In the City (Charli XCX and Sam Smith song)

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"In the City"
Only a woman's torso is shown, her midriff exposed beneath a sheer white camisole, highlighted against a black background
Single by Charli XCX and Sam Smith
Released19 October 2023 (2023-10-19)
GenreTech house
Length2:56
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • George Daniel
  • A. G. Cook
  • Charli XCX
  • Ilya
  • Omer Fedi
Charli XCX singles chronology
"Speed Drive"
(2023) 		"In the City"
(2023) 		"Von Dutch"
(2024)
Sam Smith singles chronology
"Desire"
(2023) 		"In the City"
(2023)

"In the City" is a song by English singers Charli XCX and Sam Smith. It was released on 19 October 2023 through Atlantic Records.

Background[edit]

History between the two artists dates back as far as 2014, when both would hang out together at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards as well as a subsequent cover of "Stay with Me" by Charli.[1] Nine years later, in the music video for her single "Speed Drive", Charli hinted at an upcoming collaboration through a phone call with Smith in which they ask whether she heard the "new mix" and prompt her to "submit" it.[2]

On 7 October, Charli shared a snippet of a track she had been working on in the studio, described as "upbeat dance-pop". The news came shortly after she confirmed to be working on the successor of Crash (2022).[3] Smith confirmed the collaboration on 11 October through a post on Instagram where they are seen strutting down an alleyway in Osaka, Japan, to another snippet of the track.[4] Charli announced the track on her social media on 13 October.[5]

Description[edit]

The roughly 3-minute dance track is in the tech house genre. It starts with a thumping beat before Charli starts solo-singing. On the third beat-shift, the vocals drop off and Smith starts their solo part 80 seconds into the track, lasting less than 15 seconds before the two start singing together.

They claim to have found something they never thought they would find "in the city, in the dark", a phrase which is repeated throughout the chorus of the song. The narrative of the duet weaves between the two performers: Charli in her verse sings about becoming like water as she dances beneath the lights; Smith in their verse sings how they feel about the other person when they met them in New York City.

Track listing[edit]

  • Digital download / streaming single[6]
  1. "In the City" – 2:56
  • Digital download / streaming single – remix[7]
  1. "In the City" (DJ HEARTSTRING remix) – 3:33

Charts[edit]

Weekly chart performance for "In the City"
Chart (2023–2024) Peak
position
CIS (TopHit)[8] 198
Croatia (HRT)[9] 36
Ireland (IRMA)[10] 47
Japan Hot Overseas (Billboard Japan)[11] 10
Latvia Airplay (LAIPA)[12] 16
Netherlands (Tipparade)[13] 24
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[14] 8
Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[15] 53
South Korea BGM (Circle)[16] 115
South Korea Download (Circle)[17] 182
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 49
UK Singles (OCC)[19] 41
UK Dance (OCC)[20] 24
US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs (Billboard)[21] 6

Release history[edit]

Release dates and formats for "In the City"
Region Date Format Version Label Ref.
Various 19 October 2023
Original Atlantic [6]
Italy 20 October 2023 Radio airplay Warner [22]
Various 1 December 2023
  • Digital download
  • streaming
 DJ HEARTSTRING remix Atlantic [7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Coplan, Chris (8 September 2014). "Charli XCX covers Sam Smith's "Stay With Me" — watch video". Consequence. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  2. ^ Griffiths, George (17 August 2023). "Charli XCX teases Sam Smith collab in Speed Drive music video". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  3. ^ Wilkes, Emma (7 October 2023). "Charli XCX shares snippet of as-yet-unreleased music". NME. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  4. ^ Dew, Stephen (11 October 2023). "Sam Smith Shares a New Song Snippet & Fans Think It's a Charli XCX Collab: Watch". Billboard. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  5. ^ Wilkes, Emma (13 October 2023). "Charli XCX to release Sam Smith collaboration 'In The City' next week". NME. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  6. ^ a b Lane, Lexi (19 October 2023). "Charli XCX And Sam Smith Dropped Their Sparkling 'In The City' Collab". Uproxx. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  7. ^ a b "In the City - Single by Charli XCX and Sam Smith". 1 December 2023. Retrieved 2 January 2024 – via Apple Music.
  8. ^ Charli XCX & Sam Smith — In The City. TopHit. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  9. ^ "ARC 100 - Week 51 (18.12.2023.)". HRT. 18 December 2023. Archived from the original on 21 December 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  10. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Charli XCX". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  11. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas – Week of November 1, 2023". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  12. ^ "Latvijas radio stacijās spēlētākās dziesmas TOP 50. nedēļa" (in Latvian). LAIPA. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Tipparade-lijst van week 44, 2023" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  14. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 30 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  15. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 202348 into search. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  16. ^ "BGM Chart – Week 42 of 2023". Circle Chart (in Korean). Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  17. ^ "Download Chart – Week 42 of 2023". Circle Chart (in Korean). Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  18. ^ "Charli XCX and Sam Smith – In the City". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  19. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  20. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Charli XCX Chart History (Hot Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  22. ^ Tenaglia, Raffaella (20 October 2023). "Charli XCX & Sam Smith - In The City (Radio Date: 20-10-2023)". EarOne (in Italian). Retrieved 20 October 2023.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=In_the_City_(Charli_XCX_and_Sam_Smith_song)&oldid=1213543752"