Save Your Tears

"Save Your Tears" is a song by Canadian singer the Weeknd for his fourth studio album After Hours (2020). The Weeknd wrote and produced the song with producers Max Martin and Oscar Holter, with Belly and Jason Quenneville receiving additional writing credits. Critics noted how the song's chorus and tone share similarities to Wham!'s "Everything She Wants" and Post Malone's "Circles".[1] A remix of the song by Oneohtrix Point Never was officially released alongside the deluxe edition of its parent album on March 23, 2020.[2]

For the 2020 song by the Smashing Pumpkins, see Cyr (album).
"Save Your Tears"
Single by the Weeknd
from the album After Hours
ReleasedAugust 9, 2020 (2020-08-09)
Studio
  • Conway (Los Angeles, California)
  • Jungle City (New York, New York)
  • House Mouse Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)
Genre
Length3:35
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
The Weeknd singles chronology
"Smile"
(2020)		 "Save Your Tears"
(2020)		 "Over Now"
(2020)
Music video
"Save Your Tears" on YouTube

The song was released as the album's fourth single on August 9, 2020 in Europe.[3] It impacted US radio on November 24, 2020.[4]

Background and promotion

On July 12, 2019, a snippet of the track appeared online, leading many to believe that it was set to appear on After Hours. On March 17, 2020, the music identifying app Shazam revealed that the record would be the eleventh song on the Weeknd's fourth studio album. Later that day, the Weeknd confirmed the piece's presence as the album's track list was released.[5]

Lyrics and composition

It is speculated that "Save Your Tears" touches on the impact both Bella Hadid and a second ex, seemingly his second most recent girlfriend Selena Gomez, had on him. The song captures the Weeknd's longing for Hadid after seeing her out, and his regrets over breaking her heart. This run-in was likely the one reported in tabloids the previous summer: The two ran into each other at Catch One nightclub after their breakup in August 2019, and Hadid left minutes after the Weeknd arrived. The artist acknowledging Hadid's refusal to give him attention is likely because he hurt her the way another ex—Gomez, perhaps, who he sang extensively about in his previous EP My Dear Melancholy—did him ("I broke your heart like someone did to mine / And now you won't love me for a second time").[6]

According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Kobalt Music Group, the record is written in the key of C Major with an Allegro moderato tempo of 118 beats per minute. The Weeknd's vocal range spans from the low note of G3 to the high note of A4.[7]

Complex's Joyce Ng summarized the song: "Its production billows into an array of bright synths and ominous melodies. Lyrically, Tesfaye appears self reflective as he atones for his past. Ultimately, 'Save Your Tears' feels like the narrative arc of what The Weeknd envisioned for his reclusive protagonist all along, now emerging from the darkness but failing to resist temptation".[8]

Critical reception

Billboard hailed the song as the best track on the album, stating: “Although "Save Your Tears" is one of the most pop-driven songs on the album, The Weeknd doesn't hold back when it comes to the rather cold nature he usually finds himself adopting when it comes to his lovers. The production remains upbeat and steady the entire time, thanks to work from Max Martin, Oscar Holter, DaHeala, and The Weeknd himself, combining the best of his old content and some newer, more mainstream-driven sounds”.[9] The publication also noted the song's resemblance to Post Malone's "Circles", in its slow burning sound and tone.[10] Craig Jenkins of Vulture raved, “The Weeknd perfects the kitschy '80s genre experiment with "Save Your Tears", a gutting breakup tune gorgeous and simple enough to stand alongside peak '80s pop like the Cars' 'You Might Think' (and slick enough to swipe a bit of melody from Wham!'s 'Everything She Wants' in the chorus). The piece concocts sound informed by both trap and dance music, encased in dense atmospherics, and heavy on crisp, bright keys”.[11] “"Save Your Tears" has both tonal echoes of Depeche Mode's melancholy and a nod to 'Everything She Wants' by Wham!, exhibiting shimmery mid-80s luxuriance”, praised New York Times editor Jon Caramanica.[12]

Slant columnist Seth Wilson observed, “"Save Your Tears" revels in spite, flaunting how over-it Tesfaye is in front of his ex while teasing the possibility of reconciliation. Tesfaye's distinct brand of R&B consistently draws from other genres, but hearing him embrace a straight-up synth-rock sound here is an exciting change of pace”.[13] “He draws on synth-pop nostalgia to mirror the tragic glitz of '80s Hollywood: the plinking synths and slick hand-claps of "Save Your Tears" evokes a long-lost Wham! track. His bleeding-heart melodies and unforgettable hooks remind us why we keep listening to the '80s first place”, exclaimed Pitchfork writer Isabella Herrera.[14] Jem Aswad of Variety commented, “"Save Your Tears", which could have been an MTV staple in the early '80s, is begging for period-appropriate videos. The record has thwacking electronic percussion and the vocoder hearkening back to Electric Light Orchestra's Mr. Blue Sky”.[15]

