Smoke Break
"Smoke Break" is a song recorded by American country music artist Carrie Underwood from her fifth studio album, Storyteller. It was released on August 21, 2015, through Sony Music Nashville, as the album's lead single. It was written by Underwood, Chris DeStefano, and Hillary Lindsey, and was produced by Jay Joyce. Musically, it has lyrics about escaping life's many stresses.
"Smoke Break"
"Smoke Break" was met with critical acclaim, with music critics describing it as "a homage to hard working people in need of a breather". It quickly became a commercial success, setting an all-time record for the largest first-week adds at country radio. It went on to reach number one on the Billboard Canada Country chart and number two on the Billboard Country Airplay chart in the US, becoming her 20th top-two single on the chart.
The song's accompanying music video was directed by Randee St. Nicholas and won the 2016 CMT Music Award for Female Video of the Year. The song received its first televised performance at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, on September 10, 2015.
Composition[edit]
"Smoke Break" is a country rock song that critics have described as "a homage to hard working people in need of a breather".[2] It has lyrics about escaping life's many stresses.[3] About the writing process, Underwood stated that she, Chris DeStefano and Hillary Lindsey "were writing and kept taking breaks to go outside because we were getting a little stuck on a song we were already working on. It was so beautiful outside that we had a hard time focusing, so we decided to write a song about taking breaks! 'Smoke Break' seemed like a great title, so we ran with it!"[3]
Commercial performance[edit]
"Smoke Break" set, according to Taste of Country's Sterling Whitaker, "an all-time record for the largest first-week radio adds in the history of Country Aircheck, with 145 Mediabase adds and 159 total Billboard and Country Aircheck reporting stations lined up for the song’s official airplay impact date".[2][13] Additionally, the single had opening week sales of 56,000 in the United States, debuting at the top of the Billboard Country Digital Singles chart – her fifth leader on the chart – and moving from number 36 to number five on the Billboard Hot Country Songs in its second week on the chart; it eventually peaked on Billboard Hot Country Songs at number four on November 24, 2015. It peaked at number one on Billboard Canada Country chart, becoming her second single to top that chart, the other being "Blown Away". The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Country Airplay chart and both debuted and peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[14]
As of May 2016, it sold 447,000 copies in the United States.[15] The song was certified Platinum by the RIAA on January 23, 2020.[16]
Music video[edit]
The accompanying music video was directed by Randee St. Nicholas, who directed Underwood's "Blown Away" music video in 2012, and was shot over two days.[17] It premiered on Entertainment Tonight on August 24, 2015.[18] Underwood cast "gorgeous, strong women" to play a horse trainer, a truck driver and a waitress. "It just tells a story," Underwood said of featuring blue collar characters. "These are everyday jobs, and we need a break."[17]
The video begins with Underwood driving through the dusty, sepia-washed desert in a vintage Ford truck. She passes a busy waitress in a diner, and a businessman struggling with his responsibilities. Then her truck overheats, and she has to hoof it, while a patient horse trainer and weary welder toil nearby. Underwood hitchhikes the rest of the way to her gig at a neighborhood bar. She takes the stage in front of a small crowd of patrons that includes all the local characters met earlier who were working hard and could use a break. She sings their life story, then moves on to the next dusty town, "like an angel of mercy in Daisy Dukes", Rolling Stone describes.[2]
The video won Female Video of the Year at the 2016 CMT Music Awards, and was also nominated for Video of the Year.[19][20]
Live performances[edit]
Underwood performed the song on television for the first time at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, on September 10, 2015.[22] Underwood also performed the song at the 2015 CMA Awards.[23] She performed the song on New Year's Rockin' Eve on December 31, 2015.[24]
Underwood's live performance at CMT's Instant Jam won the 2016 CMT Music Award for CMT Performance of the Year.[25]
It was included as one of the encore songs on Underwood's Storyteller Tour alongside "Something in the Water". Underwood also performed it as part of her set at the Glastonbury Festival 2019.