Yellow Flicker Beat is the first official single from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 soundtrack. The song is performed and written by Lorde and was released on September 29th, 2014. Lorde is the sole curator for the The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 soundtrack.
Lyrics[]
I’m a princess cut from marble, smoother than a storm
And the scars that mark my body, they’re silver and gold
My blood is a flood of rubies, precious stones
It keeps my veins hot, the fire's found a home in me
I move through town, I’m quiet like a fire
And my necklace is of rope, I tie it and untie it
And now people talk to me, but nothing ever hits home
People talk to me, and all the voices just burn holes
I’m done with it (ooh)
This is the start of how it ever ends
They used to shout my name, now they whisper it
I’m speeding up and this is the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat sparking up my heart
We're at the start, the colors disappear
I never watch the stars there’s so much down here
So I just try, keep up with the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat sparking up my heart
I dream all year, but they’re not the sweet kinds
And the shivers move down my shoulder blades in double time
And now people talk to me, I’m slipping out of reach now
People talk to me, and all their faces blur
But I got my fingers laced together and I made a little prison
And I’m locking up everyone that ever laid a finger on me
I’m done with it (ooh)
This is the start of how it ever ends
They used to shout my name, now they whisper it
I’m speeding up and this is the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat sparking up my heart
We're at the start, the colors disappear
I never watch the stars there’s so much down here
So I just try, keep up with the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat sparking up my heart
And this is the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat sparking up my heart
And this is the
Red, orange, yellow flicker beat-beat-beat-beat
Making of[]
After reading the books and rewatching the movies, Lorde was sent the end of the film by director Francis Lawrence, and she was struck by the scene where a hijacked Peeta Mellark attacked Katniss Everdeen. She decided to begin the song with "these really creepy hums... that were very kind of flawed and cracked-sounding" in order to capture Katniss's instability, as well as her determination to fight back against the Capitol for what they had done to her and Peeta.[1]
Chart perfomance[]
"Yellow Flicker Beat" performed moderately in the charts all around the world. In the American territory, "Yellow Flicker Beat" became Lorde's third top 40 hit in the official chart, and the third single from a Hunger Games soundtrack to reach this high, after "Safe & Sound" and "Eyes Open". Its highest rank was in Lorde's birth country, New Zealand, where it reached #4 and became the fourth top 5 hit of Lorde.
Peaks[]
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA) | 25 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Flaunders) | 3 |
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100) | 21 |
| France (SNEP) | 93 |
| Germany (Media Control Charts) | 38 |
| Hungary (Single Top 20) | 16 |
| Ireland (IRMA) | 83 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) | 4 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 34 |
| UK Singles Chart | 71 |
| US Billboard Rock Songs | 3 |
Music video[]
The music video for "Yellow Flicker Beat" was directed by Emily Kai Bock, and was released on 7 November 2014 at midnight (NZDT), when Lorde turned eighteen years old. She performed a show in Berlin while filming for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 took place, so some of the producers came to the concert and brought her to see their work on set. She was struck by the vastness of the Berlin Tempelhof Airport. This gave her the idea to film the music video in a "cavernous space": Park Avenue Armory in New York.[1]
Awards[]
| Year | Award | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Song | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song | Nominated | |
| Awards Circuit Community Award for Best Original Song | Nominated | |
| Gold Derby Music Award for Original Song | Nominated |