"Ceilings" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Lizzy McAlpine | ||||
from the album Five Seconds Flat | ||||
Released | March 14, 2023 | |||
Genre | Folk-pop | |||
Length | 3:02 | |||
Label | AWAL | |||
Songwriter(s) | Lizzy McAlpine | |||
Producer(s) |
| |||
Lizzy McAlpine singles chronology | ||||
|
"Ceilings" is a song by American singer-songwriter Lizzy McAlpine. It appeared on her second studio album, Five Seconds Flat , which was released on April 8, 2022. The folk-pop ballad, which has prominent strings in its instrumentation, describes the end of a night with McAlpine's partner that turns out to be a daydream about a relationship that already ended.
"Ceilings" became McAlpine's breakthrough song after becoming popular on TikTok, where a trend of young women running through the rain and snow to the plot twist in the song's final verse soundtracked hundreds of thousands of videos. "Ceilings" peaked at number 54 on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Ceilings" peaked within the top ten of the charts in Ireland and the United Kingdom. The song was later released to mainstream radio in the United States on March 14, 2023. [1]
"Ceilings" was included on Lizzy McAlpine's second studio album Five Seconds Flat , a folk-pop [2] record released on April 8, 2022, on AWAL. [3] [4] A music video starring Michael Hanano, McAlpine's boyfriend at the time, was released on February 14, 2023. [4] [5]
In early 2023, a sped-up version of the song's final verse became popular on TikTok, where it was used in over 200,000 videos, mostly of young women lip-syncing to the song while running through the rain or snow. [6] Its online success led to the song being McAlpine's breakthrough song. [2] She performed the song during her Tiny Desk Concert for NPR Music in November 2022 and on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in March 2023. [7] [6]
"Ceilings" is a ballad with prominently featured strings. [8] The lyrics of "Ceilings" detail the end of a night with McAlpine's partner that she does not want to end and they end with a plot twist that the night was actually a daydream about a relationship that already ended, as McAlpine sings, "But it's not real/And you don't exist/And I can't recall the last time I was kissed" in the song's final verse. She based the song on a relationship she ended in college, as well as her going to London for three months to forget about it. [3] [5]
"Ceilings" was called "doleful" and "a plot-twisty ballad of heart-stomping hallucinations" by Bobby Olivier of Billboard , while Maggie Mancini of PhillyVoice similarly called it a "heartfelt" and "wistful, sometimes hallucinogenic ballad". [2] [6] Dork 's Neive McCarthy praised "Ceilings" as "a particular standout" from the songs on Five Seconds Flat. [8]
"Ceilings" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on the chart dated March 4, 2023, becoming McAlpine's first song to enter the chart. It also peaked at number eight on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. [4]
In the United Kingdom, "Ceilings" peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart on March 24, 2023 – for the week ending March 30, 2023 – becoming her first top ten song in Britain. [9]
On April 18, 2023, Niall Horan performed a cover of the song whilst appearing on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. [10]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [37] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [38] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [39] | Gold | 15,000‡ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [40] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [41] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [42] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"Time After Time" is a song by American singer Cyndi Lauper from her debut studio album, She's So Unusual (1983). It was released as the album's second single in March 1984, by Epic and Portrait Records. Written by Lauper and Rob Hyman, who also provided backing vocals, the song was produced by Rick Chertoff. It was written in the album's final stages, after "Girls Just Want to Have Fun", "She Bop" and "All Through the Night" had been written or recorded. The writing began with the title, which Lauper had seen in TV Guide, referring to the 1979 film Time After Time.
"Hard to Say I'm Sorry" is a 1982 power ballad by American rock band Chicago. It was written by bassist Peter Cetera, who also sang the lead vocals on the track, and producer David Foster. It was released on May 17, 1982, as the lead single from the album Chicago 16. On September 11 of that year, it reached No. 1 for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the group's second No. 1 single. It was their first top 50 hit since "No Tell Lover" in 1978 and it spent twelve weeks in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100. The single was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in September of the same year. Songwriter Cetera, a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), won an ASCAP Pop Music Award for the song in the category, Most Performed Songs.
"Put Your Records On" is a song by the English singer Corinne Bailey Rae from her self-titled debut studio album (2006). Written by Bailey Rae, John Beck, and Steve Chrisanthou, it was released as the album's second single in February and early March 2006 throughout Europe and as the lead single in North America. The song spent several weeks on the UK Singles Chart and became her signature tune.
"With You" is a song by American singer Chris Brown for his second studio album, Exclusive (2007). The song was written by Johntá Austin, Espionage, and Stargate, the latter of which produced the song. The song was released as the album's third single on December 4, 2007, in the United States. It was later released internationally on March 21, 2008. "With You" is composed as a midtempo R&B ballad that features an acoustic guitar as the base of the arrangement.
"Say" is a song by John Mayer written for the Rob Reiner film The Bucket List in 2007. The ballad was released as a single on November 20, 2007, and was the first commercial single in Mayer's career that was not originally released on one of his albums but added to the special edition re-release of his album Continuum. The song earned Mayer his record-tying fourth and final Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
"Use Somebody" is a song recorded by the American rock group Kings of Leon. It was the second single from the band's fourth studio album Only by the Night, and it entered American and British charts in December 8, 2008, three weeks after the album release. The single was augmented with a music video released a month later.
"The Climb" is a song recorded by American singer Miley Cyrus, for the 2009 film Hannah Montana: The Movie. The song was written by Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe, and produced by John Shanks. It was released on March 5, 2009, as the lead single from the film's soundtrack by Walt Disney Records, and is also included as a bonus track on the international release of The Time of Our Lives. The song is a power ballad with lyrics that describe life as a difficult but rewarding journey. It is styled as a country pop ballad, and was Cyrus' first solo song to be released to country radio. The instrumentation includes piano, guitar, and violins.
"Ridin' Solo" is a song by American singer Jason Derulo, released as the third single from his self-titled debut album and produced by J.R. Rotem. The demo originally sampled "Bitter Sweet Symphony" by the Verve, but the sample was not cleared and was subsequently replaced with electronic motifs, which are featured throughout the entire song.
"Fuckin' Perfect" is a song by American singer Pink from her first greatest hits album Greatest Hits... So Far!!! (2010). Written by Pink along with its producers Max Martin and Shellback, the track is a rock pop power ballad that encourages people to accept each other for their true identities. Pink has stated that the main inspiration behind the track is her husband, Carey Hart.
"Too Close" is a song by British singer Alex Clare. The track was first released in the United Kingdom on 15 April 2011 as the second single from Clare's debut studio album, The Lateness of the Hour (2011). The track was written by Clare, Jim Duguid and produced by Major Lazer, with co-production from Ariel Rechtshaid and Mike Spencer. Lyrically, the song describes the protagonist who is not ready for a committed relationship and he must end things with his love interest in good terms.
"When I Was Your Man" is a song by American singer and songwriter Bruno Mars from his second studio album, Unorthodox Jukebox (2012). Atlantic Records released the song as the third promotional single and as the second official single, taken from the album, to mainstream radio in the United States on January 15, 2013. "When I Was Your Man" was written by Mars, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine and Andrew Wyatt. The former three produced the track under the name the Smeezingtons. The track was inspired by the time Mars was worried about losing his girlfriend, Jessica Caban.
"She Looks So Perfect" is a song and extended play by Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer, taken from their self-titled debut album, 5 Seconds of Summer (2014). The song was digitally released in Australia on 23 February 2014 and in Europe on 23 March 2014 through Capitol Records and Hi or Hey Records, as their debut single with a major record label. The accompanying music video was released on 24 February 2014. The song peaked at number one in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and the United Kingdom. It was certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association for selling 210,000 copies. The song also won "Song of the Year" at the ARIA Music Awards in 2014. Ed Sheeran covered the song on Capital FM.
Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer have released five studio albums, three live albums, eight extended plays, 26 singles, four promotional singles, and 31 music videos. All four of their studio albums debuted at number one in Australia and all have debuted at number one, within the top three, and within top 10 on a multitude of charts in many other countries. According to Billboard, since 2014, 5 Seconds of Summer have sold more than ten million albums, sold over two million concert tickets worldwide, and the band's songs streams surpass seven billion, making them one of Australia's most successful musical exports in history.
"Take Your Time" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Sam Hunt. It was released to country radio, by MCA Nashville on November 24, 2014, as the second single from his debut studio album Montevallo (2014). Capitol Records headed the song's further promotion to pop and adult pop radio stations in the spring of 2015. The song became Hunt's second consecutive single to reach number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in February 2015. The song was written by Hunt, Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne.
"FourFiveSeconds" is a song recorded by Barbadian singer Rihanna, American rapper Kanye West, and English musician Paul McCartney. It was written and produced by McCartney, West, Mike Dean, Dave Longstreth and Noah Goldstein with additional writing from Kirby Lauryen, Ty Dolla Sign, Dallas Austin, Elon Rutberg and Rihanna. Previewed by West at the iHeartMedia Music Summit on January 21, 2015, it was digitally released on January 24. "FourFiveSeconds" is a folk-pop and soul song with an instrumentation consisting of an acoustic guitar, organ and bass guitar.
"Youngblood" is a song recorded by Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer. It was written by Calum Hood, Ali Tamposi, Andrew Watt, Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings with production handled by Andrew Watt and Louis Bell. The song was released via Capitol Records on 12 April 2018, as the second single from their third studio album of the same name.
"You Broke Me First" is a song by Canadian singer Tate McRae. It was released on April 17, 2020, through RCA Records as the lead single from her second extended play, Too Young to Be Sad (2021). The song gained popularity on the video-sharing platform TikTok, where it has featured in over a million videos. The song is one of the most streamed songs released by a female artist in 2020. The song reached mainstream US radio on August 4, 2020.
Elizabeth Catherine McAlpine is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, McAlpine began gaining recognition by posting original songs and covers online on the platforms SoundCloud and YouTube.
"Heaven" is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Niall Horan, released through Capitol Records as the lead single from his third studio album The Show on 17 February 2023.
Older is the third studio album and major-label debut by American singer-songwriter Lizzy McAlpine, released on April 5, 2024, by RCA Records. It serves as the follow-up to her previous album, Five Seconds Flat (2022). McAlpine wrote and produced Older in Los Angeles with Mason Stoops, Ryan Lerman, Jeremy Most, Tony Berg, Taylor Mackall, and Ethan Gruska.