Selfie (song)

"#Selfie"
Single by The Chainsmokers
Released January 29, 2014 (2014-01-29)
Format
Recorded 2013
Genre EDM[1]
Length 3:03
Label Dim Mak
Songwriter(s) Andrew Taggart
Producer(s) Andrew Taggart
The Chainsmokers singles chronology
"The Rookie"
(2013)		 "#Selfie"
(2014)		 "Kanye"
(2014)

"The Rookie"
(2013)		 "#Selfie"
(2014)		 "Kanye"
(2014)

Selfie (stylized as #SELFIE) is a song produced by American DJ duo The Chainsmokers. It was released on January 29, 2014, through Dim Mak Records.

Background and promotion

The Chainsmokers, composed of Andrew Taggart and Alex Pall, had noticed how the word selfie had become a trend and they wanted to take advantage of it. They made a demo of a song containing monologue from a female clubber about taking good selfies.[2] Inspiration came from the regular club going women that the Chainsmokers saw on their nights out in New York City. So when they were composing the track, they wanted to incorporate the "let me take a selfie" line in it somehow. The Chainsmokers described in an interview with The Phoenix New Times,

Honestly, "#Selfie" is kind of a phenomenon for us. We made it and thought it was funny and put it out as an edit. Then Dim Mak wanted to buy it, and they bought it from us and put it out officially and we made a video for it. This was all just because we thought it was fun. And then the song just kind of took on a life of its own. Which is honestly really great because it's brought in a new audience of people that listen to music that we've made that we're more passionate about.[3]

The duo released the track to their SoundCloud account along with other posts in Vine and Instagram.

Music video

A music video for the song was also released and features actual selfies from Steve Aoki, founder of Dim Mak, Snoop Dogg, David Hasselhoff, Tyler Breeze, Canadian DJ A-Trak, and Ian Somerhalder among others.[4] Oliver Luckett, CEO of social media marketing firm TheAudience, said that the song is "so on point – it's shit-white-girls-say-meets-a-club-remix". TheAudience introduced the Chainsmokers to Aoki, helped create the "#Selfie" video and released it on January 29, 2014, on YouTube, utilizing the network of celebrities to promote it.[2][5][6][7] According to Pall, "the video inherently had this viral concept built into it, which certainly helped get it off the ground".[8]

Composition

"#Selfie" is an EDM song that is mostly instrumental though it features spoken word verses; the uncredited talking female vocals in the song are by Alexis Killacam.[4][1] The song details a narcissistic young woman at a club, presumably speaking to friends, as she is concerned about taking selfies and uploading them to her Instagram account, while she criticizes other people at the club, including their outfits, while also dealing with a guy named Jason, that she has a love/hate relationship with though she might have a crush on him as well. At the end of each spoken verse, she says "Let me take a selfie".[9] The intonation of the spoken lyrics bears a strong resemblance to that of the opening of Sir Mix-A-Lot's 1992 single "Baby Got Back". Similarly to "#Selfie", the words are critical of the appearance of another girl. The lyrics make several cultural[10] references, including Instagram and the Cedric Gervais remix of Lana Del Rey's song, "Summertime Sadness".

The song has been compared to the viral impact of "Harlem Shake" by Baauer. The Chainsmokers explained that one of their initial intentions with "#Selfie" was to re-create the viral impact that "Harlem Shake" had, with the general public taking the song and maybe including their own interpretations along with the beat. The structure of it has drawn comparisons to the 1982 hit "Valley Girl" by Frank Zappa and his daughter, Moon Unit Zappa.[11][12][13]

Critical response

Miles Raymer from the Chicago Reader gave the song a negative review, stating referring to the song as "garbage, paint-by-numbers EDM with all the artistic flavor of an audio software preset that makes "Harlem Shake" sound like Selected Ambient Works Volume II. But the song's only there to deliver the meme, and if the song had any personality it might distract from the hashtag-packed spoken-word bit that's the real focus here."[1]

