Lucky Number (album)

Lucky Number is the fourth studio album by Taiwanese singer Jolin Tsai. It was released on July 7, 2001, by Universal and D Sound. Produced by David Wu, Peter Lee, Paul Lee, Chen Wei, and Kay Huang, it incorporated pop, R&B, disco, and hip-hop music genres.

It was well-received by music critics, many of whom considered it her best album during her Universal period. It lacked promotion due to a contractual dispute with her management company, D Sound, though it sold more than 150,000 copies in Taiwan, making it one of the country's top 20 best-selling albums during 2001.

Background and development
On December 22, 2000, Tsai released her third studio album, Show Your Love, which sold more than 280,000 copies in Taiwan. On June 12, 2001, it was announced that Tsai's new album would be released on July 15, 2001. One week later, it was revealed that Tsai would record the Mandarin version of "Where the Dream Takes You", the theme song of the 2001 Disney animated film, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, making her the third singer to record the Chinese theme song for a Disney movie, following Coco Lee and Jacky Cheung.

On June 21, 2001, the release date was revised to July 13, 2001, and it was revealed that Jay Chou had written a song named "Can't Speak Clearly" for her album. On June 30, 2001, Tsai premiered the song "Where the Dream Takes You" in Taipei, Taiwan. On July 3, 2001, it was announced that Tsai's overseas management would be handed over to the manager of Faye Wong and Na Ying, and that she planned to embark on a concert tour by the end of the year.

Writing and recording
"If You Don't Want" is a high-pitch and moving ballad, with the lyrics describing Tsai's serious, persistent, trusting, and free attitude towards life and love. "Lucky Number" was inspired by songwriter Paul Lee's impression of Tsai's stage charm, with a strong and elastic rhythm.

The lyrics of "Can't Speak Clearly" describe a girl's inner conflict between two boys. The lyrics were originally written by Tsai, who named the song "Dialogue", but it was replaced due to the unsuitable combination of lyrics and melody. The album also featured a cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge over Troubled Water," which incorporated R&B and gospel elements with lyrics about friendship.

Title and artwork
Tsai's debut album, 1019, established her popularity. She thought numbers would bring her luck, so that she named the album "Lucky Number". The album has two editions—standard and deluxe editions. The former features four photo cards, while the latter features two photo books. The two photo books cost a total of NT$1.5 million, which were finally selected from more than 3,000 pictures taken in ten different scenes, such as swimming pool, library, record store, supermarket, campus, and stage. The covers of both editions use a photo of Tsai laying on her stomach with her chin resting on her palm, before a background of a blue sky and clouds.

Release and promotion
On June 28, 2001, Tsai held an album pre-order promotional event in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, the pre-order gift, which was limited to 20,000 copies, was a CD which includes two songs—"Where the Dream Takes You" and "Bridge over Troubled Water". On July 3, 2001, Tsai held a press conference in Taipei, Taiwan to announce that more than 28,000 copies had been pre-ordered in the country within 50 hours of becoming available, and she also announced that the release date would be advanced to July 7, 2001. On July 14, 2001, Tsai held a signing session in Taipei, Taiwan. On July 21, 2001, she held the Lucky Number Concert in Taipei, Taiwan. The album was one of the top 20 highest-selling albums in Taiwan in 2001, and it ranked number 19 and number 20 on the 2001 year-end album sales charts of Rose Records and Tachung Records, respectively.

Live performances
On July 8, 2001, Tsai participated in the TVBS-G television show Super Live and performed "If You Don't Want". On July 29, 2001, she attended the closing party of a 30 Hour Famine event held by Formosa TV and performed "Take It Easy". On August 12, 2001, she participated in the High Sense Concert held by Gala TV, where she performed "Take It Easy" and "Can't Speak Clearly". On August 19, 2001, she attended the Summer Music Summit held by MTV Mandarin and performed "Lucky Number", "Watch over Me", "Can't Speak Clearly", "Let Me Alone", "If You Don't Want", "Bridge over Troubled Water", and "Take It Easy." On August 23, 2001, she participated in the TVBS-G television show Super Live, where she performed "Bridge over Troubled Water" and "If You Don't Want".

On October 10, 2001, she attended the National Day Concert held by Chinese TV, where she performed "Take It Easy" and "Can't Speak Clearly". On December 24, 2001, she attended a Christmas party held by MTV Mandarin, where she performed "Can't Speak Clearly" and "If You Don't Want". On December 31, 2001, she performed "Lucky Number" and "Bridge over Troubled Water" at the New Year's Eve Concert held by TVBS-G in Taipei, Taiwan. On the same day, she attended another New Year's Eve Concert held by Gala TV in Taichung, Taiwan, where she performed "Lucky Number" and "Can't Speak Clearly". On January 25, 2002, she participated in the 8th China Music Awards and performed "Lucky Number". Since then, Tsai has been performing songs from the album at various events.

