"Safe and Sound" is a song by American indie pop duo Capital Cities, written and produced by band members Ryan Merchant and Sebu Simonian. The song was released as a single on January 6, 2011 and first appeared on their debut EP Capital Cities, later serving as the lead single from their debut studio album, In a Tidal Wave of Mystery. "Safe and Sound" became the duo's breakout hit, peaking at number eight on the United StatesBillboard Hot 100 and achieving commercial success in several other territories. Three music videos were produced for the single, with the third video, directed by Grady Hall and set in the Los Angeles Theatre, later being nominated for Best Music Video at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.
Background and composition
"Safe and Sound" is a synth-pop, dance-pop and alternative rock song, and was written and produced by Capital Cities members Ryan Merchant and Sebu Simonian. It features a prominent trumpet line, which was only incorporated into its production after eight previous takes of the song.
Music videos
The first music video for "Safe and Sound" was self-produced and edited by the band and uploaded to their official YouTube account on February 24, 2011. It features alternating historical film clips of dancing and war from the last century generally arranged in chronological order. Another video, directed by Jimmy Ahlander, was released on October 21, depicting the duo being led through a junkyard by a monk. The third and most well-known video for the song was directed by Grady Hall and released on April 25, 2013. The video is set in the Los Angeles Theatre and depicts Capital Cities performing on stage as dancers of all types emerge from pictures on the wall and film clips from different time periods in the theater's history come to life and compete in dance-offs. It received a nomination in the Best Music Video category at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.
Cover versions and in other media
On November 7, 2013, the song was performed by Team Adam from the fifth season of the series, The Voice. Zendaya, Kina Grannis, Kurt Hugo Schneider and Max Schneider released a cover of the song on March 31, 2014 used for a Coca-Cola commercial. Actual Coca-Cola bottles served as instruments in the version. There was also a version made for Chuck E. Cheese's that was performed in the restaurants by Chuck E. and his band in 2014. The song was also featured in a US television advertisement campaign for the 2014 Mazda3, and a Canadian television commercial for Bell Canada. A cover version was used in a State Farm commercial. The song was featured on a fifth season episode of Supergirl.
Commercial performance
"Safe and Sound" first gained commercial success in Germany following its use in a Vodafone commercial, later topping the German Media Control singles chart. A sleeper hit, it peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 2013, over two-and-a-half years after its initial release. It has sold over two million copies in the United States as of January 2014. It also reached #2 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart, behind "Roar" by Katy Perry. In the United Kingdom, the single was added to the BBC Radio 2 playlist on August 31, 2013; following its official single release in the country the following month, it peaked at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart. Air New Zealand have used the song in their in-flight safety video for 2014, while the Barcelona's Institute for Research in Biomedicine has used it in its dance video to raise awareness and support for research into diseases such as cancer and metastasis, Alzheimer's and diabetes.
