"Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" is a song by English singer Elton John and English-Albanian singer Dua Lipa, produced by Australian trio PNAU. It was released on August 13, 2021, through EMI Records and Mercury Records. It is the lead single from Elton John's collaborative studio album, The Lockdown Sessions, and also appears on the deluxe edition and 2022 digital reissue version of his greatest hits album, Diamonds.
Background[]
Due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, John was compelled to temporarily halt his Farewell Yellow Brick Road world tour in March 2020.[1] Amidst the lockdown caused by the pandemic, the singer pursued a series of collaborations, one of which was "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" with Dua Lipa, as part of his upcoming studio album.[2][3] The album's songs were recorded over an 18-month period, either remotely or in compliance with strict health and safety regulations or through the use of the American software Zoom. Leading up to its release, John and Lipa previewed their collaborative effort by publishing cartoon representations of themselves, while dancing to a disco melody on their respective social media accounts on August 10, 2021.[4][5]
The following day, the artists confirmed the song's title, "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" and announced its release date set for August 13.[6] The collaboration between the artists on the song was a testament to the friendship forged between the two, which was established through John's participation in Lipa's Studio 2054 livestream in November 2020,[7] and further strengthened by Lipa's performance at the Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party in August 2021.[8][9] John stated, "[Lipa has] given me so much energy. She's a truly wonderful artist, and person, absolutely bursting with creativity and ideas. The energy she brought to ['the song'] just blew my mind." Lipa further added, "It has been an absolute honour and privilege to collaborate on this track with him. It's so very special [...] I loved being part of such a creative and joyous experience".[10]
Commercial performance[]
In the United Kingdom, "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" debuted at number 33 on the UK Singles Chart in the issue dated August 26, 2021.[11] The song reached number one, having spent three consecutive weeks at number two, with sales of 64,000, including 5.9 million streams and 5,000 copies on limited edition CD single, in its ninth week on the chart on October 21.[12][13] It represented Lipa's third chart-topping single in the UK, after "New Rules" (2017) and "One Kiss" (2018), and John's eighth and first in 16 years, since he was featured artist on American rapper 2Pac's posthumous single "Ghetto Gospel" (2005). John also became the first solo artist to achieve a top 10 single in six different decades, spanning from the 1970s to the 2020s.[14] In April 2023, the song received triple platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for shifting more than 1,800,000 units in the UK.[15] In Australia, "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" reached number one on the ARIA Singles Chart for 10 consecutive weeks as well as number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart in New Zealand.[16] The song marked Lipa's first chart-topping single in Australia as well as John's first one since "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" / "Candle in the Wind 1997" in 1997.[17] Also in 2022, it garnered a sextuple platinum certification from Recorded Music New Zealand (RMNZ) in New Zealand and a septuple platinum award from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) in Australia for selling more than 180,000 and 490,000 units, respectively.[18][19]
In Canada, the song reached number one on the Canadian Hot 100 in the issue dated January 8, 2022, having spent a total of 12 consecutive weeks.[20] The song also reached the top position on the Canada AC, CHR/Top 40 and Hot AC rankings, respectively.[21][22] In October 2022, it received a septuple platinum certification from Music Canada (MC) for shifting more than 560,000 units in the Canada.[23] In the United States, "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 81 on August 28, 2021 and rose to number 32 in its fifth week, giving John the longest span of top 40 Hot 100 appearances, excluding holiday fare.[24] The song reached its summit at number 7 on the ranking issue dated January 15, 2022, earning Lipa's fourth top 10 single on the chart and John's 28th entry.[25] Topping the Adult Contemporary and Adult Top 40 rankings, it further peaked at number one on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, logging its 34th week at the top on June 11.[26] In May 2022, the song garnered a double certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the US for selling more than 2,000,000 units.[27]
"Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" reached the top position in Bulgaria, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Croatia, the Czech Republic, Iceland, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Ukraine and Wallonia. Top 10 positions were also achieved in Austria, Costa Rica, Denmark, El Salvador, Flanders, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland and Uruguay. The song received a gold certifications from IFPI Greece in Greece and IFPI Switzerland in Switzerland. It was certified double platinum in Denmark, Mexico and Norway as well as tripple platinum in Austria, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. The song further garnered a diamond certification from the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP) in France and the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry (ZPAV) in Poland.
