"Generation Love" is a song recorded by American singer and actress

Jennette McCurdy Jennette Michelle Faye McCurdy (born June 26, 1992) is an American writer, director, podcaster, singer and former actress. McCurdy's breakthrough role as Sam Puckett in the Nickelodeon sitcom '' iCarly'' (2007–2012) earned her various awards ...

from her self-titled debut album. Written by

Ross Copperman Ross Copperman (born October 1, 1982) is a Grammy-nominated American singer-songwriter and producer with 29 number one radio hits. After his experience as an artist in the UK, Copperman discovered his talent for writing and producing country mus ...

, Tom Douglas and

Heather Morgan Heather Morgan is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member and writer on '' The Dana Carvey Show'', writing and performing such notable skits as Jenny and First Ladies as Dogs, the latter being called "one of the two or three funni ...

and produced by

Jay DeMarcus Jay DeMarcus (born Stanley Wayne DeMarcus Jr.; on April 26, 1971) is an American bassist, vocalist, pianist, record producer and songwriter. From 1999 to 2021, he was a member of the country pop group Rascal Flatts. Early life DeMarcus was born ...

Rascal Flatts Rascal Flatts is an American country music band founded in 1999. The band members were Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background vocals). DeMarcus is LeVox's second cousi ...

, "Generation Love" was released digitally as a single on March 11, 2011, and was later serviced to country radio on April 25, 2011. The song was included on the ''

iCarly ''iCarly'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider, which originally aired on Nickelodeon from September 8, 2007, to November 23, 2012. The series tells the story of Carly Shay (Miranda Cosgrove), a teenager who creates and hosts ...

'' soundtrack album, '' iCarly: iSoundtrack II''. "Generation Love" has been praised by music critics and became McCurdy's best performing single on the ''

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 ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart.

Composition

"Generation Love" is a modern country song, featuring pedal steel guitar and melodic banjo, while also having pop influences. The song's female narrator laments on the modern generation, which is seen as selfish and caught up in mainly the technological world, but also have problems such as being children of divorce and victims of dysfunction. It is contrasted with the early generations of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

s and the post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

generation that performed feats such as landing on the moon. Cristen Maher of ''Taste of Country'' describes the song as, "slower in tempo and truly showcases McCurdy's vocals." Additionally, Maher adds, "As the melody of the song builds towards the chorus, a banjo joins the mix of twangy guitars and beating drums, giving the song a true country feel."

Promotion and performances

To promote the single, McCurdy headlined her own mall tour, Generation Love for St. Jude. McCurdy traveled to and performed at multiple different malls within the United States. All proceeds from the event went towards

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is a pediatric treatment and research facility located in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1962, it is a 501(c)(3) designated nonprofit medical corporation which focuses on children's catastrophic diseases, pa ...

Music video

The music video, which was directed by

Roman White Roman White is a music video and film director who has directed most of Carrie Underwood's videos. He has also directed music videos for Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Florida Georgia Line, Kelsea Ballerini, Cassadee Pope, Josh Groban, Easton Corbin ...

premiered on CMT around April 29, 2011. The video opens with McCurdy singing on the rooftop of a building with the ground littered with paper hearts. Throughout the video, it shows the younger generation with white balloons with a red heart on them, while others hold up signs of things they do to help the community. The younger generation passes the balloon on to the older generation, who eventually let them go and into the air. At the end of the video, the sky behind McCurdy is filled with balloons and she releases her own balloon into the sky.

Track listing

* Digital download # "Generation Love" (Single Version) – 3:37 * CD single # "Generation Love" (Single Version) – 3:37

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from ''

'' liner notes.''Jennette McCurdy'' (CD). Jennette McCurdy. EMI. 2012. B008723QPE. *

– vocals * Russel Terrell – background vocals * Tom Douglas – songwriter *

– songwriter *

– producer * Chris McHugh – drums * Mark Hill – bass * Ilya Toshinsky – acoustic guitar * Tom Bukovac – electric guitar * Charlie Judge – keyboard * Paul Franklin - steel guitar

Charts and performance

"Generation Love" debuted at number 57 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart for the week starting May 14, 2011.

Release history

References

{{authority control 2011 singles Jennette McCurdy songs Music videos directed by Roman White Capitol Records Nashville singles Country ballads Songs written by Tom Douglas (songwriter) Songs written by Ross Copperman Songs written by Heather Morgan (songwriter) 2011 songs 2010s ballads