Reflection (song)

"Reflection" is a song written and produced by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel for the soundtrack of Disney's 1998 animated film Mulan. In the film, the song is performed by Tony Award winner, Filipina singer and actress Lea Salonga as Fa Mulan. An accompanying music video for "Reflection" was included as a bonus to the Disney Gold Classic Collection DVD release of the film in February 2000. Reflection has received highly positive reviews, with critics highlighting its emotional writing and Salonga's vocals.

"Reflection"
Song by Lea Salonga
from the album Mulan: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack
ReleasedJune 25, 1998
Recorded1997
Length2:27
LabelWalt Disney
Composer(s)Matthew Wilder
Lyricist(s)David Zippel
Producer(s)Matthew Wilder

A single version of the song was recorded by American singer Christina Aguilera and became her debut single. She was 17 at the time it was released. The single's commercial success funded Aguilera's debut album from RCA, in addition to gaining her credibility amongst established writers and producers. Releases of the single were limited, which resulted in the track charting only on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. An accompanying music video for the song was included on the DVD release of Mulan. Aguilera has performed the track on four televised performances, including at the CBS This Morning show, which saw her gain the attention of songwriter Diane Warren. A later, the remix by Eric Kupper was released. In 2020, Aguilera re-recorded the song for the live adaptation of Mulan.

Use in Mulan

In the film Mulan, the song is recorded by Filipina singer and actress Lea Salonga as the title character Mulan. "Reflection", which lasts for 2:27[1] was written and produced by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel, in the key of A major. Salonga's vocal range spans from the low-note of G♯3 to the high-note of D5 in a moderately slow tempo of 119 beats per minute.[2] The film version truncates the song from the original full version, which runs 3:40 and consists of one more verse and chorus.[3]

The song is performed after Mulan returns home following a humiliating and failed attempt to impress her matchmaker. The lyrical content expresses the way Mulan feels about wanting to show the world who she really is instead of pretending to be who she is not, but is afraid to disappoint her family by doing so. This scene takes place at Mulan's home in its surrounding gardens and ends in her family temple, where she removes her makeup to reveal her true appearance.

Christina Aguilera versions

1998 version
"Reflection"
Single by Christina Aguilera
from the album Mulan: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack and Christina Aguilera
ReleasedJune 15, 1998
RecordedFebruary 1998
Genre
Length3:33
Label
  • Walt Disney
  • RCA
Composer(s)Matthew Wilder
Lyricist(s)David Zippel
Producer(s)Matthew Wilder
Christina Aguilera singles chronology
"Reflection"
(1998)		 "Genie in a Bottle"
(1999)
Licensed audio
"Reflection (Pop Version)" on YouTube

Aguilera approached record label RCA, then having financial difficulties, and was told to contact Disney.[4] After being given the opportunity to record "Reflection", it was reported she had gained a record deal with RCA Records.[5] After she was asked to hit E5, the highest note required for "Reflection", she thought that the song could be the gateway into an album deal. Aguilera spent hours recording a cover of Whitney Houston's "Run to You", which included the note she was asked to hit.[4] After successfully hitting the note, which she called "the note that changed my life", she was given the opportunity to record the song.[6] Due to the success around the recording of "Reflection", RCA wished for Aguilera to record and release an album by September 1998 to maintain the "hype" surrounding her at that time.[6] The label laid the foundation for the album immediately and started presenting Aguilera with tracks for her debut album, which they later decided would have a January 1999 release.[6] "Reflection" was adopted as a track on the album.

