Titanium (song)
Encyclopedia
"Titanium" is a song recorded by French disc jockey (DJ)-music producer David Guetta
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...

, featuring vocals by Australian recording artist Sia
Sia Furler
Sia Kate Isobelle Furler or simply Sia, is an Australian pop, downtempo, and jazz singer and songwriter. In 2000, her single, "Taken for Granted" was a top 10 hit in the United Kingdom. Her 2008 album, Some People Have Real Problems peaked in the top 30 on the Billboard 200...

. Taken from the former's fifth studio album, Nothing but the Beat
Nothing but the Beat
Nothing but the Beat is the fifth studio album by French DJ and record producer David Guetta. The album was released on August 26, 2011 through Virgin Records . Released as a double album, the first disc features collaborations with artists from the R&B, hip hop and pop world such as Lil Wayne,...

, the song was written by Sia Furler, Guetta, Giorgio Tuinfort and Afrojack
Afrojack
Nick van de Wall, born 9 September 1987, commonly known by his stage name Afrojack, is a Grammy Award winning Dutch music producer and DJ. Born and raised in Spijkenisse, Netherlands, He was listed as number 7 on DJ Mags top 100 DJs of 2011...

. Production was also handled by Guetta, Tuinfort and Afrojack. "Titanium" was released for digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...

 on August 8, 2011, as the first of three promotional singles from the album. The song originally featured the vocals of American recording artist Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

, whose version of the song leaked online
Internet leak
An Internet leak occurs when a party's confidential information is released to the public on the Internet. Various types of information and data can be, and have been, "leaked" to the Internet, the most common being personal information, computer software and source code, and artistic works such...

 in July 2011.

"Titanium" is a ballad which draws from the genres of pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

, house
House music
House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...

 and urban
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...

-dance
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

. The song's lyrics are about inner strength. Sia's vocals on "Titanium" received comparisons to those by Fergie and the song was also musically compared to Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

's work. Critics were positive towards the song was generally positive and noted it as one of the standout tracks from Nothing but the Beat. "Titanium" attained top-ten positions in several countries, including Australia, Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. It was also a top-twenty hit in Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Background

"Titanium" was written by Sia Furler, David Guetta, Giorgio Tuinfort and Afrojack. Production was also handled by Guetta, Tuinfort and Afrojack. After discovering Sia's music online, Guetta picked her to appear on his fifth studio album, Nothing but the Beat
Nothing but the Beat
Nothing but the Beat is the fifth studio album by French DJ and record producer David Guetta. The album was released on August 26, 2011 through Virgin Records . Released as a double album, the first disc features collaborations with artists from the R&B, hip hop and pop world such as Lil Wayne,...

. Guetta told an insider from Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, "I was totally amazed by Sia ... This has made me more curious to study her music more because I was really impressed. I have the biggest people on the album and she has a different profile, more like an indie kind of artist and it makes her song even more special, it makes it stand out I think."

The song originally featured the vocals of American recording artist Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

, whose version of the song leaked online
Internet leak
An Internet leak occurs when a party's confidential information is released to the public on the Internet. Various types of information and data can be, and have been, "leaked" to the Internet, the most common being personal information, computer software and source code, and artistic works such...

 in July 2011. In an interview with News.com.au, Guetta spoke about its leak, saying, "You shouldn't even know about that ... I'd rather not speak about it. That was annoying. It wasn't supposed to be out there." Sia recorded a demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...

 of the song, which was then sent to Blige and other artists. Eventually, Guetta decided to stay with her version. He explained, "The first time I heard what Sia did, because she was not in the studio with me, I fell in love with it ... I didn't even want to give it to anyone else; it was perfect the way it was. It's not only about how big you are in America, it's about the song and the voice." American pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

 singer Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

 was the first person to be offered the track but turned it down. An insider told Take 40 Australia, "So that 'Titanium' song, Sia wrote it for Katy, but [Katy] didn't want to do a song with Guetta ... " "Titanium" was released for digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...

 on August 8, 2011, as the first of three promotional single
Promotional recording
A promotional recording, or promo, is an audio or video recording distributed for free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available...

s from the album, as part of the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...

's countdown to the album's release.

Composition

"Titanium" has been described as "an emotional near-ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...

" that draws from the genres of pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

, house
House music
House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...

 and urban
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...

-dance
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

. According to Andrew Gregory from The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...

