Bravado (song)

"Bravado" is a song by New Zealand singer Lorde, originally included on her debut EP The Love Club EP. It was later featured on her Tennis Court EP and the extended version of her debut album Pure Heroine (2013). The song was written by Lorde and Joel Little and was produced by the latter. The track was released as a single on 6 September 2013, via iTunes Stores, in a number of European countries and India. Characterised as a chamber pop and electropop song, "Bravado" addresses Lorde's introverted nature and the need to feign confidence in the music industry. The single was well received by music critics and peaked at number five on the New Zealand Artist Singles chart.

"Bravado"
Promotional single by Lorde
from the album The Love Club EP
Released6 September 2013[1]
RecordedAt Golden Age Studios, Morningside, Auckland, New Zealand
Genre
Length3:41
LabelUniversal
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Joel Little

Background and composition

"Bravado" was written by Lorde (credited under her birth-name Ella Yelich-O'Connor) and Joel Little, while production for the song was handled by the latter.[2] The track was written and recorded in 2012 at Little's Golden Age Studios in Auckland.[3][4] Within a week, Lorde had finished recording "Bravado" alongside "Royals" and "Biting Down" during a school break.[5] Chris Schulz, from The New Zealand Herald, described "Bravado" as a chamber pop piece,[6] while The Village Voice's Brittany Spanos called it an electropop song.[7] Running for a duration of 3:41 (three minutes and 41 seconds),[2] the track is composed on electronic beats in the key of B minor and plays in common time at a moderate tempo of 88 beats per minute.[8][9] Lorde's vocal range on the song spans from F♯3 to D5.[8] The lyrics of "Bravado" address the idea "of false confidence delivering real confidence" and of Lorde stepping into a line of work where, she said, "everyone would be watching me, and everyone would want to talk to me and confront me".[10] Lorde cited the line "Me found bravery in my bravado" from Kanye West's song "Dark Fantasy" as an influence.[11] Simon Collins, of The West Australian, called "Bravado" a particularly prescient song, preempting Lorde's rise to prominence.[12] At a point of the song, Lorde confesses "to a battle between shyness and show-business aspirations":

I learned not to want
The quiet of the room with no one around to find me out
I want the applause, the approval, the things that make me go oh.<ref name="TheNYTimes">Pareles, Jon (2013-10-02). "She's 16, but Not Thinking of Sweet". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 2014-08-06.</ref>

Promotion and reception

On 6 September 2013, "Bravado" was released as a digital download single on iTunes Stores in India and various European countries.[1] Lorde held a concert at Le Poisson Rouge in New York, which was her first U.S. live show, and performed the song among other tracks from The Love Club EP.[13] On 3 October 2013, the singer held a concert at the Warsaw Venue in Brooklyn and performed the song among other tracks from the album.[14] In November 2013, Lorde performed the song on the Late Show with David Letterman to promote The Love Club EP and Pure Heroine. Throughout the show, she was only backed by a drummer and a keyboard player.[15] "Bravado" was additionally performed during Lorde's debut concert tour throughout 2013 and 2014.[16] In 2014, she performed the track at Silo Park, Auckland on 29 January 2014 as part of her make-up show for the 2014 Laneway Festival,[17] and at the Brazil edition of the Lollapalooza.[18]

"Bravado" was well received by music critics. Chris Schulz from The New Zealand Herald picked the song and "Million Dollar Bills" as the two best tracks from The Love Club EP.[6] Jason Lipshutz, writing for Billboard, described the track as "delightfully spooky".[13] In a review published in The Dominion Post, Tom Cardy compared the track's style to that of works by Florence Welch and Marina Diamandis, labelling it a "sharp, refreshing and smart" song.[19] The song peaked at number five on the New Zealand National Singles and number twenty-nine on the US Hot Rock Songs chart.[20][21]

Weekly charts
Chart (2013) Peak
position
New Zealand Artist Singles (Recorded Music NZ)[20] 5
scope="row"US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[21] 29

Release history
Country Date Format Label
Austria[22] 6 September 2013 Digital download Universal
Belgium[23]
Finland[24]
Germany[1]
India[25]
Luxembourg[26]
Netherlands[27]
Portugal[28]
Switzerland[29]
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gollark: PotatOS is FOSS, you know, so you should use that.
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gollark: I've said it before, you know.

References
  1. "Bravado – Single von Lorde" (in German). iTunes Store (DE). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  2. "The Love Club – Lorde". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2014-01-16.
  3. Thorne, Richard (October–November 2013). "Joel Little – Rings Of The Lorde (page 2)". NZ Musician. 17 (9): 2. Archived from the original on 1 June 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  4. Jenkin, Lydia (2013-09-19). "Joel Little: Doing the Lorde's work". The New Zealand Herald. APN News & Media. Retrieved 2013-12-30.
  5. Oliver, Huw (11 April 2014). "The secrets of Lorde's right-hand man, Joel Little". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  6. Schulz, Chris (2013-03-21). "Album review: Lorde, The Love Club EP". The New Zealand Herald. APN News & Media. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
  7. Spanos, Brittany (2013-10-01). "Lorde – Webster Hall". The Village Voice. Village Voice Media. Archived from the original on 2014-05-27. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  8. "Lorde "Bravado" Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. EMI Music Publishing. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
  9. Mason, Nick (11 April 2013). "Spinning Around". mX. News Corp Australia. p. 17.
  10. Katz, Candance (2013-05-29). "Our Interview with Lorde". Spotify. Spotify Ltd. Archived from the original on 2014-06-05. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  11. "Lorde: "I Get Paralyzingly Nervous"". MTV UK. MTV Networks. 2014-01-15. Retrieved 2014-02-01.
  12. Collins, Simon (7 July 2014). "She's so good it's sick". The West Australian. Seven West Media Limited. p. 2.
  13. Lipshutz, Jason (2013-08-07). "Lorde Hypnotizes At First U.S. Show: Live Review". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 2014-01-16.
  14. Kamer, Foster (2013-10-04). "Live Review: Lorde Brings Brooklyn More Than a Chart-Topper". Complex. Complex Media. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
  15. Grow, Kory (2013-11-13). "Lorde Is Blissful During Six-Song 'Live on Letterman' Set". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media. Retrieved 2014-01-09.
  16. "Lorde Concert Set List And Pictures". CBSLocal. CBS Radio. 6 March 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  17. Schulz, Chris (30 January 2014). "Concert review: Lorde, Silo Park, Auckland". The New Zealand Herald. APN News & Media. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  18. Mazumdar, Tarun (7 April 2014). "Lorde Conquers the Brazilian Stage, Rocks 40,000 fan at the Lollapalooza in Sao Paolo". International Business Times. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  19. Cardy, Tom (12 April 2013). "Today's album". The Dominion Post. Fairfax Media. p. 10.
  20. "Top 20 New Zealand Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
  21. "Lorde Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  22. "Bravado – Single von Lorde" (in German). iTunes Store (AT). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  23. "Bravado – Single by Lorde". iTunes Store (BE). Apple Inc. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  24. "Bravado – Single by Lorde". iTunes Store (FI). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  25. "Bravado – Single by Lorde". iTunes Store (IN). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  26. "Bravado – Single by Lorde". iTunes Store (LU). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  27. "Bravado – Single by Lorde" (in Dutch). iTunes Store (NL). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  28. "Bravado – Single by Lorde". iTunes Store (PT). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  29. "Bravado – Single von Lorde" (in German). iTunes Store (CH). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2014-01-12.

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