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"Live While We're Young" is a song by English-Irish
boy band A boy band is a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their Teenage, teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Many boy bands ...
One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, were an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group consisted of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik (until his departure in 2015), Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. The group sold o ...
, released as the
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
from their second studio album, '' Take Me Home'' (2012). Written by Savan Kotecha and its producers, Rami Yacoub and Carl Falk, the number was released by Syco Records on 28 September 2012. Falk, Kotecha, and Yacoub had collaboratively helmed One Direction's previous hits, " What Makes You Beautiful" and " One Thing". The track is an uptempo, upbeat
bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, th ...
song which features rock undertones, vocal harmonies, hand claps, prominent
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
riffs, and repetitive
synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
s. The chorus of the song is predominantly featured alongside the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
and is backed by wordless chants. Its opening guitar riff bears similarities with
the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...
's 1982 single, " Should I Stay or Should I Go". The track received mostly positive reviews from critics, who centred on its omnipresence and jubilant nature. The only negative feedback the song got was centered on the lyrics, which were interpreted as a thinly veiled euphemism for
sexual intercourse Sexual intercourse (also coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion of the Erection, erect male Human penis, penis inside the female vagina and followed by Pelvic thrust, thrusting motions for sexual pleasure ...
. A commercial success, the song became a top ten hit in fifteen countries, while reaching the top of the charts in New Zealand and Ireland. In the United States, "Live While We're Young" debuted at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, marking the second-highest bow among all UK acts, outpaced only by
Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...
's number one arrival with " Candle in the Wind 1997". Following an unauthorized
internet leak An internet leak is the unauthorized release of information over the internet. Various types of information and data can be, and have been, "leaked" to the Internet, the most common being personal information, computer software and source code, a ...
, the accompanying
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
was officially released on 20 September 2012, four days earlier than the intended release date. Directed by Vaughan Arnell, the clip, which has a camping festival theme, was generally well received by critics, who commended its carefree nature. Upon release, it broke the
Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...
record for having the most views in a 24-hour period with 8.24 million, besting the previous record which had been set by
Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...
's " Boyfriend" (8.00 million). Bieber subsequently regained the record with his music video for " Beauty and a Beat" (10.6 million). One Direction performed "Live While We're Young" on televised programs and during their two major concert tours: Take Me Home Tour (2013) and Where We Are Tour (2014). The track was featured in a
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
television commercial for the United States and was performed on an episode of ''Glee''. This song is the first track on '' Now 45''.


Background and release

"Live While We're Young" was written by Rami Yacoub, Carl Falk, and Savan Kotecha, and was produced by Yacoub and Falk. The trio had collaboratively helmed One Direction's previous hits, " What Makes You Beautiful" and " One Thing". In early 2012, the group confirmed a follow-up release for their debut album, '' Up All Night'' (2011), was in development. "In the summer, we’re going to get back and start a new record. We want to bring out a record nearly every year, every year and a half," member Niall Horan said, revealing they were arranging "meetings and stuff with different writers and producers." The band began recording the album in May 2012, in
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
,
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, at Kinglet Studios—"Live While We're Young" is a result of those recording sessions. In June 2012, Horan spoke to
MTV News MTV News was the news production division of MTV. The service was available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network and an online news team. In 2016, MTV refreshed the MTV News brand to compete with the likes of BuzzFeed and ...
, elaborating that the lead single would probably be released in September 2012. The band confirmed the single by uploading a video to
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
on 23 August 2012. Globally, the song was made available for pre-order at 24:00 GMT on 24 August, through the iTunes Store, while excluding, Canada, Japan, and the United States. The artwork was revealed on 14 September. Jocelyn Vena of
MTV News MTV News was the news production division of MTV. The service was available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network and an online news team. In 2016, MTV refreshed the MTV News brand to compete with the likes of BuzzFeed and ...
described it as portraying "the fivesome enjoying the outdoors during a camping trip, goofing off outside a tent." On 28 September,
Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
released it digitally in Australia, New Zealand, and most of Europe. It impacted the United Kingdom on 30 September, while in the United States it was released on 1 October. Due to a processing error, the US iTunes Store was selling the track for 99 cents – instead of the general $1.29. Label sources indicated the initial price was a mistake, but could not be corrected until midday 1 October. By the afternoon, the price had changed from 99 cents to $1.29.