Commercial performance

"#Selfie" debuted on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs chart at number 19, with first week sales of 9,000 digital downloads according to Nielsen SoundScan.[4] The next week, "#Selfie" sold another 53,000 digital downloads and debuted at number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100, the highest debut of the week.[13] The sales drove the song to number six on the Dance/Electronic Songs and number three on the Dance/Electronic Digital Songs charts. "#Selfie" additionally debuted at number seven on Dance/Mix Show Airplay, becoming only the sixth song in the chart's 11-year history to debut as high or above and the first since Lady Gaga entered at number six with "Alejandro" in May 2010.[14] In its third week of release, the song sold another 88,000 downloads (up by 64%) to move into the top ten of the Hot Digital Songs chart. It also reached a peak of number 27 on the Pop Songs chart.[15] On the Hot 100, the song consecutively jumped to number 28.[16] It also started on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart at number 33.[17] The fourth week saw the song sell a further 111,000 digital downloads and moved to number 18 on the Hot 100.[18] It reached the top of the Dance/Electronic Songs, and also moved up the other component charts like Dance/Electronic Streaming Songs (16–7; 1.4 million US streams, according to Nielsen BDS), Dance/Mix Show Airplay (4–2) and Hot Dance Club Songs (33–19).[19] "#Selfie" sold another 101,000 copies next week and moved to number 16 on the Hot 100.[20] As of June 2014, the song has sold 865,000 copies in the United States.[21]

In the United Kingdom, "#Selfie" debuted at number 115 on the UK Singles Chart and moved to number 42 the next week.[22] The song finally peaked at number 11 in the UK. In Australia "#Selfie" debuted at number 98 on the ARIA Charts, and moved to a peak of number 3.[23][24]

In 2015, the Japanese pop trio MAX released a cover version of the song, renamed "#SELFIE ~ONNA NOW~." The song was released to commemorate their 20th anniversary.