Music video and promotion[]
To accompany the release, a music video for "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" premiered to John's official YouTube channel on August 13, 2021.[28] Created in the isolation of the pandemic, Raman Djafari of Blink Ink directed the animated and imaginative video with the aspiration of crafting a galaxy "full of celebration, dance and joy".[29] Gareth Owen and Josef Byrne produced the video with the characters of John and Lipa being designed by Seo Young.[30] The video traces the adventure of John and Lipa, portrayed as animated characters, together with four claymation-described 3D characters that dance to disco music, as they explore colorful and nature-filled galaxies and psychedelic landscapes. In a sequence, the use of hand-drawn 2D elements enhances the visual frames, imparting an ethereal atmosphere to the animation. One of the dancers draws a shooting star in the sky, while flying fish appear to radiate from the movements of their dancing shoes. At the same time, towering flowers with eyes emerge and envelop the dancers, imbuing them with a sense of nature. There is also a psychedelic countryside sequence featuring flowers with puckered petals that sway in time with the music, and clouds fashioned into the shapes of unicorns and castles. The animated charactes bring their journey to a close by joining John and Lipa in an dance celebration at a garden party located on one side of the Milky Way. John Russell from Grazia expressed his admiration for the video, while characterising it as "gorgeous" and highlighting its animation theme.[31] Robledo for Gay Times referred to the video as "stunning" and deemed it to be "a fun and mind-blowing experience". Paulina Vales of The Honey Pop declared the video as the year's "most iconic animated video" and commended its aesthetics and fashion, writing that "[John and Lipa brought] us joy we were missing in our life".[32]
Remixes[]
August 13, 2021
September 10, 2021
September 17, 2021
October 8, 2021
October 12, 2021
Track listing[]
- Digital download and streaming[33]
- "Cold Heart" (PNAU Remix) – 3:22
- Digital download and streaming[34]
- "Cold Heart" (Acoustic) – 3:15
- Digital download and streaming[35]
- "Cold Heart" (Claptone Remix) – 3:03
- Digital download and streaming[36]
- "Cold Heart" (PS1 Remix) – 2:47
- Digital download and streaming[37]
- "Cold Heart" (The Blessed Madonna Remix) – 2:53
- "Cold Heart" (The Blessed Madonna Extended Mix) – 4:33
Videos[]
Lyrics[]
[Intro]
(Oh)
(Oh)
(You're my cold heart)
(Oh)
(Oh)
[Verse: Elton John]
It's a human sign
When things go wrong
When the scent of her lingers
And temptation's strong
[Pre-Chorus: Elton John]
Cold, cold heart
Hardened by you (Oh)
Some things lookin' better, baby
Just passin' through (No, no, no, no, no)
[Chorus: Dua Lipa with Elton John]
And I think it's gonna be a long, long time
'Til touchdown brings me 'round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no
And this is what I should have said
Well, I thought it, but I kept it hid
[Pre-Chorus: Elton John]
Cold, cold heart
Hardened by you (Oh)
Some things lookin' better, baby
Just passin' through (No, no, no, no, no)
[Chorus: Dua Lipa with Elton John]
And I think it's gonna be a long, long time
'Til touchdown brings me 'round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no (No, no, no, no, no)
And this is what I should have said
Well, I thought it, but I kept it hid
[Pre-Chorus: Elton John]
Cold, cold heart (Oh)
Hardened by you
Some things lookin' better, baby (Oh)
Just passin' through (No, no, no, no, no)
[Chorus: Dua Lipa]
And I think it's gonna be a long, long time
'Til touchdown brings me 'round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no (No, no, no, no, no)
And this is what I should have said
(And I think it's gonna be a long, long time)
('Til touchdown brings me 'round again to find)
Well, I thought it, but I kept it hid
(I'm not the man they think I am at home)
(Oh, no, no, no) (No, no, no, no, no)
[Outro]
Shoorah (Oh)
Shoorah
Shoorah (Oh)
Shoorah
(No, no, no, no, no)