Serving as her debut single, Aguilera's version of "Reflection" was released to adult contemporary radio on June 15, 1998.[7] The song was released as a CD single in Japan on September 16, 1998.[8]

Reception

Beth Johnson of Entertainment Weekly noted Aguilera has a "who-am-I musings" persona in the song,[9] while Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic commented that the "Matthew Wilder and David Zippel's full-fledged songs [on Mulan] are flat and unmemorable."[10] "Reflection" peaked at number 19 on the Adult Contemporary chart.[11][12] After the success of the track, Aguilera's record label RCA decided to fund her debut album (costing over one million dollars), and eventually funded more than they had predicted initially.[13]

Live performances

Aguilera performed the song on television four times, first on the CBS This Morning, and then on the Donny & Marie show; neither of these performances were directed at her demographic of teen viewers.[11] Whilst watching the show on This Morning, Aguilera gained the attention of songwriter Diane Warren, who was astonished by such a young performer being as "polished" as she was. Warren later stated that she had seen the potential in Aguilera.[13] The singer also performed "Reflection" on MuchMusic's Intimate and Interactive on May 17, 2000.[14] An ABC special in 2000, featuring a performance of the song, was recorded and released in a DVD titled My Reflection.[15] The song was later included in the setlist for Aguilera's Vegas residency Christina Aguilera: The Xperience.

International versions

Aguilera's version of the song was re-dubbed into a number of languages to be featured in their respective foreign soundtracks released in 1998. In 2000, Aguilera herself recorded her own Spanish-language version of "Reflection" titled "Mi Reflejo" which was adapted by Rudy Pérez for the album of the same name.[16] As both Spanish soundtracks had been released two years earlier, each featuring their own end-credits version, Aguilera's version was not featured in either of them.[17][18] For the Latin-American market, the song was titled "Reflejo" and performed in Spanish-language by Mexican singer Lucero.[19] In her Korean version of the song, titled "내안의 나를" ("Naeane naleul"), Korean American singer Lena Park went up to an A5.[20] Hong Kong-American singer and actress Coco Lee performed a Mandarin version of the song titled "自己" ("Zìjǐ"), after she was called to voiced the character of Mulan in the Mandarin dubbing distributed in Taiwan.[21][22][23]

Track listing
  • Australian CD single
  1. "Reflection" (performed by Christina Aguilera) – 3:34
  2. "Honor To Us All" (performed by Beth Fowler, Lea Salonga, Marnie Nixon) – 3:03
  • Japan CD Mini single
  1. "Reflection" (performed by Christina Aguilera) – 3:34
  2. "Reflection" (performed by Lea Salonga) – 2:27
  • Taiwan CD Mini single Promo
  1. "Reflection" (performed by Christina Aguilera) – 3:34
  2. "True To Your Heart" (performed by 98 Degrees & Stevie Wonder) – 4:17

Charts
Chart (1998–2014) Peak
position
Philippines (PARI)[24] 2
South Africa (RISA)[25] 87
South Korea International (Gaon)[26] 86
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[12] 19

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States June 15, 1998 Adult contemporary
[7]
Japan September 16, 1998 CD BMG [8]

2020 version
"Reflection (2020)"
Single by Christina Aguilera
from the album Mulan
ReleasedAugust 28, 2020
Length3:38
LabelWalt Disney
Composer(s)Matthew Wilder
Lyricist(s)David Zippel
Producer(s)Harry Gregson-Williams
Christina Aguilera singles chronology
"Loyal Brave True"
(2020)		 "Reflection (2020)"
(2020)		 "Pa Mis Muchachas"
(2021)
Music video
"Reflection" (2020) on YouTube
Aguilera performing "Reflection" during the D23 Expo in 2019, where she was honored as a Disney Legend

Although the live action remake was announced not to be a musical, on February 27, 2020, Aguilera announced that she had recorded a new version of the song for the upcoming movie, which was going to be featured in the movie soundtrack.[27] Film composer Harry Gregson-Williams provided the orchestra for Aguilera's re-recorded version, and film director Niki Caro directed the music video.[28]

Reception

In December 2020, PopSugar UK's Kelsie Gibson named the release of "Reflection" as one of the top 15 nostalgic moments of the year.[29] It was nominated for the Best Adapted Song at the 2021 Online Film & Television Association Awards.[30]

