Shape of You

Shape of You
Ed Sheeran
publication	January 6, 2017
length	3:54
Genre (s)	Pop , dancehall
Author (s)	Ed Sheeran , Steve Mac , Johnny McDaid , Kandi Burruss, Tameka Cottle , Kevin Briggs
Producer (s)	Steve Mac , Ed Sheeran
Label	Asylum , Atlantic
Award (s)	Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance Echo "Hit of the Year"
album	÷

Shape of You is a song by British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran . It was released as the lead single from Sheeran's third studio album ÷ on January 6, 2017 . Shape of You is considered Sheeran's most successful song to date and reached number 1 in the respective single charts in numerous countries. At the Grammy Awards 2018 , Sheeran received the award in the category Best Pop Solo Performance for the song . According to IFPI year-end reports , 26.6 million units of the song were sold in 2017 and a further 14.9 million units in 2018.

background

Shape of You was composed by Ed Sheeran , Steve Mac and Johnny McDaid and produced by Mac and Sheeran. Geo Gabriel, Travis Cole and Wayne Hernandez took over the backing vocals alongside Sheeran. The recordings took place at Rokstone Studios in London and at Gingerbread Man Studios . The mixing was carried out by Mark Stent in its studios in London and Los Angeles , the mastering was by Stuart Hawkes in the Metropolis Studios made. Ed Sheeran originally wrote Shape of You for another artist and had the idea that the song might fit Rihanna . After his music label had convinced him to record the song himself, Shape of You was the last song that was finished for his album ÷ .

composition

Shape of You is assigned to the genres Pop and Dancehall , with influences from Tropical House . The song, composed in four-four time , is written in C sharp minor and has a tempo of 96 beats per minute . The chord progression is C♯m – F♯m – A – B (i – iv – VI – VII), Sheeran's vocal range extends from G♯3 to G♯5. The instrumentation consists of piano and guitars , paired with marimba sounds.

Shape of You consists of the classic verse - chorus form, after the second chorus a bridge follows before the chorus follows for the third time. In terms of content, the song tells how the amorous or lascivious lyrical self meets a woman in a bar, where he drinks shots with his friends . In the second stanza, the love affair outside the bar is further developed.

"I'm in love with the shape of you We push and pull like a magnet do Although my heart is falling too I'm in love with your body And last night you were in my room And now my bed sheets smell like you Every day discovering something brand new I'm in love with your body. " - Refrain, original excerpt

"I am in love with your figure We repel and attract each other like magnets do. Although my heart also gives way. I am in love with your body And last night you were in my room And now my duvet smells of you. Every day I discover something brand new I'm in love with your body. " - Refrain, German translation

The line of text Say, boy, let's not talk too much, Grab on my waist and put that body on me in the pre-chorus was compared to TLC's No Scrubs due to the similar lyrical rhythm . As a result, Sheeran added the writers of No Scrubs to co-wrote Shape of You .

Reviews

Shape of You was received mostly positively by the critics. Felix Heinnecker from Plattentests.de considers the song to be “a hit as it is in the book - absolutely contemporary, but universal enough to last long”. "The beat from Sheeran's effects pedal box and the quick-witted change between the parts, paired with the ultra-catchy chorus, result in a refined piece of music," the critic continued. He was the only one to criticize the "sometimes weird text, which in bad moments reminds of John Mayer's slimy" Your body is a wonderland ". For Matthias Reichel, Sheeran is by no means stagnating in his musical development; for him, Shape of You is more reminiscent of a Rihanna song with its “marimba sounds and sexy rhythms”. Kai Butterwck from Laut.de, on the other hand, finds the song “borderline” , which he described as “Ed Sheeran's barbecue with Justin Timberlake”.

Commercial win

Shape of You achieved numerous number one placements worldwide. On January 13, 2017, the song went straight to number one in the German single charts and spent 15 consecutive weeks in this position. At the same time, Sheeran's single release Castle on the Hill rose to number 2 in the charts on January 13, 2017. Never before in the history of the German music charts, which have been published since 1953, has an artist managed to enter the top positions with two singles at the same time. For Ed Sheeran it is the first number one hit in Germany . The British author Steve Mac managed for the first time in Germany to replace himself at the top of the charts, previously the Rockabye by Clean Bandit feat. Sean Paul & Anne-Marie the top position. Shape of You spent a total of 25 weeks in the top 10 in Germany. In addition, the single placed seven weeks on the chart peak of the German airplay charts as long as no other single in calendar year 2017. occupied At the end of Shape of You first place in the German airplay charts of the year, what the play the most played radio tracks of the year made. For over two million units sold, the song was awarded five times platinum by the Federal Association of the Music Industry , making Shape of You the fourth best-selling single in Germany and the best-selling single of the millennium. The single also entered the Ö3 Austria Top 40 and the Swiss Hit Parade at number 1, while Castle on the Hill reached second place. Again, it is Sheeran's first number one success.

