What Makes You Beautiful, also referred to as WMYB, is One Direction's debut single from their debut album Up All Night. The single was released on September 11, 2011 in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
It has been certified double-platinum in the US after selling 2,060,303 units since February 2012. The single peaked at number four on Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the UK singles chart.
Its music video, which was uploaded on August 19, 2011, is one of the twenty most viewed videos in YouTube, by having more then 400 million views.
Background
What Makes You Beautiful was written by Rami Yacoub, Carl Falk and Savan Kotecha, and produced by Yacoub and Falk. The meaning of the song is very self explanatory. It's about a girl who is attractive, yet she doesn't believe it herself and as a result feels insecure. Louis explained during the filming of the video that, "...there's (a girl) in particular that's really hot, but she actually doesn't know it. That's the whole point of the song, like she's so hot, but she doesn't realize it, but we do!".
The song features a sample of Grease's 'Summer Nights'.
Lyrics
[Liam]
You're insecure, don't know what for
You're turning heads when you walk through the door
Don't need make-up, to cover up
Being the way that you are is enough
[Harry]
Everyone else in the room can see it
Everyone else but you
[All]
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
[Harry]
That's what makes you beautiful
[Zayn]
So c-come on you got it wrong
To prove I'm right I put it in a song
I don't know why you're being shy
And turn away when I look into your eye eye eyes
[Harry]
Everyone else in the room can see it
Everyone else but you
[All]
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
[Harry]
That's what makes you beautiful
[All]
Na Na Na Na Na Na Naaa
Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na
Na Na Na Na Na Na Naaa
Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na
[Harry]
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
[All]
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know, oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
You don't know you're beautiful
[Harry]
That's what makes you beautiful
Release
"What Makes You Beautiful" debuted at number one on the Irish Singles Chart on September 15, 2011. It held on to its spot for four weeks. The singles B-side, "Na Na Na" also entered the Irish Singles Chart at number twenty-seven. "What Makes You Beautiful" re-entered the top ten in its sixteenth week of release and has spent twenty-five weeks on the chart. "What Makes You Beautiful" became the fourteenth best-selling single of 2011 on the Irish Singles Chart.
In the United Kingdom, "What Makes You Beautiful" received the most pre-orders for a Sony Music Entertainment single.[1] It sold 82,000 copies in its first two days, and rose to 100,000 by the third day.[2] The single entered the UK Singles Chart at number one on September 18, 2011, shifting 153,965 copies that week. It was the highest first-week UK sales for any song in 2011 at the time. "What Makes You Beautiful" was the twentieth best-selling single of 2011, moving 540,000 copies.[3]
The single also debuted at number one on the Scottish Singles Chart.
"What Makes You Beautiful" debuted at number fifteen on the Australian Singles Chart and has since peaked at number seven in its ninth week.[4] The single has been certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for selling 210,000 copies.[5] "Na Na Na" also charted on the Australian Singles Chart of November 28, 2011 at number eighty-four.
On the New Zealand Singles Chart, the single entered at number sixteen, then jumped to number three the following week. It peaked at number two in its fourth and fifth weeks, and spent eleven consecutive weeks in the New Zealand Singles Chart top ten. In its fifth week of release it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) for 7,500 sales, and in its ninth was certified platinum for 15,000 sales.
The single debuted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number nine, while debuting at number two on the digital songs chart with 19,000 downloads sold, the biggest debut for a first time charted artist since the Stereos's "Summer Girl" entered at number two in June 2009. The single has been certified gold by Music Canada (MC) for 40,000 sales.
In the United States, "What Makes You Beautiful" became the highest Hot 100 début for a U.K. act since 1998. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number twenty-eight, and at number twelve on the Hot Digital Songs Chart, selling 132,000 downloads in its first week. It currently peaked at number four in Hot 100.[6]
Music video
| Music Video | Information | |
|---|---|---|
|
Released | August 19, 2011 |
| Length | 3:27 | |
| Director | John Urbano | |
| Production Co | ||
| Choreographer | ||
| Filmed | July 2011 | |
| Location | Malibu, CA, US | |
| VEVO views | 541 million+ | |
Background
"What Makes You Beautiful" is the first music video One Direction filmed as a group. It was directed by John Urbano, and filmed in Malibu, California in July 2011 over the span of two days. According to Urbano in the behind the scenes featurette, the video is about: "One Direction, these five guys who are on a road trip meeting up with three of their friends who happen to be girls, and they meet up at the beach." Louis further described the premise by saying, "It's like a group of girls who are friends, but there's one in particular that's really hot, but she actually doesn't know it. That's the whole point of the song, like she's so hot, but she doesn't realize it... but we do!"
Release
The video premiered in the UK on August 19, 2011 with a five day countdown leading up to it. On each of the five days preceding the video's premiere, One Direction posted a teaser trailer of the video on YouTube. Each teaser showed footage from the video and behind the scenes, and one member of the band announcing how many days were left until the video premiere.
On February 10, 2012, E! News showed a clip of the music video, but the music video did not officially premiere in the United States until February 11, 2012 on Nickelodeon.
Synopsis
The majority of the video shows One Direction singing as they stroll on the beach. The performance sections are intercut with moments from the storyline.
In the beginning, they are all headed to the beach as Louis drives the van. When they arrive, they set up a campfire area and load things out of the van. They spend some time exploring the beach, kicking a soccer ball, and playing the guitar as they wait for the girls arrive.
When the girls arrive, they all greet each other with hugs, and then head towards the ocean. They all hang out and joke around near the water. They end up throwing Niall in. During Harry's solo, he serenades one of the girls.
As nighttime approaches, they start a campfire and light up sparklers. Everyone is sitting around the fire making conversation, joking around, and having fun. They take pictures together. At the end, the girls appear to have left, and the boys walk away together leaving their campsite behind.
Popular culture
- In the US, the song is featured in TLC's advert for their 2012 summer wedding reality shows, as well as playing a small portion of the song during The Voice's commercials.
- The song was covered on Glee by Kevin McHale, Damian Mcginty, Chord Overstreet, Samuel Larsen, and Harry Shum for the episode "Prom-asaurus". The episode premiered on May 8, 2012.
- The song is on the game Just Dance 4.
Performances
Live
| Date | Event | Watch | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | |||
| September 10 | Red or Black? | 
|
England |
| October 9 | BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards |
| |
| November 18 | Children in Need 2011 |
| |
| December 4 | Jingle Bell Ball |
| |
| December 10 | The X Factor (UK) (mash-up with JLS) |
| |
| 2012 | |||
| February 5 | Dancing on Ice |
|
England |
| February 17 | 62nd Italian Song Festival |
|
Italy |
| February 24 | 103.5 KISSFM Coca-Cola Lounge (acoustic) |
|
United States |
| March 12 | Today |
| |
| March 27 | Musique Plus Studios | Canada | |
| March 31 | Kids' Choice Awards | United States | |
| April 7 | Saturday Night Live | ||
| August 12 | London 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony | England | |
| November 13 | Today | United States | |
| November 15 | The Ellen DeGeneres Show | ||
Tour
Credits
- Tom Coyne — mastering
- Carl Falk — writing, production, programming, instruments, guitar
- Serban Ghenea — mixing
- John Hanes — mix engineering
- Savan Kotecha — writing
- Phil Seaford — mix engineering assistance
- Rami Yacoub — writing, production, programming, instruments, bass
Release history
| Region | Format | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Digital | September 11, 2011 | Syco |
| Belgium | |||
| Czech Republic | |||
| Denmark | |||
| Finland | |||
| France | |||
| Germany | |||
| Ireland | |||
| Italy | |||
| Netherlands | |||
| New Zealand | |||
| Norway | |||
| Portugal | |||
| Romania | |||
| Spain | |||
| Sweden | |||
| Switzerland | |||
| United Kingdom | |||
| CD single | September 12, 2011 | ||
| Australia | Radio | October 4, 2011 | |
| CD single | November 25, 2011 | ||
| Germany | December 2, 2011 | ||
| Canada | Digital | January 31, 2012 | Columbia |
| United States | February 14, 2012 | ||
| Radio | February 28, 2012 |
Trivia
- While shooting the video, Louis was pulled over twice for driving too slow.
- Its working title was "You Don't Know You're Beautiful."
References
- ↑ One Direction's 'What Makes You Beautiful' breaks pre-order sales record. Digital Spy. August 19, 2011.
- ↑ One Direction: What Makes Flew Beautiful. The Sun. September 15, 2011.
- ↑ The Top 20 biggest selling singles of 2011 revealed!. The Official Charts Company. January 2, 2012.
- ↑ One Direction—What Makes You Beautiful. Australian-chart.com.
- ↑ ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ Reaches Triple Platinum in Australia!. One Direction Music. February 2, 2012.
- ↑ One Direction Has Highest Hot 100 Debut For New U.K. Act Since 1998 Billboard.com. February 22, 2012.