We Can't Stop
"We Can't Stop" is a song by American singer Miley Cyrus, from her fourth studio album Bangerz (2013). It was released on June 3, 2013, by RCA Records as the lead single from the album. The song was written and produced by Mike Will Made It, P-Nasty, and Rock City, with additional songwriting provided by Cyrus, Doug E. Fresh, and Slick Rick. "We Can't Stop" is a pop, R&B and electropop song about a house party and recreational drug use.
"We Can't Stop"
June 3, 2013
3:51
- Mike L. Williams II
- Pierre Ramon Slaughter
- Timothy Thomas
- Theron Thomas
- Miley Cyrus
- Douglas Davis
- Ricky Walters
- Mike Will Made It
- P-Nasty
- Rock City
"We Can't Stop" received mixed reviews from music critics, who appreciated its overall production but were scathing toward its lyrical content. It peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, thus tying with "Party in the U.S.A." (2009) as Cyrus' highest-charting single in the United States at the time. It was kept off the top spot by "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell and T.I. The song experienced varying success internationally; it reached the peak position in countries including New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and peaked moderately in several national record charts in Europe. The song is certified eight-times platinum in the United States, seven-times platinum in Australia and Norway, multi-platinum in Canada, Sweden, and the United Kingdom; and gold or higher in eight additional countries.
An accompanying music video for "We Can't Stop" was released on June 19, 2013. It received mixed reviews from critics, who were divided in their opinions regarding Cyrus' increasingly provocative image. With 10.7 million views in the first twenty-four hours of its release, the clip held the record for having the most views in that time-frame across Vevo platforms; after reaching 100 million views within thirty-seven days, it also set the record for being the fastest music video to attain a Vevo certification. Both records were eventually broken by the music video for Cyrus' follow-up single "Wrecking Ball" in September 2013. "We Can't Stop" was additionally promoted with a highly controversial performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.
Composition[edit]
"We Can't Stop" is a mid-tempo pop,[8] R&B[9] and electropop[10] song. It is written in the key of E major with a tempo of 80 beats per minute in common time, and Cyrus' vocals span two octaves, from the low note of B2 to a high F♯5. The song follows the chord progression E–G♯m–C♯m–A (I–iii–vi–IV).[11] The track also includes a sample of the track "La Di Da Di" by Doug E. Fresh and MC Ricky D.[12] John Kennedy of Vibe compared the track to the works of Rihanna.[13]
Cyrus has stated that "We Can't Stop" represents "where I'm at in my life now".[14] Lyrically, the track describes a house party, as mentioned in the opening lines "It's our party, we can do what we want / It's our party, we can say what we want / It's our party, we can love who we want / We can kiss who we want / We can live how we want". It also makes several references to recreational drug use, including "dancing with molly", using a slang term for ecstasy, and "trying to get a line [of cocaine] in the bathroom".[15]
Critical reception[edit]
"We Can't Stop" received mixed reviews from music critics, who appreciated its overall production but were negative towards its lyrical content. Adam Carlson of Entertainment Weekly provided a favorable review, writing that the lyrics were questionable but "infectious", adding that it reminded him of "Kesha on Benadryl."[16] Sam Lansky from Idolator noted that stands apart from other songs recently played on mainstream radio, adding that it "just feels strange, and kind of wonderful",[17] while the Los Angeles Times' Mikael Woods labeled it "the calmest, most clear-eyed rebel yell since Janet Jackson's "Control."[18] Sean Daly of the Tampa Bay Times and The Wall Street Journal's staff both appreciated the catchy melody,[19][20] while Lyndsey Parker from Yahoo! Music felt that "We Can't Stop" acted as a sequel to Cyrus' earlier single "Party in the U.S.A.", with the difference that "she's just partying a little harder now."[21]
However, in a more mixed review, Randall Roberts of the Los Angeles Times felt that the song "seems as if it were written by a ninth-grader imagining her rebellious college sister’s lifestyle" and felt that it lacked creativity within Cyrus' catalog.[22] Writing for Rolling Stone, Jon Dolan was skeptical of Cyrus' increasingly provocative image, stating that the lyrics in the chorus would be "an odd fit for any singer" and opining that "there's still a bit too much Disney in her voice to fill the track."[23] Naomi Zeichner of The Fader praised the song, writing, "Cyrus said in her recent MTV doc (Miley: The Movement), that she chose it to be her album's first single: 'Not everyone came to me and said okay, you've got the first single. I had to say no, I know this is it and I'll go to battle if I have to, against anyone who doesn't believe in it. Now I have this freedom to do whatever I want, because people trust me.' She was right about this one. The song's straightforward party is now tied to a sordid universe of visuals- the official video and the VMA performance."[24] Common Sense Media gave the song two stars out of five saying that "After listening to the weird intro to "We Can't Stop" you'll kind of wish the song did just stop right there."
