Levitating (song)
"Levitating" is a song by English and Albanian singer Dua Lipa from her second studio album, Future Nostalgia (2020). The song was written by Lipa, Clarence Coffee Jr., Sarah Hudson, and Koz, who produced the song with Stuart Price, and stemmed from a Roland VP-330 synthesizer sample played by Koz. The song is an electro-disco and nu-disco song with several disco tropes. It incorporates elements of dance-pop, pop-funk, power pop and space rock, as well as 1970s, 1980s and 1990s pop and R&B styles. The lyrics describe the idea of "levitating" when falling in love, with several outer space references.
"Levitating"
1 October 2020
28 August 2018
- Sarm (London, United Kingdom)
- the Bunker at 13
- Sarm Music Village (London, United Kingdom)
- Modulator Music (Toronto, Canada)
3:23
- Dua Lipa
- Clarence Coffee Jr.
- Sarah Hudson
- Stephen Kozmeniuk
- DaBaby[a]
A remix of "Levitating" by American DJ the Blessed Madonna featuring Madonna and Missy Elliott was released for digital download and streaming on 13 August 2020 as the lead single from Lipa and the Blessed Madonna's remix album Club Future Nostalgia (2020). It was categorised as an EDM, electro-disco, electro house, future bass, and techno track, with a throwback disco and trance vibe, and an increased tempo from the original. A second remix featuring American rapper DaBaby was released for the same formats on 1 October 2020 as the fifth single of Future Nostalgia, appearing on the bonus edition of the album. The remix impacted contemporary hit radio formats in the United States on 6 October 2020, serving as the album's third single in the country. The remix has the same production used in the original, with DaBaby adding a pop rap verse and intro.
"Levitating" reached number five on the UK Singles Chart and number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Lipa's seventh top-five single in the UK and second in the US. It also achieved top-five charting in many countries including Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, and New Zealand. Despite not reaching number one in the United States, "Levitating" was named the number-one song on the 2021 year-end chart, becoming the fourth single to accomplish this feat and the first single to do so since Lifehouse's "Hanging by a Moment" in 2001. It set new records as the song by a female artist with the most weeks spent in the top ten and the longest-charting song by a female artist on the Billboard Hot 100, spending 41 weeks in the top ten and 77 weeks on the chart overall. It currently ranks within the top 40 on the list of the greatest Hot 100 hits of all time. In 2023, the song was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). On the Billboard Global 200, it peaked at number two and was named the number-one song on the 2021 year-end chart. The song was awarded a triple Platinum certification in the United Kingdom by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).
"Levitating" was promoted with the release of two music videos, one for each of its respective remixes. The Will Hooper-directed music video for the Blessed Madonna's remix was filmed in London and Atlanta and has a theme of "love conquers all". It sees many people under the influence of a mysterious planet and being obsessed with a maze-like symbol. The DaBaby remix received a music video that was directed by Warren Fu and created in partnership with social media platform TikTok. The video is centred around Lipa and DaBaby dancing in an art deco-styled elevator, with many TikTok users in the cast. Lipa promoted the single with live performances on The Graham Norton Show, at the American Music Awards of 2020, and on Saturday Night Live.
