"Stay with Me" is a song by English singer

Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...

from their debut studio album ''

In the Lonely Hour ''In the Lonely Hour'' is the debut album by English singer and songwriter Sam Smith. It was released in the United Kingdom on 26 May 2014 via Capitol UK and Method Records. In the United States, it was released on 17 June 2014 through Capitol ...

'' (2014). It was released in the United States on 14 April 2014 and in the United Kingdom on 18 May 2014. "Stay with Me" is a

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

-inspired

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

that details the protagonist pleading with his one-night stand not to leave him. The song was written by Smith, James Napier, and

William Phillips William Phillips may refer to: Entertainment * William Phillips (editor) (1907–2002), American editor and co-founder of ''Partisan Review'' * William T. Phillips (1863–1937), American author * William Phillips (director), Canadian film-make ...

, with

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the la ...

and

Jeff Lynne Jeffrey Lynne (born 30 December 1947) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder of the rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970. As a songwriter, he has cont ...

later receiving co-writer credits due to the song's noted melodic similarity to Petty's single " I Won't Back Down". The song has become Smith's most successful single to date, peaking at number one in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

(becoming Smith's third chart-topper there, second as a solo artist), topping the charts in Canada and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

, and reaching number two on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It has also reached top ten status in over twelve countries worldwide. At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony,

Darkchild Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won multiple Grammy Awards. Among hi ...

's version of "Stay with Me" won two

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

s for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Background

In an interview with '' NME'', Smith said that the song was written in a studio in Old Street with James Napier ( Jimmy Napes) and

(also known as "Tourist"). Phillips started playing with three chords on the piano, and Napier quickly provided a drum pattern, and according to Smith, "the song just flowed out of us so naturally," and the song was written in thirty to forty minutes. After finishing the song, Smith started to layer their vocals about twenty times, singing in different parts of the studio and harmonizing. The result sounded like a gospel choir, but all from Smith's own voice, and this demo was then used in the released song. According to Smith, "the song is about the moment in the morning after a one night stand, where the person you are with leaves your house, and you are left by yourself, and it's just a second, where you are just like: 'I wish, I wish'. You don't even love them, you don't really fancy them that much, it's just nice to have someone in the bed next to you." The song won the Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, and in their acceptance speech for winning the Record of the Year, Smith said that "I want to thank the man who this record is about who I fell in love with last year. Thank you so much for breaking my heart because you got me four Grammys." On 25 March 2014, the song was played for the first time on

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...

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 ...

show at 7.30 pm. On 29 March, they performed the song live on NBC's ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

'' in the U.S. On 16 May, they performed the song on ''

The Graham Norton Show ''The Graham Norton Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton ...

''. In June, they returned to the U.S. as part of their tour where they performed the song on ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. ...

'', at the Apollo Theater in New York with Mary J. Blige, and

David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman' ...

Agreement with Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne

In January 2015, it was revealed that a settlement had been reached with

's publishing company to add Petty and

as co-writers, and that they would receive a 12.5% songwriting credit. Petty's publisher contacted Smith's team after it noticed a likeness between "Stay with Me" and the melody of Petty's 1989 song " I Won't Back Down". Petty clarified that he did not believe Smith intentionally plagiarized him, saying "All my years of songwriting have shown me these things can happen. Most times, you catch it before it gets out the studio door, but in this case, it got by. Sam's people were very understanding of our predicament and we easily came to an agreement." According to Smith, he had never heard "I Won't Back Down" before he wrote "Stay with Me", but they acknowledged the similarity after listening to the song, and said that the likeness was "a complete coincidence". Petty and Lynne, however, were not eligible for a Grammy as the Recording Academy considered "Stay with Me" to have been interpolated from "I Won't Back Down" by Napier, Phillips and Smith; instead Petty and Lynne would be given certificates to honor their contribution to the work, as is usual for writers of sampled or interpolated work.

Composition

In music notation, "Stay with Me" is written in the key of

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

; an accidental-free key signature with chord progressions of Am⁷–F–C, that are persistent throughout the entire song. The song is composed in common (4/4) time signature, and played at 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 (ofte ...

of 84 beats per minute (bpm), all according to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Sony/ATV Music Publishing. "Stay with Me" was written by Smith, James Napier, William Phillips, with additional credits to Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne. According to Erine Keane of ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

'', "Stay with Me" combines a "contemporary drumbeat",

blue-eyed soul Blue-eyed soul (also called white soul) is rhythm and blues (R&B) and soul music performed by white artists. The term was coined in the mid-1960s, to describe white artists whose sound was similar to that of the predominantly-black Motown and Stax ...

singing, and a

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in poetry — the "chorus" of a song. Poetic fixed forms that feature refrains include the v ...

sung in a

style, while

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...

's Tom Breihan called it "a soft-focus piano-soul ballad".

