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Young and Beautiful (Lana Del Rey song)

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"Young and Beautiful"
Song

"Young and Beautiful" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. Released on 23 April 2013, it was the first single from the The Great Gatsby: Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film soundtrack. An alternative rock ballad, "Young and Beautiful" was co-written by Del Rey and the track's producer, Rick Nowels.[1] Contemporary music critics called the single "haunting" and "somber". Lyrically, "Young and Beautiful" follows a young lover's apprehension about aging. A music video, directed by Chris Sweeney and filmed by Sophie Muller, was released on 10 May 2013.

In May 2013, the song broke into the Billboard Hot 100; the song peaked at 22 on the chart, making it her highest peak since "Video Games" peaked at 91 in 2012. Shortly after, the song peaked at 3 on the Hot Rock Songs chart and became Del Rey's first top-ten hit on a major U.S. chart. After four weeks, the song charted as number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her highest peaking single on that chart. Reaching the top ten in Greece and Israel, the song became a number-one hit in Belgium. The album upon which the song is featured, The Great Gatsby: Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, reached number 2 on the American record chart, Billboard 200 with first week sales of over 100,000 copies.[2]

Background

Working with the film's director, co-writer, and co-producer Baz Luhrmann, Del Rey penned the original song "Young and Beautiful" for the the soundtrack of the 2013 rendition of the novel The Great Gatsby.[3] The song will be released to contemporary hit radio as a single, and is being used as the film's kickoff single.[4] A snippet of the track appeared in the official trailer for the film and played during the scene where the characters portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan express their romantic feelings for one another.[5]

Composition

"Young and Beautiful" (2013)
In this 30 second sample of the ballad, "Young and Beautiful", the lyrics, "Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?" that embody the refrain can be heard.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

"Young and Beautiful" is a rock ballad. With the lyrics, "Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?" Del Rey adds a hint of desperation which parallels the idiosyncrasies faced by the characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel.[6] Del Rey's dreamy vocals are draped over sedated strings and canned percussion.[6] The soft and dreary vocals, falling in line with Del Rey's affectation fits the atmosphere of the 1920s when the novel is set.[7] The lyrics rotate around the themes of pleasing a lover, nostalgia, and the gloom of aging.[8]

Music video

The music video for "Young and Beautiful" was set to be released on April 22, 2013,[9] but was officially released on 10 May 2013.[10] Directed by Chris Sweeney, the video's production was helmed by Adam Smith and Jacob Swan-Hyam, with Sophie Muller shooting the footage.[11] Flanked by a full-string orchestra, Del Rey sings in 1920s art deco fashion.[10] She is shown singing the song in a dark room with glittery diamond-tears on her cheek which look like tattoos.[12][13] Jason Lipshutz of Billboard magazine described the video as "somber" and the singer's look as "especially demure". Lipshutz concluded that "the clip ends without ever reaching any kind of conclusion -- much like the rhetorical question, 'Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?' at the heart of the song."[12] Spin's Marc Hogan described it as "elegantly conceived, but succeed[s] only as much as the music does".[13]

Reception

Critical reception

The song was met with widespread critical acclaim from critics and audiences alike. Hip hop magazine Rap-Up called the single "haunting",[4] while MTV called it "somber-sounding".[5] Jason Lipshutz of Billboard called the ballad, "typically lush", paralleling the single with Del Rey's previous hits, "Video Games" and "Born to Die".[6] Canadian journal National Post said "Young and Beautiful" picks up where "Video Games" left off, stating the song was relevant to the book because of "...its obsession with decay and the fleeting nature of the good life certainly resonate."[14] The journal continued to call it an "artifact" of Del Rey's consistently dark tone, adding that by the second play-through "its bald directness becomes its appeal."[14] MTV commented that the track "falls very much in-line with what Lana Del Rey's fans have come to expect" from Del Rey.[7] Jeff Benjamin of Fuse said the track featured "a big, sweeping ballad with piano, violins and Lana's warbly delivery." He added that "if the single takes off, perhaps the songbird can finally scrub her image clean of that 'Girl that totally f-cked up her Saturday Night Live debut' tag."[15]

Commercial performance

Debuting at number 82 on the United States' Billboard Hot 100, "Young and Beautiful" became Del Rey's highest mark on that chart since her breakthrough single "Video Games" charted at 91 in 2011.[16] With 48,000 units in first-week sales, the song also entered the Hot Digital Songs chart at 36.[16] In its third week on the chart, the song rose to number 19. On the week ending June 1, 2013, "Young And Beautiful" peaked at number 9 with 121,000 units sold, becoming her first Top 10 on that chart.[citation needed] Since, it sold 421,394 copies in the United States, being her first single to reach the top forty.[citation needed] "Young And Beautiful" became her second best-selling single in the United States, after "Video Games", which certified sales are of 500,000 units.[citation needed]

