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Towards the Sun (song)

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For the Sia song, see Reasonable Woman (album).
"Towards the Sun"
Single by Rihanna
from the album Home: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
ReleasedFebruary 9, 2015
Recorded2014
GenrePower pop
Length4:33
LabelWestbury Road
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Rihanna singles chronology
"FourFiveSeconds"
(2015) 		"Towards the Sun"
(2015) 		"Bitch Better Have My Money"
(2015)
Home singles chronology
"Towards the Sun"
(2015) 		"Feel the Light"
(2015)

"Towards the Sun" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna for the soundtrack to the 2015 film Home, in which she voices main character Tip. The song was premiered on BBC Radio 1 on February 9, 2015, and it was released for digital download as the soundtrack's lead single the same day by Westbury Road. The song was sent to mainstream radio on March 17, 2015 in the US. The song was written and produced by Tiago Carvalho and Gary Go, with additional writing by Rihanna.

"Towards the Sun" is a mid-tempo pop and R&B ballad with positive and optimistic lyrics. On release, it received positive reviews from music critics who praised Rihanna's vocals and compared the song to the works of the British band Coldplay and their 2012 collaboration with Rihanna, "Princess of China". Commercially the song was a moderate success, peaking at 76 on the UK Singles Chart and 22 on the French singles chart.

It was later heard in a promo for the Superhero Drama miniseries Heroes Reborn[1]

Background

[edit]

In June 2012, it was announced that Rihanna would star in the lead role in the film Happy Smekday! with the American actor Jim Parsons. In September 2012, 20th Century Fox and DreamWorks Animation announced that the movie would be released on November 26, 2014.[2] In June 2013, the film was retitled from Happy Smekday! to Home.[3] In 2014, Variety magazine reported that in addition to her voice role, Rihanna had created a concept album for the film which was to be released on March 13, 2015.[4] It was later reported that the film's soundtrack would also include songs recorded by Charli XCX, Kiesza, and Jennifer Lopez (who also stars in the film).[5] "Towards the Sun" was written by Tiago Carvalho, Gary Go and Rihanna. Scott Mills premiered the song on BBC Radio 1 on February 9, 2015[6] and it was made available for digital download the same day on the iTunes Store.[7] It was sent to the US Top 40/Mainstream radio on March 3, 2015.[8]

Composition and lyrics

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"Towards the Sun" is a mid-tempo[9] pop[10] and R&B[5] ballad[11] with a length of four minutes and thirty-three seconds.[7] The single has "pounding" drums, sing-along lyrics, "gigantic" chorus, "layered harmonies", "swirling effects" and uplifting, positive lyrics.[11][12] Nolan Feeney of Time noted that the song features "a children's choir and otherwordly [sic] atmospherics".[13] Andrew Trendell of Gigwise described it as a "slow-burning stomper of a number, loaded with huge drums and arena backing vocals", further comparing it to the works of the British band Coldplay.[6] Daniel Welsh of The Huffington Post UK agreed with Trendell about the Coldplay comparison and linked the song to the band's 2012 collaboration with Rihanna, "Princess of China".[11] Jason Lipshutz of Billboard compared the song's mid-tempo groove to the one on the singer's 2012 single, "Diamonds".[14] New York Post's Jaclyn Hendricks noted that the song has a "livelier" production than Rihanna's previous single, her collaboration with Kanye West and Paul McCartney, "FourFiveSeconds" (2015).[9]

Madison Vain of Entertainment Weekly opined that the song is "anthemic" and "whispier" than Rihanna's previous singles.[5] According to Brittany Spanos of Rolling Stone, the song is more optimistic and positive than her previous singles and albums which could be heard in the lines, "Turn your face towards the sun. Let the shadows fall behind you."[10] According to Welsh the song's lyrics are "seriously empowering" and "very dramatic stuff".[11] MTV News' Brenna Enrlich called the song "heroic" in which Rihanna is clearly singing to turn the face to the shadows and look at the sun.[15]

Critical reception

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Daniel Welsh of The Huffington Post UK praised "Towards the Sun"'s lyrics, its production, Rihanna's voice on the song and its chorus. According to him, "with the theatrical atmosphere of the track, we can imagine the chorus will sound particularly anthemic being sung by a stadium crowd".[11] Spin's Brennan Carley called the song "bombastic" and also praised its chorus and the "anthemic" nature.[16] Trendell noted, "The result is no less than epic and triumphant. Expect this to soundtrack many a victory this summer."[6] Spanos praised Rihanna's falsetto on the song and called the track "epic" and "empowering".[10]

Credits and personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Home.[17]