Critical reception

"Stay with Me" received generally positive reviews from music critics. Amy Davidson from

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...

called the song an "emotional crescendo" and said the chorus was "slightly over-sentimental" and felt that their "soulful voice" made the singer left in "defeat by fleeting fling". She gave the song four out of five stars. Joe Gross from ''

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

'' gave the song a mixed review, awarding it three of five stars. Isabel Pearson of Nouse gave the song a positive review during her album review, calling the song a "euphoric, slow building love-song that's raw and undeniably one of the best tracks on this album." Sarah Milton of ''The Upcoming'' lauded the song, calling it "electrifying with its blunt honesty and exquisite gospel influence." In July 2014, ''

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 adverti ...

'' listed "Stay with Me" as one of the "10 Best Songs of 2014 (so far)" saying that the song is "a fragile ballad that finds its backbone when a gospel choir assists the British singer on the harrowing chorus." Variance Magazine named the song its 2014 Song of Summer. The song was placed at number twelve on ''Rolling Stone''s 50 Best Songs of 2014 list. In January 2015, "Stay with Me" was ranked at number 15 on ''

The 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 cr ...

''s annual year-end Pazz & Jop critics' poll.

Commercial performance

In the

it debuted at number one, making it Smith's third number one. The song became the eighth best-selling song of 2014 in the UK, and the seventh overall when streaming is included. On the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the song peaked at number two for two weeks, making it Smith's first top ten song in the US as a lead artist and their second-highest charting single after "

Unholy ''Profanum'' is the Latin word for "profane". The state of being profane, or "profanity," refers to a lack of respect for things that are held to be sacred, which implies anything inspiring or deserving of reverence, as well as behaviour show ...

" (2022). It was held off from the top spot by MAGIC!'s " Rude." As of the week of 2 May 2015, "Stay with Me" has spent 21 weeks in the top ten and 54 weeks on the Hot 100. The song was the tenth best-selling song of 2014 in the United States with 3.34 million copies sold in that year. As of June 2015, The song has sold 4.1 million copies in the US. In Canada, "Stay with Me" topped the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record ...

for seven consecutive weeks. In Australia, the song debuted at number 22 on the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

on the chart dated 5 May 2014 and later peaked at number five on the chart date 16 June 2014. The song also reached top 10 status in over twelve countries worldwide, becoming Smith's most successful single to date.

Music video

A music video to accompany the release of "Stay with Me" was first released onto YouTube on 27 March 2014 at a total length of three minutes and twenty-nine seconds. The video shows Smith coming out of a house and walking down a street in

De Beauvoir Town De Beauvoir Town is a neighbourhood in east London and is in the London Borough of Hackney, north of the City of London. The area was a part of the Hackney; the Ancient Parish and subsequent Metropolitan Borough that was incorporated into the ...

, London, sitting in a room performing the song, and performing the song in a church with a choir. It was directed by Jamie Thraves. "Stay with Me" received nominations at the

MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...

for Best Male Video and Artist to Watch. As of September 2019, the video has received over 1.0 billion views.

Cover versions

In June 2014, Ed Sheeran covered "Stay with Me" at

's Live Lounge. He explained his choice saying "It's my favourite song of the last year. I think it's an instant classic."

Florence and the Machine Florence and the Machine (stylised as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band that formed in London in 2007, consisting of lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, harpist Tom Monger, and ...

covered it at the Orange Warsaw Festival. In July, Vin Diesel sang it during an interview with Capital FM. In August,

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to ''Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempor ...

posted a video on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

in which he sings the song with lyric changes. Eventual winner Josh Kaufman covered the song for his top 12 performance on the sixth season of ''

The Voice US ''The Voice'' is an American singing reality competition television series broadcast on NBC. It premiered during the spring television cycle on April 26, 2011. Based on the original ''The Voice of Holland'' and part of ''The Voice'' franchise ...

''.

Reigan Derry Reigan Elisse Derry (born 19 September 1988), also known mononymously as Reigan, is an Australian singer and songwriter. Derry rose to fame after placing eleventh on the fourth season of ''Australian Idol'' in 2006. The following year, she becam ...

performed the song for "Top 10 Hits" themed week on the sixth series of ''

The X Factor Australia ''The X Factor'' is an Australian television reality music competition, based on the original UK series, to find new singing talent. The first season of the show premiered on Network Ten on 6 February 2005. Ten dropped ''The X Factor'' after ...

'', and her performance debuted at number 20 on the

. In September 2014, FKA twigs also covered it at BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. Also in September, Charli XCX covered it at Live 95.5's Bing Lounge. Luke James also covered the song, which appeared on his 2014 self-titled album.

Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of '' American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her de ...

covered the song at her free concert in honor of the new Microsoft store at the SouthPark Mall in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...

. Singer

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

performed it in November 2014 on her concert tour.

