"A Lonely Night" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his third studio album '' Starboy'' (2016). It was written by the Weeknd, Peter Svensson,

Savan Kotecha Savan Harish Kotecha is an American songwriter and record producer from Austin, Texas. Kotecha is of Indian (Gujarati) descent. He was also the executive music producer of the 2020 film '' Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga'', for ...

Belly Belly may refer to: Anatomy * The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach ** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking ** Belly dance * The fleshy, cent ...

, DaHeala, and produced by

Ali Payami Ali Payami is an Iranian-Swedish record producer, songwriter, and DJ. Payami's first number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 was The Weeknd's single "Can't Feel My Face". In 2016, he won a Grammy for Album of the Year for his contributions on ...

and Max Martin. The song was the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit.

Composition

"A Lonely Night" is a

post-disco Post-disco (also called boogie, synth-funk, or electro-funk) is a term to describe an aftermath in popular music history circa 1979–1985, imprecisely beginning with an unprecedented backlash against disco music in the United States, leading to c ...

inspired electro-funk song with a prominent

staccato Staccato (; Italian for "detached") is a form of musical articulation. In modern notation, it signifies a note of shortened duration, separated from the note that may follow by silence. It has been described by theorists and has appeared in music ...

bassline and a drum beat reminiscent of that used on

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

's "

Billie Jean "Billie Jean" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson, released by Epic Records on January 2, 1983, as the second single from his sixth studio album, '' Thriller'' (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson and produced by Jackson and ...

". It is composed in the key of G minor. Lyrically, the song is a warning against a woman getting too attached in a relationship. Where he states "There’s nothing between us". Making connections to the album's reoccurring theme of teetering on the verge of greatness but being held back by loneliness and the need for a relationship.

Critical reception

The song was well received by music critics, with many complimenting the song's catchiness, production and the Weeknd's throwback sound inspired by Michael Jackson. Kirsten Spruch from ''baeblemusic.com'' named it "Song of the Day" on November 29, 2016, saying that "The bubbly synth-basses and catchy chorus make for a song you can't not dance to."

Chart performance

Like the rest of the tracks from ''Starboy,'' "A Lonely Night" charted on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching number 69. The song also charted and peaked at number 40 on the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...

. Despite not being released as a single, the song managed to chart within the Canadian Hot AC Airplay chart, peaking at number 45 and charting for three weeks.

Copyright infringement lawsuit

In 2019, three British songwriters: Williams "Billy" Smith, Brian Clover and Scott McCulloch sued the Weeknd and

for copyright infringement. They claimed that the 2016 ''Starboy'' track was a blatant copy of their 2004 song "I Need to Love". The songwriters demanded an unspecified amount of damages, alongside $150,000 per infringement and forensic accounting to figure out how much they felt they were owed. During the trial, the Weeknd was represented by UK law firm Russels. The copyright case was later won by the Weeknd after a ruling by the Central District Court of California. The ''Smith, Clover, McCulloch v. The Weeknd'' case was the second infringement lawsuit against a track from ''Starboy''.

Charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lonely Night 2016 songs The Weeknd songs Songs written by Doc McKinney Songs written by Roland Orzabal Songs written by the Weeknd Songs written by Cirkut Songs written by DaHeala Songs involved in royalties controversies Electro songs