Credits and personnel

Performance

Chart performance

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[17] 9
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[18] 57
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[19] 34
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[20] 33
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[21] 45
France (SNEP)[22] 31
Invalid chart entered Germany2 52
Greece Digital Songs (Billboard)[23] 2
Ireland (IRMA)[24] 16
Israel (Media Forest)[25] 7
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[26] 79
Scotland (OCC)[27] 21
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[28] 41
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[29] 39
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[30] 31
UK Singles (OCC)[31] 23
US Billboard Hot 100[32] 22
US Rock Songs (Billboard)[33] 3

Release history

Region Date Format Label
United States April 23, 2013[34] Digital download Interscope Records
May 21, 2013[35] Top 40/Mainstream radio

References

  1. ^ a b c Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film The Great Gatsby (liner notes).
  2. ^ Caulfield, Keith (May 11, 2013). "'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack Selling Big, Heading for No. 2 on Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 13, 2013.
  3. ^ Brown, August (4 April 2013). "'Gatsby' soundtrack to feature Jay-Z, Lana del Rey, The xx and more". Los Angeles Times. Eddy Hartenstein. Retrieved 6 April 2013. (Note: This article asserts Baz Luhrmann co-wrote the song, but he is not credited as such in either the soundtrack's liner notes or the film's credits.)
  4. ^ a b "Jay-Z Calls on Beyoncé, André 3000, Fergie, & Lana Del Rey for 'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack". Rap-Up. Devin Lazerine. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  5. ^ a b Markman, Rob (4 April 2013). "'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack Boasts Big Names Jay-Z, Beyonce And Lana Del Rey: Fourteen-song soundtrack also includes the likes of Florence and the Machine, will.i.am and Gotye". MTV. Viacom. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  6. ^ a b c Lipshutz, Jason (22 April 2013). "Lana Del Rey's 'Great Gatsby' Track 'Young & Beautiful' Hits The Web". Billboard. New York: Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  7. ^ a b Sullivan, Kevin P. (22 April 2013). "Lana Del Rey's 'Young And Beautiful' From 'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack Online". MTV. Viacom. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  8. ^ Orr, Gillian (22 April 2013). "Lana del Ray does doom, gloom and va-va voom for The Great Gatsby with new song 'Young and Beautiful'". The Independent. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  9. ^ Makarechi, Kia (4 April 2013). "'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack Tracklist Includes Jay-Z, Beyonce, Andre 3000, Florence, The XX & More". The Huffington Post. AOL. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  10. ^ a b Corner, Lewis (10 May 2013). "Lana Del Rey premieres 'Young and Beautiful' music video - watch". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
  11. ^ "Lana Del Rey - Young and Beautiful". YouTube. LanaDelReyVEVO. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
  12. ^ a b Lipshutz, Jason (10 May 2013). "Lana Del Rey is 'Young and Beautiful' and Sad in New Video". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  13. ^ a b Hogan, Marc (10 May 2013). "Lana Del Rey Serenades an Orchestra in 'Young and Beautiful' Video". SPIN. Spin Media. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  14. ^ a b Berry, David (22 April 2013). "First Impressions: Lana Del Rey's Young & Beautiful picks up where Video Games left off". National Post. Postmedia Network. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  15. ^ Benjamin, Jeff (April 22, 2013). "Lana Del Rey Releases 'Great Gatsby' Single "Young & Beautiful"". Fuse.tv. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
  16. ^ a b Trust, Gary (5 May 2013). "Weekly Chart Notes: Steve Martin, Edie Brickell Blast Back; Lana Del Rey Debuts; Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj Get Hot (100)-Headed". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  17. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  18. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
  19. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
  20. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
  21. ^ "Lana Del Rey Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  22. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  23. ^ "Digital Singles Charts - Greece". Billboard.
  24. ^ "Chart Track: Week 21, 2013". Irish Singles Chart.
  25. ^ "Media Forest Week 20, 2013". Israeli Airplay Chart. Media Forest.
  26. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  27. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  28. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful" Canciones Top 50.
  29. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful". Singles Top 100.
  30. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful". Swiss Singles Chart.
  31. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  32. ^ "Lana Del Rey Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  33. ^ "Young and Beautiful - Lana Del Rey - Song Information - Rock Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
  34. ^ "Amazon.com: Young And Beautiful: Lana Del Rey: Official Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  35. ^ [1]
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