"Break Away" is a song originally recorded by German singer Ivy Quainoo for her 2012 album, ''

Ivy ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to Western Europe, Central Europe, Southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern ...

''. Retitled "Breakaway", it was covered by Canadian singer

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

for her English-language studio album, ''

Loved Me Back to Life Loved may refer to: * Love, an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment Music * Loved (Claire Kuo album), ''Loved'' (Claire Kuo album) or the title song, 2016 * Loved (Cranes album), ''Loved'' (Cranes album) or the title song, 1994 * ' ...

'' (2013).

Celine Dion version

"Breakaway" was covered by

for her English-language studio album, ''

'' (2013). It was co-written by Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren and

Audra Mae Audra Mae Butts (born February 20, 1984) is an American singer and songwriter from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She is the great-niece of Judy Garland, and a great-granddaughter of Garland's sister, Dorothy Virginia Gumm. Since arriving in California ...

, and produced by Play Production. The song was released by Dion as a promotional single in the United Kingdom on 5 December 2013 and in France on 22 January 2014.

Background and release

"Breakaway" and "Somebody Loves Somebody" are two songs on Dion's album ''

'' produced by Swedish trio Play Production (Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson and Tobias Lundgren). Both songs were co-written by Fransson, Larsson, Lundgren and

, the great-great-niece of

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...

. On 2 December 2013, Dion's official website announced "Breakaway" as the second UK single. Two days earlier, it was chosen as a "Record of the Week" on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

. The official audio for the single was released onto Dion's

Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...

channel on 3 December 2013. Two days later, "Breakaway" was added to the A-List on BBC Radio 2's Playlist in the UK. The song peaked at number thirty-eight on the UK Radio Airplay Chart in mid-December 2013 but did not enter the UK Singles Chart. On 22 January 2014, "Breakaway" was announced as the second single in France and was sent to radio stations on the same day.

Critical reception

"Breakaway" received positive reviews from music critics. Jim Farber of '' Daily News'' wrote that it "balances modern R&B with '60s

lounge music Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The ra ...

in a way that would flatter

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...

". ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'' editor Elysa Gardner included this song in her download list and added "Dion starts out low and sultry, then lets her big, creamy

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

rip — a pattern she follows on the "

Wall of Sound The Wall of Sound (also called the Spector Sound) is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the conglomerate of session m ...

"-inspired Breakaway".

Gary Graff Gary Graff (born 1960) is an American music journalist and author. Biography Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Graff attended Taylor Allderdice High School where he wrote for school newspaper ''The Taylor Allderdice Foreword''. He recei ...

from ''

The Oakland Press ''The Oakland Press'' is a daily newspaper published in Oakland County, Michigan with headquarters in Troy. It is owned by 21st Century Media, with which its parent company merged in 2013 after filing for bankruptcy. The local historical society ...

'' praised the vocal buildup "from the lower reaches of her register, a husker tone that sounds just as good as the more pristine approach that's her stock in trade". Andrew Hampp of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' also praised "Breakaway" calling it "powerful" and the song which features "arguably the grittiest, most authentically "

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

" vocal we've ever heard or would expect from Dion". Deban Aderemi of Wiwibloggs commented that "Breakaway" is a beautiful piano-led track. The song's orchestration is rich, Dion's delivery is dynamic, yet she remains committed to a performance that comes from the soul.

Live performances

In early November 2013, Dion performed "Breakaway" for the UK show, ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...

'' which was broadcast during the semi-finals on 15 December 2013.

Track listing and formats

* UK promotional CD single # "Breakaway" (radio edit) – 3:39

Charts

Credits and personnel

;Recording * Vocals recorded at Studio at the Palms,

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

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* Strings recorded at RMV Studios, Stockholm * Mixed at Larrabee Studios,

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

;Personnel * Songwriting – Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren,

* Production – Play Production * Vocals recording – François Lalonde * Vocals recording assistant – Mark Everton Gray * Mixing – Manny Marroquin * Mixing assistants – Chris Galland, Delbert Bowers * Programming – Tim Larsson * Piano – Johan Fransson * Electric bass – Daniel Lykkeklev * Acoustic and electric guitars – Andreas Johansson * Background vocals – Tobias Lundgren * String arrangement – Johan Fransson, Henrik Janson, Ulf Janson * Strings conductors – Henrik Janson, Ulf Janson * Orchestra – Stockholm Session Strings * Technician – Bernard Löhr

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2010s ballads 2012 songs 2013 singles Celine Dion songs Columbia Records singles Ivy Quainoo songs Pop ballads Songs written by Audra Mae Songs written by Johan Fransson (songwriter) Songs written by Tim Larsson Songs written by Tobias Lundgren