Release and promotion[edit]
"Levitating" was released on 27 March 2020 as the fifth track on Lipa's second studio album, Future Nostalgia.[10] In August 2020, Lipa confirmed that the song would serve as the album's fifth official single.[49] It was promoted to Italian and British contemporary hit radio formats on 13 August and 23 September 2020, as a promotional single.[50] On 25 September 2020, DaBaby confirmed in an interview with Capital FM that he had a collaboration with Lipa coming out soon.[51] Later that day, Lipa announced that a remix of "Levitating" featuring DaBaby would be released a week later.[52] The remix's cover art was shot by Joseph Ford.[53] It premiered on 1 October 2020,[54] being released for digital download and streaming.[55] The remix was later added to the three editions of Future Nostalgia: the bonus edition which was released alongside the song,[56][57] the digital edition released on 29 October 2020,[58] and the 20 November 2020-released French CD edition.[59]
The remix was serviced to contemporary hit radio formats in the United States on 6 October 2020, serving as the album's third single in the country.[60] It was also serviced to contemporary hit radio formats in Italy and the United Kingdom on 2 October and 9 October 2020, respectively.[61][62] The original was serviced to adult contemporary radio formats in the United Kingdom on 17 October 2020.[63] The remix was also scheduled to be serviced to adult contemporary radio formats in the US on 19 October 2020, but was ultimately replaced with the original.[64][65] Due to its music video partnership with TikTok, the app launched a worldwide advertising campaign with promotion on several digital and social media channels, as well as New York City's Times Square and prominent sites in cities across Europe. The app also launched the #Levitating challenge, where Lipa invited fans to use TikTok's slow-motion feature to show off their levitating skills.[66] The song was promoted with an Instagram filter on the app.[67] Lipa and Koz did an interview about the creation of the song on music podcast Song Exploder's 194th episode, released on 7 October 2020.[5] It was also included in Morrisons' 2020 Christmas TV Ad.[68] The song was used during the 46th People's Choice Awards on 15 November 2020.[69] The song was included in a promotional video for the 2020–21 NBA season made by NBA on TNT.[70] Joe Biden and Kamala Harris used it in a playlist supporting their inauguration.[71]
A remix of the track by KUU was released on 20 November 2020.[72] It is a four on the floor-styled song with a simple and hypnotic sound design that makes use of tropical synths, Balearic beats, a rolling bassline, and funky piano chords, all layered with Lipa's vocals.[73][74][75]
A remix of the track by Amaal Mallik featuring guest vocals in Hindi by Prakriti Kakar and Sukriti Kakar was released on 26 March 2021.
Over the 2020–21 Premier League season, a video clip of Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola dancing, with part of the track overlaid on it, surfaced on Twitter. The clip was later posted by Manchester City's official Twitter account on 4 February 2021[76] and again on 7 February 2021 following Manchester City's 4–1 victory over Liverpool, which was their first victory at Anfield in 18 years.[77][78][79]
Commercial performance[edit]
Following the release of Future Nostalgia, "Levitating" found success as an album track throughout Europe, debuting at number 97 in Greece,[96] 29 in Hungary,[97] 41 in Lithuania,[98] 83 in Portugal,[99] 62 in Slovakia, and 71 in Spain. In the United Kingdom, the song was the most streamed album track on video services.[100] It debuted at number 51 on the UK Official Audio Streaming Chart dated 3 April 2020.[101] Following the release of the Blessed Madonna's remix, the original version debuted at number 39 on the UK Singles Chart dated 21 August 2020. It lasted five weeks on the chart, before re-entering at number 30 on the chart dated 9 October 2020, following the release of the DaBaby remix. The song peaked at number five on the chart, becoming Lipa's tenth UK Top 10 single.[102] In November 2020, the song reached the summit of the UK Radio Airplay Chart.[103] In January 2021, it was awarded a Platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for track-equivalent sales of 600,000 units.[104] It has also reached number four and 13 respectively on the Irish Singles Chart and Scottish Singles Chart respectively.[105][106]
"Levitating" reached the summit of the chart in Bulgaria.[107] On Australia's ARIA Singles Chart dated 26 October 2020, the original began being credited as the Blessed Madonna's remix was credited before then,[108] and peaked at number four.[109] In New Zealand, the original version debuted at number six on the NZ Hot Singles Chart dated 6 April 2020,[110] and the 12 October 2020 chart saw DaBaby's remix debuting at number 14.[111] On the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart dated 19 October 2020, the original version debuted at number 36,[112] and the DaBaby Remix was later credited, reaching a peak of number five.[113] The remix was awarded 7× platinum certification in the country by Recorded Music NZ for track-equivalent sales of 210,000 units.[114]
