| "I Am Real" | |
|---|---|
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| Single by Simon van Kempen | |
| Released | 21 April 2011 |
| Recorded | 31 March 2011 |
| Studio | JSM Music (New York City) |
| Genre | |
| Length | 3:12 |
| Label | JSM Music |
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| Audio video | |
| "I Am Real" on YouTube | |
"I Am Real" is the debut single by Australian hotelier Simon van Kempen. It was released on 21 April 2011, through JSM Music, during his wife Alex McCord's tenure on the American reality television series The Real Housewives of New York City. The song was written by Allison Beth Simon, Jon Jason Appleton, and Koki Saito, while production was handled by Joel Simon, Ross Hopman, and Saito. During its development, van Kempen and McCord met with the team of writers to ensure that the song's lyrics would represent them accurately. A dance-pop and EDM track, "I Am Real" contains tongue-in-cheek lyrics that address van Kempen's critics. One lyric references a comment McCord used to describe fellow cast member Luann de Lesseps.
"I Am Real" received mostly unfavourable reviews from music critics, who dismissed van Kempen as a television personality who tried launching a singing career. It also received comparisons to "Money Can't Buy You Class" (2010) by de Lesseps. The song was unsuccessful, selling just 1,000 copies in the United States, as of September 2011. van Kempen has since performed "I Am Real" on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen and at Manhattan's annual "Fashion Night Out" event in 2011.