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Messy in Heaven

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"Messy in Heaven"
Single by Venbee featuring Goddard
Released23 September 2022 (2022-09-23)
GenreDrum and bass, jungle drum 'n' bass, alt-pop
Length2:50
LabelSony
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Venbee singles chronology
"Low Down"
(2022) 		"Messy in Heaven"
(2022) 		"Gutter"
(2023)
Goddard singles chronology
"Green Light"
(2022) 		"Messy in Heaven"
(2022) 		"Feel Like That"
(2022)
Music video
"Messy in Heaven" on YouTube

"Messy in Heaven" is a song by British singer Venbee featuring East Midlands producer Goddard. Released as her second single on 23 September 2022 through Sony, the song was written after Venbee had a dream of Jesus partying on Chatham High Street, and used him as a metaphor for her friend's struggles with drugs. It achieved commercial success in Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, peaking at nine, seven and three, respectively, and positive reception critically, with The Guardian describing it as "a key tune" in drum and bass' 2020s renaissance, and many critics made note of its opening lyric, "I heard Jesus did cocaine on a night out", which was played once on BBC Radio 1 and drew complaints from Christians.

Background

[edit]

In March 2022, Chatham vocalist Venbee uploaded a snippet of her then-unfinished song "Low Down" featuring Dan Fable,[1] a Manchester-based vocalist who had made a number of appearances on BBC Music Introducing in 2012 and 2013[note 1] and who had set up a photography company in 2017.[5] A dark pop song about depression,[6] the song went viral on TikTok, prompting the pair to rush to finish the track;[7] when self-released the following month,[8] the song peaked at number 59 on the UK Singles Chart.[9] She then toured with Piri & Tommy and joined Loud LDN.[10]

She then booked a subsequent session with Fable and Matteo Cinti in a small studio in Tottenham.[11] The night before, she had a dream about partying with Jesus on Chatham High Street;[12] on the day, after telling Fable and Cinti about it, she came up with the idea of using Jesus as a metaphor for a friend of hers,[13] who had developed a cocaine addiction[14] after trying to please everyone other than herself and falling into a downward spiral,[10] and the song took twenty minutes to write.[11]

Composition

[edit]

The song’s lyrics were written by Venbee and Dan Fable, and its music and production by Matteo Cinti. Explaining himself to Music Week, Fable noted that they created the song to a guitar part that Cinti had written, that they wrote the song "I heard Jesus did cocaine on a night out" first before coming up with the rest of the hook, that Venbee would suggest lines which they would then lyricise such as "his eyes are dilated" becoming "eyes wide open, dilated, but he’s fine now", and that they had compiled a list of religious phrases and stories and a list of ways in which Jesus could be described, with "leader" turning into "leader, never backs out of the arrangement".[15]

The song had originally been written with a traditional layout until Columbia Records got involved; feeling that the song would benefit from external involvement, they sent it to Goddard.,[15] a Northamptonshire producer who made short drum and bass tracks,[16] and who was taken aback the first time he heard the opening lyric.[17] According to Fable, he converted the song into a track that could be played "at a rave or in a club" after sending it backwards and forwards several times, during which they rearranged some sections and scrapped one of them to give it "more of a bite".[15] The finished product begins with a light guitar riff before developing into a drum and bass beat.[18]

Release

[edit]

On 23 September 2022, she released "Messy in Heaven" on Columbia Records,[15] a sublabel of Sony Music.[19] On 30 September 2022, an edited version of the song was released, with the opening lyric amended to "I heard my mate lost his mind on a night out"; in a November interview with George FM, Goddard. stated that BBC Radio 1 had played the original once and had received complaints from Christians.[17] A further version was released in November 2022 featuring ArrDee, which further explored the party and made reference to living large and "Seshlehem", a portmanteau of sesh and Bethlehem;[20] in an interview with Clash, Venbee noted that this had been booked without her knowledge, and that she only found out once he was in studio recording it after her A&R texted her to that effect.[21] Additionally, Dublin production duo Belters Only released a remix.[22] Upon release, the song went viral;[23] in an interview with MistaJam, Venbee noted that she was using a very old phone at the time, and the notifications she was getting finished it off.[24]

Reception

[edit]

The Line of Best Fit described the song's lyrics as "larger-than-life", its opening lyric as "unmissable", and the track as "heavenly",[18] while Music Week described the song as "pulsating"[25] and WDET-FM enjoyed the song, particularly the opening line.[26] The Guardian described Venbee's voice as "delicate", the song's "woi-oi attitude" as "catnip for Gen Z", and the song as "a key tune in D&B’s current renaissance",[27] while Rolling Stone described the song as "the perfect encapsulation of what Venbee is all about; drum ‘n’ bass hits that can fill the dancefloor, sure, but have a real depth to them too"[28] and NME described the song as "thrilling" and "cathartic".[10]

