"Run Away with Me" is a song recorded by Canadian singer

Carly Rae Jepsen Carly Rae Jepsen (born November 21, 1985) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. After studying musical theatre for most of her school life and while in university, Jepsen garnered mainstream attention after placing third on the fifth season of ...

for her third studio album, ''

Emotion Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definition. ...

'' (2015). It was written by Jepsen,

Mattman & Robin Mattman & Robin is a Swedish songwriting and production duo composed of Mattias Per Larsson and Robin Lennart Fredriksson. They are published by Wolf Cousins, a publishing company administered by Warner Chappell Music. In 2016, they won a Grammy A ...

Oscar Holter Oscar Thomas Holter (born 26 February 1986) is a Swedish record producer and songwriter based in the United States. He is best known for his work with record producer and fellow Swede Max Martin and Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd on the ...

, Shellback, and

Noonie Bao Jonnali Mikaela Parmenius (born 9 August 1987), better known by the stage name Noonie Bao, is a Swedish singer, songwriter and record producer. She has written songs for artists such as Don Diablo, Ava Max, Katy Perry, Zara Larsson, Charli XCX, ...

and produced by Mattman & Robin and Shellback. The track premiered on Spanish radio station Hits FM on 17 June 2015 and was released as the album's second official single on 17 July 2015. "Run Away with Me" was accompanied by a

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

music video filmed by Jepsen's then-partner David Kalani Larkins in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

and

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 ...

, which also premiered in July 2015. The song was only a minor success in the charts, but received a very positive reception from music critics.

Composition

"Run Away with Me" is written in the key of

F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...

in time with a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 120 beats per minute. The song follows a

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...

of B–Dm7–Csus–G7sus, and Jepsen's vocals span from F₃ to D₅. The song features a prominent

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

in the introduction which later became an internet meme.

Critical reception

"Run Away with Me" received universal acclaim from music critics. ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' magazine referred to "Run Away with Me" as "the best pop song of 2015 yet", "an undeniable hit waiting in the wings for its moment", and a "big, bold, beautiful masterpiece". ''

Paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...

'' magazine hailed the song as "just as much the pop perfection that is '

I Really Like You "I Really Like You" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen for her third studio album, ''Emotion'' (2015). It was written by Jepsen, Jacob Kasher Hindlin, Peter Svensson, and Steve DaMar; and produced by Svensson. The song was r ...

'" and "the perfect anthemic summer jam". ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' welcomed "Run Away with Me" as "a marked improvement over I Really Like You'. ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' magazine wrote of the track, "'Run Away With Me' marries euphoric

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

dance-pop Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...

with a pressing nostalgia for your teenage years, a time when the littlest crushes felt like time bombs and a time Jepsen is really, really, really skilled at evoking. In that sense, it’s ' Teenage Dream 2.0', right down to a bridge so catchy she has to repeat it twice". ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' ranked "Run Away with Me" at number 49 on their year-end list of the 50 best songs of 2015. ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'' named "Run Away with Me" the 11th-best single released in 2015 on their annual year-end critics' poll,

Pazz & Jop Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abse ...

. ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' ranked it at number 36 on their 200 best songs of the decade list, saying that "fueled by a yearning saxophone riff and colossal drums, Jepsen gleefully repeats her heartfelt invitation until the rest of the world melts away. "Over the weekend, we could turn the world to gold," she murmurs with a quiet devotion, letting the image of two gilded lovers linger in the air."

Acclaimed Music Acclaimed Music is a website created by Henrik Franzon, a statistician from Stockholm, Sweden in September 2001. Franzon has statistically aggregated hundreds of published lists that rank songs and albums into aggregated rankings by year, deca ...

ranked it as the 7th best song of the year and the 460th best song of all time. ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

''s Rachel Seo named it Jepsen's best song in October 2022, writing that its "galloping beat and soaring chorus is the stuff of every

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can ...

swan song The swan song ( grc, κύκνειον ᾆσμα; la, carmen cygni) is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful so ...

for those whose '' bildungsromane'' were written, or re-written, during the

2010s File:2010s collage v21.png, From top left, clockwise: Anti-government protests called the Arab Spring arose in 2010–2011, and as a result, many governments were overthrown, including when Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi was Death of Muammar Gadd ...

], joining the array of tracks — like Lorde's 'Green Light (Lorde song), Green Light' or Taylor Swift's 'Style (Taylor Swift song), Style' — that have emerged as frontrunners of music written to express something profound about growing up and falling hard. 'Run Away With Me' feels the same played anywhere at any time of day: transcendent, timeless and completely given over to the feeling, with an intentional disregard of whether that feeling is love or its imitation."

Year-end lists

Decade-end lists

Commercial performance

"Run Away with Me" did not repeat the major commercial success of the previous single and only made a minor impact on the charts. It reached the top 30 in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Scotland, and briefly charted within the top 100 in the UK, Ireland, Canada and Australia.

Music video

The "Run Away with Me"

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 ...

was released on 17 July 2015 on Jepsen's

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

and

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 ...

channels. It was directed by her then-partner David Kalani Larkins and consists of guerrilla-style footage filmed on three different continents. Larkins accompanied Jepsen on tour, casually filming a personal footage of her, which later developed into creating a music video. The clip pictures the singer in the

Place de la République The Place de la République (known as the Place du Château d'Eau until 1879) is a square in Paris, located on the border between the 3rd, 10th and 11th arrondissements. The square has an area of .Warner, p. 250 Named after the First, Second a ...

Place Charles de Gaulle Place Charles de Gaulle (), historically known as the Place de l'Étoile (), is a large road junction in Paris, France, the meeting point of twelve straight avenues (hence its historic name, which translates as "Square of the Star") including t ...

and on the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed "'' ...

