"Attention" is a song recorded and produced by American singer-songwriter

Charlie Puth Charles Otto Puth Jr. (; born December 2, 1991) is an American singer and songwriter. His initial exposure came through the viral success of his song videos uploaded to YouTube. Puth initially signed with the record label eleveneleven after pe ...

for his second studio album ''

Voicenotes ''Voicenotes'' is the second studio album by American singer Charlie Puth. Almost entirely produced by Puth himself, the album was released by Artist Partner Group and Atlantic Records on May 11, 2018. Five singles have been released from the alb ...

'' (2018). It was written by Puth and Jacob Kasher. A midtempo

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

track with elements of

1980s File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 420px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, ''Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the ...

soft-

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

music, the song finds Puth singing about how he realizes his partner was "just want ngattention" from him instead of loving him. It was released digitally through

Artist Partner Group Artist Partner Group, Inc. (APG) is an American record label and music publishing company founded by Mike Caren, who is also the CEO. The label's parent company does publishing under the name Artist Publishing Group. History Artist Partner Grou ...

and

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

on April 21, 2017, and later serviced to the radio on May 2, serving as the album's

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

. An accompanying music video was released on April 24, 2017, featuring Puth brooding at the club while scoping out his former partner, later returning home and finding the partner again at his apartment. Upon its release, "Attention" received widely positive reviews from music critics for its "slick" and "groove-injected" production, further applauding the track as a more refined and mature and polished musical representation for Puth, comparing to his previous releases. Commercially, the song was an international success and became one of Puth's signature songs, reaching the top-ten in over twenty countries, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lebanon, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, where it peaked at number five for three non-consecutive weeks. By this, the song became his highest and longest charting entry as a solo artist on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart to date, as well as his third single to receive a 4× platinum certification from the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA), for achieving over 4 million certified units in the States. To promote the song, Puth had his first live performance for "Attention" on ''

The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...

'' on May 10, 2017, followed by performances on several shows, such as ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...

,'' and ''

The Late Late Show with James Corden ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'' (also known as ''Late Late'') is an American late-night talk show on CBS. It is the fourth and current iteration of '' The Late Late Show''. Airing in the U.S. from Monday to Friday nights at 12:37:28am ...

.'' He later performed the song on his third headlining concert tour, titled

Voicenotes Tour The Voicenotes Tour was the third concert tour by American singer Charlie Puth, in support of his second studio album ''Voicenotes'' (2018). The tour began in Toronto, Canada at the Budweiser Stage on July 11, 2018, and concluded in Tokyo, Japan ...

, throughout 2018.

Background and release

The original idea of "Attention" began to develop in 2016 when Puth started to record bits of the song while he was on tour in Japan. Puth premiered the song in an "immersive music exhibit" in Los Angeles called "The Attention Room" on April 19. The pop-up installation features an LED "infinity tunnel" and is designed to replicate the brain's reaction to receiving attention. Two days later, "Attention" was officially released as the lead single of Puth's second studio album.

Composition

"Attention" is a midtempo

song that features elements of '80s soft-

and

. He also utilized the technique of Anti-Drop, where the chorus is minimalistic and hollow. Throughout the song, the singer realizes that his partner only wants to be around him for attention and other ulterior motives instead of loving him for who he is. It is performed in the key of E♭ minor with a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 100 beats per minute. Puth's vocal span from E♭3 to B♭4.

Critical reception

Writing for ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...

'', Mike Wass suggested that "Attention" is a "Song of Summer contender". He added that Charlie "is still the boy next door, just a little more jaded and a lot more willing to speak his mind." Praising the song's production, he said that "That boldness also comes through on the production, which Charlie handled himself, chugging along with chunky bass and faint traces of disco." Lars Brandle of ''

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 advertise ...

'' described it as "polished" and "groove-injected."