"We Can't Stop" won the award for "Choice Summer Song" and was nominated for "Choice Single: Female Artist" at the 2013 Teen Choice Awards in August.[25] In December, Billboard critics listed it as the best song of 2013 for being "one of the bolder musical choices in recent memory, and that risk paid off tremendously."[26] The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop annual critics' poll ranked "We Can't Stop" at number nine on their poll to find the best music of 2013. Pitchfork Media ranked "We Can't Stop" at number 131 on the websites list of the 200 Best Tracks of the Decade So Far (2010-2014).[27] Upon the release of "Flowers" (2023), Billboard staff ranked all Cyrus' lead singles and put "We Can't Stop" at first in which Jason Lipchutz wrote: "no other Cyrus lead single is as crucial to her career as 'We Can’t Stop'."[28]
Commercial performance[edit]
In the United States, "We Can't Stop" debuted at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 with first-week sales of 214,000 downloads.[29] In its seventh week on the chart, the track reached number two and remained at that peak for three weeks, but it was blocked off of number one by "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke. This peak allowed "We Can't Stop" to tie with "Party in the U.S.A." as Cyrus' highest-peaking single in the country at the time until she topped the Hot 100 with "Wrecking Ball".[30] As of December 2014, the song has sold 3,280,000 copies in the United States.[31] "We Can't Stop" peaked at number three on the Canadian Hot 100, and has been certified quadruple-platinum by Music Canada.[32][33]
"We Can't Stop" experienced varying commercial success throughout Europe. In the United Kingdom, it debuted at the top of the UK Singles Chart on August 11, 2013 ― for the week ending date August 17, 2013 ― becoming her first top-ten success and number-one hit in Britain. She also became the first Disney star to top the charts in that country.[34] It has since been certified double-platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).[35] "We Can't Stop" peaked at number eight on the Ö3 Austria Top 40.[36] It also peaked at numbers 11 and 20 on the Belgian Ultratop in Wallonia and Flanders, respectively.[37][38] "We Can't Stop" charted at number 11 on the Danish Tracklisten, where it was also recognized with a platinum certification for streaming.[39][40] The song charted at number three on the Norwegian VG-lista,[41] and number five on both the Spanish Singles Chart and the Swedish Sverigetopplistan,[42][43] number seven on the Irish Singles Chart,[44] and number nine in the Czech Republic.[45] The track also reached number ten on the Official Lebanese Top 20.[46]
In other parts of the continent, "We Can't Stop" charted in the lower ends of national record charts. The track reached number 15 on the Official Finnish Chart, number 16 on the German GfK Entertainment chart, and number 19 in both Slovakia and on the Swiss Hitparade.[47][48][49][50] It peaked at numbers 26, 33, and 48 on the French SNEP, Italian FIMI, and Dutch Single Top 100, respectively.[51][52][53] In Oceania, "We Can't Stop" peaked at numbers four and one on the Australian ARIA Chart and the Official New Zealand Music Chart, respectively.[54][55] It was certified 7× platinum in the former territory, and platinum in the latter.[56][57] In Asia, the song reached number seven on the Japan Hot 100 and number 29 on the South Korean Circle Digital Chart.[58][59]
Cover versions[edit]
In July 2013, Rebecca Black released an acoustic cover of "We Can't Stop", for which there were lyrical changes made.[100] In September 2013, Scott Bradlee's band Postmodern Jukebox made a doo-wop cover of the song.[101] Currently the video has been viewed over 20 million times. Later in September, British band Bastille performed a rock version of the song at BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, using portions of "Lose Yourself" by Eminem in the introduction, "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" from the 1994 film The Lion King at the end of each chorus, and referencing "Achy Breaky Heart" by Cyrus' father Billy Ray.[102] They won an award for this cover at the MTV Woodies.[103] Mike Wass from Idolator commented that they brought "emotional depth and a previously absent musicality" and that they turned the song into "an eerily pretty mid-tempo ballad".[104] Later that month, indie musician Logan Lynn released a cover version of the track, which Lindsey Weber of New York Magazine called "dreamy [and] guitar-heavy"[105] and an editor from The Huffington Post called "bold" and "warmer" than the original.[106] British singer Neon Hitch released a cover of "We Can't Stop" with lyrical adjustments, which Jenna Hally Rubenstein from MTV Buzzworthy called a "kinda-reggae-kinda-jazz-kinda ska-definitely-awesome cover".[107] The track was also performed by Avery,[108] the Vamps,[109] and Tay Zonday. In 2014, the Electrical Fire released a cover version of the song, as well as an alternate version which combined it with Kanye West's "Runaway", pointing out the similarity between the two songs.[110] Later in 2014 Bastille won Best Cover Woodie award in the mtvU Woodie Awards for covering the track.[111]
A marching band version of the song, by Sonic Boom of the South, Jackson State University's marching band, is featured at the end of the 2018 black comedy film Assassination Nation.[112]
Lawsuit[edit]
In 2018, Jamaican artist Flourgon filed a copyright infringement suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Cyrus and RCA Records, alleging that Cyrus had unlawfully used the "original, creative and unique lyrical phraseology" of his 1988 reggae song "We Run Things" as the repeated chorus and hook of "We Can't Stop"; specifically, he alleged that the phrase "We run things/ Things don't run we" from "We Can't Stop" was substantially similar to the phrase "We run things/Things no run we" from "We Run Things".[113][114]
The parties settled the lawsuit out of court and the case was subsequently dismissed in early 2020.[115][116]