When I Was Older
"When I Was Older" | ||||
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Music Inspired by the Film Roma | ||||
Released | January 9, 2019 | |||
Recorded | November 2018 | |||
Genre | Electronic | |||
Length | 4:31 | |||
Label | Sony Masterworks | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Finneas O'Connell | |||
Billie Eilish singles chronology | ||||
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"When I Was Older" is a song by American singer-songwriter Billie Eilish from the soundtrack album to the film Roma (2018). It was released as a single by Sony Masterworks on January 9, 2019. Eilish wrote the song with its producer, her brother Finneas O'Connell. "When I Was Older", an electronic track with lullaby-influenced instrumentation, has lyrics heavily inspired by the film's plot. The song was later included as a deluxe track on Eilish's debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (2019).
Eilish's lyrics address misery, while she uses impressions of singing underwater. "When I Was Older" received generally positive reviews from music critics, with one of them likening the lyrical content. The song reached number 11 on the US Billboard Alternative Digital Song Sales chart. It was performed live during Eilish's When We All Fall Asleep Tour and Where Do We Go? World Tour in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
Background and release
On January 8, 2019, Eilish announced the release date of "When I Was Older".
Composition and lyrical interpretation
"When I Was Older" is moderately slow at 72-76
According to Eilish in a statement, "We wanted to write from within the narrative of the movie and the scenes that struck us the most from it. Having access to the sounds used in the film proved to be invaluable to help us convey this.”[12] Wandera Hussein of The Fader said of Eilish's auto-tuned vocals coming in that it has a "drenched murmur over a sparse, tingly melody",[15] giving the impression she's singing underwater, while sounds of the ocean are overplayed in the chorus, sounding like she is wanting to be there: “When I was older/I was a sailor on an open sea/But now I'm underwater/And my skin is paler than it should ever be."[12][13][16] Lines like "Memories burn like a forest fire/Heavy rain turns any funeral pyre to mud/In the flood" are accompanied by the sounds of trees burning in the woods outside of a house.[2] Daniel Kreps of Rolling Stone noted that Eilish added sounds of "student protest shouts and Borras barking" and turned them into "rhythmic percussive elements to help drive the song".[2][17]
Reception and promotion
"When I Was Older" was met with generally positive reviews from
To promote "When I Was Older", Eilish performed it at the
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from Tidal.[8]
- Billie Eilish – vocals, songwriter
- Finneas O'Connell – producer, songwriter
- John Greenham – mastering engineer
- Rob Kinelski – mixer
Charts
Chart (2019) | Peak position |
---|---|
Greece (IFPI)[28] | 52 |
Lithuania (AGATA)[29] | 67 |
Netherlands (Single Tip)[22] | 18 |
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[20] | 7 |
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)[21] | 3 |
US Alternative Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[19] | 11 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[30] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
References
- ^ Idolator. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
- ^ a b c Kreps, Daniel (January 9, 2019). "Hear Billie Eilish's 'Roma'-Inspired Ballad 'When I Was Older'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ Skinner, Tom (January 9, 2019). "Billie Eilish releases new single 'When I Was Older'- inspired by a Golden Globe-winning Netflix film". NME. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Consequence of Sound. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ Citations regarding the digital release of "When I Was Older" in various countries:
- "When I Was Older – Single by Billie Eilish". iTunes Store (US). 9 January 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- "When I Was Older – Single by Billie Eilish". iTunes Store (GB). 9 January 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- "When I Was Older – Single by Billie Eilish". iTunes Store (DE). 9 January 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ^ "Music Inspired by the Film Roma on iTunes". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ "When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (Cd Repack)" (in Polish). Empik. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
- ^ a b "'When I Was Older' by Billie Eilish". Tidal. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
- ^ a b "Billie Eilish 'When I Was Older' Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
- Insider. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
- Billboard. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Martoccio, Angie (January 9, 2019). "Song You Need to Know: Billie Eilish, 'When I Was Older'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ a b c Rossignol, Derrick (January 9, 2019). "Billie Eilish's 'When I Was Older' Is Intriguing Alt-Pop Inspired By The Movie 'Roma'". Uproxx. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
- ^ Hosken, Patrick (January 9, 2019). "Billie Eilish Is Lana Del Rey Meets Bon Iver On Roma-Inspired 'When I Was Older'". MTV. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
- ^ Hussein, Wandera (January 9, 2019). "Stream Billie Eilish's new song 'When I Was Older'". The Fader. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ a b Breihan, Tom (January 9, 2019). "Billie Eilish – 'When I Was Older (Music Inspired By The Film Roma)'". Stereogum. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ a b William, Chris (January 9, 2019). "Alfonso Cuaron's Mystery 'Roma' Album Gets an Inspired Billie Eilish Teaser". Variety. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ Sherburne, Philip (February 6, 2019). "Various Artists: Music Inspired by the Film Roma Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
- ^ a b "Billie Eilish Chart History (Alternative Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ a b "New Zealand Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. January 21, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
- ^ a b "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 3, 2019". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
- ^ a b "Dutch Single Tip" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. January 26, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
- ^ Powers, Shad (December 10, 2019). "Second time around even better for Billie Eilish as Weekend 2 set is more powerful, raw". The Desert Sun. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ Saval, Marina (July 1, 2019). "Billie Eilish Mesmerizes Glastonbury Crowd With Life-Affirming Performance". Variety. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
- ^ "Hysterie tijdens Billie Eilish, maar perfect is het nog lang niet" [Hysteria during Billie Eilish concert, but it isn't perfect yet]. Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). August 18, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
- ^ Saw, Yadana (April 25, 2019). "Review: Billie Eilish at Spark Arena – 'a shared dream'". Radio New Zealand. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
- ^ Young, Alex (March 10, 2020). "Billie Eilish Launches 'Where Do We Go? World Tour'". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on March 11, 2020. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
- ^ "Official IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Week: 2/2019". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on January 21, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
- ^ "Savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. January 18, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2022 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved October 4, 2022.