Spotlight

"Spotlight" is a song by American singer Madonna from her first remix album You Can Dance (1987). It was released as a single in Japan on April 25, 1988 by Sire Records and Warner-Pioneer Japan. Initially rejected during her True Blue album recording sessions, the song was written by Madonna, Stephen Bray and Curtis Hudson who had presented the original to the singer. The song was remixed by John "Jellybean" Benitez. "Spotlight" features instrumentation from drums, bass synths and handclaps, accompanied by vocal echos, a piano segment and violin phrases in the musical interlude. The lyrics talk about how one can be famous if one sings about it. The song received mixed reviews from critics. After its release, it reached number 68 on the Japanese Oricon weekly singles chart, as well as number three on its international singles chart. Although not released in the United States, the song managed to chart on Billboards Airplay chart peaking at #32 in early 1988. The song was used in a Mitsubishi VCR commercial, in which she appeared. Background In 1983, Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens of the group Pure Energy had written the song "Holiday", which Madonna recorded and released as the third single from her self-titled debut album. After the single's commercial success, Hudson wrote a song sounding like "Holiday", in case Warner Bros., Madonna's record company, wanted to release a similar sounding single. He named it "Spotlight" and offered it to Madonna, who recorded the song for her 1986 album True Blue but it was ultimately not included on the album. Composition