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"Promises" is a song by Scottish DJ and record producer
Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris, is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter who has released six studio albums. His debut studio album, '' I Created Disco'', was released in June ...
and English singer-songwriter Sam Smith. Both artists co-wrote the song with Canadian singer-songwriter Jessie Reyez, who also provided additional vocals to the song. The song's production was handled solely by Harris. It was released by
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
and
Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...
on 17 August 2018. It reached number one on the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
on 7 September 2018, having debuted at number four two weeks earlier. It became Harris' tenth British chart-topper and Smith's seventh. In the United States, the single became Harris' twelfth and Smith's first number-one on ''Billboard''s Dance/Mix Show Airplay Chart in its 6 October 2018 issue."Calvin Harris Ties Rihanna for Most Dance/Mix Show Airplay Chart No. 1s With 'Promises'" from Billboard (4 October 2018)
/ref> The song appears on Smith's third studio album '' Love Goes'' (2020).


Release

Both artists announced the song via
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
on 13 August 2018. "Very excited about this one", Harris wrote. Smith added: "Surprise! I'm so excited for you all to hear this song." The announcement was accompanied by a Japanese-inspired retro single artwork, which depicts a lone tree rising up in front of the ocean against a faded pink backdrop. The song marks Smith's third foray into electronic dance music, after being featured on Disclosure's singles "
Latch A latch or catch (called sneck in Northern England and Scotland) is a type of mechanical fastener that joins two (or more) objects or surfaces while allowing for their regular separation. A latch typically engages another piece of hardware on ...
" and " Omen" in 2012 and 2015, respectively. On 15 August, Smith posted a promotional photo on Twitter ahead of the single's release, showing them and Harris relaxing on a rooftop while sharing a bottle of wine and a pizza. The single was released alongside a lyric video.


Composition

"Promises" is a
house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air ...
and
dance-pop Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...
song recorded in the key of D minor with a
tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...
of 123 beats per minute in common time. It follows a chord progression of Bmaj7–Dm7–Csus2, and Smith's vocals span from C3 to A4.


Critical reception

Brandy Robidoux of '' Hollywood Life'' called the song "a music match made in heaven", writing that Smith's "smooth vocals" provides a "soulful vibe", while retaining the "classic Calvin thumping beat".


Music video

The music video for "Promises" was released on 4 September, directed by
Emil Nava Emil William Capper Nava (born 29 March 1985) is a British music video director. After leaving school at 16, Emil started his career as a chef. He shot to fame after directing Jessie J's song " Do It Like A Dude". He has since directed over ...
, and it honors the
LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term i ...
community with references to the ball scene and voguing.


Track listing

* Digital download # "Promises" – 3:33 * 12-inch single ::Side A: "Promises" – 3:33 ::Side B: "Promises" (extended mix) – 8:27 * Digital download – remixes #"Promises" (
David Guetta Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...
remix) – 3:10 #"Promises" ( MK remix) – 4:19 #"Promises" ( Sonny Fodera remix) – 3:57 #"Promises" (
Illyus & Barrientos Illyus & Barrientos are an electronic music duo from Glasgow consisting of Illyus Brown & Ivan Hall Barrientos. Biography The duo met through the recommendation of Glasgow Underground Recordings owner, Kevin McKay (musician) - soon releasing ...
remix) – 4:42 #"Promises" (Franky Rizardo remix) – 4:26 #"Promises" ( Mousse T.'s Disco Shizzle remix) – 3:30 #"Promises" (Offaiah remix) – 3:09 #"Promises" (Sonny Fodera Disco mix) – 3:57 * Digital download – extended remixes #"Promises" (David Guetta extended remix) – 7:53 #"Promises" (MK extended remix) – 8:01 #"Promises" (Sonny Fodera extended remix) – 6:19 #"Promises" (Illyus & Barrientos extended remix) – 6:00 #"Promises" (Franky Rizardo extended remix) – 7:13 #"Promises" (Mousse T.'s extended Disco Shizzle remix) – 6:26 #"Promises" (Offaiah extended remix) – 7:02 #"Promises" (Sonny Fodera extended disco mix) – 7:05 #"Promises" (extended mix) – 8:27


Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. *
Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris, is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter who has released six studio albums. His debut studio album, '' I Created Disco'', was released in June ...
– production, mix engineering, record engineering * Sam Smith – vocals * Jessie Reyez – vocals * Mike Marsh – master engineering


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Release history


References


External links

* {{Authority control 2018 singles 2018 songs Calvin Harris songs Columbia Records singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in Israel Number-one singles in Poland Number-one singles in Scotland Sam Smith (singer) songs Songs written by Calvin Harris Songs written by Jessie Reyez Songs written by Sam Smith (singer) Sony Music singles Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles