magic lies in its chorus, where Michelle declares over tumbling beats: “We gotta hold back the sun, don’t let it come, ain’t stopping for no one…”
Putting it bluntly, We Break the Dawn is a TUNE and Michelle Williams knows it: that she included three different versions on the UK edition of the album – including the slightly-heavier-but-basically-in-no-way-different FloRida remix We Break the Dawn (Part 2) – is testament to the song’s hook-filled potency.
Co-written by Solange Knowles and co-produced by Wayne Wilkins – a man partly responsible for pop behemoths such as Beyonce’s Sweet Dreams, Jordin Sparks’ Battlefield and Cheryl’s Fight For This Love – We Break the Dawn is an undeniably infectious slice of dance-R&B and had all the makings of a pop classic. Basically, the only thing that seems to have held this song back is its association with Poor Michelle herself.
Aside from Williams’ promotional appearance on Loose Women, We Break the Dawn was completely ignored by TV and radio in the UK, and could only scrape into the top 50 on the Official Singles Chart at number 47 in September 2008. The sad fact is: if Kelly Rowland’s name had been on the cover, this would have gone top 15 AT LEAST. If Queen B herself had released it, then it would probably be featuring on some ‘Best of the 21st Century’ countdowns right about now.
Plans for a UK follow-up single and album re-release were scrapped in the months following We Break the Dawn’s abysmal chart placing. Michelle hasn’t released anything on these shores since, and who can blame her? We didn’t pay attention when we had the chance.
You can watch the video and listen to the seminal synths of We Break the Dawn below:
> Shoulda been huge: Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Into the Nightlife’
> Shoulda been huge: Spice Girls’ third album ‘Forever’
> Shoulda been huge: Jordin Sparks’ Battlefield