On January 13, 2017, Shape of You debuted at number 1 and Castle on the Hill at number 2 in the UK singles chart, making Sheeran the first artist in the UK to top the charts with two singles at the same time . Overall, the song spent 14 weeks at number 1 and 22 weeks in the top 10. In July 2017, the song reached 184 million streams in the UK, making it the most streamed song in the country. With 787,000 copies sold, 244 million (premium) streams and a combined sales of 3.2 million, Shape of You is the top-selling and most-streamed song in the UK in 2017 and the third best-selling single in the UK of all time (taking into account the Sales including the streaming units).

Also in the Billboard Hot 100 managed Shape of You the debut at No. 1, which Sheeran first number-one hit in the United States earned. With Castle on the Hill's entry at number 6 at the same time , Sheeran is the first artist to enter the Top 10 on the Hot 100 with two songs at the same time . On September 9, 2017, Shape of You spent a total of 33 uninterrupted weeks in the top 10 of the Hot 100 and also set a new record. In the 2017 year-end charts, the song also reached number 1, with over 2.5 million units sold, it was the second best- selling song in the United States in 2017, behind Despacito .

Shape of You achieved top 10 positions in all official single charts, and number one positions in Australia , Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia), Denmark , Finland , France , Greece , Ireland , Italy , Canada , Malaysia , New Zealand , the Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Portugal , Sweden , Slovakia , the Czech Republic and Hungary .

At the 2018 Grammy Awards , Shape of You received the Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance . At the 2018 Echo Awards , Sheeran won the Hit of the Year category with this song . The song received further nominations at the American Music Awards 2017 in the categories Favorite Pop / Rock Song and Video of the Year , at the BRIT Awards 2018 in the categories British Single of the Year and British Video of the Year , at MTV Europe Music Awards 2017 in the category Best Song and at the MTV Video Music Awards 2017 in the categories Song of Summer and Best Pop . Shape of You was able to win the award in the categories Song of the Year and Most Thumbed Up Song of the Year of the iHeartRadio Music Awards 2018 and the award in the category Choice Pop Song of the Teen Choice Awards 2017.

With more than 26.6 million units sold, Shape of You was the world's most successful single of 2017.

In Germany, "Shape Of You" was the most successful song of the 2010s.

Music video

With the release of Shape of You , a lyric video was released on Sheeran's YouTube channel on January 5, 2017 . On January 30, 2017, the official music video was released, which was shot by Jason Koenig in Seattle . It shows Sheeran as a boxer and contains references to the films Rocky and Fight Club . Sheeran's girlfriend is played by actress Jennie Pegouskie. The video was viewed over 4.8 billion times on YouTube (as of June 2020), making it the second most viewed YouTube video .

Use in other works

Shape of You is part of the computer game Just Dance 2018 . The sampler Punk Goes Pop Vol. 7 contains a cover version of Alec Empires and Nic Endo's music project Eat Your Heart Out .

Chart placements

Charts	Top ranking	Weeks
Chart placements
Germany (GfK)	1 (91 weeks)	91
Austria (Ö3)	1 (68 weeks)	68
Switzerland (IFPI)	1 (122 weeks)	122
United Kingdom (OCC)	1 (97 weeks)	97
United States (Billboard)	1 (59 weeks)	59

Awards for music sales

Shape of You has been awarded 84 × platinum and 5 × diamond worldwide. According to the awards, over 20.5 million units of the single were sold (including premium streaming).

Country / Region	Award	Sales
Awards for music sales (country / region, Award, Sales)
Australia (ARIA)	14 × platinum	980,000
Belgium (BEA)	7 × platinum	210,000
Denmark (IFPI)	6 × platinum	540,000
Germany (BVMI)	5 × platinum	2,000,000
France (SNEP)	diamond	250,000
Italy (FIMI)	diamond	500,000
Japan (RIAJ)	platinum	200,000
Canada (MC)	diamond	800,000
New Zealand (RMNZ)	6 × platinum	180,000
Netherlands (NVPI)	2 × platinum	80,000
Austria (IFPI)	2 × platinum	60,000
Poland (ZPAV)	diamond	100,000
Portugal (AFP)	5 × platinum	50,000
Sweden (IFPI)	9 × platinum	360,000
Switzerland (IFPI)	9 × platinum	180,000
Spain (Promusicae)	11 × platinum	440,000
United States (RIAA)	diamond	10,000,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	7 × platinum	4,200,000
All in all	84 × platinum 5 × diamond	20,530,000 (according to awards) 41,500,000 (according to IFPI )

Main article: Ed Sheeran / Music Sales Awards

Formats

Download (release: January 6, 2017)

1. Shape of You (Album Version) - 3:54

Maxi-Single (DA-CH; release: February 24, 2017)

