Breathin

"Breathin" (stylized in all lowercase) is a song by American singer Ariana Grande from her fourth studio album Sweetener (2018). It was written by Grande, Savan Kotecha, Peter Svensson, and its producer Ilya Salmanzadeh. The song was sent to US contemporary hit radio on September 18, 2018, serving as the album's third and final single.[1] Lyrically, the song speaks about how breathing can help with anxiety and is based on Grande's personal experience.

For other uses, see Breathing (disambiguation).
"Breathin"
Single by Ariana Grande
from the album Sweetener
ReleasedSeptember 18, 2018 (2018-09-18)
Studio
  • MXM (Los Angeles)
  • Wolf Cousins (Stockholm)
GenreDance-pop
Length3:18
LabelRepublic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Ilya
Ariana Grande singles chronology
"God Is a Woman"
(2018)		 "Breathin"
(2018)		 "Thank U, Next"
(2018)
Music video
"Breathin" on YouTube

Commercially, the single reached number one in Iceland and Israel and the top forty in twenty-seven additional countries.

Recording and release
Peter Svensson (pictured) contributed to songwriting.

"Breathin" was written by Grande, Savan Kotecha, Ilya Salmanzadeh and Peter Svensson, with Ilya handling the production. Grande's vocals were recorded by Sam Holland and Noah Passovoy at MXM Studios in Los Angeles, California and Wolf Cousins Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, with Cory Bice and Jeremy Lertola providing recording engineer assistance.[2] Serban Ghenea, assisted by John Hanes, then mixed the song at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Randy Merrill later mastered the song at Sterling Sound in New York City, New York.[2]

The title of the song was first teased in the "No Tears Left to Cry" music video and then teased again in the behind the scenes video of the "No Tears Left to Cry" music video.[3][4]

Composition and lyrics

"Breathin" is a dance-pop song that runs for three minutes and eighteen seconds.[5][6][7] Grande performs the song in the key of F minor and her vocals span from F3 to F5.[8] During her appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Grande described the song:

'Breathin' is about breathing...when you're anxious. It's about anxiety and feeling like you can't get a full breath. It's like the worst feeling in the whole world. It's a song about that feeling...I was having lots of [anxiety attacks]. We were in the studio, we were writing and I was like, 'Ugh I can't breathe.' And they were like, 'We're going to write this song.' And I was like, 'Okay, I still can't breathe, but we'll write it.'"

— Ariana Grande, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon[9]

Critical reception

Jillian Mapes from Pitchfork said that Grande turned "the melancholy of Drake into a meditation on anxiety with 'Breathin'".[10] Variety's Chris Willman said that she "gets personal to just the right degree" with this song.[11] Brittany Spanos from Rolling Stone called it an "exceptional exploration of anxiety".[12] Taylor Weatherby from Billboard said that "Grande addresses the anxiety she experienced as a result of the Manchester Arena bombing on May 22, 2017 in 'Breathin'".[13]

Kate Soloman from The Independent called the song an "emotional highlight" and that it is a "mental health bop over a good, solid pop beat."[14]

Commercial performance

Prior to its release as a single, "Breathin" entered several charts worldwide upon the release of Sweetener due to strong digital sales. In the United States, the song debuted at number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 issue dated September 1, 2018, earning Grande her fourteenth top-forty entry and marked the highest debut of nine entries from the album of which debuted on the Hot 100 the same week.[15] The track sold 27,800 digital downloads in its opening week, allowing it to also enter the Digital Songs chart at number four.[16] The following week, "Breathin" dropped fifteen positions to number 37 on the Hot 100. As radio airplay began to build, the track officially debuted at number 38 on the Mainstream Top 40. Consequently, Grande became the first female soloist to place three entires in the top forty of the Pop Songs chart that week since Lady Gaga did so in 2010.[17] The song fluctuated on the Hot 100 for several weeks, and climbed from number 41 to 32 in its tenth week, jumping to number 21 the week after, overcoming its debut position of number 22. It reached a peak of number 12, and spent 25 weeks on the chart.

"Breathin" entered the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 at number 38 for the chart issue dated September 18, 2018, and moved up to number 34 the following week.[18][19] The song has since climbed up to number two, earning Grande her ninth top-five single there and third from Sweetener.[20] On the Billboard Dance Club Songs, "Breathin" debuted at number 43 on the issue dated October 27, 2018, rising to number 27 in its second frame. The song reached the top spot in its seventh week on the chart, marking her third consecutive chart-topper and fourth overall.

Internationally, "Breathin" reached number one in Iceland and Israel. The song debuted at number eight as the highest entry of the week on both the Australian ARIA Charts and the UK Singles Chart, becoming her eighth top-ten single in both countries.[21][22] The song has also reached the top-ten in the Czech Republic, Ireland, Hungary, Lebanon, Portugal and Slovakia, as well as reached the top-twenty in Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Live performances

Grande debuted the song live at The Sweetener Sessions.[23] Grande also performed the song along with her single "Thank U, Next" on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on November 7, 2018.[24] Grande performed the song as part of her set at the 2019 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Lollapalooza and Manchester Pride, as well as part of the regular setlist on her Sweetener World Tour.

Music video

Two music videos for the song were released. Grande released the first music video of the song on October 10, 2018, starring her pet piglet, Piggy Smallz, curiously approaching the camera and walking around on a bed with a plush cover.[25] Grande shot the footage.[26] Grande posted on Instagram that she hoped the video would make fans laugh while they await the "real" music video.[27] Grande later revealed more news on the status of the official music video on November 3, 2018 via her Twitter account, stating that it would be released alongside the lead single of her fifth studio album. The music video was eventually released on November 7, 2018 on her YouTube account, which was directed by Hannah Lux Davis.

The official video shows Grande by a train station with people passing by. It also shows scenes which includes getting her heads in the clouds and riding a swing-set in an oversized jacket. The video also shows her in the fog and her over a pile of luggage in the limelight in a long black dress. In the video, a departure sign is shown that includes the words "Needy", "Remember" and "Imagine", which are song titles from her fifth studio album Thank U, Next - with the exception of "Remember" which was removed from the final track listing and was replaced by "Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored".

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from the liner notes of Sweetener.[2]

Recording and management

Personnel

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[83] Platinum 70,000
Canada (Music Canada)[84] Platinum 80,000
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[85] Gold 45,000
New Zealand (RMNZ)[86] Gold 15,000
Norway (IFPI Norway)[87] Gold 30,000
Portugal (AFP)[88] Gold 5,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[89] Platinum 600,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Country Date Format Label Ref.
United States September 18, 2018 Contemporary hit radio Republic [90]
Italy September 21, 2018 Universal [91]
United States September 24, 2018 Hot adult contemporary Republic [92]

See also
  • List of number-one dance singles of 2018 (U.S.)

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