Artist(s): Sonny
Title: Dancer
Genre(s): Pop, Electropop, Rock Pop, Glam Rock
Length: 3:59
Writer: S.Bardot, C.Hudson
Producer: Sonny Bardot, EaziiBoi
Label: Independent
From The EP: Save Game
Dancer is a song by Norwegian singer, producer, actor and adult entertainer Sonny Bardot, known mononymously as Sonny (born Søren Kjelland). It serves as the lead single from his forthcoming EP,
Save Game. Bardot released the song independently on June 16, 2022, after announcing it a week prior. As the opening act for the European leg of Tika Mays'
Unfinished Business Tour, Sonny debuted "Dancer" in his live performances before the song's official release, using it to close his sets. The track was written by Sonny and acclaimed singer-songwriter, Christopher Hudson. Bardot agreed to work with Hudson after the writer reached out with the intent of collaborating, claiming to be a huge fan of Sonny's debut EP,
New Game. Production was handled by Sonny himself alongside long-time collaborator and friend, EaziiBoi, who has worked on all of Bardot's efforts to date. Lyrically, the song follow Sonny's typical theme of referencing technology, however, it leans more heavily into music-related metaphors and comparisons. "Dancer" is a tongue-in-cheek track; from dancing through the tears, to finding solace in certain lyrics, to comparing emotions to different genres and tempos, the song is a guide to heartbreak and how to handle it.
The song was written in February 2022, alongside Christopher Hudson. Following the success of his debut EP in late 2020, Sonny continuously worked on new music throughout the following year but most of the sessions proved fruitless as Bardot found himself "creatively bankrupt", citing the pressures and fear of following up his first release as reasons for his writer's block. It wasn't until Hudson reached out to work with him that Sonny found an artistic spark again. The creation of "Dancer" fuelled the inspiration for his forthcoming
Save Game EP, which retains Bardot's signature lyrical themes but is set to involve "bigger" and more "bombastic" productions in comparison to his debut. The song was born out of a conversation between the two writers as the spoke candidly about their love for music and how it has impacted their personal and professional lives. Through the discussion, Sonny stated;
"it's a good thing heartbreak is a dancer otherwise we'd be out of jobs!". This soundbite inspired Hudson to push for the creation of a song around that sentiment.
Production wise, "Dancer" contains multiple elements from different genres and has a "heavier" sound than Bardot's previous releases. Although still electropop oriented, the track features a prominent electric guitar riff throughout as well as a solo segment for it after the bridge. This brings harsher sounding, live instrumental aspects of 70s glam rock into the mix with the more traditional modern day pop productions and catchy repetitive vocal hooks and melodies, creating a sonically diverse, hybrid track that has huge crossover appeal with different generations of music fans. Vocally, Sonny also showcases a wider, more experimental range as he uses a much fuller, more urgent voice in the chorus, as well as tapping into his falsetto range in the repeating post-chorus hook. Although still remaining and independent artist and having his own success, "Dancer" could be seen as a more mainstream breakthrough for Sonny with its large production and the involvement of Christopher Hudson.
Sonny wrote:"This song is my ode to music. I've dabbled in many things in my life whether that be professionally, recreationally or romantically. Usually always ends up going down in flames but music? That has been a constant. It has helped me through the worst of times, been the soundtrack of the happiest times and has literally changed my life. It's how I express myself and make my money. Ironically, I was falling out of love with music as a job a little bit until this song was penned. See, music DOES have power! I'm not as cynical as the song may suggest. I'm not one of those artists who purposely suffers for their art. I don't sabotage anything for the sake of telling a good story. That part is all tongue and cheek but the sentiment remains the same. Music can get you through almost anything. This is a love letter to it."
Critical reception of "Dancer" has been universally positive thus far. Many critics have praised the large scale production as well as Sonny's vocal performance. Writing for Pitchfork, Damon Ferrari described the track as
"turbocharged and ready to take over the summer." He then on to laud the lyrical content and sonics, stating;
"Sonny doesn't lose his grit or signature penmanship but the lack of his usual expletives and the inclusion of richer production allows him to open up to a whole new fanbase without isolating his old ones. "Dancer" is turned up and toned down in all the right places. A perfect comeback choice." Margot Thom of Nylon echoed similar sentiments regarding the creative choices made for his musical return, writing;
"While still cosplaying as a humanoid cyborg with all his technological references, Sonny sounds far more sprightly and approachable on "Dancer" than the cynical and cold version 1.0 model we met on his debut EP". Thom also dubbed the song as
"highly relatable" and
"anthemic". Geraldo De León of Vulture dubbed it
"the perfect marriage between Sonny's kookiness and Christopher Hudson's immaculate pop sensibilities". Consequence selected it as its "Song of the Week".
DancerDa-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance onWhole thing went bust, I tried to rewire
Hitting notes like the local town crier
Dead in the water, preaching to the choir
Searching for a beat I couldn't acquire
No tools left inside the box
Time to unplug and power off
I got into the groove
I put the needle on it
I pulled out all the moves
It sounded so symphonic
It's now how I imagined our crescendo
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
Read between the lines and you'll find an answer
Tears never show under the disco ball
Torn up but at least I can write one more
A good thing that heartbreak...Is a da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance onAll disposable in the age of digital
Harder to hold on to something physical
Hope I'm not sounding too clinical
We both know we were once the pinnacle
So, let the music play
Repeat it over 'til fade
We tried it double time
We tried it plain acoustic
We're treading same old lines
We're tired of the music
Burnt out each and every tempo
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
Read between the lines and you'll find an answer
Tears never show under the disco ball
Torn up but at least I can write one more
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
Read between the lines and you'll find an answer
With emotions all on shuffle
Clarity will arrive on the double
A good thing that heartbreak...Is a da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance onI'll get over it with my sequencer
Press that button, turn the speakers up
I'll get over it with my sequencer
Press that button, turn the speakers up
I'll get over it with my sequencer
Press that button, turn the speakers up
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
Read between the lines and you'll find an answer
Tears never show under the disco ball
Torn up but at least I can write one more
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
A good thing that heartbreak is a dancer
Read between the lines and you'll find an answer
With emotions all on shuffle
Clarity will arrive on the double
A good thing that heartbreak...Is a da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance onDa-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
Da-ay-eh-ah-ncer, dance on
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