"Skyscraper" is a song recorded by the American singer Demi Lovato for her third album, Unbroken (2011). The song was released by Hollywood Records on July 12, 2011, as the album's lead single. Toby Gad, Lindy Robbins, and Kerli wrote it, and Gad produced it. American singer Jordin Sparks provided background vocals. It was inspired by a picture of the apocalypse, in which the world was in ruins and, among collapsed buildings, one skyscraper was standing.
When "Skyscraper" was recorded, Lovato was emotional which triggered outbursts and caused her to start crying. On November 1, 2010, she entered a treatment facility to deal with her personal struggles, and was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder. After completing treatment on January 28, 2011, Lovato re-recorded the song, but kept the original as she felt it was symbolic. Musically, it is a pop ballad with lyrics about staying strong and believing in oneself. A Spanish version of the song, alternatively titled "Rascacielo", was released on August 16, 2011. In 2023, Lovato re-recorded "Skyscraper" and included it on her first remix album, Revamped.
Mark Pellington directed the music video for "Skyscraper", which premiered on July 13, 2011; it features Lovato wearing a white dress on a desert road. The song was included on the set lists of her concert tours starting with A Special Night with Demi Lovato (2011–2013). Commercially, it debuted and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Skyscraper" sold 176,000 digital downloads in the first week of release in the United States, setting a sales record for Lovato. Internationally, the song reached the Top 10 in the United Kingdom and New Zealand as well as the Top 20 in Canada, Denmark, and Ireland. It has sold over 1.6 million digital downloads in The United States and has been certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Background "Skyscraper" was written by Toby Gad, Lindy Robbins and Estonian singer Kerli Kõiv and produced by Gad. Kõiv said they wrote the song while drawing inspiration from a picture of the apocalypse. In an interview with Seventeen, Kõiv 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." Kõiv 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." Kõiv recorded a demo version of the song before Gad offered the song to Lovato. Lovato wanted to record the song because the singer felt a "huge emotional attachment to it" and believed both Lovato and her fans could relate to it. Lovato 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 Lovato had been on.
American singer Jordin Sparks provided backing vocals on the song. Lovato said that she kept Sparks' 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".
Recording
Initially, Lovato recorded "Skyscraper" in Studio City, Los Angeles in 2010. During recording sessions, Lovato was "doubled over, just in pain." Lovato had never recorded a song that made her that emotional, and according to E! News, while recording, her voice was damaged from purging. At the time, Lovato had not told anyone about her struggles—the singer describes the song as a "cry for help" for her in that moment. On November 1, 2010, Lovato entered a treatment facility to treat her physical and emotional problems.
After completing treatment on January 28, 2011, Lovato re-recorded the song, but decided to keep the original recording because the singer felt that her voice had changed, although noting that her voice was "weaker" when Lovato originally recorded. Lovato 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." Lovato called the original take "symbolic" and said that "it was providing a message". Kõiv praised Lovato's version of the song, stating it "really conveys the emotion". Kerli continued: "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."
Release Lovato revealed the cover artwork and release date of "Skyscraper" on her Twitter account on July 5, 2011. Following the announcement, "Skyscraper" became a trending topic on the site. On July 12, 2011, in an interview of On Air with Ryan Seacrest, Lovato was called in to talk about the track. The same day, the song was made available for digital download on the iTunes Store in the United States, although originally planned to be released on July 14, 2011.
The song reached the top ten on the iTunes chart within an hour, and it summited the chart later in the afternoon. The song was serviced for mainstream radio airplay on July 26, 2011. Soon after, Lovato recorded a Spanish version of the track, named "Rascacielo". It was released on the Mexican iTunes store on August 16, 2011.
After the song was released, many celebrities voiced their support of "Skyscraper" on Twitter. In response, 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." According to The Hollywood Reporter, other celebrities such as The Veronicas, Selena Gomez, Lucy Hale, Kim Kardashian, Jordin Sparks, Ashley Tisdale and Pete Wentz, among others also contributed to the praise.
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 pop ballad in which Lovato showcases breathy, quivering and powerful vocals. In the first verse, Lovato is only accompanied by a lonely, pulsing piano as Lovato 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 on 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 low note of G3 to the high note of G5.
Lyrically, the song represents 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 Lovato 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".
Critical reception Upon release, "Skyscraper" received positive reviews from music critics. While reviewing Unbroken, many critics described "Skyscraper" as the most emotional and vulnerable track on the record, including Rolling Stone Monica Herrera, Sputnikmusic Raul Stanciu, and AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine. Herrera described the ballad as "tear-jerker", while Stanciu complimented its sincerity, and wrote that it "easily strikes a chord with any listener". Jason Lipshutz of Billboard praised Lovato's powerful vocal range on the track, and described it as "somber". Grady Smith for Entertainment Weekly also lauded her vocals and called the song "inspiring". PopCrush reviewer Jessica Sager received the song positively and said that it was Lovato's breakout hit, "with good reason".
At the 2011 edition of the Teen Choice Awards, the single won the award for the category Choice Summer Song. In the following year, the music video for "Skyscraper" won the category Best Video with a Message at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards. For MTV, James Montgomery named "Skyscraper" as one of the 25 best songs of 2011, and praised its final "chill-inducing" chorus. In rankings of Lovato's entire music catalog, the song was placed among her ten best songs by Billboard and American Songwriter, which ranked it at number five and number nine, respectively. At the end of 2019, the staff of the former named "Skyscraper" as one of the 100 songs that defined the 2010s decade, and Lipshutz affirmed that it transformed Lovato into "a respected adult pop voice and prolific hitmaker". In 2024, Los 40 included "Skyscraper" on its list of songs that defined the singer's career.
Chart performance In the United States, "Skyscraper" debuted at its peak of number ten on the Billboard Hot 100. It sold 176,000 paid digital downloads during the first week of release, becoming Lovato's highest first-week sales, as well as the singer's highest-peaking single in the country since "This Is Me" which reached number nine in August 2008. It remained as Lovato's highest first-week sales of her career up until the release of Heart Attack" by Lovato in 2013.
In Canada, "Skyscraper" debuted at number 18 on the Canadian Hot 100. As of August 1, 2011, the song entered the New Zealand Singles Chart at number nine—making it her highest debut and peaking single there at the time. On August 7, 2011, "Skyscraper" debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number ninety-two, and it reached its peak of forty-five the following week.
"Skyscraper" entered the UK Singles Chart at number thirty-two on March 4, 2012. It sold 11,460 copies, marking Lovato's highest charting song in the UK at the time and the singer's third top forty entry there.Official Chart Analysis: Sande thrives in Scotland, Ed Sheeran album tops 1m sales in UK MusicWeek.com On September 29, 2013, over a year after the original release date, the song re-entered at a new peak of number thirteen. It has since reached number seven on October 7, 2013, earning Lovato her second UK top ten single.
Music video Background