"Karma" is a song by Welsh singer and songwriter

Marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

from her fourth studio album, '' Love + Fear'' (2019). Marina's former boyfriend Jack Patterson produced the song alongside Mark Ralph. It was written by Marina, Ben Berger, Ryan McMahon, Ryan Rabin, and Patterson. The song was released for

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in the United States as the album's fifth and final

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

on 29 August 2019 by

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

. Marina was inspired by the Me Too movement and the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse cases when writing the song, although she was not initially aware of the inspiration. It is a

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song with a tropical beat, which lyrically describes a woman confronting a man, insisting he will eventually receive his karma. "Karma" received mixed reviews from music critics. Some felt the song recalled Marina's earlier works, while other critics found it unmemorable. An acoustic version of the song was released on Marina's sixth EP, ''

Love + Fear (Acoustic) ''Love + Fear (Acoustic)'' is the seventh extended play by Welsh singer and songwriter Marina. It was released digitally on 13 September 2019 by Atlantic Records and contains five acoustic versions of songs that originally appeared on Marina' ...

'' (2019). A music video using the acoustic version was released in September 2019. Directed by Nikko LaMere, the video features Marina portraying a black-and-white

jester A jester, court jester, fool or joker was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch employed to entertain guests during the medieval and Renaissance eras. Jesters were also itinerant performers who entertained common folk at fairs and ...

who dances. The original version of the song was included on the setlist of her fourth concert tour, the Love + Fear Tour (2019). Marina also performed the song on ''

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'' in September 2019 as part of a promotional appearance in the US.

Background and release

For proceeding with a new era, Marina announced via Twitter in 2018 that she would be dropping "and the Diamonds" from her stage name in order to release music as just Marina (stylised in all caps). She explained that to '' Dazed'', "It took me well over a year to figure out that a lot of my identity was tied up in who I was as an artist... and there wasn't much left of who ''I'' was." After the announcement, Marina released " Baby" with Clean Bandit and Luis Fonsi, her first

under the new name. On 14 February 2019, she announced ''Love + Fear'', her fourth studio album and first as Marina. The track listing for the album was unveiled the same day, revealing "Karma" as the twelfth track on the album and the fourth on the ''Fear'' portion of it. Conceptually, ''Love + Fear'' is a

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

that is made up of two segments, with each one referring to psychologist

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (July 8, 1926 – August 24, 2004) was a Swiss-American psychiatrist, a pioneer in near-death studies, and author of the internationally best-selling book, '' On Death and Dying'' (1969), where she first discussed her the ...

' theory that humans are only capable of experiencing the aforementioned two emotions. "Karma" appears on the ''Fear'' portion of the album, which explores themes such as "being taken advantage of" and sexism. The song was produced by Marina's boyfriend Jack Patterson, of British group Clean Bandit, and Mark Ralph. It was written by Marina, Ben Berger, Ryan McMahon, Ryan Rabin, and Patterson. Marina performed her vocals for the track at Ralph's private home recording studios in London, nicknamed Club Ralph. "Karma" was released on 26 April 2019, as the twelfth track on Marina's fourth studio album ''Love + Fear''.References regarding the release of ''Love + Fear'' on Apple Music: * * * * * For its release as a single, the song was sent to music distributor Spotify in the United States for

on 29 August 2019, through

. The single release of the song uses the same cover artwork as ''Love + Fear''. An acoustic version of "Karma" was recorded by Marina and featured as the third track on her sixth EP ''

'', released on 13 September 2019. The version was produced by English musician Benjamin Fletcher.

Lyrics and composition

During an interview with Apple Music, Marina revealed the backstories behind each of the 16 tracks on ''Love + Fear''. Regarding "Karma", she stated that the song's lyrical content was subconsciously inspired by the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse cases and the consequential viral response that came with the Me Too movement. Marina said that the initial idea for the song's subject matter came from a discussion she previously had with her producers regarding various "music industry individuals that were falling from grace." Certain critical commentary discussed how Marina, in 2016, was among several pop artists that stood up in defense of American singer

Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on America ...

throughout a lengthy series of lawsuits and countersuits against record producer Dr. Luke; Marina had previously worked with him on her single " Primadonna" (2012) and other songs that are included on her second studio album, '' Electra Heart'' (2012). In her interview with Apple Music, Marina continued:

Since that point, there's really been an explosion of cases and experiences that followed the Harvey Weinstein situation. I didn't really think about that in relation to the song for a while, but then when we were reproducing it, it felt so strange. It was interesting going back to the songs, actually.