Composition and lyrics

"Live While We're Young" is an uptempo, upbeat
bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, th ...
song which features rock undertones, vocal harmonies, hand claps, prominent
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
riffs, and repetitive
synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
s, reminiscent of the musical structures of their debut album. The opening guitar riff has been noted as similar to that of
the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...
song " Should I Stay or Should I Go" (1982). According to
Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971) is an English journalist. He is the head Rock music, rock and pop music critic for ''The Guardian'', and a regular contributor for ''GQ''. In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written ...
of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', the guitar is played thrice between the riff with the plectrum stroking the strings, while it is pressed. One note in the chord is changed, which Petridis surmised was probably to avoid paying any royalty to the Clash. Sam Lansky of Idolator noted that the song is musically similar to their breakthrough hit "What Makes You Beautiful". In contrast to One Direction's previous singles, the lead vocals are predominantly sung by Zayn Malik. According to the digital
sheet music Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chords of a song or instrumental musical piece. Like its analogs – printed Book, books or Pamphlet, pamphlets ...
published at Musicnotes.com by
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Sony Music Publishing LLC (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is an American music publisher. Responsible for publishing the largest quantity of music, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021, it is part of Sony ...
, One Direction's
vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of stud ...
in the song span from the note of D4 to A5. Written in the key of
D major D major is a major scale based on D (musical note), D, consisting of the pitches D, E (musical note), E, F♯ (musical note), F, G (musical note), G, A (musical note), A, B (musical note), B, and C♯ (musical note), C. Its key signature has two S ...
, the song is set in
common time A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates the ...
with a fast-paced
tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
of 126
beats per minute Beat, beats, or beating may refer to: Common uses * Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact * Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact * Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of in ...
. The song follows a basic sequence of D–G–D–G–D–A as its
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...
. The chorus of the song is predominantly featured alongside the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
, is backed by wordless chants, and encompasses the lines: "Let’s go crazy, crazy, crazy till we see the sun/ I know we only met but let’s pretend it’s love / And never, never, never stop for anyone/ Tonight let’s get some, and live while we’re young." Several critics commonly concurred that the song's lyrics interpret a thinly veiled
euphemism A euphemism ( ) is when an expression that could offend or imply something unpleasant is replaced with one that is agreeable or inoffensive. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the u ...
for
sexual intercourse Sexual intercourse (also coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion of the Erection, erect male Human penis, penis inside the female vagina and followed by Pelvic thrust, thrusting motions for sexual pleasure ...
. Kotecha quipped in a September 2012 interview with Sugarscape:
"The whole idea is that you have that nostalgic night out, so people who are older can listen to it too. None of us are naive enough not to know what kids do. It’s important not to patronise the youth of today, we’re not gonna be writing about 'oh let’s just hold hands for a while' you know? They need their music to connect. A lot of songs are about sex and you have to be realistic about it."


