| "I Love You" | |
|---|---|
| Song byBillie Eilish | |
| from the albumWhen We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? | |
| Released | March 29, 2019 |
| Length | 4:51 |
| Label |
|
| Songwriters |
|
| Producer | Finneas O'Connell |
"I Love You" (stylized inall lowercase) is a song by American singerBillie Eilish from her debut studio album,When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (2019). Eilish co-wrote the song with her brotherFinneas O'Connell, who also handled production. As the 13th track on the album, "I Love You" is anacoustic guitar-basedballad accompanied by various plane-related noises, where Eilish's lyrics describe the resistance to falling in love with someone.
The song received mainly positive reviews frommusic critics, several of whom praised the music and lyrical content. For promotional purposes, "I Love You" was performed live during Eilish's 2019When We All Fall Asleep Tour and her 2020Where Do We Go? World Tour, and again on her 2022Happier Than Ever, The World Tour. When the album was released, the song reached number 53 on the USBillboard Hot 100 and charted in several other countries. It wascertified platinum in the United States and Canada by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) andMusic Canada (MC), respectively.
On March 29, 2019, "I Love You" was released as the 13th track on Eilish's debut studio albumWhen We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?[1] The song was written by the singer and her brother Finneas O'Connell, known under his stage name of Finneas, who also solely produced it. It was recorded in Finneas' bedroom studio inHighland Park, Los Angeles.[2]Mastering andmixing was handled by studio personnel John Greenham andRob Kinelski, respectively. Casey Cuayo received credit as studio personnel and an additional mixer.[1] Eilish shared in anInstagram story on March 25, 2020, a playlist of her inspirations for the track, which included songs fromPhoebe Bridgers,Post Malone,Ry X,XXXTentacion,Bon Iver, andSufjan Stevens.[3] Finneas later explained in an interview withPitchfork that the song "was written prior to being recorded" and that the "second verse is about sitting on the tarmac on a plane".[4]
Musically, "I Love You" runs at a "lovingly" slowtempo of 72 beats per minute (BPM), and is played in the key ofC major. Eilish's vocals, which are sung quietly and treated with somereverb, span a range between the notes of G3 and A4.[5][6] Finneas also provides backing vocals by harmonizing with her throughout the song.[7]Critical commentary described the track as anacoustic-basedballad.[1][8] In the second verse, the song features the sound of a flight attendant call buttonpitch-shifted to follow all the chords.[4] Craig Jenkins ofVulture called it a "dark" song, reminiscent ofLana Del Rey'sBorn to Die andHalsey'sBadlands.[9] Chris DeVille, writing forStereogum, noted that the song finds Eilish "in a world wrecked by tragedy".[10] According to Thomas Smith ofNME, "Listen Before I Go", "I Love You", and "Goodbye" provided a "melancholy end close" to the album.[11]
Lyrically, the song features Eilish determinedly trying not to be in love with someone and convincing them they shouldn't love her either: "Maybe won't you take it back/Say you were tryna make me laugh/And nothing has to change today/You didn't mean to say 'I love you'/I love you and I don't want to."[8][10] The faint voice of an airline attendant and the sound of a plane taking off can be heard during the second verse, which includes the lyrics: "Up all night on another red eye/I wish we never learned to fly/Maybe we should just try/To tell ourselves a good lie/I didn't mean to make you cry."[12] Spencer Kornhaber ofThe Atlantic put forward the idea of the track as "draw[ing] a clear and breathtaking division between two modes: wanting to be too cool for desire and actually experiencing desire".[13] Finneas revealed in atweet that "I Love You" is one of his favorite songs he and Eilish wrote: "It's very sincere, and a thing that I've been trying to write about for a long time — which is, when you fall in love with someone and it's a drag."[12]
"I Love You" received mainly positive reviews from music critics. The song was praised byInsider's Libby Torres, who called the track "heart-wrenching" and "serene", and opined that its lyrics feel "like you're in the hazy eye of a storm".[7] Sam Prance ofAllMusic viewed the song as a "heartbreaking acoustic beauty that pegs Eilish as something more than a spooky, scare-the-parents gimmick".[1] Madeline Roth ofMTV called it a "gorgeous penultimate track".[12]Jon Pareles ofThe New York Times commended the lyrical content, which he described as a "hovering, hesitant confession".[14] Jason Lipshutz ofBillboard commended the lyrics and melody, which he described as a "obsessive-romantic anthem".[15]Vulture's Jenkins said "I Love You" was one of "the album’s best songs", while Chris Willman ofVariety viewed the track as "gorgeous" and "hopeful".[8][9] Yasmin Cowan ofClash said the track would "bring [anyone] close to tears".[16] Curtis Dinwiddie ofThe Eastern Echo illustrated "I Love You" as "soft" and "charismatic".[17] Tanis Smither ofEarmilk labeled "I Love You" as a "stunning slow-burner".[18] In a negative review,The Guardian's Laura Snapes mentions that the song sounds "suspiciously" likeLeonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and is "better off left toYouTube ingenues than an artist of Eilish’s otherwise clear vision".[19]
