Wake Me Up

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Lore & Background

Avicii introduced "Wake Me Up" for the first time live on stage at the Ultra Music Festival in Miami. The experimental rendering (it was accompanied by a live band with instruments and vocalists, though notably not including Aloe Blacc, Mike Einziger, or any members of Incubus) reportedly confused and angered a section of the electronic dance festival community. Subsequently, Avicii achieved critical and commercial success with the release of the single worldwide. The actual writing process involved Avicii and Mike Einziger creating the music first, after which Aloe Blacc was brought in to write the lyrics. Blacc wrote the lyrics in just a couple of hours, completing the track.

In Their Own Story

Aloe Blacc, who is not credited on the track, explained to The Huffington Post: "I started writing the lyrics at the top of 2013, travelling back from Switzerland. I started in hip hop music back in the 90s and I never expected to be singing and have an actual career as a musician, but I'm travelling all over the world and I thought 'Life is a dream, wake me up when it's all over'. I was invited to the studio with Avicii and Mike Einziger from Incubus, and when I got to the studio they had already come up with a chord progression of the song. I came in with the lyrics and I just developed the melody as I heard the chords, and we all thought it was something very strong. We finished the song that night as an acoustic version, then Avicii made the dance mix in a couple of days, and that's what we released to the world, and that was his release." The official video for the song was released on 29 July. It was directed by celebrity photographer Mark Seliger and co-directed and edited by CB "Barney" Miller. It features a woman and a young girl, intended to be sisters, portrayed respectively by Russian model Kristina Romanova and Laneya Grace. The video was shot by the Santa Clara River orange groves, in the town of Piru, California, northwest of Los Angeles, and Downtown LA as well as concert footage from an Avicii performing at the 2013 Ultra Music Festival in Miami. As of January 2025, the video has 2.4 billion views on Avicii's official YouTube channel, making it one of the 60 most viewed videos on the site.

Reader's Guide

"Wake Me Up" is a folktronica song, blending elements of EDM, soul and country music. Musically, it is written in the key of B minor and runs at 124 beats per minute (BPM). It follows a chord progression of Bm/G/D/A – Bm/G/D/F#, with Blacc's vocals ranging from B2 to B4. Robert Copsey of Digital Spy gave the song a positive review, stating: "As chart-friendly EDM continues to reach the furthest corners of the globe, staying ahead of the pack can prove a tricky task – especially when more and more acts arrive on the scene turning out mixes with identikit build-ups, tired lyrics and uninspired breakdowns that newcomers to the arena lap up with excitement. Kudos to Avicii then, who has dared to try something a little different for his latest offering. 'So wake me up when it's all over/ When I'm wiser and I'm older,' featured artist Aloe Blacc sings over dialled-up, country-flecked guitar strums that sound like Mumford & Sons on speed. The jig-along chorus may conjure up images of Brits-on-tour, but to be honest, what summer anthem doesn't?" At the end of the year, Rolling Stone listed "Wake Me Up" at number 26 on its list of 100 Best Songs of 2013. The single has peaked at number one in 22 countries to date, including Australia, New Zealand, Hungary, Ireland, the United Kingdom and several European countries, in addition to reaching the top 10 in six others. The song is also the most searched on the Apple owned music identifying app Shazam with more than 23 million in February 2018.

Did You Know?

• The song was written by Avicii, Mike Einziger of Incubus, and Aloe Blacc, who is credited as a co-writer and vocalist on the official release.
• Avicii first performed 'Wake Me Up' live at the Ultra Music Festival in Miami with a full live band, which reportedly confused and angered some in the electronic dance community.
• The official music video, directed by Mark Seliger, has over 2.1 billion views on YouTube as of January 2025, making it one of the most viewed videos on the site.
• It is often cited as a landmark dance track, though other dance songs like 'Party Rock Anthem' by LMFAO had already sold over 4 million copies in the U.S. prior to its release.
• In the UK, it sold 267,000 copies in its first week, becoming Britain's fastest-selling single of 2013 at the time.