A Thousand Years (Christina Perri song)

"A Thousand Years" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Christina Perri, and written by Perri and David Hodges, for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1. The song was released as a digital download on October 18, 2011, worldwide, and serves as the second single for the movie.[1] Perri re-recorded the song with vocals from Steve Kazee for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2. Perri recorded the song in the album, then she re-recorded the second song along with Kazee in the second album.

"A Thousand Years"
Single by Christina Perri
from the album The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Released	October 18, 2011
Recorded	2011
Genre	Pop soul
Length	4:45 (Part 1) 5:05 (Part 2)
Label	Atlantic Records
Songwriter(s)	Christina Perri David Hodges (Part 1) Steve Kazee (Part 2)
Christina Perri singles chronology
"Arms" (2011) "A Thousand Years" (2011) "Distance" (2012)
Music video
"A Thousand Years" on YouTube

Composition

"A Thousand Years" is in the key of B-flat major, with a vocal range of F₃ to C₅.[2]

The song was written about the love affair between Edward and Bella.[3]

Music video

An official lyric video of the song was premiered on October 17, 2011, via Perri's official Facebook and Twitter pages as well as her official website. On October 26, 2011, she released an official video for the song on her YouTube channel. The video begins with Perri holding a candle. It features a few clips from The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 interspersed between scenes with Perri singing in a room with a floor full of candles. Perri ends the video singing into a sunset.

It has over 1.6 billion views and 9.7 million likes on YouTube, making it one of the top 90 most-viewed YouTube videos.[4]

Cover versions

• A cover by American crossover band The Piano Guys was uploaded on YouTube on May 9, 2012; as of July 2020, it has over 180 million views.[5]
• American band Boyce Avenue released an acoustic version of "A Thousand Years". It currently has over 120 million views as of July 2020.[6]
• Scottish singer Nicholas McDonald performed the song during the 10th series of the X Factor at the Arena audition.[7]
• Scottish-American actor, singer, presenter and writer John Barrowman covered the song on his 2014 album "You Raise Me Up". He recorded the song after he married his husband, Scott Gil, and to celebrate gay couples who married after the United States Supreme Court denied an appeal to overturning California Proposition 8.[8]
• Michael O'Dwyer, a member of the Irish stage production Celtic Thunder, covered the song for their CD/DVD set Celtic Thunder X.
• Mums of children with Down syndrome made a cover of the song that went viral.[9] The video currently has over 7 million views.[10]
• Umer Hussain performed the song in his X-Factor audition in series 12, but he was unsuccessful. He posted a cover on his SoundCloud account once the show had been broadcast.
• New Found Glory released a cover of the song for their 2019 EP From the Screen to Your Stereo 3.

Chart performance

On the week of October 23, 2011, the song debuted at number 63 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart,[11] and number 70 on Canadian Hot 100. It eventually reached a peak at number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving Perri her second top 40 hit. By July 2013, the song has sold over three million digital downloads in the US.[12] As of June 2014, the song has sold 3,657,000 copies in the US.[13] On August 3, 2018, the single was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for selling seven million digital copies in the United States.

In the United Kingdom, the song reached number 32 on its original release in 2011. The following year, after the release of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, it peaked at number 13. In 2013, after it was performed on The X Factor, it reached a new peak of 11.

Charts

Weekly charts A Thousand Years Chart (2011–13) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[14] 13 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 19 Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[16] 44 Brazil (Billboard Brasil Hot 100)[17] 58 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[18] 70 Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[19] 3 Denmark (Tracklisten)[20] 27 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[21] 19 Hungary (Single Top 40)[22] 24 Ireland (IRMA)[23] 7 Italy (FIMI)[24] 30 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[25] 11 Scotland (Official Charts Company)[26] 9 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[27] 26 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 21 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[29] 11 US Billboard Hot 100[30] 31 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[31] 11 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[32] 7 US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay (Radio Songs)[33] 46 US Latin Pop Songs (Billboard)[34] 24 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[35] 22 A Thousand Years, Pt. 2 Chart (2012–13) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[36] 39 Brazil (Billboard Brasil Hot 100 Airplay)[37] 98 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[18] 40 France (SNEP)[38] 66 Germany (Official German Charts)[39] 26 Italy (FIMI)[24] 27 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[40] 80 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[41] 31 US Billboard Hot 100[30] 53

Year-end charts Chart (2012) Position Australia (ARIA)[42] 67 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[43] 50 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[44] 110 US Billboard Hot 100[45] 87 US Billboard Adult Contemporary[46] 21 US Adult Pop Songs[47] 24 Chart (2013) Position UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[48] 57 Decade-end charts Chart (2010–2019) Position Australia (ARIA)[49] 46 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[50] 79

Certifications

A Thousand Years [51] Region Certification Certified units/sales Australia (ARIA)[52] 7× Platinum 490,000 Canada (Music Canada)[53] Platinum 10,000^^ Germany (BVMI)[54] Gold 150,000^^ Ireland (IRMA)[55] Gold 7,500^^ Italy (FIMI)[56] Platinum 50,000 Mexico (AMPROFON)[57] Platinum 60,000^* New Zealand (RMNZ)[58] Platinum 15,000^* United Kingdom (BPI)[59] 3× Platinum 1,800,000^* United States (RIAA)[60] 8× Platinum 3,657,000[13] ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