Credits and personnel[]
Credits adapted from Tidal.[38]
- Elton John – lead artist, composing, songwriting
- Dua Lipa – lead artist
- PNAU – lead artists, remixing
- Nicholas Littlemore – composing, producing, programming, songwriting
- Peter Mayes – composing, engineering, producing, programming, songwriting
- Sam Littlemore – composing, producing, programming, songwriting
- Andrew Meecham – composing, songwriting
- Bernie Taupin – composing, songwriting
- Dean Meredith – composing, songwriting
- Josh Gudwin – mastering, mixing
- Mark Schick – vocal producing
- Rafael Fadul – engineering
References[]
- ↑ "Watch Elton John resume world tour and perform live debut of 'Cold Heart'"
- ↑ "Elton John Teams Up With Lil Nas X, Dua Lipa & More for New Collaborations Album"
- ↑ "Elton John announces collaborations album 'The Lockdown Sessions'"
- ↑ "It looks like Dua Lipa and Elton John are teasing a new collaboration"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa & Elton John Heat Up Anticipation For Their New Collab 'Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)' With a Snippet"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa and Elton John have officially announced their new 'Cold Heart' collaboration, and it's landing tomorrow (13 August)"
- ↑ "Elton John Joins Dua Lipa's Studio 2054 Livestream Special"
- ↑ "Elton John and Dua Lipa have joined forces on 'Cold Heart', a new PNAU Remix that combines multiple classic Elton John tracks"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa, Neil Patrick Harris Tapped for Elton John's Aids Foundation Oscar Pre-Party"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa to headline Elton John's annual Aids Foundation Oscars pre-party"
- ↑ "Elton John & Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Elton John and Dua Lipa's Cold Heart (PNAU Remix) claims Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart"
- ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100"
- ↑ "Elton John sets new Official UK Chart record as the first artist to score a Top 10 single in six different decades"
- ↑ "British single certifications – Elton John & Dua Lipa – Cold Heart"
- ↑ "Elton John & Dua Lipa hit ten weeks at #1 with Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)"
- ↑ "Elton John claims record-breaking ARIA #1 single"
- ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2022 Singles"
- ↑ "New Zealand single certifications – Elton John & Dua Lipa – Cold Heart"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)"
- ↑ "Elton John Chart History (Canada Hot AC)"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa Chart History (Canada CHR/Top 40)"
- ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Elton John & Dua Lipa – Cold Heart"
- ↑ "Elton John Extends Span of Top 40 Hot 100 Hits to 50 Years, Thanks to 'Cold Heart' With Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Adele Back Atop Hot 100, 'Bruno,' Elton John & Dua Lipa, Kodak Black Hit Top 10"
- ↑ "Elton John & Dua Lipa's 'Cold Heart' Hits New Milestone Atop Hot Dance/Electronic Songs Chart"
- ↑ "American single certifications – Elton John & Dua Lipa – Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)"
- ↑ "Elton John and Dua Lipa – Cold Heart (PNAU Remix) | Official Music Video"
- ↑ "Raman Djafari creates a joyful disco universe for Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Raman Djafari Enters the Disco-verse for Elton John & Dua Lipa's 'Cold Heart' (PNAU Remix)"
- ↑ "Elton John and Dua Lipa Get Animated in 'Cold Heart' Music Video"
- ↑ "Dua Lipa and Elton John Are Melting Our 'Cold Heart'"
- ↑ "Cold Heart (PNAU remix) – Single by Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Cold Heart (Acoustic) – Single by Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Cold Heart (Claptone Remix) – Single by Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Cold Heart (PS1 Remix) – Single by Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Cold Heart (The Blessed Madonna Remix) – Single by Elton John and Dua Lipa"
- ↑ "Credits / Cold Heart (PNAU Remix) / Elton John, Dua Lipa"