Steal My Girl

"Steal My Girl"
Single by One Direction
from the album Four
Released	29 September 2014
Format	CD digital download
Recorded	2014
Length	3:48
Label	Syco Columbia
Writer(s)	Wayne Hector John Ryan Ed Drewett Julian Bunetta Louis Tomlinson Liam Payne
Producer(s)	Julian Bunetta John Ryan Pär Westerlund
One Direction singles chronology
"You & I" (2014) "Steal My Girl" (2014) "Night Changes" (2014)

"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 (2014). It was released worldwide on 29 September 2014.^[1] The single was written by band members Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne and regular collaborators Wayne Hector, John Ryan, Ed Drewett and Julian Bunetta (the four had previously written "Best Song Ever").^[1] It was produced by Julian Bunetta, John Ryan and Pär Westerlund. They also performed this song for the first time on their fourth concert tour, the On the Road Again Tour.

Background and release

The announcement was first made on band member Liam Payne's Twitter on 14 September.^[1] The single became available worldwide on 29 September,^[1] except in the United Kingdom.^[2] The song was made available in the United Kingdom on 12 October,^[2] with Payne's remix of the recording (dubbed as the Big Payno and Afterhrs Pool Party Remix) being the B-side.^[2] The song's co-writer Louis Tomlinson stated the song is a "feel good song and it’s not too far away from the last album (Midnight Memories)."^[3] On 28 September, one day prior to the official release, the song was leaked on the internet.^[4]

Composition and lyrics

The song's piano piece of the instrumental was similar to Journey's "Faithfully".^[5] A reviewer felt the song sounded reminiscent of 1980s music, something that the band emphasized on their previous studio album.^[6] The lyrics fret over the potential for rivals to take the group's girlfriends away from them, and why they matter to them.^[7]

Critical reception

The song received acclaim from music critics. Lucas Villa of AXS praised One Direction's classic rock sound of "Steal My Girl", noting similarities to Journey's "Faithfully". He wrote that "the guys have been digging in their parents' record collections" and added "[it's] a pretty neat and new direction for the band."^[8]

Samantha Highfill of Entertainment Weekly suggests that the song is "dad-friendly", emphasizing on the classic rock sound.^[5] Billboard gave the song four and a half out of five stars, stating it "represents the group's most tremendous Van Halen impression yet."^[9] Jim Farber from the Daily News reviews the single as a throwback to the 1970s/80s due to the arena rock ballad.^[10]

Upon the release of "Steal My Girl", Hayley Williams and Chad Gilbert pointed the similarities between the song and New Found Glory's "It's Not Your Fault".^[11][12][13] Tune similarities have also been found with 2006 Bollywood movie Krrish's song "Koi Tumsa Nahi".

Chart performance

"Steal My Girl" ranked number three on the UK Singles Chart.^[14] Despite this, the track is the eighth song from the group to have peaked top-three in the UK Singles Chart. "Steal My Girl" reached number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100.^[15]

Music video

The accompanying music video was directed by Ben and Gabe Turner.^[16] The clip featured appearances from Danny DeVito, a juvenile chimpanzee,^[17][18][19] sumo wrestlers, acrobats and a marching band. Also in the video appears Julie Zetlin a retired rhythmic gymnast from the United States wearing a leotard previous worn by Belarusian rhythmic gymnast Inna Zhukova.^[20]

In the music video, DeVito meets up with the group in the middle of the desert where a video shoot is being set up. DeVito is serving as their visionary director. He dubs each of the members of the group a different expression: Harry is love, Louis is danger, Liam is power, Zayn is mystery and Niall is light. From there, the song starts with Liam smashing a row of silver balls that spell "inhibitions" and Zayn is seen with two sumo wrestlers. Niall is seen to be dancing with a Maasai tribe from Kenya, and Liam is seen as a leader of a marching band. Harry is seen surrounded by masked female ballet dancers, and Louis is seen with the chimpanzee and its baby, as well as a mountain lion and flamingos. DeVito appears with the group throughout the video. In the end, a rain effect is used on the lot, where the group, DeVito, and all other acts appear together in one shot resembling a mix of Cirque du Soleil and Coachella.^[21]

Track listing

• Digital download

1. "Steal My Girl"

• UK digital download^[22]

1. "Steal My Girl"
2. "Steal My Girl" (Big Payno and Afterhrs Pool Party Remix)

• CD single^[23]

1. "Steal My Girl"
2. "Steal My Girl" (acoustic version)

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2014–15) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[24] 9 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[25] 14 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[26] 15 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[27] 20 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[28] 14 Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[29] 14 Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[30] 8 Denmark (Tracklisten)[31] 1 Europe (Euro Digital Songs)[32] 5 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[33] 17 France (SNEP)[34] 19 Germany (Official German Charts)[35] 27 Greece Digital Songs (Billboard)[36] 1 Hungary (Single Top 40)[37] 20 Ireland (IRMA)[38] 3 Italy (FIMI)[39] 15 Japan (Japan Hot 100)[40] 14 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[41] 30 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[42] 31 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[43] 9 Norway (VG-lista)[44] 33 Portugal Digital Songs (Billboard)[45] 8 Scotland (Official Charts Company)[46] 2 Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[47] 28 Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[48] 10 South Africa (EMA)[49] 5 South Korea International Chart (GAON)[50] 42 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[51] 7 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[52] 19 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[53] 21 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[54] 3 US Billboard Hot 100[55] 13 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[56] 37 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[57] 17