Music video

The official music video was released on April 24, 2017, on YouTube. It was filmed in Hollywood Hills and directed by

Emil Nava Emil William Capper Nava (born 29 March 1985) is a British music video director. After leaving school at 16, Emil started his career as a chef. He shot to fame after directing Jessie J's song " Do It Like A Dude". He has since directed over 1 ...

. Cameras capture Puth brooding at the club while scoping out a blond girl, played by

Samara Weaving Samara Weaving (born 23 February 1992) is an Australian actress and model. She began her career in her home country, playing Kirsten Mulroney on the drama series '' Out of the Blue'' (2008). She came to prominence with her portrayal of Indi Wa ...

. Throughout the song, he realizes that she only wants to be around him for attention and other ulterior motives instead of loving him for who he is. The music video has over 1.3 billion views on YouTube as of October 2021.

Promotion

The song has been used on its first day of release in a popular Snapchat filter. Puth performed "Attention" live for the first time on ''

'' on May 10, 2017. He also performed it on ''

'' on May 18, 2017. He later performed the song on ''

'' on the October 10, 2017 episode, then on ''

'' on October 11, 2017.

Chart performance

"Attention" has peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it Puth's third top ten single, his highest-charting as a lead artist, and his first top 5 hit on the chart since "

See You Again "See You Again" is a song by American rapper and singer Wiz Khalifa featuring fellow American singer Charlie Puth. It was commissioned for the soundtrack of the 2015 film ''Furious 7'' as a tribute to actor Paul Walker, who died in a single-ve ...

". He also led the Radio Songs all-format airplay chart for four weeks. On ''Billboard's'' Dance/Mix Show Airplay, "Attention" gave Puth his first number-one on this chart as a solo artist in its September 2, 2017 issue, eclipsing "See You Again," which peaked at number 3 on this chart in 2015.

Track listing

*Digital download #"Attention" – 3:31 *Digital download – Remix #"Attention" (Remix) featuring

KYLE Kyle or Kyles may refer to: Places Canada * Kyle, Saskatchewan, Canada Ireland * Kyle, County Laois * Kyle, County Wexford Scotland * Kyle, Ayrshire, area of Scotland which stretched across parts of modern-day East Ayrshire and South Ayrshir ...

– 3:38 *Digital download – Acoustic #"Attention" (Acoustic) – 3:26 *Digital download –

Bingo Players Bingo Players is a Dutch dance and electro house musical project fronted by DJ and record producer Maarten Hoogstraten (). Bingo Players was originally a duo, which included Paul Bäumer, who died from cancer in 2013. After the death of Bäumer, H ...

remix #"Attention" (Bingo Players remix) – 2:24 *Digital download –

Oliver Heldens Olivier J. L. Heldens (born 1 February 1995) is a Dutch DJ and electronic music producer from Rotterdam. He is regarded as a pioneer of the future house genre, propelling it to international attention and scoring numerous chart successes, includ ...

remix #"Attention" (Oliver Heldens remix) – 3:22 *Digital download – Lash remix #"Attention" (Lash remix) – 2:55 *Digital download – HUGEL remix #"Attention" (HUGEL remix) – 4:36 *Digital download –

David Guetta Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...

remix #"Attention" (David Guetta Remix) – 4:41 *''Spotify Singles'' #"Attention" – 3:42 #"

I Don't Wanna Know "I Don't Wanna Know" is a song by American R&B artist Mario Winans featuring rapper P. Diddy and re-recorded background vocals by Enya. The song is based on a sample of the Fugees' song " Ready or Not", which in turn samples the synthesizer riff ...

" – 3:35 * Remix EP "The Unreal Remixes" # "Attention" (Marie Wilhelmine Anders Remix)7:27 # "Attention" (Einmeier Remix)4:27 # "Attention" (Pyrococcus Remix)8:10

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{authority control 2017 singles 2017 songs Charlie Puth songs Songs written by Charlie Puth Songs written by Jacob Kasher Atlantic Records singles Number-one singles in Israel American pop rock songs Number-one singles in Russia