"Back to Life" is a song by American singer
Hailee Steinfeld
Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Hailee Steinfeld, various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award ...
, released as a single from the soundtrack of the film ''
Bumblebee
A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related gener ...
'' on November 2, 2018.
Composition
The song has been called an "
electro-kissed anthem" with "shimmering production" and "loved-up lyrics", with Steinfeld singing "Our love's enough, transcending us through space and time. It's holding up. It keeps you and me intertwined." The chorus, which contains the line "'Cause I'm bringing you back to life", was called "earnest".
Promotion
Steinfeld talked about the song in a social media post from October 2018, saying that it would be the first time she has her own song in a film she stars in.
It was pointed out by Idolator's Mike Nied that this evidently does not count the songs she recorded for ''
Pitch Perfect 2
''Pitch Perfect 2'' is a 2015 American musical comedy film directed and produced by Elizabeth Banks (in her feature directorial debut) and written by Kay Cannon. It is a sequel to the 2012 film ''Pitch Perfect'' and the second installment in the ...
'' and ''
3''.
Steinfeld hosted and performed the song for the first time at the
2018 MTV Europe Music Awards
The 2018 MTV EMAs (also known as the MTV Europe Music Awards) was held at the Bizkaia Arena ( Bilbao Exhibition Centre) in Barakaldo, part of Greater Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain, on 4 November 2018. The ceremony's host was Hailee Steinfeld. Thi ...
, two days after the song's release.
Critical reception
Nicole Engelman 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 ...
'' said the track "pushes Steinfeld's soaring vocals to the forefront, layering them over an irresistible synth-heavy beat with all of the potentials of a dance-floor hit". Engelman also felt that the chorus has a "
Chainsmokers
The Chainsmokers are an American electronic DJ and production duo consisting of Alexander "Alex" Pall and Andrew "Drew" Taggart. They started out by releasing remixes of songs by indie artists. The EDM-pop duo achieved a breakthrough with thei ...
-esque beat drop and infectious hook".
Charts
References
{{authority control
2018 singles
2018 songs
Hailee Steinfeld songs
Songs written by Hailee Steinfeld
Songs written by Kennedi Lykken
Songs written by Michael Pollack (musician)
Songs from Transformers (film series)