"Spotlight" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter

Jessie Ware Jessica Lois Ware (born 15 October 1984) is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence following the release of her debut studio album, '' Devotion'' (2012), which peaked at number five on the UK Albums Chart and produced the sing ...

for her fourth studio album, '' What's Your Pleasure?'' (2020). A primarily

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 c ...

and

nu-disco Nu-disco is a 21st-century dance music genre associated with a renewed interest in the late 1970s disco, synthesizer-heavy 1980s European dance music styles, and early 1990s electronic dance music. The genre was popular in the early 2000s, and exp ...

record singing about "longing and lust", it was written by Ware, Danny Parker, Shungudzo Kuyimba, and James Ford, while production was handled by the latter. Altogether with an accompanying music video where the singer sings and dances on Tito's ''Blue Train'', the single version was released on 28 February 2020 as the third single from the album, with a remix by Icarus being released on 27 March 2020 later.

Critical reception

"Spotlight" was raved with critical acclaim. Noah Yoo from ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' said that "Spotlight" drips "with the hallmarks of a long-lost

city pop is a loosely defined form of Japanese pop music that emerged in the late 1970s and peaked in popularity during the 1980s. It was originally termed as an offshoot of Japan's Western-influenced " new music", but came to include a wide range of st ...

classic; Ware's sultry vocals, nearly a whisper, float atop beds of string flourishes and

synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

swells courtesy of

Simian Mobile Disco Simian Mobile Disco are an English electronic music duo and production team, formed in 2003 by James Ford and Jas Shaw of the band Simian. Musically, they are known for their analogue production. Ford is also known for his production work. ...

’s James Ford. Every aspect of 'Spotlight' — from its heart-wrenching final line to the subtle

acid house Acid house (also simply known as just " acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synt ...

conclusion — betrays the handiwork of real studio experts."

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music critic Dan Condon found that "this is the kind of pulsing, alluring, maturely crafted

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

that we've come to expect from the 35-year-old Londoner. It's a sophisticated take on the modern

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

phenomenon that's making pop music sound so good these days; at times you'll hear shades of

Sade Sade may refer to: People * Marquis de Sade (1740–1814), French aristocrat, writer, and libertine; namesake of the word ''sadism'' * Sade (singer) (born 1959, Helen Folasade Adu), British Nigerian musician and lead singer of the eponymous band * ...

, at others

Róisín Murphy Róisín Marie Murphy ( , ; born 5 July 1973) is an Irish singer, songwriter and record producer who first became known in the 1990s as one half of the Pop music, pop duo Moloko alongside the English musician Mark Brydon. After the breakup of M ...

, but it's Ware's immense talent that shines through."

YouTuber A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006 ...

and music critic

Anthony Fantano Anthony Nicholas Fantano ( ; born October 28, 1985) is an American Music journalism, music critic and internet personality who runs ''The Needle Drop'', a YouTube channel with a tie-in website and Twitch (service), Twitch streaming channel. Self ...

ranked the single fourth on his "50 best songs of 2020" list, calling it the "biggest

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

anthem of the year" and a "sparkling throwback to the

disco era Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightlife, particularly in African-American, Italian-American, Gay and Latino communities. Its sound features four-on-the-floor ...

, touched up with gorgeous strings". Editors of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'', Mick Jacobs, Jessica Brant, and Mike Elliott described the song as a "smooth pop masterpiece of driving rhythms, understated vocals, and lyrics of longing and lust," inspired by the "underground

voguing Vogue, or voguing, is a highly stylized, modern house dance originating in the late 1980s that evolved out of the Harlem ballroom scene of the 1960s. It is inspired by the poses of models in fashion magazines. It gained mainstream exposure whe ...

scene of 1980s NYC." ''

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 ...

'' editor Krystal declared "Spotlight" a "slow-burner, it's sweet yet sultry, with a touch of acid to add some tension," while ''

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'' critic Bob Marshall felt that the song "changes gear into a

'90s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American jets fly over burning oil fields in the 1991 Gulf War; the Oslo Accords on 13 September 1993; the World ...

R&B-inspired disco track that fans of

Toni Braxton Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won seven ...

will no doubt want to spin on repeat." ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolator or Idolater may also refer to: * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), a 2005 album by Blood Stain Child * ''Idolator'', a 1986 album by Ole Evenrud * "Idolater", a ...

''s Mike Wass ranked the song second on his The 30 Best Pop Songs of Q1/2020 listing and called it a "divine disco anthem," adding: "Pop this soulful and sophisticated only comes around once or twice a year."

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Spotlight" was filmed in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

, Serbia aboard Tito's ''Blue Train'', the private transport of

President of Yugoslavia The president of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the head of state of that country from 14 January 1953 to 4 May 1980. Josip Broz Tito was the only person to occupy the office. Tito was also concurrently President of the League ...

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

. It was directed by Jovan Todorović. The music video was released through Ware's official

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channel on 28 February 2020.

Track listing

Digital download – single edit #"Spotlight" (single edit) – 4:12 Digital download – Icarus remix #"Spotlight" (Icarus remix) – 3:58

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from

Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

. *

– vocals, songwriter * Danny Parker – songwriter * James Ford – producer, songwriter, mixer * Shungudzo Kuyimba – songwriter * Joe LaPorta – mastering engineer

Charts

References

{{Jessie Ware 2020 singles 2020 songs Jessie Ware songs English house music songs Nu-disco songs Songs written by Jessie Ware Songs written by James Ford (musician) Songs written by Danny Parker (songwriter) Songs written by Shungudzo Virgin EMI Records singles Music videos shot in Belgrade