Romain Virgo Romain Virgo (born 24 January 1990) is a Jamaican singer, specializing in the lovers rock style of reggae music and past competitor of local music competition called Rising Stars. Biography Virgo hails from Stepney in Saint Ann Parish. At Aabu ...

did a reggae cover. In September 2017,

Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

covered "Stay with Me" at

's Live Lounge. In November 2017, US country singer

Coffey Anderson Coffey Anderson (born December 15, 1978) (sometimes using just his mononym Cofféy or Coffey) is an American country singer-songwriter and internet personality, originally from Bangs, Texas. He came to fame through his YouTube videos releasin ...

released it as part of his Sad Love Songs series accompanied by a music video directed by Terry W. The song is sampled in the track "Freak" from

Avicii Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first re ...

's posthumous album '' Tim'', which it was released on 6 June 2019. In 2018, American R&B group

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

covered the song in their 2018 album, "All The Time". English folk group Bear’s Den covered the song for the Sunday Sessions.

Live performances

*Smith debuted the song live as the musical guest on

on 29 March 2014. *Smith performed the song at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards on 24 August 2014 at The Forum in

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

. *US R&B artist Mary J. Blige performed alongside Smith in a live version of the song also in Los Angeles at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Blige provided her vocals in the second verse in place of Smith. The performance is on the artist'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, ...

channel.

Media usage

The song is featured in the television series '' Mistresses,

Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce ''Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce'' (also known as ''Girlfriends' Guide to Freedom'' in season 3, ''Girlfriends' Guide to Bossing Up'' in season 4, and ''Girlfriends' Guide to Ever After'' in season 5) is an American comedy-drama television series ...

,'' '' Bad Education,'' and '' The Mindy Project.'' Actor

Marlon Wayans Marlon Lamont Wayans (born July 23, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. Wayans began his career portraying a pedestrian in '' I'm Gonna Git You Sucka'' (1988). He went on to regularly collaborate with his brother Shawn W ...

lip-synced this song on Spike's ''

Lip Sync Battle ''Lip Sync Battle'' is an American musical reality competition television series that premiered on April 2, 2015, on the American cable network Spike, later known as Paramount Network. The show is based on an idea by Stephen Merchant and Joh ...

''. The song is played in the emotional scene where

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

(

Adelaide Kane Adelaide Victoria Kane (born 9 August 1990) is an Australian actress and model. She first gained recognition for her roles as Lolly Allen in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' and Tenaya 7 (later Tenaya 15) in the children's series '' Power Rangers R ...

) and a dying

Francis II of France Francis II (french: François II; 19 January 1544 – 5 December 1560) was King of France from 1559 to 1560. He was also King consort of Scotland as a result of his marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots, from 1558 until his death in 1560. He ...

(

Toby Regbo Toby Finn Regbo (born 18 October 1991) is an English actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his role as young Nemo Nobody in the science fiction drama '' Mr. Nobody'', as Francis II of France on The CW series ''R ...

) dance together in the television series ''

Reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., Saudi Arabia, Belgium, Andorra), of a people (e.g., the Franks, the Zulus) or of a spiritual community (e.g., Catholicism, Tibetan Buddhism ...

''. In the 2016 animated film ''

Sing Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

,'' Johnny (voiced by Taron Egerton) sings this song as his audition for the singing competition. The song is also used as the background music for the Inspiron 17 5000 commercial, with

Liev Schreiber Isaac Liev Schreiber (; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and narrator. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s after appearing in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywood ...

and

Chris Pratt Christopher Michael Pratt (born June 21, 1979) is an American actor. He rose to prominence for playing Andy Dwyer in the NBC sitcom '' Parks and Recreation'' (2009–2015). He also appeared in The WB drama series '' Everwood'' (2002–2006) ...

Formats and track listings

*;CD single #"Stay with Me" – 2:52 #"Stay with Me" (Radio Mix) – 2:53 *;Digital download (Darkchild Version) #"Stay with Me" (

Version) featuring Mary J. Blige – 2:53 #"Stay with Me" (Darkchild Version) – 2:54 *;Digital download (EP) #"Stay with Me"(Soul Clap Mix) – 5:02 #"Stay with Me" (Darkchild Version) – 2:54 #"Stay with Me" (

Shy FX Andre Williams, better known as Shy FX, is a British DJ and producer from London. He specialises in drum and bass and jungle music. Biography Shy FX's debut record was "Jungle Love", released in 1992 on the Permission to Dance label. Soon after ...

Remix) – 3:32 #"Stay with Me" (Wilfred Giroux Remix) – 4:39 *; Rainer + Grimm Remix single #"Stay with Me" (Rainer + Grimm Remix) – 3:34

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

, -

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2013 songs 2014 singles Sam Smith (singer) songs Pop ballads 2010s ballads Soul ballads Capitol Records singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles Number-one singles in Israel Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in Poland Number-one singles in Scotland Contemporary R&B ballads South African Airplay Chart number-one singles Songs involved in plagiarism controversies Grammy Award for Record of the Year Grammy Award for Song of the Year Songs written by Jimmy Napes Songs written by Sam Smith (singer) Songs written by Tom Petty Songs written by Jeff Lynne Songs about casual sex Songs written by Tourist (musician)