Critical response

Robert Copsey of
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 initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...
gave "Live While We're Young" four out of five stars and wrote, "it's little different from what we've heard before – but when you're the world's biggest boyband, it's no bad thing." Mikael Wood of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' summarised it as a "characteristically peppy piece of high-gloss party pop." Lansky praised its effectiveness and thought it was "perfectly tailored to top the charts." Andrew Unterberger of Popdust acknowledged that "the song is smart to swipe the guitar-only opening pattern from The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"—akin to "What Makes You Beautiful" lifting the " Summer Nights" beginning—calling on pop history to get you excited for the song before you even really realise why." Unterberger further highlighted the small lyrical plays for conveying "an incredible amount of urgency and fun without much clunky verbage , making singing along something of an inevitability." A writer for ''
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'' asserted that the song delivers for fans of their debut album: "a poppy, energetic, happy-go-lucky track." Sylvie Lesas of ''Evigshed Magazine'' gave it a rating of five out of five stars, called it "upbeat, fun and very fresh", and proclaimed that "radios are going to love it." Chris Younie of 4Music called it "insanely catchy", lauding its production for combining a "simple" guitar riff with an "anthemic feel-good chorus". Alexandra Capotorto of PopCrush rated it four stars out of five, deeming it memorable and "irresistible" for any demographic. Vena opined that the "bit cheeky" song perfectly embodies a "joie de vivre message."
MSN Music ''MSN Music'' was a part of MSN's web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. The website also served as a digital music store from 2004 to 2008. History ...
's Tina Hart concluded, "It's fun, pure unadulterated pop and I like it." Writing for ''
The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, and is the larg ...
'', Leah Collins quipped that even though the song lifts its main riff from a Clash song, "this tune is as yummy and bubble-gummy as anything" on One Direction's debut studio album ''Up All Night'' (2011). ''
Newsday ''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI" ...
'' Glenn Gamboa acknowledged that the song is even more omnipresent than the band's previous hits combined. In a detailed review, HitFix's Melina Newman denounced its lyrical content: "Even though they never are so blatant about it that booty call subtext can't go right over their tween audience's head, there's no mistaking lines like "if we get together, don’t let the pictures ever leave your phone" for anyone who's 13 or up. The lyrics are unwieldy and uncouth. That's what happens when you're not a boy, but not yet a man: One Direction can't go straight from the G-rated sweetness of "What Makes You Beautiful" to something akin to
Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican label Fonovisa where he released three Spanish albums ''Enrique Iglesias (album), Enrique ...
's " Tonight, I’m F****** You," so instead they’re stuck with this in between clumsiness that the not-so-little girls will understand." Grady Smith of ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' characterised it as "not-so-innocent" and a "party jam". Jason Lipshutz of ''
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 advertis ...
'' felt that its sexual suggestive lyricism "arrives too soon after the more accomplished puppy-love odes of previous hits "What Makes You Beautiful" and "One Thing" to further the conversation."


Commercial performance

"Live While We're Young" debuted on the
Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are ...
at number one on 4 October 2012, becoming One Direction's fourth top ten appearance and their second chart-topper in Ireland. In the United Kingdom, the single became One Direction's fourth UK Singles Chart top ten hit in twelve months, entering at number three on 7 October 2012. Elsewhere in Europe, the song became a top ten hit in Austria, Belgium (Flanders), Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland. It was certified gold by the
Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI) or the Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy. It was established in 1992, when ...
(FIMI). Additionally, it attained top forty positions in European territories such as Belgium (Wallonia), France, Germany, Sweden, and Slovakia. The single debuted at number two on the
Australian Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, 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 beca ...
dated 14 October 2012, with first-week sales of 58,659 copies. The single marks the group's highest peaking song in Australia, passing up the number-three peak of " One Thing", and their third top ten hit. The track was certified double platinum by the
Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival Records (Australia), Festival, Sony Music ...
(ARIA), denoting shipments of 140,000 copies. The track made its
New Zealand Singles Chart The Official Aotearoa Music Charts, formerly the Official New Zealand Music Chart (), is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The M ...
debut at number one on 8 October 2012, marking the group's first number-one hit, and their second top-five charting song in New Zealand. "Live While We're Young" has received a platinum certification from
Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded ...
(RMNZ), indicating sales of 15,000 copies. After three days of digital availability, the song made its
Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007 as the standard record chart in Canada; a new chart ...
debut at number 78 on 4 October 2012. It surged to its peak position of number two the following week, recording the highest number of digital downloads in the tracking week for a song in Canada. In the United States, One Direction made US chart history by achieving the biggest opening one-week sales figure for a song by a non-US artist ever; the track entered the Digital Songs chart at number one on 10 October 2012, selling 341,000 copies in its first week. Additionally, it was the first time since January 2012, when Adele's " Set Fire to the Rain" was the top seller that a single by a British act had led that list and its weekly sales is also the highest by a British act since another Adele track " Rolling in the Deep", sold 353,000 units in a week in May 2011. The single's opening sales is also the third biggest debut ever for a download by a group, surpassed by the arrivals of
Maroon 5 Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, d ...
's 2012 single " Payphone" (493,000), and
the Black Eyed Peas The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...
' 2009 single " Boom Boom Pow" (465,000). "Live While We're Young" debuted at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, marking the highest bow by a British group and the second-highest debut among all UK acts, outpaced only by
Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...
's number one arrival in 1997 with " Candle in the Wind 1997". In addition, that tracking week marked the first time two UK artists have simultaneously started in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top ten, as Adele's "
Skyfall ''Skyfall'' is a 2012 spy thriller film and the twenty-third in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. The film is the third to star Daniel Craig as fictional MI6 agent James Bond and features Javier Bardem as Raoul Silva, ...
" debuted at number eight. ''Billboard'' correspondent Keith Caufield noted its "huge sales" spurred its high entry on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, which blends sales, airplay and streaming data. "Live While We're Young" also became the act's highest-peaking single, passing up the number-four peak of "What Makes You Beautiful". In the week ending 20 January 2013, the song topped the one million mark in US sales. Likewise, the song was certified platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) on 23 January 2013, and it has sold 1,248,000 copies in the US as of November 2013.


