Maps (Yeah Yeah Yeahs Song)

"Maps" is a song by American indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs from their debut full-length album, ''Fever to Tell'' (2003). The song, a ballad, is about the relationship between Liars frontman Angus Andrew and Yeah Yeah Yeahs lead singer Karen O.

Released in September 2003, "Maps" received critical acclaim and is considered one of the best songs of the decade. It peaked at number 87 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and also reached number nine on the US ''Billboard'' Modern Rock Tracks chart and received a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). The accompanying music video received extensive play on MTV, and the band notably performed the song at the 2004 MTV Movie Awards.

"Maps" experienced a resurgence of popularity when it went viral on YouTube and TikTok in 2024.

Music video

The video shows the band playing in an audition in a high school gymnasium, with different light filters changing the color of the room. Karen O's crying in the video was not staged. She explains: "They were real tears. My boyfriend at the time (Angus Andrew) was supposed to come to the shoot – he was three hours late and I was just about to leave for tour. I didn't think he was even going to come and this was the song that was written for him. He eventually showed up and I got myself in a real emotional state." Some have suggested the song title stands for "My Angus Please Stay," although this was never confirmed by the band. It was directed by Patrick Daughters.

Reception and legacy

"Maps" was nominated for four MTV Video Music Awards at the 2004 ceremony: Best Art Direction, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, and the MTV2 Award. In 2009, "Maps" was voted the best alternative love song of all time by ''NME''. The song was also listed at number six on ''Pitchfork Media''s top 500 songs of the 2000s. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it as the 7th best song of the 2000s. On April 7, 2011, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked "Maps" number 386 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time; its 2021 list placed it at number 101. In October 2011, ''NME'' placed it at number 55 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years". ''NME'' ranked "Maps" at number 1 on their list of "Indie Weddings Songs: 20 Tracks Perfect For Your First Dance."

"Maps" served as an inspiration for Kelly Clarkson's 2004 hit song "Since U Been Gone," which was written and produced by Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald. In an interview with ''Billboard'', Dr. Luke said:

That was a conscious move by Max and myself, because we were listening to alternative and indie music ... I said, "Ah, I love this song,' and Max was like, 'If they would just write a damn pop chorus on it!' It was driving him nuts, because that indie song was sort of on six, going to seven, going to eight, the chorus comes ... and it goes back down to five. It drove him crazy. And when he said that, it was like, light bulb. 'Why don't we do that, but put a big chorus on it?" It worked.

"Maps" and "Since U Been Gone" share similar introductions, post-chorus guitar breaks, middle eights, and are both in the key of G major. Karen O said noticing the similarity was "like getting bitten by a poisonous varmint."

" Hold Up," a song recorded by Beyoncé for her 2016 album, ''Lemonade'', contains an interpolation of the "Maps" lyric, "Wait, they don't love you like I love you." Beyoncé sings the line as "Hold up, they don't love you like I love you," which was based on a 2011 tweet from Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig paraphrasing "Maps." Koenig and Diplo recorded a demo version of "Hold Up" in 2014 including the interpolated line, and when Beyoncé released the song on ''Lemonade'', the three members of Yeah Yeah Yeahs shared in the songwriting credits.

A sped-up version of "Maps" gained popularity on TikTok in September 2024. A dance was created along with it where it used different contexts of wanting someone to stop and listen to them. As a result, the song charted at number one on the US TikTok ''Billboard'' Top 50 in October 2024.

Cover versions

* The White Stripes at the Reading Festival 2004.
* Arcade Fire on '' The Jo Whiley Show's'' Live Lounge in 2005.
* Ted Leo as part of a 2012 medley with Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone."
* Macy Gray on her 2012 album ''Covered''.
* Cary Brothers covered the song (featuring Priscilla Ahn) on his 2012 EP ''Covers Volume One''.
*The Fray covered the song on their 2012 album '' Scars & Stories.''
*Anderson Paak on his 2013 EP ''Cover Art''.
* Camp Cope covered the song in 2016 for Triple J's ''Like A Version''.
*The Bad Plus on their 2016 album '' It's Hard''.
* Keaton Henson on his EP ''The Lucky EP''.
* Freya Ridings as a 2017 promotional single.
* Samia covered the song in 2023.
* Thou covered the song as part of the compilation album ''Save Stereogum: An '00s Cover Comp''.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

* Allmusic: Maps Entry*

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2003 singles
Yeah Yeah Yeahs songs
2003 songs
Interscope Records singles
Polydor Records singles
2000s ballads
Rock ballads
Songs written by Karen O
Songs written by Brian Chase
Songs written by Nick Zinner
Breakup songs
Internet memes introduced in 2024