On the UK Singles Chart, the song slowly reached a peak of No. 3 in late November 2022, fell sharply for a few weeks,[9] and abruptly went back to No. 3 from No. 65 in January 2023;[29] in the UK, Christmas songs regularly reenter the charts over Christmas, and during that year's festive period 29 of the UK Top 40 were Christmas songs.[30] Additionally, the song spent fifteen weeks at the top of the UK Dance Chart and charted at No. 15 on the end-of-year chart.[9] The success of the song meant that the release of Venbee's subsequent single, "Gutter", was delayed by several months, despite having been teased on TikTok just before "Messy in Heaven".[24] In December 2022, the song won "Best Bass Track" at the BBC Radio 1 Dance Awards,[31] and in November 2023, Apple Music announced that the song had become the seventh most streamed song of that year on its platform.[32]

Music video and other media

[edit]

A music video was released for the song, which begins with Venbee welcoming guests into her house, and contains footage of her and guests at a houseparty, at a rave, and in a vehicle.[26] On 28 February 2023, the edited version of the song was used in series 9 of Love Island,[33] and in September 2023, Venbee performed both "Messy in Heaven" and a cover of Justin Bieber's "Sorry" for Triple J's Like a Version.[34] In October 2023,[23] the song appeared on Venbee's mixtape Zero Experience, along with "Low Down", "Rampage", which had also been co-written by Fable and Cinti, and "ME4 (Council Estate)", which was also co-credited to Goddard.[35]

Track listing

[edit]

Digital single[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50
  2. "Low Down" (Venbee, Dan Fable) – 3:02

Edited[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – Edited" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

VIP mix[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – VIP mix" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 3:00
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

After Party mix[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – After Party mix" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:40
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Belters Only & Seamus D remix[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – Belters Only & Seamus D remix" (Venbee, Goddard., Belters Only, Seamus D) – 2:36
  2. "Messy in Heaven" – 2:50

ArrDee version[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard., ArrDee) – 3:01
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Alcemist remix[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard., Alcemist) – 2:52
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Restricted remix[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard., Restricted) – 2:41
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Acoustic version[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – acoustic version" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 3:02
  2. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Extended mix/instrumental[36]

  1. "Messy in Heaven – extended mix" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 4:19
  2. "Messy in Heaven – instrumental" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50
  3. "Messy in Heaven" (Venbee, Goddard.) – 2:50

Personnel and credits

[edit]

Recording locations

  • A small studio in Tottenham[11]

Personnel

  • Venbee – vocals
  • Goddard. – production
  • Jacob Manson - production
  • Matteo Cinti/Teo Cinti – production
  • Jay Reynolds – mastering, mixing[35]

