"Vulgar" | ||||
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Single by Sam Smith and Madonna | ||||
Released | 9 June 2023 | |||
Recorded | 6 February 2023 | |||
Length | 2:35 | |||
Label | Capitol | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | ||||
Sam Smith singles chronology | ||||
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Madonna singles chronology | ||||
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Visualiser | ||||
"Sam Smith, Madonna - VULGAR (Visualiser)" on YouTube |
"Vulgar" is a song recorded by English singer Sam Smith and American singer Madonna, released as a single on 9 June 2023. Both singers wrote the track alongside Ilya Salmanzadeh, Ryan Tedder, Omer Fedi, Henry Walter, and James Napier. [1]
Sam Smith released their fourth studio album, Gloria, in January 2023. The album was supported by several singles, including " Unholy" (2022), which reached number one on record charts. [2] Sam Smith performed the song with Kim Petras at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards on 5 February 2023, which was introduced by Madonna. While introducing the performance, Madonna gave a speech about controversy, stating: "I'm here to give thanks to all the rebels out there forging a new path and taking the heat for all of it. You guys need to know — all you troublemakers out there — you need to know that your fearlessness doesn't go unnoticed. You are seen, you are heard; and most of all, you are appreciated." The song won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the ceremony. [3] [4] One day later, Smith recorded "Vulgar" with Madonna, and called the experience "an amazing evening creating and writing and expressing". [5]
Smith began teasing a collaboration with Madonna on 24 May 2023, sharing a video clip that stated: " Manchester, we've got a surprise for you this evening. 'Unholy' won't be the last song…." [6] [7] [8] The show was cancelled and the song was not premiered there, [9] but it was teased for over a week. [10] In May 2023, Madonna shared the song's artwork, which depicts their bodies in "a pair of tightly cinched black-and-white corsets", underneath Smith and Madonna's initials shortened to just " S&M". [10] [11] [12] According to Sam Smith, both Madonna and the accompanying songwriters went to the studio the following day from the Grammy awards to record the music. [5] Sam Smith stated the song is "very special to me", and continued saying: "Me, the QUEEN, and a group of some of the most talented people I know ... created this piece of music. The creativity was pure and the energy was alive". [13] In a conversation with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Smith called "Vulgar", "one of the most exciting songs I've been a part of". [5]
Regarded as a "highly" or "much-anticipated" track by publications such as Rolling Stone, American Songwriter, New York Daily News, The Music and Metro Weekly, [11] [14] [13] [15] [16] "Vulgar" was released on 9 June 2023. [14] Upon its release, it won a poll conducted by Billboard as reader's favorite new music release of the week. [17]
Based on its snippet, iHeartRadio's Rebekah Gonzalez commented that it "sounds like it's taking heavy influence from ballroom music, which is music created especially for voguing". [18] Described as a dance-party anthem and a "club-ready" banger song, [19] [14] [13] [11] it contains Middle Eastern-influenced strings, [20] [21] [22] with electronic elements. [15] [16]
It contains spoken words, [15] while Exclaim!'s Sydney Brasil and Alexis Petridis from The Guardian noted the absence of a chorus. [23] [24] Thematically, "Vulgar" explores the concept of embracing a provocative demeanor, and track about the beauty in being sexy and free, the power of self-expression, and "the importance of doing what you want while paying no attention to haters" according to Muri Assunção from the New York Daily News. [16] [13] Some critics noted its features a cheeky nod to Madonna's " Into the Groove" in its lyrics, [25] [26] [27] [19] while shows a self-referential Madonna in the style of " Bitch I'm Madonna". [27] [22] Others labeled it as a continuation of Sam Smith and Kim Petras' " Unholy". [27] [23]
Writing for NME, Liberty Dunworth called it a "sultry" single, [12] while Mey Rude from Out referred to it as a "sexy and slinky" song, "with a heavy beat perfect for grinding in the gay club at 2am". [28] Sal Cinquemani, music critic of Slant magazine describes "it's messy, it's campy, and it's gloriously self-aware" and is a "very much a transgressive, capital-S statement" song but he felt "isn't spit-shined for mass consumption". [29] Joey Nolfi from Entertainment Weekly named it a "delicious" banger, and claimed "Madonna dominates the deliciously obscene manifesto with lyrics that offer a stern warning to the musical duo's detractors". [26] Jamie Tabberer from Attitude gave three out of five stars labelling it as "a jaw-dropping declaration of resistance". [22] American Songwriter's Tiffany Goldstein called it a "bold and fearless anthem". [14] Cervanté Pope from Consequence felt "'Vulgar' isn't unnecessarily filthy — rather, the artists are asserting a message of empowerment, and demanding respect". [20] Similar to Pope, The Music's Mary Varvaris commented "isn't sexually explicit like some would expect [...] but its language certainly is". [15]
The Economic Times labeled it as a "sizzling" and "scintillating" collaboration "which showcases their sensual prowess". [30] Similarly, Hugh McIntyre from Metro Weekly said it "showcases the audacity that these two icons are renowned for", and while he called it an "undeniably a solid offering", editor continued saying "it fails to rank among the most remarkable compositions from either artist's repertoire", considering "the megawatt talent involved, it's a bit disappointing". [16] Giving only two out of five stars, Alexis Petridis from The Guardian reacted critical calling it "a tame attempt at manufacturing outrage". [24]
Variety named one of the worst songs of 2023. [31] The song achieved a nomination at the 2024 Queerty Awards in the category Best Anthem. [32]
"Vulgar" debuted at number 11 on the Billboard multi-metric chart Hot Dance/Electronic Songs with 3,000 downloads and 1.8 million official streams according to Luminate. [33] In the United Kingdom, "Vulgar" debuted at number 69 with 8,154 sales in its first week according to the Official Charts Company. [34] Elsewhere, it charted in a number of countries including Greece, Hungary, Ireland and New Zealand.
