Hot — Inna
An office worker overheard singing, a production trio called Play & Win and a debut single that topped charts from Bucharest to Madrid: the story of Inna’s “Hot”.
- Debut single of Romanian singer Inna (Elena Alexandra Apostoleanu), sent to radio in August 2008.
- Written and produced by Play & Win: Sebastian Barac, Radu Bolfea and Marcel Botezan.
- No. 1 in Romania and Spain, No. 2 in the Netherlands, No. 6 in the UK; title track of her 2009 debut album.
Inna’s “Hot” took the long road to the top. It went to Romanian radio in August 2008, topped the national chart that winter, then spent the next eighteen months crossing Europe and the Atlantic. By the time it reached the UK top ten in 2010, Inna had already released a debut album named after it.
From office job to Play & Win
Elena Alexandra Apostoleanu was born on 16 October 1986 in Mangalia and grew up in Neptun, on the Romanian coast. She was working in an office when her future manager heard her sing and contacted Play & Win, the production team of Sebastian Barac, Radu Bolfea and Marcel Botezan. She recorded several songs with them, briefly as Alessandra, then as Inna, a name she chose because it was easy to remember.
Play & Win wrote and produced “Hot”. Inna later said the track came out of having fun, and that its success took her by surprise.
The sound and the videos
“Hot” mixes trance-inspired electro house with Romanian popcorn music: bright synthesizer riffs, trance beats and a simple vocal hook. Florin Botea directed two videos in 2008. The “True Love Edit”, shot on 20 October at the Gossip Club, follows a nightclub dancer and her secret admirer; the “Dancing in the Dark Edit”, premiered on 19 December, puts the focus on Inna herself.
A slow-burning European hit
After reaching No. 1 in Romania in December 2008, “Hot” was licensed country by country: Vale in Spain (June 2009), Ultra in the US (July 2009), Spinnin’ in the Netherlands and Kontor in Germany (August 2009), and All Around the World in the UK (April 2010). It went to No. 1 in Spain and Bulgaria, No. 2 on the Dutch Top 40, No. 6 in France, Belgium and the UK, and No. 10 on the European Hot 100. In the US it topped Billboard’s Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart.
It was certified 3× Platinum in Norway, 2× Platinum in Sweden, Platinum in Spain and Silver in the UK. At home it won Best Dance at the 2009 Romanian Music Awards, and Inna won Best Romanian Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 2009 and 2010.
“Hot” today
Her debut album, Hot, followed in August 2009, with singles such as “Amazing”, her second Romanian No. 1. In 2016 Blasterjaxx remade the song as “Hot 2016” for Ultra Music Festival. For more European club-pop from the same years, read about “Delirious” by David Guetta, “Let Me Think About It” by Ida Corr and “What You Get” by Junior Caldera.
FAQ
When was Inna’s Hot released?
It went to Romanian radio on 12 August 2008. International releases followed in 2009, and the UK release came on 5 April 2010.
Who produced Hot by Inna?
The Romanian trio Play & Win: Sebastian Barac, Radu Bolfea and Marcel Botezan, who also wrote it.
How high did Hot chart in the UK?
No. 6 on the UK Singles Chart in 2010, and No. 1 on the UK Dance Chart.