DaBaby's remix of "Levitating" debuted at number 51 on the Billboard Global 200 chart dated 17 October 2020,[115] and has peaked at number 2 on the chart.[116] It has reached number one on the Canadian Hot 100, becoming Lipa's first and DaBaby's second number-one single in Canada. It topped the chart for three nonconsecutive weeks.[117][118] "Levitating" became Lipa's biggest US chart hit. It debuted at number 73 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart dated 17 October 2020.[119] On the chart dated 9 January 2021, it reached the chart's tenth position, becoming Lipa's third top 10 single following "Don't Start Now" and "New Rules" (2017).[120] It peaked at number 2 on the chart (behind Silk Sonic's "Leave the Door Open"),[121] tying "Don't Start Now" as Lipa's highest-charting US song, and it is Lipa's longest-running top-10 hit. On the issue dated 4 September 2021, in its 34th week in the top 10, "Levitating" surpassed “Girls Like You” by Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B to become the longest-running top 10 single by a female artist.[122][123] It has since become the second song to spend a total of 40 weeks in the top ten, as of the week ending 30 October 2021, after "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd.[124] On the issue dated 19 March 2022, in its 70th week on the chart, "Levitating" surpassed "How Do I Live" by LeAnn Rimes as the longest-charting hit on the Hot 100 by a female artist.[125] The DaBaby remix of "Levitating" topped both the US Mainstream Top 40 chart, which monitors pop radio stations,[126] and the US Adult Top 40, which monitors hot adult contemporary radio formats.[127] It also reached number one on the Radio Songs chart after a 37-week climb, the longest climb to the top spot in the chart's 30-year history, surpassing the 35-week climb set by "I Hope" by Gabby Barrett in October 2020.[128] In December 2021, the solo version of "Levitating" was named the best-performing single of the year on the Hot 100, becoming only the fourth single to achieve this without topping the weekly chart (after "Wooly Bully" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs in 1965, "Breathe" by Faith Hill in 2000, and "Hanging by a Moment" by Lifehouse in 2001) and the first single by a female solo artist to top the year-end chart since 2011.[129][130]
Music video[edit]
Background and release[edit]
From 25 August 2020 to 31 August 2020, Lipa held a contest on social media platform TikTok for fans to create visualisers for "Levitating", including dance, animation, and makeup, for a chance to be featured in the video, later revealed to be the video for the remix featuring DaBaby.[49] The challenge garnered 300,000,000 views and 150,000 video submissions, of which 16 creators were invited to be a part of the video.[131] Three creators, Andrew Wilson, Ramana Borba, and Rikki Sandhu, helped as part of the crew. They animated Lipa's cosmic dance floor, helped with some of the dance routines, and designed the cosmic makeup on Lipa's dancers, respectively.[66] For the video, Lipa had a mood board consisting of Austin Powers, 1960s futurism and surrealism, Studio 54 and disco, thinking that "Levitating" was the perfect song to encapsulate these ideas.[132]
The music video was directed by American director Warren Fu,[133] and took over 16 and a half hours to shoot,[134] with stylist Lorenzo Posocco being on Zoom for over 17 hours during it.[135] While filming, Lipa quickly decided that she did not like her look moments before going on camera, and within five minutes hairstylist Chris Appleton flipped her wig and gave her a whole new look. TikTok users Dexter Mayfield and Olivia Wong prepared for being on camera by vibing off everyone's energy and staying calm, respectively.[132] DaBaby was originally supposed to be dressed as an astronaut for his shots, but ultimately did not due to the video's "flow", so he could just party.[136] The visual premiered on YouTube at 13:00 BST (12:00 UTC) on 2 October 2020.[137] It was proceeded by the release of two teasers on TikTok, in which Lipa invites users to "The Levitating Experience" that takes one to an "intergalactic dance floor;" she also warns viewers not to mess with the system and informs them about how to get there, among other items.[138][139]
An alternate animated music video was released on September 13, 2021, using the original version of the song without DaBaby. The music video was produced by Japanese animation group NOSTALOOK, in retro 1980s-1990s Japanese anime style, similar to Sailor Moon and Creamy Mami.[140][141][142]
Controversies[edit]
DaBaby controversy[edit]
