Good Days

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"Good Days"
SZA - Good Days.png
Single by SZA
WrittenDecember 11, 2019 (2019-12-11)–2020
ReleasedDecember 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Genre
Length4:39
3:45 (radio edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Carter Lang
  • Loshendrix
  • Nascent
SZA singles chronology
"Hit Different"
(2020) 		"Good Days"
(2020) 		"Kiss Me More"
(2021)
Audio video
"Good Days" on YouTube

"Good Days" is a song by American singer SZA featuring additional vocals by Jacob Collier.[2] It was released on December 25, 2020, through Top Dawg and RCA,[3] and is expected to serve as the second single on her upcoming second studio album.[4] The song was written and produced by SZA, Jacob Collier, Carlos Muñoz, Carter Lang, and Christopher Ruelas and mixed by Shawn Everett.[5]

Upon release, the song became popular on streaming platforms and became SZA's first solo top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.[6][7]

Background and release[]

SZA first teased the song on July 15, 2020, via her Instagram stories.[8] "Good Days" was originally featured at the tail end of the music video for "Hit Different", released in September 2020, leading to speculation among listeners that it would serve as a B-side to that single.[9] On October 21, 2020, SZA explained that the song was "in clearance" for release.[10] A week before release, she confirmed the track to come out before 2021.[11] The song was eventually released as a surprise drop on Christmas Day 2020.[12] Upon release, the singer revealed that she started writing the song during a session on Carter Lang's birthday and "finished it randomly recently".[13]

Composition[]

Dubbed a "nostalgic track",[14] "Good Days" sees SZA singing about "former love, soul searching, and rejoicing carefreely" over "guitar-tinged riff plays",[15][16] while she makes use of her "dreamy vocals".[17] Compared to its predecessor, the song "manages to hit much more of a melodic, narrative-driven tone that puts it more in line with her CTRL output".[18]

Chart performance[]

In the United States, "Good Days" entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 38 as the week's highest debut.[19] The song rose to number 23 the following week.[20] The song later reached a new peak at number 9 on the Hot 100, making it SZA's first top ten single as a solo artist, second top 10 as a lead artist following "All the Stars", and third in total including "What Lovers Do" with Maroon 5.[21] The song also reached a peak of number three on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and number seven on the Global 200, her highest peak on either chart to date.[22][23]

Music videos[]

Two music videos were released for "Good Days". Both videos were directed by SZA.

Official fan video[]

On January 13, 2021, SZA tweeted a request for fans to submit videos of their "happiest, saddest, [and] YOUR UGLIEST moments" to an email address, with a deadline of Saturday at midnight.[24] The fan video was released on February 10, 2021, and featured a compilation of videos submitted by fans lip-syncing to the song as well as featuring the aforementioned moments intercut with behind-the-scenes footage of the official video.

Music video[]

On March 5, 2021, the official music video was released. The video takes place with SZA experiencing a mushroom-induced psychedelic experience. It features scenes of SZA dancing while buried waist up in an oversized Alice in Wonderland-inspired garden and pole-dancing in a library. Jacob Collier cameos in the video as the man within the green television.[25] In a similar fashion to the video for "Hit Different", the video ends with a teaser of an upcoming song, popularly known as "Shirt" or "Bloodstain", which went viral on TikTok in 2020. The ending teaser features SZA pole-dancing at an empty gas station while bathed in pink lighting.[26][27][28][29]

Credits and personnel[]

Credits adapted from Tidal.[5]

  • Solána Rowe – vocals, songwriting, composition
  • Jacob Collier – vocals, songwriting, composition
  • Carlos Muñoz – songwriting, composition
  • Carter Lang – songwriting, composition, production
  • Christopher Ruelas – songwriting, composition
  • Loshendrix – production
  • Nascent – production
  • Shawn Everett – mixer
  • Rob Bisel – recording engineering, vocal production

Charts[]

Chart performance for "Good Days"
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[30] 7
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[31] 73
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[32] 2
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[33] 42
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[34] 12
Denmark (Tracklisten)[35] 24
France (SNEP)[36] 174
Global 200 (Billboard)[37] 7
Iceland (Plötutíðindi)[38] 14
Ireland (IRMA)[39] 8
Lithuania (AGATA)[40] 10
Malaysia (RIM)[41] 8
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[42] 39
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[43] 3
Norway (VG-lista)[44] 15
Portugal (AFP)[45] 30
Singapore (RIAS)[46] 8
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[47] 56
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[48] 26
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[49] 39
UK Singles (OCC)[50] 13
UK R&B (OCC)[51] 5
US Billboard Hot 100[52] 9
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[53] 3
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[54] 33
US Rhythmic (Billboard)[55] 16