International versions

Later that year, Coco Lee also announced that she was going to re-record the Mandarin end-credits version of the song, as she had already done in 1998.[31][23] On March 8, 2020, Coco's Mandarin version was also covered by actress Liu Yifei for the soundtrack of the live-action,[32] while a brand-new Japanese and Korean versions were recorded by singers Minami Kizuki and Lee Su-hyun respectively.[33][34] On September 4, 2020, a Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu versions were released on the Indian Vevo channel, with Indian singer Nithayashree Venkataramanan performing the song both in Tamil and Telugu, even though no such versions of the animated movie were ever released.[35][36][37] On November 20, 2020, another English version of the song was recorded by Indonesian singers Yura Yunita, Sivia Azizah, Agatha Pricilla, and Nadin Amizah, with the music video released on the DisneyMusicAsiaVEVO channel. The song was released to accompany the Indonesian-dubbed version of the movie on Disney+ Hotstar.[38][39]

"Reflection" (2020 end credits version) worldwide
Language Performer Title Translation
English Christina Aguilera "Reflection"
Hindi Sunayana Sarkar "परछाई" ("Parchhaayi") "Reflection"
Japanese 城南海 (Minami Kizuki) "リフレクション" ("Rifurekushon")
Korean 이수현 (Lee Su-hyun) "숨겨진 내 모습" ("Sumgyeojin nae moseub") "The hidden reflection of me"
Mandarin Chinese 李玟 (Coco Lee) "自己" ("Zìjǐ") "Myself"
刘亦菲 (Liu Yifei)
Tamil Nithayashree Venkataramanan "என் பிம்பம்" ("Yen bhimbham") "My reflection"
Telugu "నాలో నేనే" ("Nālō nēnē") "Self within myself"

Charts
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Philippines (Music Weekly Asia)[40] 15
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[41] 42
Singapore (RIAS)[42] 21
US Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[43] 20
US LyricFind (Billboard)[44] 5

Other versions

The group Mannheim Steamroller covered the song on their 1999 album, Mannheim Steamroller Meets the Mouse. Michael Crawford covered this song in The Disney Album. His rendition replaces the word "girl" with "man". Singer and American Idol winner Jordin Sparks performed the song on the Dedication Week of the sixth season of the show, with the performance she moved forward to the next round.[45] Jackie Evancho also covered the song on her fourth studio album, Songs from the Silver Screen.[46] In La Voz... Argentina (the Argentinian version of The Voice), the Spanish version of the song was covered by Sofia Rangone.[47] During the Chinese competition show Singer 2018, British Singer Jessie J performed a rearranged version of the song, during episode 11, gaining her fifth first place. Filipino Singer Katrina Velarde also did a cover premiered on 15 September 2020 on her official YouTube channel.[48]