Music videos
The music video of "If You Don't Want" was directed by Chin Cho, and it features Taiwanese actor Ryan Kuo. The music video of "Lucky Number" was directed by Milo Hsu. The music video of "Bridge over Troubled Water" was directed by Marlboro Lai. The music videos of "Can't Speak Clearly", "Watch Me", and "Catcher" were all directed by Px3.

Contractual dispute
In early July 2001, Tsai's father, Tsai Chu-chen, sent legal complaint letters to companies who had cooperated with Tsai in the past. The letter described the dissatisfaction of Tsai and her family to the company D Sound, claiming that D Sound didn't actually have the right to manage her business and short paid her. At the same time, Tsai's father said that he only wanted to clarify the contract with D Sound, and had no intention to sue D Sound. In response, D Sound's manager, Tso Ke-hui, sent a legal complaint letter to Tsai and her family alleging defamation. After that, Tsai's father decided to suspend Tsai's business activities, starting August 20, 2001.

On August 15, 2001, Tsai's lawyers Ting Hsi-cheng and Sun Shih-chun held a press conference together with Tsai and her family, and they unilaterally announced that Tsai ended the contractual relationship with D Sound. Later, D Sound and their lawyer Chang An-chi also held a press conference, announcing that Tsai's unilateral early termination of the contract was a breach of contract, and they demanded Tsai a public apology and a total of NT$10 million in damages. Meanwhile, Tsai Chu-chen pointed out that D Sound's manager David Wu had asked Tsai and her mother Huang Chun-mei to sign a consent form after the Examinee Night Concert on July 10, 2000. The letter authorized D Sound solely to sign all matters with Warner; Wu asked Tsai and her mother not to tell her father. Tsai's father later found out the consent and expressed his dissatisfaction with it. Wu later agreed to withdraw the consent, but Universal Music Taiwan's music director Sam Chen persuaded Tsai to sign the consent again after Tsai turned 20 years old, at which point she could make legal decisions without her parents' consent. In response, Sam Chen issued a statement that the consent was a will without legal effect, that Warner would never cooperate with Tsai in the future, and that he reserved the right to legal action against Tsai and her family for their remarks at the press conference. Later, David Wu released a letter to Tsai and her family publicly, and he said that he would not sue Tsai for the time being.

In early November 2001, Tsai signed Angie Chai's company Comic Ritz, and then D Sound formally filed a criminal lawsuit against Tsai. On December 4, 2001, the Taiwan Taipei District Prosecutors Office held a court investigation. D Sound accused Tsai and her family of slander and demanded compensation of NT$27 million, while Tsai and her family pointed out that D Sound was suspected of embezzlement. On January 21, 2002, Tsai and D Sound filed for arbitration respectively, and the contractual dispute was expected to be settled around June 2002. Tsai's father also said that he applied to the Taiwan Taipei District Court for a provisional punishment, which was approved by the court, and an injunction order was issued. Therefore, D Sound could not prevent Tsai from inviting third parties to record and distribute music publications, film advertisements, and act in television before the arbitration ruling. On January 29, 2002, D Sound filed a criminal complaint against Tsai again, alleging that Tsai's live performances at MTV Mandarin's Christmas party and TVBS-G's New Year's Eve concert in 2001 infringed on the recording copyright. Meanwhile, D Sound chose to make public the income statement related to Tsai to prove that the accounts were in order. On January 31, 2002, Tsai and D Sound attended the second arbitration tribunal.

On June 4, 2002, the Chinese Arbitration Association Taipei ruled that Tsai had to pay D Sound a total of NT$9 million for only two years of the seven-year contract. D Sound said: "The arbitration association's decision has cleared us of the charges that Jolin Tsai and her family had made against D Sound for breach of trust, embezzlement, and accounting irregularities." D Sound added: "D Sound is considering dropping the criminal defamation lawsuit against Jolin Tsai and her family. However, for the sake of protecting the rights and interests of the company, we will not revoke the criminal responsibility for Jolin Tsai's infringement of the recording copyright, because it involves intellectual property rights." Tsai's father said: "The arbitrator found that we have the right to terminate the contract, which means that D Sound had violated the trust and misappropriated the short payment."

Critical reception
Shuwa from Tencent Entertainment wrote that the album showcased Tsai’s growing proficiency in various genres, including R&B and hip-hop, and her experimentation with musical styles. He felt that the incorporation of disco and rap elements elevated the album’s appeal, and believed that the album's production and composition encapsulated the diverse musical styles Tsai explored during her period under Universal, ranging from lyrical and upbeat to melancholic and rhythmic.

Accolades
On January 25, 2002, the song "Lucky Number" won a China Music Award for Top Songs.