Skyscraper- Information on Song.

Skyscraper is a song performed by American recording artist Demi Lovato, and is the lead single from her third studio album "Unbroken".

The song debuted at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, spending a total of 17 weeks on the chart. The song became Lovato's highest-peaking single on the chart since "This Is Me" peaked at number 9 in August 2008, which was released in relation to the Disney Channel Original Movie "Camp Rock". "Skyscraper" sold 176,000 digital downloads in its first week of release in the United States, setting a sales record for Lovato. Internationally, the song reached the top 20 in Canada, New Zealand, and the U.S. In August 2011, the song won the Teen Choice Award for Choice Summer Song and was certified gold in Australia and platinum in the United States.

Writing and inspiration

"Skyscraper" was written by Toby Gad, Lindy Robbins and Estonian singer Kerli Kõiv, and produced by Gad.

Kerli said that they wrote the song while drawing inspiration from a picture of the apocalypse. In an interview with Seventeen she elaborated on the picture, stating, "The world was in ruins and in the middle of all the collapsed buildings was one skyscraper still standing tall. It was slightly raining and the first rays of sun were starting to shine through thick clouds of smoke. I was actually feeling amazing when I wrote it. It came from a really empowered place." Kerli revealed that the song is also personal to her, stating, "I come from a very small place in eastern Europe so my whole life has kind of been one big fight to live my dream against all odds. But I think it's hard to be a human in general — we all have our own struggles and things to overcome."

When asked what she wants girls to feel when they hear the song, Kerli said, "I think the lyrics say it already. You can hit the lowest low and face the darkest dark, but you can always get back up and get in the light." Kerli recorded a demo version of the song before Gad offered it to Lovato. Lovato wanted to record the song because she felt a "huge emotional attachment to it" and believed both she and her fans could relate to it.

She explained the rest of Unbroken is "a lot lighter and more fun" and they chose to release "Skyscraper" as the first single from the album because they wanted to show "something very inspirational" that represents the difficult journey she had been on.

Recording

Lovato initially recorded "Skyscraper" in Studio City, Los Angeles in 2010 During recording, she was "doubled over, just in pain", making her very emotional and tearful; she had never been that emotional while recording a song before. While recording, her voice was damaged from purging. She felt that the song was a "cry for help", which triggered a lot of emotions, stating that she was crying and "bawling [her] eyes out" in the studio. At the time, she had not told anyone about her depressions and personal issues. In November 2010, she entered a treatment facility to treat her physical and emotional problems. After finishing her treatment in late January 2011, she re-recorded the song, but decided to keep the original recording because she felt that her voice had changed, although noting that her voice was "weaker" when she originally recorded it. She said, "There was something in that first try, that first run through of the song that was kind of magical. It was so much emotion in it, and to this day, it’s still really special to me." She called the original take "symbolic" and said that "it was providing a message".

Kerli praised Lovato's take on the song, stating that she "really conveys the emotion". Kerli went on to say, "I always say that songs are messages and artists are messengers, and at this point in time there is no better messenger for this song than Demi. Her courage to go out and tell the whole world about everything she's been through the past year is beyond inspiring." American singer Jordin Sparks provided backing vocals on the song. Lovato said that they kept her vocals because "it adds a lot to the song". Lovato stated, "I think she may have recorded it once maybe and I don't really know what the situation was, but I know she did the background vocals and they were lovely so they kept them."

Release

Lovato revealed the cover artwork and release date for "Skyscraper" via her Twitter account on July 5, 2011. Following the announcement, "Skyscraper" became a trending topic on the site. The song premiered on Tuesday July 12, 2011 on the morning radio show On Air with Ryan Seacrest. Lovato also called in to talk about the track. On the same morning, the single was made available for digital download on the iTunes Store in the United States, although originally planned to be released on July 14. The song reached the top ten on the iTunes chart within an hour, and the summit of the chart later in the afternoon. The single was serviced for mainstream radio airplay on July 26, 2011. Lovato recorded a Spanish version of the track, named "Rascacielo". It was released on the Mexican iTunes store on August 16, 2011.

Upon its release, many celebrities voiced their support of "Skyscraper" on Twitter. According to The Hollywood Reporter, those celebrities included The Veronicas, Kelly Clarkson, Selena Gomez, Lucy Hale, Kim Kardashian, Katy Perry, Jordin Sparks, Ashley Tisdale and Pete Wentz, among others. In response to the celebrity reactions, Lovato stated "There has been so much positive feedback, it's been so incredible. I hear that people like Katy Perry and Kelly Clarkson respect my music and are even tweeting about it on their own time. I mean, it's just been so amazing and I've been so thankful and grateful. It's just so exciting for me, because these are people I look up to myself and then hearing that they're tweeting about me; it's like a dream come true." Jordin Sparks, who provided backing vocals on the track, posted a video of herself singing the song on her website. Lovato called Sparks' take "beautiful".

Composition

"Skyscraper" is a ballad in which Lovato showcases breathy, quivering and powerful vocals. In the first verse, Lovato is only accompanied by a lonely, pulsing piano as she sings, "Skies are crying, I am watching catching teardrops in my hands/ Only silence, as it's ending, like we never had a chance." As the song progresses, the piano is accompanied by heavy percussion and breathy backing vocals. In the chorus, Lovato sings, "You can take everything I have/ You can break everything I am/ Like I'm made of glass, like I'm made of paper/ Go on and try and tear me down/ I will be rising from the ground like a skyscraper." In the second verse, Lovato "begins to find more strength". The song has a simple musical structure. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by EMI Music Publishing, the song is set in common time with a metronome of 104 beats per minute. It is composed in the key of G major with Lovato's vocal range spanning from the note of G3 to the note of G5. Lyrically, the song is about staying strong and believing in yourself. According to Lovato, the song's lyrics symbolize her personal journey from where she used to be to "the happy healthy person [she is] today." The song deals with the difficulties she had been through the past year and overcoming the obstacles she faced. With the song, Lovato hopes that "people are able to relate to it and realize that they are able to rise above and overcome any obstacle, no matter the circumstances, and shine like a skyscraper."

Chart performance

"Skyscraper" debuted at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, selling 176,000 downloads during its first week of release. This charting made the song Lovato's highest-peaking single since "This Is Me" reached number nine in August 2008. The song also debuted at number two on the Hot Digital Songs chart. The song also debuted at number 18 on the Canadian

Hot 100. On the issue dated August 1, 2011, the song entered the New Zealand Singles Chart at number nine, making it her highest debut and peaking single there. On the issue dated August 7, 2011, it debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number 92. The next week, it reached its peak of 45. Skyscraper entered the UK Singles Chart at number 32 on the week ending March 4, 2012, selling 11,460 copies, her highest UK charting song at the time and her third top 40 hit in the UK.