Notes
  1. Thomas Erlewine, Stephen. "Mulan: Original Soundtrack". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  2. "Digital Sheet Music – Lea Salonga Reflection (from 'Mulan')". Walt Disney Publishing Company. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  3. Sison, Rafi. "Reflection (full version)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  4. Dominguez 2003, p. 43
  5. Dominguez 2003, p. 38
  6. Dominguez 2003, p. 44
  7. "Disney's Mulan: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 19. Prometheus Global Media. May 9, 1998. p. 20. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  8. "リフレクション" [Reflection] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on March 5, 2015.
  9. Johnson, Beth (August 20, 1999). "Christina Aguilera (1999)". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
  10. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (June 2, 1998). "Mulan Soundtrack Review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
  11. Dominguez 2003, p. 45
  12. Whitburn, Joel (2007). Top Adult Songs 1961-2006. Record Research, Inc. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-89820-169-7.
  13. Dominguez 2003, p. 46
  14. "Christina Aguilera Live". Intimate and Interactive. May 17, 2000. Event occurs at 60. MuchMusic.
  15. "Amazon.com: Christina Aguilera – My Reflection: Christina Aguilera, Dr. John, Brian McKnight, Bow Wow, Lawrence Jordan (II), Paul Hunter: Movies & TV". Amazon. June 5, 2001. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
  16. Erlewine, Stepehn. "Reflection: Overview". Allmusic. Rovi. Retrieved August 1, 2008.
  17. Various artists, Mulan, retrieved March 16, 2020
  18. Mulan - 1998 Latin American Spanish Soundtrack, retrieved March 16, 2020
  19. "¿Te gusta la música de "Mulan"? Lucero sufrió mucho para grabarla, pero obtuvo esta recompensa: Video". Heraldo de México (in Spanish). Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  20. "NAVER VIBE(바이브)". vibe.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  21. 李玟的《自己》 (in Chinese (Taiwan)), retrieved December 8, 2020
  22. 花木蘭 (DVD) (in Chinese). Taiwan: Disney. 1998.
  23. "YESASIA: Mulan Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (OST) (Taiwan Bonus Track Version) CD - Movie Soundtrack, Coco Lee, Universal Music Taiwan - Western / World Music - Free Shipping". www.yesasia.com. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  24. "No hype, no gloss, no pretense... just me, Stripped". Freewebs. Archived from the original on February 13, 2009. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  25. "Divas of South Africa & America − South African Divas Singles". Geocities. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  26. "Gaon Singles Chart (International)" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  27. "Original 'Reflection' singer Christina Aguilera has recorded new material for live-action 'Mulan'". EW.com. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  28. Romano, Nick (August 28, 2020). "Christina Aguilera finally drops 'Reflection' video for Mulan". EW.com. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  29. Gibson, Kelsie (December 11, 2020). "15 Nostalgic Moments That Took Us to Any Year but 2020". PopSugar UK. Group Nine Media. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  30. "25th Annual Film Awards (2020) – Online Film & Television Association". Online Film & Television Association Awards. Archived from the original on March 15, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  31. 迪士尼影業 (August 20, 2020). "《花木蘭》經典主題曲〈自己〉配唱花絮". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  32. 顾馨. "Chinese version of 'Reflection' released for upcoming 'Mulan' - Chinadaily.com.cn". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  33. "「ムーラン」日本版主題歌「リフレクション」 by 城南海さん（60秒）". YouTube. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  34. 디즈니 (August 23, 2020). "[뮬란] 숨겨진 내 모습(Reflection) 티저 MV". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  35. DisneyMusicIndiaVEVO (September 4, 2020). "Sunayana Sarkar - Parchhaayi (From "Mulan"/Audio Only)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  36. DisneyMusicIndiaVEVO (September 4, 2020). "Nithayashree Venkataramanan - Naalone nene (From "Mulan"/Audio Only)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  37. DisneyMusicIndiaVEVO (September 4, 2020). "Nithayashree Venkataramanan - Yen Bhimbham (From "Mulan"/Audio Only)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  38. Reflection (From "Mulan"/Official Video), archived from the original on December 21, 2021, retrieved November 25, 2021
  39. Mawarni, Siwi Tri. "4 Indonesian female singers sing the Disney's live action 'Mulan' soundtrack | Seasia.co". Good News from Southeast Asia. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
  40. "Top 30 Singles Chart Philippines". Music Weekly Asia. Music Services Asia Pte Ltd. September 7, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  41. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100: 04 September 2020 – 10 September 2020". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  42. "RIAS International Top Charts Week 37". Recording Industry Association (Singapore). Archived from the original on September 15, 2020.
  43. "DIGITAL SONG SALES – The week of September 12, 2020". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 9, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
  44. "LYRICFIND U.S. – The week of September 12, 2020". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 11, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  45. "Top 20". American Idol (television show). Jordin Sparks. 2007.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  46. "Songs from the Silver Screen". Target Corporation. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  47. "Termino Una etapa en 'La Voz Argentina'". Diario Show (in Spanish). August 12, 2012. Archived from the original on November 26, 2012.
  48. Reflection (Mulan) by Katrina Velarde, September 15, 2020, archived from the original on December 21, 2021

References
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