“Unholy” is a collaboration between British artist Sam Smith and German singer Kim Petras. The song was released on September 22, 2022 and is the lead single from Sam’s forthcoming album. The album is called “Gloria” and should see the light of day in 2023.
The new hit has already managed to make noise in the charts. The track remained at the top of the Spotify world for a week and also successfully debuted at number one on the official UK chart. “Unholy” also topped the charts in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States, and peaked in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. In general, the composition immediately received a lot of attention and was warmly received by the fans of both musicians.
The History of Unholy – Sam Smith
The artists presented the announcement of the video on TikTok. Sam Smith captioned the video with “a little dance we did”. In the video, Kim dances while Sam moves his lips while repeating the words to the song. The mini-clip quickly went viral, and the musicians attracted a lot of attention, and the group “Disclosure” even presented a small remix by replaying the clip live. The title of the track was announced on August 25 via Twitter with a link to the pre-release. The artists’ posts were soon inundated with thousands of comments from excited fans, one of whom joked, “It’s crazy that we used to cry to Sam Smith songs, but now we can move around and really relax. What a turn of events! Everyone was waiting for the release of the song!
Interesting Facts
- For Kim Petras, “Unholy” is the first song to reach No. 1 on the chart and Smith’s eighth.
- The hit was written in Jamaica. Artists declare where the stars are filled with inspiration.
- The arrangement uses an interesting combination of electronic sound and choir.
- The musicians used a rare Phrygian mode.
- Petras mentions the name of the Barbadian singer Rihanna in his lyrics.
- “Unholy” became Smith’s most commercially successful single, surpassing 2014’s “Stay with Me”.
Opinions
Anaya B. Thomas of Harvard Crimson considered the track “the hottest single in recent memory” and praised the way the performers complement each other despite the genre differences.
Allie Patton of American Songwriter praised the track for its liveliness and danceable beats. Alli also noted the song’s original lyrics and the level of intrigue created by the artists.
Jeremy Atherton Lin stated that the work “turns the stage” and is also filled with feminine power.
The Meaning of “Unholy” – Sam Smith
The song describes the betrayal on the part of her husband. “Something unholy” (translated into Russian – “something unholy” – this is how the performers call betrayal. The betrayal takes place in strict confidence, at the beginning of the song Sam Smith sings “she will leave you if she finds out what you are doing.”
The meaning of the composition is revealed more fully, of course, in the music video. In it we see a fussy man who hastily says goodbye to his wife and goes somewhere. The wife discovers a contraceptive in the things he left her, and the man arrives for an erotic show that personifies either a brothel or a strip club. This is where everything falls into place.
The artists strive to show us the languid atmosphere of alluring debauchery, as well as the tension that arises in the main character. This is perfectly traced in the lyrics of the song, it broadcasts some reproach towards the man. But at the same time, he plays with the feelings of the listener.
At the end of the story, our hero’s wife appears on the show and sees her husband lying on the floor, surrounded by dancers and dancers. She stands next to him and takes off her clothes, as if merging with the local atmosphere. This is probably the most important point. We expect the girl to show anger and resentment, but she is apparently fascinated. This is the main meaning of the song – charm.
Opinions
Anaya B. Thomas of Harvard Crimson considered the track “the hottest single in recent memory” and praised the way the artists complemented each other despite their genre differences.
Allie Patton of American Songwriter praised the track for its liveliness and danceable beats. Alli also noted the song’s original lyrics and the level of intrigue created by the artists.
Jeremy Atherton Lin stated that the work “turns the stage” and is also filled with feminine power.
Video clip
The music video for the song was released on September 30, 2022, a week after the single’s release on music platforms. The director was Floria Sigismondi. Sam acts as a host in this institution, performing a song surrounded by dancers in women’s outfits. The hall is filled with guests. Afterwards, Petras descends to the stage in a heart-shaped lyre, and then dances in a car. In her attire, Kim resembles Madonna. Video inspired by A Clockwork Orange and Bob Foss.
About performers
Samuel Frederick Smith, better known as Sam Smith, is the biggest break in the British scene in the last five years, the sweetest voice in England. According to some sources, Sam was born in London, according to others – in the village of Great Chishill, according to others – in the small town of Bishops Stortford. A talented performer was born in 1992. He became interested in music early, and his parents strongly supported the boy’s musical hobbies. They say excessive attention even caused the dismissal of the mother from work. The young man has talented relatives: Alfie Allen – the actor of “Game of Thrones” and Rose Beatrice Cooper – the best solo performer of 2010 according to the BRIT Awards. Sam is one of those who was able to achieve success in the musical field quite early. His music is a mixture of RnB and denas-pop, and the lyrics are often accused of being naive by critics. The list of the artist’s achievements, as well as how deftly he conquers the charts and the hearts of the fans, makes it clear that the musician has a worthy future ahead.
Kim Petras is a popular music artist from Germany. She has many fans from all over the world. But there is something unusual about her. In 1992, a boy named Tim saw the light in Cologne, Germany. But the boy behaved like a girl and declared that he was not a boy at all. At the age of 6, Tim began his transgender transition. By the age of 13, the transition was completed. Parents had a hard time, but they supported their child and helped in everything. In just a few years, Kim became an active advocate for the rights of transgender people – she had to not only wave the flag of “gender freedom”, but also study the laws, rules and bureaucratic barriers. The teenager received extensive attention at the age of 13, appearing on television. At the same age, the girl posted videos on the Internet in which she demonstrated her vocal abilities. Later, a famous German producer noticed her and signed her to Joyce Records. On August 3, 2017, the premiere of the debut single “I Don’t Want It All” took place, and work with rap artist lil aaron brought wider popularity. On October 1, 2018, a mini-album titled “TURN OFF THE LIGHT, VOL. one”. The release has a Halloween theme. Kim has a rich collection of video clips and always films his best work. Unholy is no exception.
Results
Of course, the track “Unholy” was a powerful impetus for both artists. Moreover, he outlined a new development vector for them. Kim clearly lacked such an expensive clip in her creative portfolio. At the same time, she perfectly complemented Smith’s style with her casualness. A mixture of dance-pop with a choir can become a new trend in world or at least in English music. And such an unusual erotic atmosphere is definitely capable of setting a vector in the art of creating music videos. The boldness and emancipation inherent in the work is simply obliged to win the hearts of new and new fans around the world.