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

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Certifications for "Messy in Heaven"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[46] Platinum 70,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[47] Platinum 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[48] 2× Platinum 1,200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit]
Release history for "Soft Spot"
Region Date Format Version Artist Label Ref.
Various 23 September 2022
Original version Venbee, Goddard. Columbia [36]
30 September 2022 Edited version Venbee, Goddard. [36]
7 October 2022 VIP mix Venbee, Goddard. [36]
21 October 2022 After Party mix Venbee, Goddard. [36]
4 November 2022 Belters Only & Seamus D remix Venbee, Goddard., Belters Only, Seamus D [36]
11 November 2022 ArrDee version Venbee, Goddard., ArrDee [36]
25 November 2022 Alcemist remix Venbee, Goddard., Alcemist [36]
27 January 2023 Restricted remix Venbee, Goddard., Restricted [36]
27 January 2023 Acoustic version Venbee, Goddard. [36]
10 February 2023 Extended version/instrumental Venbee, Goddard. [36]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ "The Girl That Never Smiles" in 2012,[2] and "Beautiful Liar"[3] and "The Girl I Used To Know" in 2013.[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Venbee – The Girl in the Bucket Hat with the Chicken Nugget Necklace". 'cene Magazine. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  2. ^ "BBC Radio Manchester – BBC Music Introducing in Manchester, 11/11/2012". BBC.
  3. ^ "BBC Radio Manchester – BBC Music Introducing in Manchester, 23/02/2013". BBC.
  4. ^ "BBC Radio Manchester – BBC Music Introducing in Manchester, 04/05/2013". BBC.
  5. ^ Kampff, Stephen (28 August 2017). "How Does This British Photographer Make a Profit Shooting £100 Music Videos?". Fstoppers. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  6. ^ "Venbee releases her new single with Goddard "Messy In Heaven"". www.reeditionmagazine.com. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  7. ^ ""I Do My Best And It Seems To Work!" Clash Meets Venbee". Clash Music. 16 March 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  8. ^ "The best tracks of the year 2022 – April". Mixmag. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  9. ^ a b c "VENBEE | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  10. ^ a b c Jolley, Ben (2 November 2022). "Venbee: thrilling, cathartic drum 'n' bass from 'Messy In Heaven' hitmaker". NME. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  11. ^ a b c "Venbee Interview: "It's been mental but I'm just having the best time" | Skiddle". Skiddle.com. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  12. ^ Meyer-Horn, Maxim (25 October 2022). "On Our Radar: Venbee Is Making Her Way to the Top of the Charts". Enfnts Terribles. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  13. ^ "Venbee: Messy in Heaven singer talks making music with dyslexia". BBC News. 24 May 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  14. ^ Rom, Annelies (19 March 2023). "We Need To Talk About Venbee". UKF. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  15. ^ a b c d "Hitmakers: Dan Fable tells the story behind his and Venbee's DnB hit Messy In Heaven | Interviews | Music Week". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  16. ^ Petridis, Alexis (22 April 2022). "'It's just good energy!' How TikTok and Covid made drum'n'bass hot again". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  17. ^ a b "What is the most recognizable dance tune lyric ft. Goddard". georgefm.co.nz. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  18. ^ a b Aitken, Abbie (23 September 2022). "Venbee imagines what it's like to be "Messy In Heaven"". Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  19. ^ "Sony Music Entertainment ups Monica Cornia and Melissa Thomas". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  20. ^ "venbee x goddard x AreDee – messy in heaven (Remix) (Single)". WORDPLAY. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  21. ^ ""I Do My Best And It Seems To Work!" Clash Meets Venbee | Features". Clash Magazine Music News, Reviews & Interviews. 16 March 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  22. ^ Klepeisz, Laura. "Venbee: "I saw a lot of rough situations that inspire me to write stories for people that don't have a voice"". Hotpress. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  23. ^ a b Staff, Wonderland (23 October 2023). "venbee Stops By To Chat "Zero Experience"". Wonderland. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  24. ^ a b "Venbee Talks DnB, ADHD, And TikTok Fame Breaking Her Phone. Video". Global Player. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  25. ^ "On The Radar 2023 Special: Venbee". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  26. ^ a b Kim, Dave (21 January 2023). "PLAY IT: Venbee x Goddard – 'Messy in Heaven'". WDET 101.9 FM. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  27. ^ Hutchinson, Kate (4 February 2023). "One to watch: Venbee". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  28. ^ Reilly, Nick (31 October 2023). "Meet Venbee, the artist creating relatable, chart-storming drum 'n' bass". Rolling Stone UK. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  29. ^ "Raye: Pop star hits number one after gaining independence from major label". BBC News. 6 January 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  30. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (10 November 2023). "Christmas arrives in UK charts earlier than ever with entries for Wham! and Mariah Carey". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  31. ^ "Radio 1 presents its Dance Awards for 2022 | Complete Music Update". Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  32. ^ "Taylor Swift crowned Apple Music's artist of the year for 2023". Bracknell News. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  33. ^ "Love Island 2023 soundtrack: What songs were on Love Island tonight?". PopBuzz. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  34. ^ "venbee – 'Messy In Heaven' (live for Like A Version)". triple j. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  35. ^ a b "Try the TIDAL Web Player". listen.tidal.com. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  36. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t "Spotify – Web Player". Spotify. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  37. ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 6 February 2023". The ARIA Report. No. 1718. Australian Recording Industry Association. 6 February 2023. p. 4.
  38. ^ "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  39. ^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 16 January 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  40. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  41. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  42. ^ "Hot Dance/Electronic Songs: Week of February 18, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  43. ^ "Alternative Airplay Songs: Week of March 4, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  44. ^ "Top Selling Singles of 2023". Recorded Music NZ. Archived from the original on 20 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  45. ^ Griffiths, George (29 December 2023). "The Official Top 40 Biggest Songs of 2023". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
  46. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  47. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Venbee and Goddard. – Messy in Heaven". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  48. ^ "British single certifications – Venbee & Goddard – Messy In Heaven". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
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