Track listing

Digital download[25]
No.TitleLength
1."#Selfie"3:03

Charts and certifications

Release history

Region Date Format Label(s)
Netherlands[70] February 28, 2014 Digital download Dim Mak
Switzerland[71]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Raymar, Miles (March 11, 2014). "The Chainsmokers' paint-by-numbers virality". Chicago Reader. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  2. 1 2 Hyman, Dan (March 4, 2014). "'Harlem Shake' 2.0? '#Selfie' Is Going Viral With Slick Marketing". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  3. ↑ Savage, Amanda (February 27, 2014). "The Chainsmokers: "We Just Try to Mix What's Fun"". The Phoenix New Times. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Staff, Billboard (July 2, 2013). "Bubbling Under: Chainsmokers Get Their Shot With '#Selfie'". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  5. ↑ Canoe inc. (March 6, 2014). "Is '#Selfie' set to become the new 'Harlem Shake'?". Technology.canoe.ca. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  6. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Video '#SELFIE' Taking The UK By Storm – Watch - Music News". Capital FM. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  7. ↑ "San Francisco Edges Top 'Selfies' List « CBS San Francisco". Sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  8. ↑ Mansfield, Brian (March 16, 2014). "Chainsmokers' '#SELFIE' goes viral". USA Today. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
  9. ↑ Del Mar, Pollo (March 6, 2014). "The Chainsmokers' Bring Cheeky Smash "#Selfie" to SF March 8". The Huffington Post. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  10. ↑ #SELFIE Lyrics, azlyrics.com
  11. ↑ Trust, Gary (March 11, 2014). "Chart Moves: Avicii, The Chainsmokers Burn Up Dance Charts; Coldplay Makes 'Magic' On Hot 100, Hot Rock Songs; The Pretty Reckless Rules Mainstream Rock". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  12. ↑ Okano, Marisa (March 11, 2014). "#SELFIE: The Chainsmokers' 7 Tips For Taking The Perfect One". Yahoo!. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  13. 1 2 Newman, Melinda (March 6, 2014). "5 things you need to know right now about The Chainsmokers' "#Selfie"". Hitfix.com. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  14. ↑ Murray, Gordon (March 6, 2014). "Chainsmokers' '#SELFIE' Blasts Up Dance Charts, Enters Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Rick Ross Rules With Fifth No. 1 Album On Billboard 200". Billboard. August 18, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Idina Menzel's Frozen song 'Let It Go' enters US singles top ten - Music News". Digital Spy. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  17. ↑ "Dance Club Songs : Mar 22, 2014 (Biggest Jump)". Billboard. March 11, 2014. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  18. ↑ Grein, Paul (March 19, 2014). "Chart Watch: "#Selfie" Is A #Smash". Yahoo!. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  19. ↑ Murray, Gordon (March 20, 2014). "The Chainsmokers Take '#SELFIE' to No. 1 on Dance Chart". Billboard. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  20. ↑ Grein, Paul (March 28, 2014). "Chart Watch: After 'Frozen', Here Comes 'Summer'". Yahoo!. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  21. ↑ Murray, Gordon (July 2, 2014). "Daft Punk, DJ Snake & Lil Jon Lead Mid-Year SoundScan Dance/Electronic Charts". Billboard. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
  22. ↑ "Official Singles Chart UK Top 100 - 15th March 2014". March 15, 2013. Archived from the original on March 11, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Chartifacts – Tuesday 4th March 2014". ARIA Charts. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  24. 1 2 "[https://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Australian-charts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  25. ↑ "iTunes - Muziek - '#SELFIE - Single' van The Chainsmokers". iTunes Store. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  26. ↑ "The Chainsmokers - #selfie - Polydor - 3781149 - Maxi-CD". Deejay.de. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  27. ↑ "Australian Top 20 Dance Tracks". ARIA Charts. Archived from the original on May 11, 2013.
  28. ↑ "[https://austriancharts.at/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Austriancharts.at – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  29. 1 2 "[https://www.ultratop.be/nl/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Ultratop.be – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 27, 2014.
  30. ↑ "[https://www.ultratop.be/fr/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Ultratop.be – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 27, 2014.
  31. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  32. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201414 into search. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  33. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201419 into search. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  34. ↑ "[https://danishcharts.dk/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Danishcharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. Tracklisten. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  35. ↑ "The Chainsmokers: #SELFIE" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  36. ↑ "[https://lescharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Lescharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  37. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  38. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 13, 2014". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  39. ↑ "[https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Dutchcharts.nl – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  40. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – The Chainsmokers" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  41. ↑ "[https://charts.nz/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Charts.nz – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  42. ↑ "[https://norwegiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Norwegiancharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. VG-lista. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  43. ↑ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Dance Top 50. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  44. ↑ "Top 5 Airplay TV". Polish Video Chart. ZPAV. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
  45. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  46. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201415 into search. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
  47. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201426 into search. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
  48. ↑ "SloTop50: Slovenian official singles weekly chart" (in Slovenian). SloTop50. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
  49. ↑ "[https://spanishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Spanishcharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"] Canciones Top 50. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  50. ↑ "[https://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Swedishcharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. Singles Top 100. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  51. ↑ "Veckolista Dance - Vecka 12, 21 mars 2014" (in Swedish). Hitlistan.se. Archived from the original on October 17, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  52. ↑ "[http://swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Chainsmokers&titel=
    1. SELFIE&cat=s Swisscharts.com – The Chainsmokers – #SELFIE"]. Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  53. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  54. ↑ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  55. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  56. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  57. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Hot Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  58. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  59. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  60. ↑ "ARIA Top 100 Singles 2014". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  61. ↑ "The Chainsmokers Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  62. ↑ "Track Top-50 2014". Hitlisten. Archived from the original on January 8, 2015.
  63. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2014 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  64. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Chainsmokers – Selfie". Music Canada. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  65. ↑ "Italian single certifications – Chainsmokers – Selfie" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  66. ↑ "The Chainsmokers - Selfie" (in Swedish). Grammofon Leverantörernas Förening. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  67. ↑ "British single certifications – Chainsmokers – Selfie". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 9, 2015. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Selfie in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  68. ↑ "American single certifications – Chainsmokers – Selfie". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 9, 2015. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  69. ↑ "Certificeringer - The Chainsmokers - Selfie" (in Danish). IFPI Denmark. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  70. ↑ "iTunes Muziek – '#SELFIE' – Single' van The Chainsmokers" (in Dutch). Netherlands: iTunes Store. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014.
  71. ↑ "iTunes Musik – '#SELFIE' – Single' van The Chainsmokers" (in German). Switzerland: iTunes Store. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014.
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