Chart (2023) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canadian Digital Song Sales ( Billboard) [37] | 20 |
Chile Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [38] | 9 |
Costa Rica Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [39] | 7 |
Ecuador Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [40] | 16 |
Germany Download Singles ( Official German Charts) [41] | 15 |
Greece International ( IFPI) [42] | 65 |
Guatemala Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [43] | 3 |
Honduras Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [44] | 9 |
Hungary ( Single Top 40) [45] | 25 |
Ireland ( IRMA) [46] | 77 |
Japan Hot Overseas ( Billboard Japan) [47] | 11 |
Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 Tipparade) [48] | 26 |
New Zealand Hot Singles ( RMNZ) [49] | 21 |
Panama Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [50] | 3 |
South Korea BGM ( Circle) [51] | 120 |
South Korea Download ( Circle) [52] | 169 |
Sweden Heatseeker ( Sverigetopplistan) [53] | 9 |
UK Singles ( OCC) [54] | 69 |
US Digital Song Sales ( Billboard) [55] | 16 |
US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs ( Billboard) [56] | 11 |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Version | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Various | 9 June 2023 | Original | Capitol | [35] | |
Italy | Radio airplay | Universal | [57] | ||
Various | 30 June 2023 |
|
Marlon Hoffstadt remix | Capitol | [36] |
"Vulgar" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Sam Smith and Madonna | ||||
Released | 9 June 2023 | |||
Recorded | 6 February 2023 | |||
Length | 2:35 | |||
Label | Capitol | |||
Songwriter(s) |
| |||
Producer(s) | ||||
Sam Smith singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Madonna singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Visualiser | ||||
"Sam Smith, Madonna - VULGAR (Visualiser)" on YouTube |
"Vulgar" is a song recorded by English singer Sam Smith and American singer Madonna, released as a single on 9 June 2023. Both singers wrote the track alongside Ilya Salmanzadeh, Ryan Tedder, Omer Fedi, Henry Walter, and James Napier. [1]
Sam Smith released their fourth studio album, Gloria, in January 2023. The album was supported by several singles, including " Unholy" (2022), which reached number one on record charts. [2] Sam Smith performed the song with Kim Petras at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards on 5 February 2023, which was introduced by Madonna. While introducing the performance, Madonna gave a speech about controversy, stating: "I'm here to give thanks to all the rebels out there forging a new path and taking the heat for all of it. You guys need to know — all you troublemakers out there — you need to know that your fearlessness doesn't go unnoticed. You are seen, you are heard; and most of all, you are appreciated." The song won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the ceremony. [3] [4] One day later, Smith recorded "Vulgar" with Madonna, and called the experience "an amazing evening creating and writing and expressing". [5]
Smith began teasing a collaboration with Madonna on 24 May 2023, sharing a video clip that stated: " Manchester, we've got a surprise for you this evening. 'Unholy' won't be the last song…." [6] [7] [8] The show was cancelled and the song was not premiered there, [9] but it was teased for over a week. [10] In May 2023, Madonna shared the song's artwork, which depicts their bodies in "a pair of tightly cinched black-and-white corsets", underneath Smith and Madonna's initials shortened to just " S&M". [10] [11] [12] According to Sam Smith, both Madonna and the accompanying songwriters went to the studio the following day from the Grammy awards to record the music. [5] Sam Smith stated the song is "very special to me", and continued saying: "Me, the QUEEN, and a group of some of the most talented people I know ... created this piece of music. The creativity was pure and the energy was alive". [13] In a conversation with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Smith called "Vulgar", "one of the most exciting songs I've been a part of". [5]
Regarded as a "highly" or "much-anticipated" track by publications such as Rolling Stone, American Songwriter, New York Daily News, The Music and Metro Weekly, [11] [14] [13] [15] [16] "Vulgar" was released on 9 June 2023. [14] Upon its release, it won a poll conducted by Billboard as reader's favorite new music release of the week. [17]
Based on its snippet, iHeartRadio's Rebekah Gonzalez commented that it "sounds like it's taking heavy influence from ballroom music, which is music created especially for voguing". [18] Described as a dance-party anthem and a "club-ready" banger song, [19] [14] [13] [11] it contains Middle Eastern-influenced strings, [20] [21] [22] with electronic elements. [15] [16]
