"Escapism" is a song by British singer-songwriter Raye featuring American rapper

070 Shake Danielle Balbuena (born June 13, 1997), better known by her stage name 070 Shake, is an American hip hop recording artist. 070 Shake is a part of the musical collective 070, who have released a mixtape together titled ''The 070 Project: Chapter ...

. It was released independently on 12 October 2022 as the third single from the album as a

double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

with "The Thrill Is Gone", and appears on her debut album '' My 21st Century Blues'' (2023). It was co-written by Raye, 070 Shake and Mike Sabath, with Sabath handling production. "Escapism" is an uptempo R&B,

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

and hip hop song with lyrics speaking of escaping from reality and dealing with heartbreak. "Escapism" went viral on TikTok and began charting internationally in late 2022. It went on to become Raye's first number-one single in the UK and has received a platinum BPI certification. It also topped the charts in Ireland and Denmark and entered the top ten of the charts in over twenty music markets including Australia, Germany, New Zealand and Switzerland, as well the top twenty in Hungary and Belgium and the top forty in Nigeria and France. Furthermore, it became both Raye and 070 Shake's first song to chart on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number 22. The song's accompanying music video, directed by Raye and Otis Dominique, depicts the singer turning to "partying, drinking and drugs to escape her emotions and numb her feelings" after breaking up with her boyfriend. Raye has performed the song live on ''

Later with Jools Holland ''Later... with Jools Holland'' (also known as ''Even Later... with Jools Holland'', and previously known as ''Later Live... with Jools Holland'' and ''...Later with Jools Holland'') is a contemporary British music television show hosted by Jo ...

'' and '' The Late Show with Stephen Colbert''.

Composition and lyrics

"Escapism" incorporates trip hop in its production. Raye stated that she "love how rebellious" "Escapism" is for disregarding "the standard" of "pop music structure", particularly being "longer than three minutes and twenty seconds". The song depicts Raye in a post-breakup spree of unhealthy coping mechanisms, engaging in hookups, drugs, and alcohol. Raye explained that the song is about escaping from reality and dealing with heartbreak. In an interview with '' Clash'', Raye revealed that she wrote the song in a log cabin in Utah: "Me and a friend hired a car, and drove up there, in the middle of winter, through the snow and everything! 'Escapism' is a story about running away from everything as fast as you can. The lyrics are about just leaving everyone on read, and going out on your own. It came from a messy time, but as humans, we just have to keep surviving!"

Critical reception

Amit Vaidya of '' Rolling Stone India'' named "Escapism" one of the Best International Songs of 2022. They added how "Escapism" showcases Raye's "journey to achieving her musical freedom", and how "Escapism" "perfectly captures the angst and the aura of the singer – a vocal shape-shifter who now is the boss and we just love it!"

Commercial performance

After going viral on TikTok, "Escapism" charted on the UK Singles Chart at number 31 on 25 November 2022, which marked 070 Shake's first entry on the chart. The feat marked the singer's first charting solo single since Raye became an independent artist in 2021. The following week, the song ascended to number six, becoming Raye's first single as a solo artist to reach the top ten in the UK. On 9 December, "Escapism" climbed to number two, becoming Raye's highest-charting single to date, passing her collaborations " You Don't Know Me" with Jax Jones (2016) and " Bed" with Joel Corry and David Guetta (2021). Following the Christmas period, "Escapism" ascended to number one on the UK Singles Chart in January 2023, marking both Raye and 070 Shake's first chart-topping single of their careers. In the United States, "Escapism" became both artists' first song to chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number 22. In Canada, "Escapism" became Raye's first charting single as a lead artist of her career on the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...

, peaking at number nine on the chart dated 21 January 2023.

Music video

A music video for the song was released on 9 November 2022, directed by Raye and Otis Dominique. It reflects the song's lyrics, with Raye turning to "partying, drinking and drugs to escape her emotions and numb her feelings" after breaking up with her boyfriend. The video makes use of point-of-view cameras. In an interview with ''Shots'', Raye mentioned "we worked really hard to create an honest depiction of where I was at that time in my life. It was fun and wild. We shot it over a couple of days and wore point-of-view cameras during a wild night out at many different clubs. I pushed myself outside of my comfort zone and I ran 150 meters in 5-inch heels. We really took it there!"

Live performances

On 15 October 2022, Raye performed "Escapism" live for the first time on ''

''. In December 2022, the singer released a live performance recorded at Metropolis Studios in London. On 13 February 2023, Raye made her US network television debut performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Raye 2022 singles 2022 songs Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Denmark Raye (singer) songs 070 Shake songs Songs written by 070 Shake Songs written by Mike Sabath Songs written by Raye (singer) UK Singles Chart number-one singles Contemporary R&B songs Electropop songs British hip hop songs