A Thousand Years, Pt. 2 Region Certification Certified units/sales United States (RIAA)[61] Gold 500,000^^ ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label
United States[1]	October 18, 2011	Digital download	Atlantic
Canada[62]			WEA International Inc.
Australia[63]
United Kingdom	November 7, 2011	Digital download (album only)	Atlantic

References

1. "A Thousand Years - Single". iTunes USA. Retrieved 2011-10-18.
2. "A Thousand Years sheet music by Christina Perri (Piano, Vocal & Guitar (Right-Hand Melody) – 113362)". www.sheetmusicdirect.com. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
3. Pemberton, Pat. "A Thousand Years". Retrieved September 13, 2018.
4. "Christina Perri - A Thousand Years [Official Music Video]". YouTube. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
5. ThePianoGuys (2012-05-09), Christina Perri - A Thousand Years (Piano/Cello Cover) - The Piano Guys, retrieved March 10, 2019
6. "A Thousand Years - Christina Perri (Boyce Avenue acoustic cover)". June 30, 2013. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
7. "X Factor 2013: Nicholas McDonald is a little overwhelmed & pushes 'A Thousand Years' into iTunes chart!". Unreality TV. 2013-09-17. Archived from the original on 2016-04-01. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yv6kDDTUJlc&t=
9. https://townhall.com/tipsheet/laurettabrown/2018/03/19/watch-a-group-of-moms-made-a-video-about-their-children-for-world-down-syndrome-day-n2462446
10. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Biex1XR_mpo
11. "Week Ending Oct. 23, 2011. Songs: Christmas In October". Yahoo Chart Watch. 2011-10-26. Retrieved 2011-10-26.
12. Paul Grein (July 24, 2013). "Week Ending July 21, 2013. Songs: Dancing With Miley". Chart Watch.
13. Paul Grein (June 11, 2014). "Chart Watch: Sam Smith Zooms Into Top 10". Yahoo Music.
14. "Australian-charts.com – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
15. "Austriancharts.at – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
16. "Ultratop.be – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years" (in Dutch). Ultratip.
17. BPP, ed. (February–March 2013). "Billboard Brasil Hot 100 Airplay". Billboard Brasil (38): 84–89.
18. "Christina Perri Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
19. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 201219 into search.
20. "Danishcharts.com – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Tracklisten.
21. "Christina Perri: A Thousand Years" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
22. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
23. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – A Thousand Years". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
24. FIMI, ed. (February–March 2013). "FIMI CHARTS". FIMI.
25. "Charts.nz – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Top 40 Singles.
26. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
27. "Spanishcharts.com – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years" Canciones Top 50.
28. "Swisscharts.com – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Swiss Singles Chart.
29. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
30. "Christina Perri Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
31. "Christina Perri Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
32. "Christina Perri Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
33. "Radio Songs - Billboard". Billboard. March 31, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
34. "Christina Perri Chart History (Latin Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
35. "Christina Perri Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
36. "Australian-charts.com – Christina Perri feat. Steve Kazee – A Thousand Years Part 2". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
37. Brazil Hot 100 Airplay. Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2014.
38. "Lescharts.com – Christina Perri feat. Steve Kazee – A Thousand Years Part 2" (in French). Les classement single.
39. "Offiziellecharts.de – Christina Perri feat. Steve Kazee – A Thousand Years Part 2". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
40. "Dutchcharts.nl – Christina Perri feat. Steve Kazee – A Thousand Years Part 2" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
41. "Charts.nz – Christina Perri feat. Steve Kazee – A Thousand Years Part 2". Top 40 Singles.
42. "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts". Retrieved May 4, 2013.
43. "Top Selling Singles of 2012". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
44. "End of Year 2012" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
45. "Best of 2012 - Hot 100 Songs 81-90". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2012-12-14.
46. "Best of 2012 - Adult Contemporary Songs 21-30". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
47. "Best of 2012 - Adult Pop Songs 21-30". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
48. Dan Lane (January 2, 2013). "End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 - 2013". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
49. "2019 ARIA End of Decade Singles Chart". ARIA. January 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
50. Copsey, Rob (December 11, 2019). "The UK's Official Top 100 biggest songs of the decade". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
51. "Christina Perri thanks Irish fans as "A Thousand Years" goes Gold". Christina Perri.
52. "ARIA Chart Watch #482". auspOp. July 21, 2018. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
53. "Canadian single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Music Canada.
54. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Christina Perri; 'A Thousand Years')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
55. "Irish single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Irish Recorded Music Association.
56. "Italian single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved May 25, 2016. Select "2016" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "A Thousand Years" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli online" under "Sezione".
57. "..:Certificaciones Mensuales 2015:." Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Facebook. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
58. "New Zealand single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Recorded Music NZ.
59. "British single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
60. "American single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 7, 2018. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
61. "American single certifications – Christina Perri – A Thousand Years Pt 2". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 27, 2015. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
62. "A Thousand Years - Single". iTunes Canada. Retrieved 2011-10-18.
63. "A Thousand Years - Single". iTunes Australia. Retrieved 2011-10-18.

External links

• Video on her official channel on YouTube