Youngblood (5 Seconds of Summer album)
Youngblood is the third studio album by Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer. The album was initially set to be released on 22 June 2018, but was later brought forward to 15 June.[5] Four singles were released in support of the album: "Want You Back", "Youngblood", "Valentine" and "Lie to Me". The album was released to positive reviews, with critics praising the lyrical maturity and the sound change from their previous work. In support of the album, the band embarked on the Meet You There Tour.[6]
Youngblood
15 June 2018
40:12
As well as appearing on a multitude of weekly and 2018 and 2019 year-end charts over several countries and receiving multiple certifications, the album's title track, "Youngblood", impacted the ARIA decade-end chart (2010-2019), which ranks the most popular songs of the decade, at number thirty-seven.[7] In the ARIA Australian decade-end chart (2010-2019), ranking the most popular songs of the decade by Australian artists, "Youngblood" ranked at number four.[8] "Youngblood" sold over five million adjusted copies[9][10][11] and is the most streamed Australian song of all time on Apple Music.[12][13] According to ARIA certifications,"Youngblood" is the eleventh best-selling single in Australian history.[14] Youngblood was the most-streamed Australian album of 2018.[15] In February 2020, the band were honored in the APRA AMCOS' The 1,000,000,000 List, for "Youngblood" having been streamed over 1 billion times.[16][17]
Background and recording[edit]
Following the conclusion of the Sounds Live Feels Live World Tour on 5 October 2016, the band took off the remainder of the year as a break, before starting the writing process for their new album in the beginning of 2017. The song "Meet You There", which was released as a bonus track on the deluxe edition, was however written in late 2016.[18] The last song written for the album was "Want You Back" in late 2017.[19]
Guitarist Michael Clifford said of the process, "It's taking a really long time to perfect the new sound and direction we're taking. I think the reason it's taken so long is because we haven't just wanted to get it to a place where we're happy […] We want it to be perfect."[20]
The album was almost exclusively recorded in Los Angeles, CA, primarily at Conway Recording Studios.
Promotion[edit]
5SOS III Promotional Tour[edit]
Prior to the album's release, the band embarked on the worldwide promotional 5SOS III Tour, a four-leg tour which took place at 26 intimate venues.[21] The tour sold out within approximately 3 minutes,[22] with the critics praising it as "a nice teaser for what promises to be a much larger-scale fall tour."[22] The tour began on 20 March 2018 and ended on 6 June.[23]
Tour[edit]
Prior to the album's release, the band embarked on the promotional 5SOS III Tour, which took place at 26 intimate concert venues worldwide. Along with gaining positive critic reviews, tickets for the tour sold out entirely within three minutes.[22]
The Meet You There Tour was scheduled to visit Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, US, and Europe. The tour began on 2 August 2018 and concluded on 19 November 2018.[39] The tour was met with positive reviews, with Billboard praising the show for its "impressive" and "electric energy"[40]
Singles[edit]
The album's lead single, "Want You Back", was released via Capitol Records on 22 February 2018.[41] The album's title track, "Youngblood", was initially released as a promotional single on 13 April.[42] It was later sent to American contemporary hit radio on 22 May as the album's second single.[43] It has been since been certified as nine times platinum by Australian Recording Industry Association, platinum by Recorded Music New Zealand, platinum by British Phonographic Industry, and platinum by Recording Industry Association of America. "Valentine" was released on 26 August 2018 as the third single from the album.[44] On 21 December 2018, a re-recorded version of "Lie to Me" featuring Julia Michaels was released as the album's fourth single.[45]
Commercial performance[edit]
Youngblood was a commercial success and debuted at number one in Australia, becoming 5 Seconds of Summer's third number-one album in their home country. It debuted atop the albums chart at the same week that the title track was number one for a fifth week on the singles chart.[50] Youngblood was the most-streamed Australian album of 2018.[15]
In the United States, it became their third number-one album on the Billboard 200 chart, debuting with 142,000 album-equivalent units, including 117,000 in pure album sales. The album debuted ahead of the Carters' (Beyoncé and Jay-Z) Everything Is Love, with industry forecasters initially unsure of which album would take the top spot.[51] This made them the first Australian act with three number-one albums in the US.[52] It also led to 5 Seconds of Summer being the first band (not vocal group) to have their first three full-length studio albums debut atop the Billboard 200. The album consecutively remained on the Billboard 200 chart for a total of 63 weeks (approximately one year and four months).[52]
The album's title track single, "Youngblood" achieved worldwide success and with a third consecutive number one album in the US, 5 Seconds of Summer became the only band (not vocal group) in chart history to see its first three full-length studio albums enter the chart at No.1 on the Billboard 200.[53] 5 Seconds of Summer also became the first and only Australian act in history to earn three number one albums on the Billboard charts.[16] With a third No.1 in their home country, 5 Seconds of Summer became the second Australian band in history to have their first four full-length studio albums debut at number one on the ARIA albums chart.[54]
"Youngblood" peaked in more than 15-year-end charts in 2018, was officially certified Australia's 2018 song of the year[55] and won the ARIA Award for Song of the Year.[56] The song was ranked at number seven in The UK's Official Top 40 Biggest Song of the Summer 2018.[57] In 2019, "Youngblood" peaked in more than 10-year-end charts and has since received official platinum and gold notable achievement certifications in over 15 countries.[58]
As well as appearing on a multitude of weekly and year-end charts over several countries and receiving multiple certifications, "Youngblood" impacted the ARIA decade-end chart (2010-2019), which ranks the most popular songs of the decade, at number thirty-seven.[7] In the ARIA Australian decade-end chart (2010-2019), ranking the most popular songs of the decade by Australian artists, "Youngblood" ranked at number four.[8] "Youngblood" sold over five million adjusted copies in the first six months of its release[9][10][11] and is the most streamed Australian song of all time on Apple Music.[12][13] In February 2020, 5 Seconds of Summer were honored in the APRA AMCOS' The 1,000,000,000 List, for "Youngblood" having been streamed over 1 billion times.[16][17] In June 2020, "Youngblood" was awarded an ASCAP Pop Music Award.[59]
As of June 2020, "Youngblood" has spent over 110 consecutive weeks (over 2 years) in the Top 20 on the ARIA Australian Singles chart.[60]
Notes
5 Seconds of Summer
Additional musicians
Technical
Visuals