On 25 July 2021, DaBaby performed at Rolling Loud, in which he made controversial comments, saying, "If you didn't show up today with HIV, AIDS, or any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that'll make you die in two to three weeks, then put your cellphone lighter up."[158][159][160] His remarks drew condemnation, and DaBaby responded to the allegations with "What me and my fans do at the live show, it don't concern you niggas on the internet, or you bitter bitches on the internet."[159] This caused Lipa's fans to ask that DaBaby be removed from the remix of "Levitating".[161] Many wanted him replaced with Megan Thee Stallion; subsequently a mashup of "Levitating" and Megan's verse from "Fkn Around" (2020) went viral.[162][163] On 27 July 2021, Lipa took to her Instagram story to denounce DaBaby's remarks.[164] Other celebrities such as Elton John would also express their condemnations towards DaBaby.[165]
The controversy later prompted the removal of the "Levitating" remix across multiple radio stations and Apple Music playlists in various countries. It was simultaneously replaced with the original solo version of the song, which was initially released in March 2020 as part of the album.[166][167] Billboard later reported that while US radio audience impressions for all versions of the song combined was only down 1% for the tracking week of 23 to 29 July 2021, the percentage of the song's radio plays being the DaBaby remix declined following his remarks (dropping from 71% of all radio plays on 25 July to 59% on 29 July, the last day of the tracking week).[168] On the week ending 28 August 2021, DaBaby's credit was removed on the Billboard Hot 100 as the chart's rules state that the version of the song that contributes to the greatest share of a song's performance on the chart is the one that is credited on the chart, indicating that the original solo version of the song had overtaken the DaBaby remix to have the greatest share of the song's overall performance that week.[169]
Copyright lawsuits[edit]
On 1 March 2022, reggae band Artikal Sound System filed a suit against Lipa and her label Warner Records alleging copyright infringement, asserting similarities between "Levitating" and their 2017 song "Live Your Life" (and alleging that the producers knew the song before "Levitating" was in production).[170] Less than a week later, a second suit by songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer claimed that "Levitating" infringed on the 1979 disco song "Wiggle and Giggle All Night" by the band Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band.[171] In August 2022, Dua Lipa's attorneys moved to dismiss the second suit, arguing that the singer was unaware of the Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band songs. In June 2023, Artikal Sound System moved to drop the first suit, after a judge ruled there was no evidence to suggest that Lipa or her co-writers had heard "Live Your Life" prior to the creation of "Levitating".[172]
"Levitating" (The Blessed Madonna remix)
13 August 2020
- Sarm (London, United Kingdom)
- The Bunker at 13
- Sarm Music Village (London, United Kingdom)
- Modulator Music (Toronto, Canada)
- Gold Mind
4:10[b]
- Dua Lipa
- Clarence Coffee Jr.
- Sarah Hudson
- Stephen Kozmeniuk
- Madonna
- Melissa A. Elliott
Live performances[edit]
Lipa performed "Levitating" for the first time on The Graham Norton Show on 20 November 2020.[251] Two days later she performed it at the American Music Awards of 2020.[252] The ceremony took place at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, however Lipa's performance was filmed at London's Royal Albert Hall in a custom built set.[253][254] At the end of the performance, she levitated towards the sky with the help of wires through a pulley system,[255][256] which gained praise from Olivia Horn of The New York Times and Vulture's Justin Curto, who both viewed the performance as one of the ceremony's best moments. Horn also praised Lipa's dancing abilities.[257][258] For Radio.com, Marty Rosenbaum ranked it as the night's eighth best moment and also praised the levitating bit.[259]
Lipa performed "Levitating" as the second track on the setlist for her Studio 2054 live stream concert on 27 November 2020.[260] She performed it during her NPR Tiny Desk Concert, released 4 December 2020.[261] The following day, Lipa performed it as a medley with her single "Physical" (2020) at both the LOS40 Music Awards 2020 and the 2020 NRJ Music Awards;[262][263] she also performed "Fever" (2020) with Angèle at the latter ceremony.[264] On 10 December 2020, Lipa performed an acoustic set at the 2020 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball which included "Levitating" as well as "Don't Start Now" and a cover of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", the latter of which was a virtual performance with a few of her fans for Capital One's Holiday Jam.[265][266] During her 19 December 2020 Saturday Night Live appearance, she performed "Levitating", "Don't Start Now", and acted in a World War II-themed skit.[267] Lipa performed the song as part of her 22 December 2020 Pandora livestream concert.[268] On New Year's Eve 2020, she performed it during YouTube's Hello 2021 virtual countdown special for the Indian, British and American shows.[269]
On 14 March 2021, Lipa performed the remixed version with DaBaby for the first time at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, alongside a performance of "Don't Start Now".[270]
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Future Nostalgia: The Moonlight Edition.[4]
Recording and management
Personnel