1. Shape of You - 3:51
2. Shape of You (Acoustic) - 3:43

See also

• List of the best-selling singles in Germany

Web links

• Official music video on YouTube

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b c} Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You. Discogs , accessed March 13, 2018 . 
2. ↑ ^{a b c} IFPI Global Music Report 2018. (PDF) International Federation of the Phonographic Industry , accessed April 30, 2018 . 
3. ↑ ^{a b} Havana by Camila Cabello (featuring Young Thug) named best-selling single of 2018. International Federation of the Phonographic Industry , accessed March 18, 2019 . 
4. ↑ ^{a b} Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You - CD-Single Asylum Records - 0190295838690, Atlantic - 0190295838690. Discogs , accessed on March 13, 2018 . 
5. ^ ^{A b} Rachel Sonis: Ed Sheeran Says That “Shape Of You” Was Initially Meant For Rihanna. In: Idolator. January 6, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
6. ↑ Nina Braca: Ed Sheeran Breaks Down the Massive Success of 'Shape of You'. December 20, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
7. ^ Hugh McIntyre: Ed Sheeran Returns With A Pair Of New Singles. In: Forbes . January 6, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
8. ↑ Mike Wass: Ed Sheeran's "Shape Of You" Video Is A Sporty Romance. In: Idolator. January 30, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
9. ↑ Why is Ed Sheeran so popular? In: USA Today . March 1, 2017, accessed on March 13, 2018 . 
10. ↑ Ed Sheeran - Shape of You - sheet music. In: Musicnotes.com. Retrieved March 13, 2018 . 
11. ↑ ^{a b} Ed Sheeran - Shape of You - Lyrics. In: Genius . Accessed March 13, 2018 . 
12. ↑ Cameron Adams: Ed Sheeran sings about sex, booze and Elton John on his new songs. January 6, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
13. ↑ Da'Shan Smith: Ed Sheeran Adds TLC's 'No Scrubs' Songwriters to 'Shape of You' Credits. In: Billboard . March 21, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
14. ↑ Felix Heinnecker: Divide and rule. In: Plattentests.de . Retrieved March 13, 2018 . 
15. ^ Matthias Reichel: Ed Sheeran - ÷ - album review. In: Cdstarts.de. Retrieved March 13, 2018 . 
16. ↑ Kai Butterweck: Nobody can fool the British in cuddling mode. In: Laut.de . Retrieved March 13, 2018 . 
17. ↑ Ed Sheeran creates a record. spiegel.de, January 13, 2017, accessed on March 13, 2018 . 
18. ^ ^{A b} Ed Sheeran - Shape of You chart placement Germany. GfK Entertainment , accessed on March 12, 2018 . 
19. ↑ Airplay Charts Germany: week 06/2017. germancharts.de, accessed on June 14, 2020 . 
20. ↑ Michael Schmich: Annual Airplay Charts 2017 entirely dedicated to Ed Sheeran. radioszene.de, January 9, 2018, accessed June 14, 2020 . 
21. ↑ Gold / platinum database. musikindustrie.de, accessed on August 1, 2018 . 
22. ↑ ^{a b} Ed Sheeran - Shape of You chart placement Austria. In: Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien, accessed March 12, 2018 . 
23. ↑ ^{a b} Ed Sheeran - Shape of You chart placement Switzerland. In: Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien, accessed March 12, 2018 . 
24. ↑ Ed Sheeran scores biggest comeback since Adele, smashing TWO Official Chart records. Official Charts Company , January 13, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
25. ^ ^{A b} Shape of You Charthistory United Kingdom. Official Charts Company , accessed March 12, 2018 . 
26. ↑ Ed Sheeran's Shape Of You becomes the UK's most streamed track of all time. July 5, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
27. ↑ The Top 40 biggest songs of 2017 on the Official Chart. Official Charts Company , January 3, 2018, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
28. ↑ The UK's Official Chart 'millionaires' revealed. Official Charts Company , September 19, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
29. ^ Gary Trust: Ed Sheeran Debuts Atop Hot 100 With 'Shape of You' & in Top 10 With 'Castle on the Hill'. In: Billboard . January 17, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
30. ↑ Gary Trust: Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee & Justin Bieber's 'Despacito' Ties for Longest Run at No. 1 in Hot 100's History. In: Billboard . August 28, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
31. ↑ Keith Caulfield: Ed Sheeran's 'Divide' Is Nielsen Music's Top Album of 2017 in US January 3, 2018, accessed on March 13, 2018 (English). 
32. ↑ GA BONN: Schlager-Queen: Helene Fischer's “Farbenspiel” is album of the decade. Accessed December 31, 2019 . 
33. ↑ Gil Kaufmann: Ed Sheeran Gets His 'Rocky' On in Boxing-Focused 'Shape of You' Video. In: Billboard . January 30, 2017, accessed March 13, 2018 . 
34. ^ Ed Sheeran - Shape of You chart placement United States. Billboard , accessed March 12, 2018 .