Year-end charts Chart (2014) Position Australia (ARIA)[58] 77 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[59] 43 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/Sales Australia (ARIA)[60] Platinum 70,000^^ Canada (Music Canada)[61] Platinum 80,000^^ Italy (FIMI)[62] Gold 15,000^* New Zealand (RMNZ)[63] Gold 7,500^* United Kingdom (BPI)[64] Platinum 600,000 United States (RIAA)[65] Gold 500,000^^ ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone sales+streaming figures based on certification alone Since May 2013 RIAA certifications for digital singles include on-demand audio and/or video song streams in addition to downloads.[66]

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Worldwide	29 September 2014	Digital download	Columbia Syco
United Kingdom	12 October 2014			[22]
United Kingdom	13 October 2014	CD		[67]
Germany	17 October 2014			[23]

External links

• Full Lyrics, LyricsOnDemand.com; accessed 19 October 2014

References

1. Mitchell Peters (14 September 2014). "One Direction Announces 'Four' Album Lead Single 'Steal My Girl,' Due Late September". Billboard. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
2. Joanne Dorken (15 September 2014). "One Direction Announce New Single 'Steal My Girl'". MTV. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
3. "One Direction's 'Steal My Girl' Will Make You 'Feel Good'". MTV News.
4. "One Direction 'Steal My Girl' Leaks: Listen to '80s Channeling New Single from 'FOUR'". Music Times. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
5. "One Direction channels Journey, gets dad-friendly with 'Steal My Girl'". EW.com.
6. "1D's 'Steal My Girl' Is Here, And It Is Massive". MTV News.
7. http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/hear-direction-steal-girl-article-1.1956790
8. Villa, Lucas (28 September 2014). "Listen: One Direction continues to channel more classic rock on 'Steal My Girl'". AXS.
9. "New Singles From Lorde, One Direction, and Others". Billboard. 3 October 2014.
10. "One Direction's 'Steal My Girl': Single Review". NY Daily News. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
11. Jess Denham (1 October 2014). "Paramore singer Hayley Williams accuses One Direction of 'ripping off' New Found Glory with new song 'Steal Your Girl'". The Independent. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
12. Perez Hilton. "One Direction Is Under Hot Water — Again! New Found Glory Rocker Claims Steal My Girl Sounds Like THIS Old Song!". Retrieved 2 October 2014.
13. Joe Lynch (30 September 2014). "Does One Direction's 'Steal My Girl' Rip Off New Found Glory, Journey, or Both?". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
14. "Not a number One Direction: Meghan Trainor keeps the band from getting the top spot — Metro News". Metro. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
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18. "One Direction's New 'Steal My Girl' Video Will Feature Danny DeVito". Billboard.com. 11 October 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
19. Malec, Brett (10 October 2014). "Danny DeVito to Star in One Direction's Steal My Girl Music Video (Seriously, See the Pics!)". E! Online.
20. Steiner, Amanda Michelle (24 October 2014). "One Direction Rocks Out In 'Steal My Girl' Music Video — Watch". Hollywood Life.
21. "Watch One Direction's "Steal My Girl" music video". 24 October 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
22. "Steal My Girl — Single — One Direction". iTunes Store (GB). Apple. 12 October 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
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34. "Lescharts.com – One Direction – Steal My Girl" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
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42. "Dutchcharts.nl – One Direction – Steal My Girl" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
43. "Charts.org.nz – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
44. "Norwegiancharts.com – One Direction – Steal My Girl". VG-lista. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
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50. "Gaon Chart" (in Korean). GAON. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
51. "Spanishcharts.com – One Direction – Steal My Girl" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
52. "Swedishcharts.com – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
53. "Swisscharts.com – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
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58. "ARIA Top 100 Singles 2014". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
59. Copsey, Rob (31 December 2014). "The Official Top 100 Biggest Songs of 2014 revealed". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
60. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2014 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
61. "Canadian single certifications – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Music Canada. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
62. "Italian single certifications – One Direction – Steal My Girl" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 19 December 2014. Select Online in the field Sezione. Enter One Direction in the field Filtra. Select 2014 in the field Anno. The certification will load automatically
63. "New Zealand single certifications – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
64. "British single certifications – One Direction – Steal My Girl". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 January 2015. Enter Steal My Girl in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
65. "American single certifications – One Direction – Steal My Girl". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
66. "RIAA Adds Digital Streams To Historic Gold & Platinum Awards". Recording Industry Association of America. 9 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
67. "Steal My Girl:Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon.