"People Watching" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Conan Gray | ||||
from the album Superache | ||||
Released | July 15, 2021 | |||
Genre | Indie pop | |||
Length | 2:38 | |||
Label | Republic | |||
Songwriter(s) |
| |||
Producer(s) | Dan Nigro | |||
Conan Gray singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
Official music video on YouTube | ||||
Official lyric video on YouTube |
"People Watching" is a song by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray. It was released by Republic Records on July 15,2021 as a single from Gray's second studio album Superache . The single was written by Gray,Julia Michaels,and Dan Nigro,who also produced the song. Inspired by Gray's personal experiences during college,"People Watching" is an indie pop song that is about the similarly named activity of people-watching. The song received positive reviews from critics and was certified gold in Australia as well as placing on charts in New Zealand and Singapore. A music video featuring Gray working in a caféwas released on the day after the single.
In 2017,Gray posted a tweet on Twitter stating "i love people watching so much." [1] He later released his debut album, Kid Krow ,in 2020 on which he also collaborated with Dan Nigro. [2] The following year he released two singles,"Overdrive" and "Astronomy." [3] Gray began teasing a third single, [4] later revealed to be "People Watching," which was released on July 15,2021. [5] The song was featured as the second track on Gray's second studio album Superache in 2022. [6] "Astronomy" was also released on the album while "Overdrive," and Gray's following single,"Telepath," were featured as bonus tracks on Superache's Japanese CD release. [7]
"People Watching" is an indie pop up-tempo ballad that explores the activity of people-watching. [8] [9] For the song, Gray collaborated with Julia Michaels and his producer Dan Nigro; the three share a writing credit on the single. [10] Gray said he obtained the idea for the lyrics from eavesdropping on couples and wanting to share true romantic feelings with someone. [11] He also explained that he had never dated anyone prior to writing the song, [12] which is representative through lyrics in the chorus which states, "but I wanna feel all that love and emotion; be that attached to the person I'm holding; someday, I'll be falling without caution; but for now, I'm only people watching." [13] The overall concept of the song expands on Gray's view of romantic relationships which he previously explored in songs such as "Crush Culture" from his 2018 extended play, Sunset Season . [14] "People Watching" opens with a steady guitar and builds towards the end of the second verse. [15] The bridge features increasing bass, piano, and drums over the lyrics "Cut people out like tags on my clothing" followed by Gray describing life as being monotone. [16] [17]
Robin Murray with Clash said the song "balances a longing for love with an awareness of loneliness" and notes Gray's ability to write from the perspective of an outsider. [18] Ones to Watch writer Maxamillion Polo mentions the "emotional depth" that Gray harnesses in the track by highlighting the significance behind the lyrics. [19] Uproxx 's Caitlin White describes the single as "vulnerable" mentioning how the song is told from a position where the subject is safe from relationship turmoil but at the same time, lacks intimacy. [20]
"People Watching" was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. [21] It also peaked at 25 on the Recording Industry Association Singapore chart [22] and at 22 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. [23]
A music video for the song, directed by Joe Mischo, was released on the day after the track. [25] In the video, Gray is featured working in a café and jealously observes various couples drinking coffee and eating pastries. [26] In the process of people-watching, he falls behind in performing his job duties causing a croissant to catch fire and allowing a coffee mug to fall to the ground and break; as the other employees deal with mishap, the café fills with smoke while Gray appears unfazed and continues to people-watch. [27] [28] Gray attributed the concept of the video to his time in college when he would regularly people-watch in a similar café on campus. [26] He also stated he would joke about being terrible at working in a café with his best friend Ashley who appeared in the video. [29] [30]
Gray performed "People Watching" along with "Disaster" and "Memories" from Superache and "Heather" from Kid Krow on The Today Show as part of their "Citi Concert Series." [31] It was also performed on the Superache Tour. [32] "People Watching" was featured along with "Crush Culture" in the Heartstopper season two episode, "Sorry." [33]
Paramore is an American rock band formed in Franklin, Tennessee, in 2004. Since 2017, the band's members include lead vocalist Hayley Williams, lead guitarist Taylor York, and drummer Zac Farro. Williams and Farro are founding members of the group, while York, a high school friend of the original lineup, joined in 2007. Williams is the only member to appear on all six of Paramore's studio albums.
Sabrina Annlynn Carpenter is an American singer and actress. She made her acting debut in 2011, with an appearance on the crime drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2011) and a recurring role on the sitcom The Goodwin Games (2013). She gained recognition as a Disney Channel personality, playing lead roles in the comedy series Girl Meets World (2014–2017) and the adventure comedy film Adventures in Babysitting (2016). She has since starred in feature films such as Horns (2013), The Hate U Give (2018), The Short History of the Long Road (2019), Clouds (2020), and Emergency (2022), as well as the Netflix productions Tall Girl (2019), Tall Girl 2 (2022), and Work It (2020), the latter of which she executive-produced.
Twenty One Pilots are an American musical duo from Columbus, Ohio. Initially a band, the group was formed in 2009 by lead vocalist Tyler Joseph along with Nick Thomas and Chris Salih, who both left in 2011. Since their departure, the line-up has consisted of Joseph and drummer Josh Dun. The duo is best known for their singles "Stressed Out", "Ride", and "Heathens", which achieved commercial success between 2015 and 2016. The duo received a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for "Stressed Out".
Daniel Leonard Nigro is an American musician, songwriter, instrumentalist, and record producer. He was the lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band As Tall as Lions. Nigro has produced, written, and co-written songs for Sky Ferreira, Kylie Minogue, Caroline Polachek, Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan and Conan Gray. He won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album for producing Rodrigo's 2021 album Sour.
Moriah Rose Pereira, known professionally as Poppy and formerly as That Poppy, is an American singer, songwriter, and YouTuber. She first earned recognition for starring in surreal performance art videos on YouTube as an uncanny valley-like android who commented on and satirized internet culture and modern society. This led to the release of a pilot for the proposed 2018 surreal comedy online series I'm Poppy on YouTube Premium.
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell is an American singer and songwriter. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single "Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her brother Finneas O'Connell, with whom she collaborates on music and live shows. In 2017, she released her debut extended play (EP), Don't Smile at Me. Commercially successful, it reached the top 15 of record charts in numerous countries, including the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.
Stella Rose Bennett, better known as Benee and formerly Bene, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter from Auckland. In both 2019 and 2020, she consecutively won Single of the Year, Best Solo Artist and Best Pop Artist at the New Zealand Music Awards. Benee initially gained local prominence with her singles "Glitter" and "Soaked", before her 2019 single "Supalonely" saw international popularity following its success on the video-sharing platforms TikTok and YouTube. Benee subsequently released her debut album, Hey U X, in November 2020.
Marie Ulven Ringheim is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and record producer, known for her indie pop project girl in red. Her first EPs Chapter 1 (2018) and Chapter 2 (2019) were recorded in her bedroom and feature songs about romance and mental health. Released independently through AWAL, her debut studio album If I Could Make It Go Quiet (2021) was a critical and commercial success, and won three Norwegian Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. She then signed to Columbia Records and released her first major-label album, I'm Doing It Again Baby!, to moderate success in 2024.
Conan Lee Gray is an American singer-songwriter and former YouTuber. Born in Lemon Grove, California, and raised in Georgetown, Texas, he began uploading vlogs, covers, and original songs to YouTube as a teenager. In 2018, Gray signed a record deal with Republic Records, which released his debut EP, Sunset Season (2018).
Sunset Season is the debut extended play by American singer-songwriter and social media personality Conan Gray. It was released under Republic Records on November 16, 2018. Sunset Season was primarily produced by Dan Nigro and co-produced by Conan Gray, who also wrote and composed the five-track EP. Gray released "Idle Town", "Generation Why", and "Crush Culture" as singles. The EP peaked at number two on the US Heatseeker Albums.
"Checkmate" is a song by American singer Conan Gray, released as a single on June 26, 2019, through Republic Records. It was written by Gray and produced by Dan Nigro. The song peaked at 19 on the ARIA Singles Chart. It gave him his highest-charting song in Australia, surpassing the number 38 peak of "The King", until it was dethroned by "Maniac".
"Maniac" is a song by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray. Republic Records released it as the third single from his debut studio album Kid Krow on October 24, 2019. "Maniac" was written by Gray and Dan Nigro, who also produced the song. The song has been certified Platinum in Australia, Brazil, Canada and the United States, becoming his first certifications in all four countries. In early 2020, the song was successful on international mainstream pop radio. It had gained 50 million accumulative streams on Spotify by January 2020, before clocking 90 million streams only two months later. The song also trended on the video-sharing platform TikTok, debuting in the app's Top 25 trending chart.
Kid Krow is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray. It was released on March 20, 2020, through Republic Records. The album is a "coming of age" record inspired by elements such as his rough childhood experiences of poverty, abuse, and discrimination. The album was supported by the singles "Checkmate", "Comfort Crowd", "Maniac", "The Story", "Wish You Were Sober", and "Heather".
"Wish You Were Sober" is a song by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray. It was released on March 18, 2020 by Republic Records as the fifth single from his debut studio album Kid Krow. The song was written by Conan Gray and Dan Nigro.
"Heather" is a song by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray released through Republic Records. Originally released as a track on Gray's debut studio album Kid Krow in March 2020, it was released as the sixth single in September 2020 after becoming a sleeper hit. "Heather" was written by Gray and produced by Dan Nigro with additional production by Jam City.
"The Story" is a song by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray. It was released on January 10, 2020 by Republic Records as the fourth single from his debut studio album Kid Krow. The song was written by Conan Gray and produced by Dan Nigro.
"Deja Vu" is a song by American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo. It was released on April 1, 2021, through Geffen and Interscope Records, as the second single from her debut studio album, Sour (2021). Rodrigo wrote the song with its producer Dan Nigro, with Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff, and St. Vincent receiving writing credits for its interpolation of Swift's 2019 song "Cruel Summer". An incorporation of various pop sub-genres, "Deja Vu" is about heartbreak and explores Rodrigo's anguish about her ex-partner repeating things they did in his new relationship.
Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, known professionally as Chappell Roan, is an American singer and songwriter from Missouri. Working with collaborator Dan Nigro, many songs on her debut album are inspired by 1980s synth-pop and early 2000s pop hits. Her aesthetic is heavily influenced by drag queens and her music and performing style has been positively described as "campy".
Superache is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Conan Gray, released on June 24, 2022, through Republic Records. It is a follow-up to Gray's debut album Kid Krow (2020). Described by Gray as an expansion of his yearning heartbreak, the album touches on themes such as childhood trauma, abuse, friendship, and love, as of his experiences growing up.
Found Heaven is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Conan Gray, released by Republic Records on April 5, 2024. The album was preceded by the singles "Never Ending Song", "Winner", "Killing Me", "Lonely Dancers", and "Alley Rose". To support Found Heaven, Gray will embark on his fifth headlining concert tour, Found Heaven On Tour in July 2024.