Funhouse is the fifth studio album by American singer and songwriter Pink, released by LaFace Records in Europe on October 24, 2008, and on October 28 in the United States. To record the album, she enlisted her previous collaborators, such as Billy Mann, Butch Walker, Max Martin and MuchoPsycho, while also involving new music producers and songwriters, such as Danja, Jimmy Harry, Tony Kanal and Eg White.
The album received positive reviews from music critics, complimenting her vocals and variety of song styles on the record, calling it her most personal album. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 180,000 copies in its first week and reached number one on the charts in seven countries including Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Overall, it peaked inside the top ten in more than twenty countries.
Seven singles were released from the album. The lead single, "So What" became huge commercial success, topping the US Billboard Hot 100, additionally to twelve more countries, including the UK, Canada and Australia. "Sober" and "Please Don't Leave Me" also became successful, entering the top ten in many countries, additionally peaking at numbers fifteen and seventeen on the Hot 100 respectively. The seventh single, "Glitter in the Air", was released after her critically acclaimed performance at the 52nd Grammy Awards, which was honored as one of the best in the history of Grammy.
To further promote the album, Pink embarked on the worldwide Funhouse Tour in 2009, which broke the record for the biggest tour in Australian history, and the Funhouse Summer Carnival stadium tour at Europe in 2010. The tours sold a combined total 3 million tickets, and brought the tour to a final gross of $150 million. Funhouse earned Pink three Grammy Award nominations and five MTV Video Music Award nominations. As of 2012, Funhouse has sold 7 million copies worldwide.
Background and development
After months of speculation, Pink announced in February 2008 that she and her husband, Carey Hart, had separated. According to her publicist, "Pink and Carey Hart have separated. This decision was made by best friends with a huge amount of love and respect for one another. While the marriage is over, their friendship has never been stronger."The couple sought marriage counseling during their separation in hopes of reconciliation.
Pink wrote and recorded approximately 30 to 35 songs for Funhouse. "It's like getting rid of your children: 'I like that one too, but I'm going to let that one die,'" she said of choosing the album's tracks. "The good thing now is that different countries want extra songs and B-sides, so there's always a home for the other kids." Pink traveled internationally to write and record the album, working with Eg White in London and with Max Martin in Stockholm. "It was really good to get out of my house and get away from my life. No distractions. No phones", Pink said of her sessions outside the U.S.
Originally, Pink wanted to call her album Heartbreak Is a Motherfucker, but her record label declined because of a fear that offensive language would affect sales. She also said that she did not want the album to look like a break-up album: "There is a lot of that [break-up], but there is fun happening too and that's why I named it Funhouse in the end." Pink has also stated that she sees life as a carnival: "Clowns are supposed to be happy, but they are really scary. Carnivals are supposed to be fun, but really they are kind of creepy." [...] "and that's like life to me, and love. Love is supposed to be fun, but it can sometimes be really scary. And the funhouse mirrors that make you look so distorted that you don't recognize yourself and you ask yourself, 'How did I get here? How do I get out of here?' But, you think that you want to do it again. That is the same as love and life. It's a metaphor for being in love and for life."
The song that Moore is most proud of is "Crystal Ball". She said about the track: "I recorded it in one take and we didn't mix it. It just went straight to master. It was all about a vibe and not about perfection or being polished. I just love that song and I loved recording it."