The lyrics of "Karma" see Marina confronting an enemy with a "told-you-so" attitude as she sings: "I'm like, 'Oh my god / I think it's karma.'"

Brittany Spanos Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...

from '' Rolling Stone'' felt like Marina was describing misogyny in the lyrics, which she noted as a common theme explored on the ''Fear'' portion of the album. Musically, "Karma" is a

song, with a " Mediterranean" tropical-style beat. Marina sings in

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous ed ...

, being accompanied by instruments such as the mandolin and ukulele. Stylistically, the original version of the song differed a great deal in comparison to the final edit; Marina compared the original to the catalogue of American band

NSYNC NSYNC (, ; also stylized as *NSYNC or 'N Sync) was an American boy band formed by Chris Kirkpatrick in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich. Their self-titled debut album was successfully released to European ...

and commented: "It was actually really sick. But, alas, it didn't suit the record!"

Critical reception

Imaan Jalali from ''LA Excites'' paid special attention to the song's lyrics, writing that they "reiterated Marina's lyrical assertiveness as one who is not to be reckoned with." Abigail Firth of '' The Line of Best Fit'' commented that the sound of ''Love + Fear'' is drastically different compared to her previous three albums, but admitted that her "signature Marina-isms" and "'oh my god!'s on 'Karma' mean she's not too far from the Marina we came to love a decade ago." Although Ben Niesen from ''Atwood Magazine'' called the song "too damnably infectious," he felt that its "menacing" tone fell flat in comparison to Marina's previous releases. The acoustic version of the song was reviewed by Riana Buchman from

WRBB WRBB (104.9 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a variety format, run by the students of Northeastern University. Licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it serves the Greater Boston area. The station is owned by Northeastern and trans ...

, who was less impressed by the song, stating that the new versions of "Karma" and " Superstar" sound like "drab copies of the originals" and ultimately ended up "clutter ng ''Love + Fear (Acoustic)''.

Promotion

A music video for the acoustic version of "Karma" was released to Marina's YouTube channel on 25 September 2019. The video is the final of three to be released for promoting ''Love + Fear (Acoustic)'' and was filmed during the last week of August 2019; it was preceded by the acoustic visuals for "Superstar" and "True". All three videos were directed by American photographer Nikko LaMere and produced by AJR Films. The music video depicts Marina as a black-and-white

that dances and wears an "asymmetrical jumpsuit with frilly cuffs and sparkly corset." Marina appeared as a musical guest for ''

'' on 4 September 2019, where she performed "Karma" in a similar wardrobe as seen in the acoustic version's music video. The performance featured her dancing while near a glowing, white orb. According to Lake Schatz from '' Consequence of Sound'', Marina's appearance on the show was to promote ''Love + Fear (Acoustic)'' in addition to the album and her upcoming tour dates for the Love + Fear Tour in the US. He found the performance to be exceptional, writing that "she took the stage exuding confidence and polish," and her "four-year hiatus dedicated to self-discovery appears to have paid off." "Karma" was included on the set list for Marina's Love + Fear Tour in 2019. During the North American leg of the tour, it was performed within a grouping of songs, including 2015 '' Froot'' outtake "I'm Not Hungry Anymore", her 2010 single " Oh No!", and ''Love + Fear'' track "No More Suckers". Jalali, reviewing Marina's show at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, called her rendition of "Karma" one of the main ''Love + Fear'' tracks of the night that "did not disappoint."

Credits and personnel

Song

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Love + Fear''. * Marina Diamandiswriter, vocals * Ben Bergerwriter * Ryan McMahonwriter * Jack Pattersonwriter, producer, mixing * Ryan Rabinwriter * Mark Ralphproducer, guitar, mandolin, mixing, ukulele * Tom A.D. Fullerengineer * Ross Fortuneassistant engineer * Dave Kutchmastering

Music video

Credits adapted from Marina's YouTube account. Production * AJR Filmsproduction company Personnel * Nikko LaMeredirector * Russell TandyDP * Derec Dunnexecutive producer * Katia Spivakovaediting * Emilio Marcelinogaffer * Ionel Diaconescukey grip * Dennis Haynesproduction assistant * Caleb Boylesproduction assistant

References

External links

* {{authority control 2019 singles 2019 songs Atlantic Records singles Songs with feminist themes Marina Diamandis songs Songs written by Ben Berger Songs written by Jack Patterson (Clean Bandit) Songs written by Marina Diamandis Songs written by Ryan McMahon (record producer) Songs written by Ryan Rabin