"Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)", also known more commonly as "Run", is a song written and recorded by

Gnarls Barkley Gnarls Barkley is an American soul music, soul duo composed of singer-songwriter CeeLo Green and producer Danger Mouse (musician), Danger Mouse. They released their debut studio album, ''St. Elsewhere (album), St. Elsewhere'', in 2006. It contai ...

. It is the first single to be released from the band's second album '' The Odd Couple''. Released in February 2008 as a digital download in the UK and the US via the iTunes Store, a physical release of the single followed in the UK on March 31. The song features a sample from

Keith Mansfield Keith Mansfield (born 1940 in Slough, England) is a British composer and arranger known for his creation of prominent television theme tunes, including the ''Grandstand'' theme for the BBC. Career Mansfield's other works include "The Young S ...

's "Junior Jet Set" from the KPM LP ''Flamboyant Themes'' and "Starting Out the Day" by Strawberry Alarm Clock. The song is featured in the film '' X-Men: First Class'', as a playable song in the video game '' Dance Central 2'', and is heard in promos for

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

's ''

Cars 2 ''Cars 2'' is a 2011 American animated spy comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to '' Cars'' (2006), the second film in the ''Cars'' franchise, and the 12th animated film from the studio ...

'' and the eight series of

CBBC CBBC is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 to 12. Its sister c ...

's ''

Raven A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...

''. This song was number 34 on ''

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. The magazine was first known fo ...

''s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.

Track listing

;German CD single # "Run" (album version) – 2:40 # " Who's Gonna Save My Soul" (instrumental) – 3:14 ;UK 7" vinyl picture disc # "Run" (album version) – 2:40 # "Run" (instrumental) – 2:50 # "Who's Gonna Save My Soul" (instrumental) – 3:14

Music video

The video premiered on MTV Overdrive on February 29, 2008. The video features Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse performing on a TV show called "City Vibin'", reminiscent of '' Graffiti Rock''.

Cee-Lo Green Thomas DeCarlo Callaway-Burton (born May 30, 1975), known professionally as CeeLo Green (or Cee Lo Green or simply Cee-Lo), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actor. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Green came to initial pr ...

sings the song behind a microphone stand, while Danger Mouse plays the song's music on a

turntable A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding phys ...

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...

appears in a cameo as the host of the show. The video features dizzying special effects such as hypnotic spirals, and as a result was banned from airplay in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

after failing the Harding test (a test designed to protect sufferers of

photosensitive epilepsy Photosensitive epilepsy (PSE) is a form of epilepsy in which seizures are triggered by visual stimuli that form patterns in time or space, such as flashing lights, bold, regular patterns, or regular moving patterns. PSE affects approximately one ...

). The hypnotic spirals were later toned down upon request and the video premiered on '' TRL'' March 6, 2008. The video won for Best Choreography as well as Best Art Direction in a Video at the

2008 MTV Video Music Awards The 2008 MTV Video Music Awards took place on September 7, 2008, live from Paramount Pictures Studios (which, like MTV, is owned by Viacom), honoring the best music videos from the previous year. Nominations for a majority of the categories were ...

. The music video was directed by Happy.

Chart performance

"Run" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 63 based on first-week sales of the digital single but the following week, it fell to number 86 and then again to number 95 but the following week it jumped back up to number 69The Official UK Charts Company : TOP 100 SINGLES CHART
/ref> and then jumped to a new peak of number 51 a week later. It officially debuted on the UK Top 40 at number 32 on downloads alone and stayed there the following week with physical sales added.

Charts

References

External links

*
Review of "Run"
on Unreality Music {{DEFAULTSORT:Run (I'm A Natural Disaster) 2008 singles Gnarls Barkley songs Song recordings produced by Danger Mouse (musician) Songs written by CeeLo Green Songs written by Danger Mouse (musician) Warner Music Group singles 2008 songs