Mark Richardson from the Wall Street Journal asstered that “"Save Your Tears" includes soaring melodies that provide ample opportunity for Mr. Tesfaye to show off his vocal range, being used on television singing competitions. By design, it is big and broad, less specific lyrically and further from the shadowy persona at the heart of the Weeknd—Mr. Tesfaye often seems downright affable here. Mr. Martin and The Weeknd show the influence of 1980s synth pop. The piece sounds like something from a John Hughes soundtrack”.[16] Michael Cragg from Vogue UK praised the record as “the sort of synth experimentation last heard in 1984 on The NeverEnding Story soundtrack”.[17] GQ's Zak Maoui applauded "Save Your Tears" as one of the Weeknd's “best musical offerings to date”.[18] Apple Music applauded the composition, “Few things about "Save Your Tears" mark it as a breakup song: For one, the production is drenched in bright, ’80s-style synths that sound more glamorous than forlorn. Yet The Weeknd manages to imbue the single with a sense of heartbroken remorse, a rare emotion in his arsenal. Many came to love him through his more shadowy offerings, but there’s no denying the power he brings to the nostalgic, splashy pop style he exhibits here”.[19]

Music video

The official music video for "Save Your Tears" was first teased by the singer as being on its way through his social media platforms on January 4, 2021.[20] Its release then occurred the following day on January 5, 2021.[21]

In the visual, the Weeknd continues the established narrative of the previous After Hours music videos (and his 2020 AMA performance), with him in the clip performing at a masquerade party in an unconventional manner, after his character received plastic surgery.[22]

The video was directed by Cliqua and was notable for Tesfaye's usage of a new sparkling red suit and Botox prosthetic.[23] The aforementioned prosthetic led to the formation of memes and saw the Weeknd compared to Handsome Squidward.[24]

Hidden symbolism referencing the Grammys and the recent controversial snub that occurred to him at the time of the clip's release, was also notably picked up.[25]

Commercial performance

Following the release of its parent album, "Save Your Tears" debuted at number 41 on the US Billboard Hot 100, dated April 4, 2020.[26] Following its release as an official single in the US, it reached a new peak at number 14 on the chart, for the week dated February 6, 2021.[27]

On the Rolling Stone Top 100 Songs chart, the song peaked at number 13.[28]

In the singer's native country of Canada, "Save Your Tears" reached number 46 on the Canadian Hot 100 following its parent album's release.[29] After its release as a single in North America, the song re-entered the chart and reached a new peak of number four.

Following its release as a single in the Netherlands, it managed to reach a position of number 17 on the Dutch Top 40 and number 50 on the Dutch Single Top 100.

Live performances

The song's debut live performance occurred during the American Music Awards of 2020 on November 22, 2020, where it was performed alongside the Kenny G remix of "In Your Eyes" in downtown Los Angeles.[30] In his performance, the Weeknd sported a bandaged look that continued the narrative of the visuals that he released for After Hours.[31] The song's second live performance occurred at one of his residences during the Z100 Jingle Ball on December 14, 2020.[32]

In August 2020, the song was one of the tracks featured on TikTok's virtual concert: The Weeknd Experience.[33] It served as the AR livestream's closing track.[34]

Remix

The record's official remix was created by OPN and is included in the original deluxe edition of After Hours and the remix EP After Hours (Remixes).[35] Salvatore Maicki of The Fader praised the collaboration: "On the OPN remix of 'Save Your Tears,' they meet in the middle, igniting a technicolor spectacle".[36]

Charts

Release history
Region Date Format Label(s) Ref.
Various March 20, 2020
[80]
Netherlands August 9, 2020 Contemporary hit radio Universal [81][82]
France October 12, 2020 [83]
Italy November 6, 2020 [84]
Australia November 20, 2020
  • XO
  • Republic
 [85]
United Kingdom Adult contemporary radio [86]
United States November 24, 2020 Contemporary hit radio [4]
Rhythmic contemporary [87]
January 11, 2021 Hot adult contemporary [88]
United Kingdom January 22, 2021 Contemporary hit radio [89]

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