"Falling Down" is a single by English band

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...

from their 2007 album ''

Red Carpet Massacre ''Red Carpet Massacre'' is the twelfth studio album by English new wave band Duran Duran, released on 13 November 2007 by Epic Records. Most of the music on the final incarnation of the album was completed in late 2006 following the departure ...

'', which was sent to radio and made available to download from

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

USA on . It was recorded in two sessions in Blueprint Studios, Manchester and

Sarm Studios Sarm Studios is an independent recording studio in London. Originally founded in east London in 1973, the studio's original location was renamed Sarm East Studios in 1982 when Jill Sinclair and Trevor Horn purchased Basing Street Studios from Isl ...

, London. It is the only song on the album produced solely by

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...

and the band. All other songs are produced by Danja and Timbaland. According to the band's official website, the single wasn't released on CD in the USA, due to the decline of physical singles being released in the US over passing time. However, the single was still released on CD in several European countries on and an 8-track promo CD was also released featuring remixes by artists such as Sebastian Leger and T-empo. The single was the band's last to be released on

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

About the song

In 2021,

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

's conservatorship battle became front and center in the public eye, and many learned that while Spears was facing one of her most traumatic years in the press back in 2007,

was probing his ex's mental health issues in this song. Duran Duran confirmed "Falling Down" was about Spears in multiple interviews back in 2007 and 2008. In an interview in October 2007, main songwriter and keyboardist Nick Rhodes called "Falling Down" a satirical, social, pop-cultural commentary. Asked if

Kate Moss Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is a British model. Arriving at the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her to fas ...

served as inspiration, Nick Rhodes added: “She doesn’t appear in the video, but she and Lindsay and Britney and

Amy Amy is a female given name, sometimes short for Amanda, Amelia, Amélie, or Amita. In French, the name is spelled ''"Aimée"''. People A–E * Amy Acker (born 1976), American actress * Amy Vera Ackman, also known as Mother Giovanni (1886– ...

have all provided us with inspiration." Drummer

Roger Taylor Roger Taylor may refer to: *Roger Taylor (Queen drummer) (born 1949), drummer for Queen *Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) (born 1960), drummer for Duran Duran *Roger Taylor (author), author of epic fantasy Hawklan series *Roger Taylor (college pr ...

, confirmed that the song was loosely based on Spears. "I suppose it's loosely based on her, but not nlyon one celebrity – just celebrity culture in general," Roger Taylor said of the song and video while speaking with

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

Music video

The music video for "Falling Down" centres around models in rehab with the members of Duran Duran acting as doctors and therapists, wearing white suits and thick glasses, counselling a group of the models and passing round pills. The band has publicly stated that pop star

served as inspiration for the main character in the music video. Lead singer Simon Le Bon said that he hadn't spoken to Justin Timberlake about the video after its release, but assumed he would be pleased. "I haven’t spoken to him since the video has been made public," Le Bon said, "But he likes his pretty girls, so he probably would like it." He also commented on Spears's mental health issues which were also ongoing at the time. "I just wish she could accept help," Le Bon added. Apart from the MTV-friendly version, an "R-rated" version featuring topless models was also made (though this version has yet to appear). It was shot in Los Angeles and directed by

Anthony Mandler Anthony Mandler (born April 18, 1973) is an American film director, music video director, television commercial director and photographer. As a music video director, his most notable and frequent collaborator is Rihanna. The two have worked on s ...

who also did the video for

The Killers The Killers are an American rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingd ...

' "

When You Were Young "When You Were Young" is a song by American rock band the Killers. It was released on September 18, 2006, as the lead single from their second studio album, ''Sam's Town'' (2006). The song was written and produced by The Killers and co-produced b ...

". Models Allie Crandell and

Tatiana Kovylina Tatiana Kovylina (russian: Татьяна Ковылина; born 4 November 1981 in Kazan, Soviet Union) is a Russian model. She has appeared in advertisements for Ann Taylor, Calvin Klein Jeans, Cole Haan, and in 2002, she was on the cover of '' ...

starred in the video. The music video premiered on 16 October on

Yahoo! Music Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds of ...

Charts

In the UK, the single charted at No. 52, the second worst-performing single in Duran Duran's history after "

Someone Else Not Me "Someone Else Not Me" is the 30th single by Duran Duran, and the only single from the album ''Pop Trash''. It charted at number 26 in Italy and number 53 on the UK Singles Chart. About the song The song is a melancholy ballad, and the only son ...

". Contrarily, "Falling Down" was a surprise hit in Italy, where it peaked at No. 2.

Track listing

CD: Epic / 88697 19130 2 (UK)

#"Falling Down" – 5:42 #" (Reach Up for The) Sunrise (Live)" – 3:26

CD: Epic / (US promo)

#"Falling Down (Radio Edit)" – 3:40 #"Falling Down (Extended Version)" – 5:42

CD: Epic 8-track promo (UK)

# "Falling Down (Sebastian Leger Vocal Mix)" – 7:25 # "Falling Down (Sebastian Leger Dub)" – 6:14 # "Falling Down (T-empo Main Mix)" – 7:36 # "Falling Down (Freeks Main Mix)" – 7:12 # "Falling Down (Ashanti Boys Main Mix)" – 6:03 # "Falling Down (Freeks Instrumental)" – 7:12 # "Falling Down (Sebastian Leger Radio Mix)" – 3:48 # "Falling Down (Original Version)(Radio Edit)" – 3:40

CD: Epic 8-track promo (US)

# "Falling Down (Single Edit)" – 3:40 # "Falling Down (Album Version)" – 5:42 # "Falling Down (Ashanti Boys Main Mix)" – 6:03 # "Falling Down (Freeks Main Mix)" – 7:12 # "Falling Down (Sebastian Leger Vocal Mix)" – 3:48 # "Falling Down (Freeks Instrumental)" – 7:12 # "Falling Down (Sebastian Leger Dub)" – 6:14 # "Falling Down (Jeff Barringer Mix)" – 3:44

Additional personnel

*Justin Timberlake – producer, background vocals *Jean-Marie Horvat – mixer *Dom Brown – guitars

Footnotes

{{authority control 2007 singles Duran Duran songs Music videos directed by Anthony Mandler Songs written by Simon Le Bon Songs written by John Taylor (bass guitarist) Songs written by Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) Songs written by Andy Taylor (guitarist) Songs written by Nick Rhodes Songs written by Justin Timberlake 2007 songs Epic Records singles