"Pain" is a song by English singer-songwriter PinkPantheress. It was released on 7 June 2021 through Elektra and Parlophone Records, as the second single from her debut mixtape To Hell with It. A snippet of the song went viral on TikTok months prior, and it subsequently peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart and at number 54 in Ireland.
| "Pain" | ||||
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| Single by PinkPantheress | ||||
| from the album To Hell with It | ||||
| Released | 7 June 2021 | |||
| Genre | UK garage | |||
| Length | 1:38 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| PinkPantheress singles chronology | ||||
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Background and composition
editIn early 2021, PinkPantheress started recording one song a day, taking an hour a day after coming home from university to write and record 20-second loops, which she posted as short-form videos on the social media platform TikTok to reach a wider audience.[1] In January 2021, one of these loops, a 12-second snippet of her song "Pain", was posted to TikTok with the caption, "Day 11 of posting a song every day bc [sic] i have nothing else to do," and it quickly gained attention on the platform.[2][3]
Produced by PinkPantheress, "Pain" is a UK garage song which runs for one minute and 38 seconds and samples the 2000 single "Flowers" by UK garage duo Sweet Female Attitude.[1][2] On it, PinkPantheress addresses her longing for an ex over a "woozy", two-chord keyboard loop and a lofi hip hop beat, and sings "la la las" throughout the song, which were inspired by her writer's block.[4][2] The piano part is a sampled version of French pianist Erik Satie's "Trois Gymnopédies".[5][6]
Reception and commercial performance
editGigwise's Joe Smith described "Pain" as "a mish-mash of Britain's urban landscapes".[7]
"Pain" peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart and at number 54 in Ireland.
Credits and personnel
edit- PinkPantheress – vocals, songwriting, production, programming, mastering
Charts
edit| Chart (2021) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Ireland (IRMA)[8] | 54 |
| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[9] | 3 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[10] | 35 |
| Chart (2024) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Lithuania (AGATA)[11] | 68 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Poland (ZPAV)[12] | Gold | 25,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[13] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
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‡ Sales streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ a b Sundaresan, Mano (15 October 2021). "PinkPantheress reimagines garage music for a new generation". NPR. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
- ^ a b c Mamo, Heran (15 October 2021). "Viral U.K. Pop Sensation PinkPantheress Talks Debut Mixtape 'To Hell With It,' Reinventing Classics and Writing Short". Billboard. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
- ^ Mukhtar, Amel (8 October 2021). "PinkPantheress On How She Became A Global Icon From Her Bedroom". British Vogue. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
- ^ Zhang, Cat. ""Passion" by PinkPantheress". Pitchfork. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ Press-Reynolds, Kieran. "How a 20-year-old student used TikTok to become the summer's breakout pop musician". Insider. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
- ^ PinkPantheress – Pain, retrieved 1 May 2022
- ^ Smith, Joe (12 October 2021). "Mixtape Review: Pink Pantheress – To Hell With It". Gigwise. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
- ^ "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ "2024 47-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 22 November 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ "OLiS - oficjalna lista wyróżnień" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 September 2024. Click "TYTUŁ" and enter Pain in the search box.
- ^ "British single certifications – PinkPantheress – Pain". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 9 August 2024.