Locations
  • Recorded at The Canvas Room, London
  • Mixed at Larabee Studios, North Hollywood, Los Angeles
Personnel
  • Lead vocals – Rihanna
  • Songwriting – Tiago Carvalho, Gary Go, Robyn Fenty
  • Production – Tiago
  • Co-production – Gary Go
  • Additional vocals and instrumentation – Tiago, Gary Go
  • Choir – Ifield Community College Choir
  • Choir master – Patrick Allen
  • Engineer – Andreas Eide Larsen
  • Assistant engineer – B.B. Banks
  • Vocal production – Kuk Harrell
  • Recording – Marcos Tovar, Kuk Harrell
  • Mixing – Manny Marroquin
  • Assistant mixing – Chris Galland, Jeff Jackson, Ike Schultz

Charts

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Chart (2015) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[18] 56
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[19] 32
CIS Airplay (TopHit)[20] 141
France (SNEP)[21] 22
Scotland (OCC)[22] 42
Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[23] 52
UK Singles (OCC)[24] 76
Ukraine Airplay (TopHit)[25] 64
US Kid Digital Songs (Billboard)[26] 1

Release history

[edit]
Country Date Format Label Ref.
Australia February 9, 2015 Digital download Westbury Road [27]
Canada [7]
France [28]
Germany [29]
Ireland [30]
Italy [31]
New Zealand [32]
Spain [33]
United Kingdom [34]
United States [35]
United Kingdom March 2, 2015 Mainstream radio [36]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Heroes Reborn 2015 Trailer". Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  2. ^ "New Distributor Twentieth Century Fox Unveils DreamWorks Animation's Release Slate Through 2016". DreamWorks Animation. September 9, 2012. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  3. ^ "Movie Title Changes". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 16, 2013.
  4. ^ Graser, Marc (February 25, 2014). "Rihanna to Make Concept Album for Upcoming Animated Movie". Variety. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  5. ^ a b c Vain, Madison (February 9, 2015). "Hear Rihanna's 'Towards the Sun' from the movie Home". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  6. ^ a b c Trendell, Andrew (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna returns with new single 'Towards The Sun'". Gigwise. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  7. ^ a b c "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (CA). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  8. ^ "Impacting Songs: March 3, 2015". All Access. Archived from the original on March 1, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  9. ^ a b Hendricks, Jaclyn (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna drops new song, 'Towards the Sun'". New York Post. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  10. ^ a b c Spanos, Brittany (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna Looks 'Towards the Sun' in New Song for Animated Film". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  11. ^ a b c d e Welsh, Daniel (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna's New Song 'Towards The Sun': Five Things About Her New Track, Taken From The 'Home' Soundtrack". The Huffington Post UK. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  12. ^ Hughes, Josiah (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna 'Towards the Sun'". Exclaim!. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  13. ^ Feeney, Nolan (February 9, 2015). "Hear Rihanna's New Song 'Towards the Sun' from the Movie Home". Time. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  14. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna Releases 'Towards the Sun' Single From 'Home' Soundtrack". Billboard. New York. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  15. ^ Enrlich, Brenna (February 9, 2015). "Rihanna Gives Us Light With 'Towards The Sun'". MTV News. Archived from the original on February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  16. ^ Carley, Brennan (February 9, 2015). "Hear Rihanna's Bombastic New Soundtrack Single, 'Towards the Sun'". Spin. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  17. ^ Home (liner notes). Rihanna & Various artists. Westbury Road, Roc Nation. 2015.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ "Rihanna – Towards the Sun" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  19. ^ "Rihanna – Towards the Sun" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  20. ^ Rihanna — Towards the Sun. TopHit. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  21. ^ "Rihanna – Towards the Sun" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  23. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201518 into search. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  24. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  25. ^ "Ukraine Airplay Chart for 2015-03-30." TopHit. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  26. ^ "Kid Digital Songs: March 14, 2015". Billboard. March 14, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  27. ^ "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (AU). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  28. ^ "Musique — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single par Rihanna" (in French). iTunes Store (FR). Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  29. ^ "Musik — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single von Rihanna" (in German). iTunes Store (DE). Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  30. ^ "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (IE). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  31. ^ "Musica — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single di Rihanna" (in Italian). iTunes Store (Italy). Retrieved February 9, 2015. [dead link‍]
  32. ^ "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (NZ). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  33. ^ "Musica — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single di Rihanna" (in Spanish). iTunes Store (ES). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  34. ^ "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (GB). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  35. ^ "Music — Towards the Sun (From The 'Home' Soundtrack) - Single by Rihanna". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  36. ^ "BBC - Radio 1 Playlist". BBC Online. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015.
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