Certifications[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[56] Platinum 70,000double-dagger
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[57] Gold 20,000double-dagger
New Zealand (RMNZ)[58] Platinum 30,000double-dagger
United Kingdom (BPI)[59] Silver 200,000double-dagger

double-dagger Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history[]

Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various December 25, 2020
RCA [3]
United States January 12, 2021 Urban adult contemporary [60]
United Kingdom January 15, 2021 Contemporary hit radio [61]
Italy January 29, 2021 [62]

References[]

  1. ^ "TRACK REVIEW: SZA - Good Days". Music Musings & Such.
  2. ^ Rettig, James (December 25, 2020). "SZA – "Good Days"". Stereogum. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Daly, Rhian (December 25, 2020). "Listen to SZA's dreamy new song 'Good Days'". NME. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  4. ^ Young, Alex (December 25, 2020). "SZA Shares New Single "Good Days": Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Credits / Good Days / SZA". Tidal. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  6. ^ "Morgan Wallen, SZA Hit Hot 100's Top 10, Chris Brown & Young Thug Rule Radio Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  7. ^ "SZA reacts to landing her first solo 'Billboard' Hot 100 hit, "Good Days" - Music News - ABC News Radio". abcnewsradioonline.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  8. ^ Cho, Regina (December 25, 2020). "SZA shares new single "Good Days"". Revolt. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  9. ^ Bloom, Madison (December 25, 2020). "SZA Shares New Song "Good Days": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  10. ^ Langford, Jackson (October 22, 2020). "SZA says unreleased song at end of 'Hit Different' video is "in clearance" for release". NME. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  11. ^ Higgins, Keenan (December 18, 2020). "SZA Hints That "Good Days" Single Will Arrive Before 2021". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  12. ^ Kiefer, Halle (December 25, 2020). "SZA Drops Her New Single 'Good Days' to Enjoy on Your Christmas Days". Vulture. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  13. ^ @sza (December 26, 2020). "I started it on @carterplaysbass birthday 12/11. all my music friends have sessions for their bdays always fun . finished it randomly recently" (Tweet). Retrieved December 27, 2020 – via Twitter.
  14. ^ Waite, Thom (December 25, 2020). "Listen to SZA's new song, 'Good Days'". Dazed Digital. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  15. ^ Duong, Paul "Big Homie" (December 25, 2020). "New Music: SZA "Good Days"". Rap Radar. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  16. ^ Caraan, Sophie (December 26, 2020). "SZA Still Believes in "Good Days" With New Single". Hypebeast. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  17. ^ Navjosh (December 25, 2020). "SZA Unveils New Song 'Good Days': Listen". HipHopNMore. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  18. ^ White, Caitlin (December 25, 2020). "SZA Just Dropped 'Good Days,' Her Second New Song Of 2020". Uproxx. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  19. ^ "Good Days by SZA | Billboard The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
  20. ^ "The Hot 100 Chart: January 16, 2021". Billboard. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  21. ^ Trust, Gary (January 19, 2021). "Morgan Wallen, SZA Hit Hot 100's Top 10, Chris Brown & Young Thug Rule Radio Songs". Billboard. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  22. ^ Trust, Gary (January 19, 2021). "Olivia Rodrigo's 'Drivers License' Launches Atop Both Billboard Global Charts". Billboard. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  23. ^ "Billboard charts on Twitter: "The Global 200 top 10 (chart dated Feb. 6, 2021)"". Twitter. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  24. ^ "SZA Asked Fans To Submit Clips For Her 'Good Days' Video". UPROXX. 2021-01-14. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  25. ^ @jacobcollier (March 7, 2021). "The unreal @sza just dropped the official video for 'Good Days'!! SZA sent me the demo for this song last year, to my definitive flabbergastedness, asking if I wanted to record any harmonies. I recorded these tracks and sent them back. The fact that this song now has 300,000,000 streams across all platforms blows my actual mind. I'm so proud of what it has become, and of SZA's incandescent vision. If you peer closely at the video she dropped yesterday, you'll find me within the green television