Following the release ofWhen We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, "I Love You" debuted at number 53 on the USBillboard Hot 100.[20] At the same time, Eilish broke the record of most simultaneous Hot 100 entries for a female artist.[21] The song also attained top 100 positions in various other countries, including Australia,[22] Canada,[23] Sweden,[24] Norway,[25] New Zealand,[26] and the Netherlands.[27] After Eilish performed the song onSaturday Night Live, it experienced a surge iniTunes download sales and entered the USBillboardDigital Song Sales chart at number 41.[28] The song has notably been awarded a platinumcertification in the United States and Canada by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) andMusic Canada (MC), respectively.[29][30]
Eilish performed the track at theCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 20, 2019, and later that year at theGlastonbury Festival on June 30.[31][32] "I Love You" was included on the setlist of Eilish'sWhen We All Fall Asleep Tour (2019).[33] It was also performed by her atPukkelpop in August of the same year.[34] On August 12, 2019, a live version of "I Love You" was uploaded to Eilish's YouTube channel.[35] This performance was filmed inLos Angeles at theGreek Theatre and it shows Eilish sitting on a bed with Finneas, while he plays the track on anacoustic guitar. The stadium is lit up by the lights from thousands of fans' mobile phones as the siblings rise slowly above the stage, backed by cloudy night sky visuals. During the conclusion of the track, the bed that the two of them sat on is lowered in front of a giantfull moon.[36][37][38] On September 29, 2019, Eilish appeared on the45th-season premiere ofSaturday Night Live, performing an acoustic version of the track with Finneas.[39][40][41] She further sang "I Love You" on herWhere Do We Go? World Tour (2020).[42] The song was used in an episode of the Britishsoap operaHollyoaks.[43] In April 2020 singer and guitaristJeff Tweedy, of the American bandWilco, covered "I Love You" on an acoustic guitar for the 16th episode of his livestream podcast,The Tweedy Show. Tweedy later covered the track again on July 28 for the 77th episode of his podcast.[44]
Credits adapted fromTidal and the liner notes ofWhen We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?[45][46]
| Chart (2019) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[22] | 20 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[47] | 31 |
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[23] | 35 |
| Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[48] | 35 |
| Estonia (Eesti Tipp-40)[49] | 12 |
| Greece (IFPI)[50] | 28 |
| Hungary (Stream Top 40)[51] | 31 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[52] | 73 |
| Latvia (LAIPA)[53] | 14 |
| Lithuania (AGATA)[54] | 17 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[27] | 61 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[26] | 39 |
| Norway (VG-lista)[25] | 38 |
| Portugal (AFP)[55] | 50 |
| Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[56] | 21 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[24] | 47 |
| UK Audio Streaming (OCC)[57] | 40 |
| USBillboard Hot 100[20] | 53 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[58] | 4× Platinum | 280,000‡ |
| Austria (IFPI Austria)[59] | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[60] | Diamond | 160,000‡ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[30] | 4× Platinum | 320,000‡ |
| Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[61] | Platinum | 90,000‡ |
| France (SNEP)[62] | Platinum | 200,000‡ |
| Italy (FIMI)[63] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
| Mexico (AMPROFON)[64] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[65] | 3× Platinum | 90,000‡ |
| Norway (IFPI Norway)[66] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
| Poland (ZPAV)[67] | Platinum | 20,000‡ |
| Portugal (AFP)[68] | Platinum | 10,000‡ |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE)[69] | Platinum | 60,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[70] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[29] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)Billie Eilish songs | |
|---|---|
| Don't Smile at Me | |
| When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? | |
| Happier Than Ever | |
| Hit Me Hard and Soft | |
| Soundtrack songs | |
| Non-album songs | |
| Featured songs |
|
