"Before You Go" is a song by Scottish singer-songwriter

Lewis Capaldi Lewis Marc Capaldi ( ; born 7 October 1996) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. He was nominated for the Critics' Choice Award at the 2019 Brit Awards. In March 2019, his single " Someone You Loved" topped the UK Singles Chart where ...

, released as a single from the extended edition of his debut studio album ''

Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent ''Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent'' is the debut studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi. It was released on 17 May 2019 through Vertigo Records in Europe and Capitol Records in the United States, and distributed globally ...

'' on 17 May 2019. The song was made available upon pre-order of the extended edition. The song was sent to US radio stations on 6 January 2020, as his second US single. It reached number one on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

in November 2019 and on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in January 2020, becoming Capaldi's second chart-topper in the UK and third in Ireland.

Background and composition

Capaldi revealed in a social media post that the song was "by far the most personal tune" he had ever written. According to ''

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 ...

'', the song "deals with the emotional aftermath of suicide", and was inspired by the

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

of Capaldi's aunt while Capaldi was a child. "Before You Go" is played in the

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 (ofte ...

of 112 BPM and key signature of E♭ major.

Critical reception

Clash Music ''Clash'' is a music and fashion magazine and website based in the United Kingdom. It is published four times a year by Music Republic Ltd, whose predecessor Clash Music Ltd went into liquidation. The magazine won the Best New Magazine award in ...

s Robin Murray called the track "trademark Capaldi", further describing it as "a rousing piece of acoustic songwriting with a driving vocal".

Music video

Released on 24 January 2020, and directed by Kyle Thrash, the video is of happy moments recalled by a group of friends as they pay tribute to a young woman (played by actress

Sasha Lane Sasha Bianca Lane (born September 29, 1995) is an American actress. She made her film debut in ''American Honey'' (2016), directed by Andrea Arnold, before portraying Hunter C-20 in the first season of the Disney+ television series ''Loki'', set ...

), whose suicide has shocked them, with clips of Lewis Capaldi playing his guitar and singing appearing occasionally. The video has gained over 331 million views as of June 2023.

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. *

– songwriting, vocals * Ben Kohn – songwriting, production, bass guitar * Pete Kelleher – songwriting, production, keyboards * Tom Bames – songwriting, production, drums * Phil Plested – songwriting, background vocals * Vern Asbury – guitar * Rory Dewar – Art Design * Robert Vosgien – master engineering *

Mark "Spike" Stent Mark "Spike" Stent (born 3 August 1965) is an English record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with many international artists including Madonna, Marshmello, U2, Beyoncé, Björk, Depeche Mode, Echo & The Bunnymen, Grimes, Ed Sheeran ...

– mixing * Chris Bishop – vocal engineering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Usage in media

Capaldi has performed the song for ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'', the

Swiss Music Awards The Swiss Music Awards (SMA) is Switzerland's largest award ceremony for music, and serves to promote the national music scene and showcase its cultural diversity. The event allows newcomers to introduce their music to a broader public, while also ...

American Music Awards The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Pro ...

Streamy Awards The YouTube Streamy Awards, also known as the Streamy Awards or Streamys, are presented annually by Dick Clark Productions and Tubefilter to recognize excellence in online video, including directing, acting, producing, and writing. The forma ...

, and ''

Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve ''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve'' (''NYRE'') is an annual New Year's Eve television special broadcast by ABC. The special broadcasts primarily from New York City's Times Square and prominently features coverage of its annual ball drop ev ...

''. American singer

Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...

performed the song during the finale of '' The Masked Singers third season. It was also sung by English singer

Charlie Simpson Charles Robert Simpson (born 7 June 1985) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is a member of multi- BRIT Award-winning rock band Busted and he is also the lead vocalist and the rhythm guitarist in the British post-hardcore band ...

during the finale of the UK version's fourth series.

References

{{authority control 2019 singles 2019 songs Capitol Records singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Lewis Capaldi songs Songs about suicide Songs based on actual events Songs written by Lewis Capaldi Songs written by Ben Kohn Songs written by Peter Kelleher (songwriter) Songs written by Tom Barnes (songwriter) Song recordings produced by TMS (production team) UK Singles Chart number-one singles Universal Music Group singles Vertigo Records singles Pop ballads