"Selfish" is a song by American singer Madison Beer. It was released on February 14, 2020 as the second single from her debut studio album Life Support (2021).[1] Beer co-wrote and produced the song with Leroy Clampitt, while other credited writers of the song include Jeremy Dussolliet, Tim Sommers, Lowell, and Jaramye Daniels. Commercially, "Selfish" reached number 25 in Ireland, making it her first top forty hit as a solo artist in the country.[2]
| "Selfish" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Alan Walker remix cover | ||||
| Single by Madison Beer | ||||
| from the album Life Support | ||||
| Released | February 14, 2020 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:43 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| Madison Beer singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Selfish" on YouTube | ||||
Composition
edit"Selfish" is a slow tempo pop ballad with stripped-down production.[1][3] The song was written by Madison Beer, Leroy Clampitt, Jaramye Daniels, Jeremy Dussolliet, Elizabeth Lowell Boland, and Tim Sommers. Beer and Clampitt handled production of the song.[4] In terms of music notation, "Selfish" was composed using 4
4 common time in the key of A major with a slow tempo of 75 beats per minute. Beer's alto vocal range spans from the low note of F#3 to the high note of E5.[5] For much of the song, the stripped-down instrumentation consists of an electric guitar, placing emphasis on Beer's vocals, which are doubled in select parts of the song such as the chorus.[3][6] Beer's vocal performance on the track was described by one music critic as "emotional".[1] Deemed a "breakup ballad" by one music critic,[3] "Selfish" contains lyrics about a toxic relationship and feelings of betrayal.[6][7]
Critical reception
edit"Selfish" received universal acclaim. Billboard magazine praised Beer's vocal performance on the song, writing that the singer "sounds poised [on "Selfish"], committed to the approach and confident in her capabilities as a vocalist".[6] Brian Cantor, writing for Headline Planet, praised the song as an "impressive vocal showing" and "perhaps the strongest 'mainstream pop' song to hit the market thus far in 2020".[1] Mike Wass of Idolator deemed the song a "stirring breakup ballad".[3]
Music video
edit"Selfish" was accompanied by a music video co-directed by Madison Beer and Jason Lester that was released the same day as the single.[3] The visual features the singer performing the song on the ground with various rain effects.[citation needed] After its upload, the video currently has over 35 million views as well as more than 1 million likes.
On December 15, 2020, a Vevo LIFT live performance of "Selfish" was released on Beer's YouTube account.[8] The video features the artist lying down on an illuminated platform, she progresses throughout the song with more powerful runs that weren't originally present in the track.
Personnel
edit- Madison Beer – lead artist, songwriter, producer
- Leroy Clampitt – songwriter, producer, bass, drums, keyboards, programmer, recording engineer
- Jaramye Daniels – songwriter
- Jeremy Dussolliet – songwriter
- Elizabeth Lowell Boland – songwriter
- Tim Sommers – songwriter
- Kinga Bacik – cello
- Oscar Scivier – executive producer
- Chris Gehringer – mastering engineer
- Mitch McCarthy – mixing engineer
Charts
edit| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[9] | 54 |
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[10] | 72 |
| Greece International Digital (IFPI)[11] | 65 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[12] | 25 |
| Lithuania (AGATA)[13] | 62 |
| Netherlands (Single Tip)[14] | 14 |
| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[15] | 16 |
| Portugal (AFP)[16] | 155 |
| Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)[17] | 18 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[18] | 53 |
| US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[19] | 19 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[20] | Platinum | 40,000‡ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[21] | Gold | 40,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[22] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[23] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Release history
edit| Region | Date | Format | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | February 14, 2020 | [24] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Cantor, Brian. "Madison Beer Releases Outstanding New Song "Selfish", Song Quickly Surpasses 1 Million Spotify Streams". Headline Planet. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ "Discography Madison Beer". irish-charts.com. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Wass, Nied. "Madison Beer Speaks Her Truth On New Single "Selfish"". Idolator. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ a b "Credits for 'Selfish' by Madison Beer on TIDAL". Tidal. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ "Sheet Music for "Selfish" by Madison Beer". MusicNotes. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ a b c "First Stream: New Music From Justin Bieber, Billie Eilish, Sam Smith & More". Billboard. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ Spanos, Brittany. "Madison Beer: A Rising Pop Star Looks Past Her Bubblegum Roots". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ "Madison Beer - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
- ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 27 April 2020". No. 1573. Australian Recording Industry Association. April 27, 2020.
{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires|magazine=(help) - ^ "Madison Beer Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- ^ "IFPI Charts Digital Singles Chart (International) Week 16 2020". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on April 28, 2020.
- ^ "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- ^ "Savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. April 17, 2020. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Madison Beer – Selfish". MegaCharts (in Dutch). Retrieved April 18, 2020.
- ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. April 13, 2020.
- ^ "Madison Beer – Selfish". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
- ^ "Veckolista Heatseeker – Vecka 18, 2020". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- ^ "Madison Beer Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- ^ "Brazilian single certifications – Madison Beer – Selfish" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "Canadian single certifications – Madison Beer – Selfish". Music Canada. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ "British single certifications – Madison Beer – Selfish". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
- ^ "American single certifications – Madison Beer – Selfish". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ "Selfish - Single by Madison Beer". Apple Music. Retrieved May 9, 2020.