Music video

The
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for "Live While We're Young" was directed by Vaughan Arnell. On 24 August 2012, One Direction announced that an accompanying music video for "Live While We're Young" was filmed at a "secret place." According to an MTV News article published on 14 September 2012, the video would feature a "summer music festival vibe" with the group "getting wet and wild, acting silly with props and getting soaked by water guns." The official video was initially due to premiere on 24 September 2012. However, a poor-quality version of the music video leaked online on 20 September 2012: the same day it was officially published on One Direction's
Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...
channel on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. In regard, the group released a statement: "We wanted our fans to see the video and hear the single in the proper way so we've moved the premiere to tonight. We're really excited about LWWY, we've worked really hard on it and we can't wait for everyone to see and hear it later today!" The video begins with One Direction waking up in a tent. Outside, Payne starts singing the opening lines, as others are seen playing guitars and sitting on hay bales in a camp setting. Subsequent scenes intercut featuring One Direction performing the song at the camp setting in a circle, on an open field, driving a car, and at a lake where members of the group play in plastic bubbles and boats. As it turns to nighttime, the camp is the main setting; they conduct a football match and afterwards a pool party. The video ends with One Direction looking at the camera, with Malik singing the last line. Throughout the video, teenage boys and girls are shown with the band. Upon release, the video broke the
Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...
record for having the most views in a 24-hour period with 8.24 million views, besting the previous record which had been set by
Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...
's " Boyfriend" (8.00 million). Bieber regained the record with the release of the music video for " Beauty and a Beat" (10.6 million) on 12 October 2012. It received positive reviews from music critics, who generally complimented its carefree, jubilant nature. Smith quipped that it has "notable moments," which he cited, "glowstick campfire dances, inflatable pool splashing, four wheeler racing, and an unfortunate blonde streak in Zayn aliks hair." ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' writer Sophie A. Schillaci called it "fun-filled", and concluded that the video perfectly accompanies the track's lyricism. Lansky called the "high quality" clip "fairly standard 1D fare", elaborating: "the boys get up to some teenage shenanigans and, well, live while they’re young. When their festivities culminate in a pool party that reads more like a wet t-shirt contest than anything else, it's abundantly clear that 1D knows their audience." ''The Huffington Post'' characterised it as an "epic summer adventure", assessing: "from a camping trip to the ultimate beach party, complete with a shirtless Niall
oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...
and inflatable banana." Collins described it as featuring the group "doing what they do best – scampering, singing, scampering some more."
ITN Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based media production and broadcast journalism company. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, New York City, New York, Paris, Sydney and Washin ...
's Lindsay Brown viewed the video as "wholesome", showing them "having some good old fashioned fun." Fuse editor Nicole James praised the apparent recurring trend of "how the group isn't afraid to make fun of themselves." James elaborated: "If it were any other boy band acting out
the Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...
-inspired hijinks in 1D's new video "Live While We're Young," it would likely come off as super cheesy. But for these five guys, their sense of comfortable self-awareness really comes through." As of May 2019, the video has over 610 million views.


