Light On (Maggie Rogers song)
"Light On" | ||||
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Single by Maggie Rogers | ||||
from the album Heard It in a Past Life | ||||
Released | October 10, 2018 | |||
Length | 3:53 | |||
Label |
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Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Maggie Rogers singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Light On" on YouTube |
"Light On" is a song by American singer and songwriter Maggie Rogers. It was released on October 10, 2018 as the fifth single of Rogers' major-label debut studio album, Heard It in a Past Life (2019).[1] Rogers co-wrote the song with Kid Harpoon and both co-produced it with Greg Kurstin.
Background
[edit]Announcing the song release, she revealed that the track was about "gratitude". "it’s the most vulnerable ive ever felt in a song" [sic], she tweeted.[2] In an interview with Billboard, Rogers revealed that the song was about "feeling out of control". She recalled, "There's always a part of it that has to feel like work or something that's not entirely you".[3]
During an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music's Beats 1 on October 10, 2018, Rogers said,
This was the final song I wrote for the record. [...] I wrote this record which captures all those feelings of being overwhelmed and being uncertain. I realized the one story I hadn’t written was about all of the joy. I really wanted to say thank you to my fans, and write a letter to them to tell them what had happened and how much they meant to me. Because in all this time when I was really uncertain, I would get on stage every night, and be so certain. It was never the music I was unsure about, it was everything else around it that I found overwhelming.[4]
Critical reception
[edit]Meredith Nardino of Atwood Magazine said that "...Rogers is laying her whole heart on the table, bringing us backstage to some of the most challenging moments of her creative life."[5] Upon reviewing for the associated album, Clash called it as the "stand out track" of the album, commented: "['Light On' is] where infectious energy and choppy beats are enough to bob Rogers’ characteristically peppy vocals over some of the prettiest melody you are likely to hear this year."[6] Writing for Variety, Chris Willman said the track "gets passionate about feeling strangely passionless."[7]
Live performances
[edit]On November 3, 2018, Rogers performed the song during her appearance on the forty-fourth season of Saturday Night Live.[8] The performance was met with a mixed response, with Bustle called it as "may not have been the best introduction".[9] She performed it on Ellen on January 16, 2019.[10] During her Heard It in a Past Life Tour stop at the O2 Academy, Brixton, England, she brought out lead vocalist Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine to perform the song.[11] Rogers performed the track during her morning television debut set on Today Show on April 25, 2019.[12]
Personnel
[edit]- Maggie Rogers – vocals, production, percussion
- Chris Allgood – mastering engineer assistance
- Julian Burg – engineering
- Serban Ghenea – mixing
- John Hanes – mixing engineering
- Kid Harpoon – production, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, electric guitar, piano, drum programming
- Greg Kurstin – production, bass, drums, guitar, keyboards, piano, engineering
- Emily Lazar – mastering
- Alex Pasco – engineering
Credits adapted from Tidal.[13]
Track listings
[edit]- Digital download[14]
- "Light On" – 3:53
- Digital download – Winston Marshall Remix[15]
- "Light On" (Winston Marshall Remix) – 5:11
Charts
[edit]Chart (2018–2019) | Peak position |
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Australia (ARIA Hitseekers)[16] | 4 |
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[17] | 40 |
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[18] | 1 |
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[19] | 31 |
US Alternative Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[20] | 9 |
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[21] | 26 |
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[22] | 35 |
Certifications
[edit]Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Canada (Music Canada)[23] | Gold | 40,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[24] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
References
[edit]- ^ Sodomsky, Sam (October 10, 2018). "Maggie Rogers Announces Debut Album, Shares New Song "Light On": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
- ^ Rogers, Maggie [@maggierogers] (October 8, 2018). "this is a song about gratitude. it's the most vulnerable ive ever felt in a song. it's about how overwhelmed + scared i was during all that change, but mostly about all the light you gave me when I couldn't always find it for myself. 'light on' out wednesday. 💡" (Tweet). Retrieved November 10, 2019 – via Twitter.
- ^ Schiller, Rebecca (January 29, 2019). "Maggie Rogers Explains That 'Light On' Is 'About Feeling Out Of Control': Watch". Billboard. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
- ^ @Beats1 (October 10, 2018). ""I really wanted to say thank you to my fans and write a letter to them." Brand new @maggierogers. #LightOn is @zanelowe's #WorldRecord" (Tweet). Retrieved May 11, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ Nardino, Meredith (October 11, 2018). "Vulnerability, Gratitude, and Change Inspire Maggie Rogers' "Light On"". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Heard It In A Past Life". Clash. January 17, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Willman, Chris (January 20, 2019). "Album Review: Maggie Rogers' 'Heard It in a Past Life'". Variety. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers Soars on 'SNL' with 'Light On' and 'Fallingwater': Watch". Billboard. November 4, 2018. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ O'Keeffe, Jack (November 4, 2018). "Maggie Rogers' 'SNL' Performance Had A Mixed Response, But Here's Why You Should Still Give Her A Chance". Bustle. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Mercuri, Monica (January 8, 2019). "Maggie Rogers Earns First Alternative Songs No. 1 With 'Light On' Ahead Of Major Album Debut". Forbes. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Newcomb, Ming Lee (February 21, 2019). "Maggie Rogers brings out Florence Welch for stellar "Light On" rendition in London: Watch". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ Martoccio, Angie (April 25, 2019). "Watch Maggie Rogers Celebrate 25th Birthday on 'Today Show'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "Credits / Heard It In A Past Life / Maggie Rogers". Tidal. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ "Heard It In A Past Life by Maggie Rogers on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "Light On (Winston Marshall Remix) - Single by Maggie Rogers on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "ARIA Report: Issue 1502" (PDF). ARIA. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 13, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
- ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 22, 2018. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Chart history (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Chart history (Adult Top 40)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Chart history (Alternative Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Chart history (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Maggie Rogers - Chart history (Rock Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
- ^ "Canadian single certifications – Maggie Rogers – Light On". Music Canada. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
- ^ "American single certifications – Maggie Rogers – Light On". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 25, 2021.