The Hills (song)

"The Hills"
Single by The Weeknd
from the album Beauty Behind the Madness
Released	May 27, 2015
Format	Digital download
Length	4:04
Label	XO Republic
Writer(s)	Abel Tesfaye Emmanuel Nickerson Carlo Montagnese Ahmad Balshe
Producer(s)	Illangelo Mano
The Weeknd singles chronology
"Earned It" (2014) "The Hills" (2015) "Can't Feel My Face" (2015)
Music video "The Hills" on YouTube

"The Hills" is a song by Canadian singer The Weeknd. It was released on May 27, 2015 as the second single from his second studio album, Beauty Behind the Madness (2015).^[1]

"The Hills" was a critical success, appearing on several year-end lists. In the singer's native Canada, the song peaked at number 1. In the United States, where it was a sleeper hit, it also reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, replacing his own "Can't Feel My Face", which was released later (only the second artist on the chart to do so, after Rihanna). The song also made the top 10 in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. It reached the top 20 in Denmark and Sweden while reaching the top 40 in the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. A music video for the song was released on May 27, 2015. It Was directed by Grant Singer. Two official remixes of the song features rappers Eminem and Nicki Minaj.

Composition

The song is written in the key of C minor in common time with a tempo of 113 beats per minute. The vocals in the song span from C₄ to E♭₆.^[2]

Critical reception

"The Hills" received critical acclaim, with most reviewers praising The Weeknd's return to form after his pop-oriented direction with "Earned It". James Shotwell of Under the Gun wrote that the single fit well within Abel's prior output, but that "Abel’s ability to create something altogether hypnotic regardless of production never ceases to amaze."^[3] Brian Mansfield of USA Today noted that "when a song takes its hook from a horror film — Wes Craven's 1977 cult classic The Hills Have Eyes — you know there's bound to be trouble."^[4]

In an analytical piece for Pitchfork Media, Hannah Giorgis called "The Hills" "a dark, almost discordant meditation on lust, drugs, and fame" while noting that "to those familiar with his repertoire, the only twist in 'The Hills' is how it ends: as the final chords fade, a woman’s voice, syrupy and sedate, closes with a lullaby of sorts—not in English, but in Amharic, the primary language of Ethiopia and the Weeknd’s own native tongue." She goes on to trace the song's melodic and lyrical origins to the Ethiopian diaspora. She continues, writing that "the familiarity of Tesfaye’s strained vibrato makes him the inheritor of musical legacies that Abyssinia has birthed for generations..."^[5] In a review for The New York Post, Hardeep Phull wrote that "The 'Fifty Shades of Grey' fans who were turned on to [The] Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) through his hit 'Earned It' are in for a shock, because he is in brilliantly sinister form on his new track." Continuing, Phull goes on to say that "When it comes to being a Don Juan with a dark side, this guy makes Christian Grey look like Ned Flanders."^[6]

Rolling Stone ranked "The Hills" at number 11 on its year-end list to find the 50 best songs of 2015.^[7] The same magazine also included "Earned It" and "Can't Feel My Face" on the same list. Billboard ranked "The Hills" at number 10 on its year-end list for 2015: "No. 1 hits aren't supposed to be this sonically adventurous and dark, but The Weeknd can do no wrong in 2015. There's barely a pop hook to speak of here——just a beguiling, harrowing soundscape that's impossible to forget."^[8] Time named "The Hills" the fifth-best song of 2015.^[9] The Village Voice ranked "The Hills" at number 22 on their annual year-end critic's poll; "Can't Feel My Face" was ranked at number three on the same poll.^[10]

Commercial performance

In the United States, "The Hills" entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 20 for the chart dated June 13, 2015; it was the week's highest debut.^[11] Its debut was overwhelmingly powered by first-week digital download sales of 109,000 copies and 5.2 million domestic streams, aided by the simultaneous premiere of its music video on the single's release date.^[12] The following week, the single declined by one position but earned the largest gain in streams on the chart.^[13] It has since become The Weeknd's second number-one single in the United States on the issue dated October 3, 2015, replacing the singer's own "Can't Feel My Face", becoming the first artist since Taylor Swift to replace themselves at the top spot.^[14] "The Hills" spent six consecutive weeks at number one before being replaced by Adele's "Hello" on the issue dated 14 November 2015. The song also became only the second lead single from an album in the history of the Hot 100 to reach the number one position after the album's succeeding single, following Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)" reaching number one after "What's My Name?", both from her fifth studio album Loud in 2010. "The Hills" remained in the chart's top ten for twenty-one consecutive weeks before finally dropping out on January 16, 2016 and also ending The Weeknd's 45 consecutive weeks in the Top 10. As of January 2016, "The Hills" has sold 2,662,000 copies in the country.^[15]

