"
Cheap Thrills" is a song recorded by Australian recording artist
Sia for her seventh studio album,
This Is Acting (2016). It was written by Sia and
Greg Kurstin, while solely produced by Kurstin. An official remix version of "Cheap Thrills" features vocals by
Jamaicanperformer
Sean Paul and was made available for
digital download on 11 February 2016 as the record's second single.
[2][3] This version was nominated for the
Grammy Award for
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. The song is a "bouncy", "reggae-tinged"
synthpop song that incorporates "a constant tropical beat and
electropop-style synth layers". Paul added his own lyrics to the remix of the song.
In the United States, "Cheap Thrills" became Sia's first No. 1 on the
Billboard Hot 100, and Paul's first since "
Temperature" in 2006;
[4] it also topped the national
Mainstream Top 40 and
Radio Songs charts. Among other countries, it also reached the top position in France, Germany, Canada, Italy and Slovenia whilst going top ten in Australia. In the United Kingdom, the song reached No. 2 on the
UK Singles Chart.
Background and composition[edit]
"Cheap Thrills" was written by Sia and
Greg Kurstin, and produced by Kurstin. It was originally intended to be performed by
Rihanna for her album
Anti (2016), but was rejected by her.
[3][5] It is a "bouncy", "
reggae-tinged"
synthpop song.
[6][7] The song features "a constant tropical beat and
electropop-style synth layers".
[8]
"Cheap Thrills" is written in
common time with a
tempo of 90 beats per minute. The song's chord progression, F♯m–D–A–E, may be read either as i-VI-III-VII in F♯ minor or, more likely, as vi-IV-I-V in A major; it is a variant of the
I–V–vi–IV progression. Sia's vocal range in the song spans an octave, from B
3 to D
5.
[9]
Critical reception[edit]
Brittany Spanos of
Rolling Stone called it a "bouncy party anthem",
[10] whilst
The Guardian described it as "a perfectly serviceable party tune".
[11] Nick Levine of
NME praised the track's production "and there's no denying this is another superior slab of on-trend ear candy from one of pop's finest songwriters."
[12] A CBS affiliate's critic wrote that the song was the No. 3 song that "saved 2016", calling it a "formidable hit".
[13]
Chart performance[edit]
The song reached No. 1 in over 20 countries, including Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Slovenia, Sweden, and the United States. In Australia, it was eventually certified quadruple platinum for shipments of over 280,000 copies, and reached No. 6. In New Zealand, the song reached No. 3, and was certified double platinum for sales of over 30,000 copies. The song reached the top three in European countries, and was awarded with various certifications, including Quadruple Platinum in Sweden, Five time Platinum in Spain, and Double Diamond in Poland. In the UK, it peaked at No. 2 for four weeks, and was certified double platinum for shipments of over 1.2 million copies.
The song became the best selling and highest certified single of all time in Italy, reaching 9× Platinum status, with sales of over 450,000 copies.
[14]
In South and Central America, the song reached the top 10 in Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela, top 5 in Guatemala, and No. 1 in Argentina.
In the United States, the song debuted at No. 81 and peaked at No. 1 on the
Billboard Hot 100 in the issue dated 6 August 2016.
[15] The song became Sia's first number-one single in the country, and Sean Paul's fourth; he returned to the top 10 after ten years. With "Cheap Thrills," Sia became the first woman over 40 to top the Hot 100 since Madonna topped the Hot 100 with "
Music" in 2000.
[15] It became the tenth best-selling song in the US in 2016, and has sold 1.7 million copies in the country as of December 2016.
[16]
Live performances[edit]
Music videos[edit]
A lyric video featuring
Sean Paul performing a new verse was released on 10 February 2016. In the video, a faceless couple wearing wigs (the dancers Minn Vo and Stefanie Klausman), which have become part of Sia's signature look, win a dance contest on a black-and-white television show reminiscent of
American Bandstand or
The Buddy Deane Show.
[5][22] The video, directed by Lior Molcho, has been viewed more than 870 million times.
[23]
Sia and
Daniel Askill directed a performance video featuring
Maddie Ziegler dancing with two male dancers to
Ryan Heffington's choreography, which was released on 21 March 2016. The three dancers wear beige, with black and blonde hairstyles and gloves in the half-and-half style used in most of Sia's videos for
This Is Acting. They dance on a bare stage, with Sia at a rear corner in the background singing into a microphone while wearing a similar bobbed two-toned wig, a large bow and a white dress.
Billboard wrote that "the video features the same type of intense, captivating choreography as some of [Sia's] other work. This time, Ziegler is backed by two other dancers, and the trio seems to blend as one".
[24] Teen Vogue said that Ziegler "delivers another powerful performance".
[25] The video has been viewed more than 260 million times.
[26]
Usage in media[edit]
Track listing[edit]
1. | "Cheap Thrills" (featuring Sean Paul) | 3:44 |
2. | "Cheap Thrills" (album version) | 3:30 |
Total length: | 7:14 |
Weekly charts[edit]
|
Year-end charts[edit]
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Certifications[edit]
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