"Kamikaze" is a song by Danish singer-songwriter

MØ Karen Marie Aagaard Ørsted Andersen (; born 13 August 1988), known professionally as MØ (), is a Danish singer and songwriter. She signed a recording contract with Sony Music Entertainment in 2012, releasing her debut extended play, ''Bikini ...

produced for her second studio album, ''

Forever Neverland ''Forever Neverland'' is the second studio album by Danish singer and songwriter MØ. It was released on 19 October 2018 by Columbia Records. It is her first full-length release since her debut studio album ''No Mythologies to Follow'' (2014), and ...

'', but was only included on the Japanese release of the album. The song is another collaboration between MØ and

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...

Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. It originates from Kingston, Jamaica, and was founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after t ...

and was also co-produced by

Jr Blender Philip Meckseper, known professionally as Jr Blender (sometimes stylised as Jr. Blender or Junior Blender), is a German record producer and songwriter from Hamburg. He is notable for his collaborations with American dance music group Major Lazer. ...

and

Boaz van de Beatz Boaz de Jong (born December 15, 1988), better known by his stage name Boaz van de Beatz, is a Dutch-Israeli record producer and DJ. He is the founder of the Nouveau Riche record label, which includes popular Dutch artists Mr. Polska and Jebroer. ...

. "Kamikaze" was released through

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

and premiered on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

on 14 October 2015 at 7:30 PM BST at

Annie Mac Annie Mac (born 18 July 1978), is an Irish DJ, broadcaster and writer. She hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1, including BBC Switch and ''Future Sounds''. She also DJed in various locations, including hosting her AMP (Annie Mac Presents) ...

. It was released worldwide on 15 October. It has also reached the top 40 in Belgium and Denmark.

Background

The antecedent draft of "Kamikaze" was authored by MØ's confidante Mads Kristiansen in April 2015. MØ says she "fell in love" with the song instantly, and immediately set about making it her own. MØ then hooked up with American producer

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, working on versions of the song. In a press release MØ praised the creative energy and affection she contributed with Diplo and also analyzed working with him. The official audio later premiered on 14 October, on MØ's

Vevo Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, di ...

channel.

In popular culture

The song was sampled in the feature film ''

Nerve A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system. A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the e ...

'' and is included in the film's soundtrack. It also is featured in episode 1x17 of the American television series '' Quantico'' and in the movie '' Snatched''.

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Kamikaze" was filmed in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. It was also shot and directed by Truman & Cooper and produced by Amalia Rawlings and Corin Taylor. It premiered on MØ's Vevo channel on 27 October. ''

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 ...

'' magazine likened the video of "drag-racing motor bikes and riding around on what appears to be a chariot made of an old sofa and a tractor" to scenes from '' Mad Max: Fury Road''. The music video was included in

Pigeons & Planes Complex Networks is an American media and entertainment company for youth culture, based in New York City. It was founded as a bi-monthly magazine, ''Complex'', by fashion designer Marc (Ecko) Milecofsky. Complex Networks reports on popular a ...

' "Best Music Videos of the Month". The music video also gained 1 million views in its initial three days.

Reception

"Kamikaze" was premiered by

as "The Hottest Record of the Year". The song also came in at #60 on the annual Triple J Hottest 100 for 2015.

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamikaze (MO song) MØ songs 2015 songs Songs written by Diplo Song recordings produced by Diplo Songs written by MØ Music videos shot in Ukraine Songs written by Jr Blender Songs written by Boaz van de Beatz