, in

Shibuya Crossing , or commonly known as Shibuya Crossing, is a popular scramble crossing in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It is located in front of the Shibuya Station Hachikō exit and stops vehicles in all directions to allow pedestrians to inundate the entire inter ...

and a

karaoke bar A is a type of karaoke establishment commonly found in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the United States and Canada. It originated in Japan, and is now popular worldwide, particularly in Asia. Karaoke boxes consist of multiple rooms contai ...

, and in

where she is seen running along the fountain in

Columbus Circle Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue, Broadway, Central Park South ( West 59th Street), and Central Park West, at the so ...

and pointing at the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

from a boat in

New York Bay New York Bay is the large tidal body of water in the New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary where the Hudson River, Raritan River, and Arthur Kill empty into the Atlantic Ocean between Sandy Hook and Rockaway Point. Geography New York Bay is usu ...

. The clip also sees Jepsen in hotel rooms, airports and on public city transport.

Live performances

On 1 May 2015, Jepsen performed "Run Away with Me" during a show in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China. She then performed the song on ''

The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' on 19 August 2015 and subsequently at ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...

'' on 21 August 2015, the release date of '' E•MO•TION'' in the United States. The track was performed as the opening song on Jepsen's 2015–2016

Gimmie Love Tour The Gimmie Love Tour was the second concert tour by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen. It was launched in support of her third studio album, ''Emotion (Carly Rae Jepsen album), Emotion'' (2015). The November 2015 dates were announced on 28 Septem ...

. In October 2015, Jepsen performed the song during season 11 of ''

Idols South Africa ''Idols'' is a television show on the South African television network Mzansi Magic, and previously on M-Net, based on the popular British show ''Pop Idol''. The show is a contest to determine the best young singer in South Africa. The general ...

'' at the

Voortrekker Monument The Voortrekker Monument is located just south of Pretoria in South Africa. The granite structure is located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854. It was designed by the a ...

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

Track listings

* Digital download (Remixes) # "Run Away with Me" (

ASTR ASTR is the solo project of American electronic R&B vocalist Zoe Silverman, originally formed with producer Adam Pallin. Their debut EP, ''Varsity'', was named the twentieth best album of 2014 by '' Spin''. Their second EP, ''Homecoming'', was re ...

Remix) – 5:33 # "Run Away with Me" (

Cyril Hahn Cyril (also Cyrillus or Cyryl) is a masculine given name. It is derived from the Greek name Κύριλλος (''Kýrillos''), meaning 'lordly, masterful', which in turn derives from Greek κυριος (''kýrios'') 'lord'. There are various varian ...

Remix) – 4:52 # "Run Away with Me" (

Y2K The year 2000 problem, also known as the Y2K problem, Y2K scare, millennium bug, Y2K bug, Y2K glitch, Y2K error, or simply Y2K refers to potential computer errors related to the formatting and storage of calendar data for dates in and after ...

Remix) – 4:28 # "Run Away with Me" (

Cardiknox Cardiknox was an American indie pop band. Formed in 2013, the duo consisted of Lonnie Angle (vocals) and Thomas Dutton (backup vocals and keyboard). The group's singles were reviewed by magazines and newspapers including ''Billboard'', MTV, '' The ...

Remix) – 4:21 # "Run Away with Me" (

Liam Keegan Liam is a short form of the Irish name Uilliam or the old Germanic name William. Etymology The original name was a merging of two Old German elements: ''willa'' ("will" or "resolution"); and ''helma'' ("helmet"). The juxtaposition of these elem ...

Remix) – 4:11 # "Run Away with Me" (Velvet Sunrise Remix) – 3:46 * Digital download (Remixes, Pt. 2) # "Run Away with Me" (

Patrick Stump Patrick Martin Stumph (born April 27, 1984), known professionally as Patrick Vaughn Stump, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Fall Out Boy, originally from Wilmette, I ...

Remix) – 4:10 # "Run Away with Me" (

Ayokay Alex O'Neill, better known under the stage name Ayokay, is an American record producer, producer and DJ from Grosse Pointe, Michigan.

Charts

Certifications

Release history

In popular culture

* This song was used in the tenth episode of the fourth season of ''

Mr. Robot ''Mr. Robot'' is an American drama thriller television series created by Sam Esmail for USA Network. It stars Rami Malek as Elliot Alderson, a cybersecurity engineer and hacker with social anxiety disorder, clinical depression and dissociati ...

'' entitled "410 Gone"; * Jepsen re-recorded the song in the fictional

Simlish Simlish is a fictional language featured in EA's ''Sim'' series of games. It debuted in ''SimCopter'' (1996), and has been especially prominent in ''The Sims'' franchise, as well as in its spinoff ''MySims'' series. Simlish can also be heard ...

language for '' The Sims 4: Get Together''; * The song was used as a lip-sync song on the fifth episode of

season three A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

of Canada’s Drag Race between contestants

Lady Boom Boom Lady Boom Boom is the stage name of Henri Delisle Langlois, a Canadian drag performer who competed on season 3 of ''Canada's Drag Race''. Education Lady Boom Boom is trained in design. Career In 2017, she participated in ''Ils de jour, el ...

and Kimmy Couture.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2015 singles 2015 songs 604 Records singles Schoolboy Records singles Interscope Records singles Carly Rae Jepsen songs Song recordings produced by Mattman & Robin Song recordings produced by Shellback (record producer) Songs written by Carly Rae Jepsen Songs written by Mattias Larsson Songs written by Noonie Bao Songs written by Oscar Holter Songs written by Robin Fredriksson Songs written by Shellback (record producer)