It contains spoken words, [15] while Exclaim!'s Sydney Brasil and Alexis Petridis from The Guardian noted the absence of a chorus. [23] [24] Thematically, "Vulgar" explores the concept of embracing a provocative demeanor, and track about the beauty in being sexy and free, the power of self-expression, and "the importance of doing what you want while paying no attention to haters" according to Muri Assunção from the New York Daily News. [16] [13] Some critics noted its features a cheeky nod to Madonna's " Into the Groove" in its lyrics, [25] [26] [27] [19] while shows a self-referential Madonna in the style of " Bitch I'm Madonna". [27] [22] Others labeled it as a continuation of Sam Smith and Kim Petras' " Unholy". [27] [23]
Writing for NME, Liberty Dunworth called it a "sultry" single, [12] while Mey Rude from Out referred to it as a "sexy and slinky" song, "with a heavy beat perfect for grinding in the gay club at 2am". [28] Sal Cinquemani, music critic of Slant magazine describes "it's messy, it's campy, and it's gloriously self-aware" and is a "very much a transgressive, capital-S statement" song but he felt "isn't spit-shined for mass consumption". [29] Joey Nolfi from Entertainment Weekly named it a "delicious" banger, and claimed "Madonna dominates the deliciously obscene manifesto with lyrics that offer a stern warning to the musical duo's detractors". [26] Jamie Tabberer from Attitude gave three out of five stars labelling it as "a jaw-dropping declaration of resistance". [22] American Songwriter's Tiffany Goldstein called it a "bold and fearless anthem". [14] Cervanté Pope from Consequence felt "'Vulgar' isn't unnecessarily filthy — rather, the artists are asserting a message of empowerment, and demanding respect". [20] Similar to Pope, The Music's Mary Varvaris commented "isn't sexually explicit like some would expect [...] but its language certainly is". [15]
The Economic Times labeled it as a "sizzling" and "scintillating" collaboration "which showcases their sensual prowess". [30] Similarly, Hugh McIntyre from Metro Weekly said it "showcases the audacity that these two icons are renowned for", and while he called it an "undeniably a solid offering", editor continued saying "it fails to rank among the most remarkable compositions from either artist's repertoire", considering "the megawatt talent involved, it's a bit disappointing". [16] Giving only two out of five stars, Alexis Petridis from The Guardian reacted critical calling it "a tame attempt at manufacturing outrage". [24]
Variety named one of the worst songs of 2023. [31] The song achieved a nomination at the 2024 Queerty Awards in the category Best Anthem. [32]
"Vulgar" debuted at number 11 on the Billboard multi-metric chart Hot Dance/Electronic Songs with 3,000 downloads and 1.8 million official streams according to Luminate. [33] In the United Kingdom, "Vulgar" debuted at number 69 with 8,154 sales in its first week according to the Official Charts Company. [34] Elsewhere, it charted in a number of countries including Greece, Hungary, Ireland and New Zealand.
Chart (2023) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canadian Digital Song Sales ( Billboard) [37] | 20 |
Chile Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [38] | 9 |
Costa Rica Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [39] | 7 |
Ecuador Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [40] | 16 |
Germany Download Singles ( Official German Charts) [41] | 15 |
Greece International ( IFPI) [42] | 65 |
Guatemala Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [43] | 3 |
Honduras Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [44] | 9 |
Hungary ( Single Top 40) [45] | 25 |
Ireland ( IRMA) [46] | 77 |
Japan Hot Overseas ( Billboard Japan) [47] | 11 |
Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 Tipparade) [48] | 26 |
New Zealand Hot Singles ( RMNZ) [49] | 21 |
Panama Anglo ( Monitor Latino) [50] | 3 |
South Korea BGM ( Circle) [51] | 120 |
South Korea Download ( Circle) [52] | 169 |
Sweden Heatseeker ( Sverigetopplistan) [53] | 9 |
UK Singles ( OCC) [54] | 69 |
US Digital Song Sales ( Billboard) [55] | 16 |
US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs ( Billboard) [56] | 11 |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Version | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Various | 9 June 2023 | Original | Capitol | [35] | |
Italy | Radio airplay | Universal | [57] | ||
Various | 30 June 2023 |
|
Marlon Hoffstadt remix | Capitol | [36] |