Music video

The music video for "The Hills" was directed by Grant Singer. It was uploaded to YouTube on May 27, 2015. As of April 2016, the video has been viewed over 780 million times, having more views than any other music video by The Weeknd. The video begins showing a wrecked car that has flipped over, and it is unknown why the car has flipped over. The Weeknd is seen crawling out of the car before helping two women to get out. As the song progresses, Weeknd is seen walking by himself down a dark street in Los Angeles, and around the middle of the song, the wrecked car explodes behind him. He occasionally is pushed repeatedly by one of the women from the car. At the end of the song, he enters an abandoned mansion, and goes upstairs to a room illuminated with red light. A man holding an apple sits waiting for him, next to the two women from the car, and the video cuts to black.

The man from inside the mansion also appears in both the "Can't Feel My Face" and "Tell Your Friends" music videos.

Remixes

On October 10, 2015, two remixes of the song were released online. One featured American rapper Eminem and the other featured Trinidadian-American rapper Nicki Minaj.^[16] The remix by Minaj was performed on Saturday Night Live along with The Weeknd. A virtual music video was made for the Eminem remix.^[17] American rapper Lil Wayne remixed the song for his mixtape No Ceilings 2.^[18]

Track listing

• Digital download

1. "The Hills" – 3:55

• Digital download – Remixes^[19]

1. "The Hills" (featuring Eminem) – 4:23
2. "The Hills" (featuring Nicki Minaj) – 4:02

• Digital download – RL Grime Remix

1. "The Hills" (RL Grime Remix) – 4:31

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2015–16) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[20] 3 Australian Urban (ARIA)[21] 3 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[22] 31 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[23] 18 Belgium Urban (Ultratop Flanders)[24] 3 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[25] 18 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[26] 1 Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[27] 12 Denmark (Tracklisten)[28] 11 France (SNEP)[29] 11 Germany (Official German Charts)[30] 10 Hungary (Single Top 40)[31] 19 Ireland (IRMA)[32] 4 Italy (FIMI)[33] 47 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[34] 29 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[35] 2 Norway (VG-lista)[36] 16 Scotland (Official Charts Company)[37] 9 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[38] 64 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[39] 12 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[40] 23 UK R&B (Official Charts Company)[41] 1 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[42] 3 US Billboard Hot 100[43] 1 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[44] 1 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[45] 40 US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[46] 41 US Dance/Mix Show Airplay (Billboard)[47] 6 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[48] 2 US Rhythmic (Billboard)[49] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2016) Position Australia (ARIA)[50] 20 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[51] 18 Germany (Official German Charts)[52] 54 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[53] 18 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[54] 25 US Billboard Hot 100[55] 10 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[56] 4 US Hot R&B Songs (Billboard)[57] 1 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[58] 29 Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments Australia (ARIA)[59] 3× Platinum 210,000 Belgium (BEA)[60] Gold 15,000 Canada (Music Canada)[61] 2× Platinum 160,000 Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[62] Platinum 60,000 Italy (FIMI)[63] Platinum 50,000 New Zealand (RMNZ)[64] 2× Platinum 30,000 Norway (IFPI Norway)[65] Gold 5,000 Poland (ZPAV)[66] Gold 10,000 Sweden (GLF)[67] 2× Platinum 80,000 United Kingdom (BPI)[68] Platinum 600,000 United States (RIAA)[69] 7× Platinum 2,662,000[15] ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone sales/streaming figures based on certification alone Since May 2013 RIAA certifications for digital singles include on-demand audio and/or video song streams in addition to downloads.[70]

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
Canada	May 26, 2015[1]	Digital download	XO Republic

References

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