Live performances and usage in media

One Direction performed the track along with songs of their debut album at the 2012
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
Teen Awards (7 October). The group performed "Live While We're Young" on '' The X Factor Italy'' (1 November) and on the '' X Factor Sweden'' (2 November). They also performed "Live While We're Young" and "Little Things" on '' The X Factor USA'' (8 November). The group performed "Live While We're Young" and "Little Things" on the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's '' Children in Need 2012'' telethon (16 November). One Direction also performed the track at Germany's Bambi Awards (22 November). "Live While We're Young" was included in the set list of the group's headlining sold-out show at
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
(3 December). It also was incorporated on the set list of the group's worldwide '' Take Me Home Tour'' (2013), utilised as the show's twentieth song. "Live While We're Young" was featured in a
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
television commercial for the United States that featured both One Direction and the
American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...
player
Drew Brees Drew Christopher Brees (; born January 15, 1979) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. A member of the New Orleans Saints for most of his career, Brees is sec ...
. It premiered on Fox in the United States on 10 October 2012. Vena called the clip comedic and assessed: "The brand-new commercial not only allows the group to show off their funny bones, but it also serves as a reminder that their new album Take Me Home, featuring "LWWY," is only a month away from dropping." It was one of the songs covered by the cast of ''
Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...
'' during the 29 November 2012 episode "
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
". The fictional character Sebastian Smythe, portrayed by Grant Gustin, sang lead vocals while the fictional Dalton Academy Warblers sang back-up. The version was released on the studio album, '' Glee: The Music, Season 4, Volume 1''. The track was also used for the opening scene of the
Miss Universe 2012 Miss Universe 2012 was the 61st Miss Universe pageant, held at the PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on December 19, 2012. The contest was won by Olivia Culpo of the United States, who was crow ...
pageant. An instrumental version of the song is featured in the exergaming video game Fitness Boxing.


Formats and track listings

*Digital download – EP # "Live While We're Young" – 3:18 # "Live While We're Young" – 5:40 # "Live While We're Young" – 4:25 # "I Want" (Live) – 3:06 # "Moments" (Live) – 4:44 *UK and US CD single # "Live While We're Young" – 3:18 # "I Want" (Live) – 3:06


Credits and personnel

* Carl Falk
writing Writing is the act of creating a persistent representation of language. A writing system includes a particular set of symbols called a ''script'', as well as the rules by which they encode a particular spoken language. Every written language ...
, production, programming, instruments, guitar, background vocals *Kristoffer Fogelmark – background vocals *Niall Horan – additional guitar * Savan Kotecha – writing, background vocals * Rami Yacoub – writing, production, programming, instruments, bass Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Take Me Home''.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Release history


See also

* One Thing * Best Song Ever *
Steal My Girl "Steal My Girl" is a song written and recorded by English-Irish boy band One Direction. It is the lead single from their fourth studio album ''Four (One Direction album), Four'' (2014). It was released worldwide on 29 September 2014. The single w ...
* What Makes You Beautiful * Drag Me Down


References


External links


Official music video
on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
{{Authority control 2012 singles Songs written by Savan Kotecha Songs written by Rami Yacoub Songs written by Carl Falk One Direction songs Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Music videos directed by Vaughan Arnell Bubblegum pop songs 2012 songs Song recordings produced by Carl Falk Song recordings produced by Rami Yacoub Obscenity controversies in music