"Ceilings" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Lizzy McAlpine Elizabeth Catherine McAlpine, also known as Lizzy McAlpine (born September 21, 1999) is an American singer-songwriter. Early life and education Lizzy McAlpine grew up in Narberth, Pennsylvania, in the suburbs of Philadelphia. She has writte ...

. It appeared on her second studio album, '' Five Seconds Flat'', which was released on April 8, 2022. The folk-pop ballad, which has prominent strings in its instrumentation, describes the end of a night with McAlpine's partner that turns out to be a daydream about a relationship that already ended. "Ceilings" became McAlpine's breakthrough song after becoming popular on TikTok, where a trend of young women running through the rain and snow to the plot twist in the song's final verse soundtracked hundreds of thousands of videos. "Ceilings" peaked at number 54 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Ceilings" peaked within the top ten of the charts in Ireland and the United Kingdom. The song was later released to mainstream radio in the United States on March 14, 2023.

Background, music video, and TikTok success

"Ceilings" was included on

's second studio album '' Five Seconds Flat'', a folk-pop record released on April 8, 2022, on AWAL. A music video starring Michael Hanano, McAlpine's boyfriend at the time, was released on February 14, 2023. In early 2023, a sped-up version of the song's final verse became popular on TikTok, where it was used in over 200,000 videos, mostly of young women lip-syncing to the song while running through the rain or snow. Its online success led to the song being McAlpine's breakthrough song. She performed the song during her Tiny Desk Concert for

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in November 2022 and on '' The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' in March 2023.

Composition and reception

"Ceilings" is a ballad with prominently featured strings. The lyrics of "Ceilings" detail the end of a night with McAlpine's partner that she does not want to end and they end with a plot twist that the night was actually a daydream about a relationship that already ended, as McAlpine sings, "But it's not real/And you don't exist/And I can't recall the last time I was kissed" in the song's final verse. She based the song on a relationship she ended in college, as well as her going to London for three months to forget about it. "Ceilings" was called "doleful" and "a plot-twisty ballad of heart-stomping hallucinations" by Bobby Olivier of ''

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'', while Maggie Mancini of ''PhillyVoice'' similarly called it a "heartfelt" and "wistful, sometimes hallucinogenic ballad". '' Dork''s Neive McCarthy praised "Ceilings" as "a particular standout" from the songs on ''Five Seconds Flat''.

Chart performance

"Ceilings" debuted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on the chart dated March 4, 2023, becoming McAlpine's first song to enter the chart. It also peaked at number eight on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. In the United Kingdom, "Ceilings" peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart on March 24, 2023 – for the week ending March 30, 2023 – becoming her first top ten song in Britain.

Cover versions

On April 18, 2023,

Niall Horan Niall James Horan ( ; born 13 September 1993) is an Irish singer-songwriter. He rose to prominence as a member of the boy band One Direction, formed in 2010 on the singing competition ''The X Factor''. The group released five albums and went ...

performed a cover of the song whilst appearing on BBC Radio 1's ''Live Lounge''.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Lizzy McAlpine 2020s ballads 2022 songs AWAL singles Folk ballads Pop ballads Songs about heartache Lizzy McAlpine songs Songs about dreams