, the song's intro
Introduction (music)
In music, the introduction is a passage or section which opens a movement or a separate piece. In popular music this is often abbreviated as intro...

 features "a hint of 80's flavour". Trent Fitzgerald from PopCrush noted that the song "has the headache-inducing club beat, whining synths [and] atmospheric sound effects." Ben Norman from About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....

 noted that it "incorporate[s] a strumming guitar ... before a staggering beat filters in, Sia's trademark pipes positively ooze with emotional inflection." The strumming guitar sounds were compared to those of "Every Breath You Take
Every Breath You Take
"Every Breath You Take" is a song by The Police on the band's 1983 album Synchronicity, written by Sting and Andy Summers . The single was one of the biggest hits of 1983, topping the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for eight weeks and the UK Singles Chart for four weeks. It also topped the...

". "Titanium" has lyrics about inner strength, such as: "I'm bulletproof, nothin' to lose / Fire away, fire away / Ricochet, you take your aim / Fire away, fire away / You shoot me down, but I won't fall / I am titanium." Al Fox from BBC Music
BBC Music
BBC Music is a team working in the department of Audio and Music Interactive at the BBC. Responsible for the BBC Music website - the portal site to music content across the BBC website....

 wrote that on the song, Sia has "ghostly mandolin-esque vocals". Cameron Adams from Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...

called them "square-peg", while Melinda Newman from HitFix
HitFix
HitFix, or the HitFix.com is an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information and providing reviews and critiques of film, music and television...

 compared her vocals to those by Fergie. Genevieve Koski from The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...

wrote that on the song, Sia "manage[s] to keep [her] head above the waves of synths ... by amping up [her] vocals to match the outsized beats." David Jeffries from Allmusic compared the song to the music of Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

.

Critical reception

David Byrne and Tony Peregrin from Windy City Times
Windy City Times
Windy City Times is Chicago's oldest LGBT newspaper, and the only Chicago gay publication with an independent circulation audit current as of 2008....

called the song "epic and "energizing", writing that "it is Sia who steals the show" on Nothing but the Beat. Robert Copsey from Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....

 agreed calling the song one of "the record's standouts". A writer for Samesame.com.au
Samesame.com.au
Samesame.com.au is an Australian LGBT website created by Tim Duggan and a partner. The website is run by Sound Alliance in the Sydney suburb of Surry Hills...

 also agreed, calling it the "best cut" on the album, and wrote that its "a track you will quickly be running on repeat." Tom Ewing from The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

wrote that "Sia, on 'Titanium', handles the album's best hook well." Rich Lopez from Dallas Voice
Dallas Voice
Dallas Voice, founded in 1984, is a newspaper for the gay community in Dallas, Texas . It is published by the Voice Publishing Company, Inc....

wrote that the "collaborative lyrics elevate this song to a higher level than any previous track" from the album, and called it "clever writing" from Sia. Ben Norman from About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....

 wrote that it "basically blows the rest of his album out of the water. Teaming up with Sia was probably the smartest move he [Guetta] has done in recent memory when it comes to actual musical quality." David Griffiths from 4Music
4Music
4Music is a music and entertainment channel in the United Kingdom and available on some digital television providers in the Republic of Ireland - its web component can be found at with its own and pages. It is the only channel within the Box Television Network to be branded under Channel 4 and...

 called it "The most intriguing hook-up" on the album, writing that "'Titanium' sees Guetta giving the Australian songstress some long overdue commercial appeal, while Sia's vocals bring a quirky twist." Kerri Mason from Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

magazine described the song as "Guetta's quirkiest and most epic track to date (in itself an unusual combination)." Jamie Horne from The Border Mail
The Border Mail
The Border Mail is a daily newspaper published in Albury-Wodonga, Australia, serving the twin cities and the surrounding region.The first edition was printed on 24 October 1903 by editor Hamilton Mott and his brother Decimus...

described the song as "strong". Joe Copplestone from PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...

 noted that songs on the album such as "Titanium" and "Night of Your Life
Night of Your Life (David Guetta song)
"Night of Your Life" is a song by French disc jockey -music producer David Guetta, featuring additional vocals from American R&B recording artist Jennifer Hudson. Taken from the former's fifth studio album, Nothing but the Beat , the song was written by Cristyle Johnson, Anthony Preston, Guetta and...

", "recall the power" of Guetta's previous collaborations with Kelly Rowland
Kelly Rowland
Kelendria Trene "Kelly" Rowland is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer, and television personality. She rose to fame as one of the founding members of the American girl group Destiny's Child...

 on "When Love Takes Over
When Love Takes Over
"When Love Takes Over" is a song by French disc jockey -music producer David Guetta from his fourth studio album, One Love. It was released as the lead single from the album on 21 April 2009 by Virgin Records...

" (2009) and "Commander
Commander (song)
"Commander" is a song performed by American recording artist Kelly Rowland from her third studio album, Here I Am . It serves as the project's international lead single and her debut release with Universal Motown...

" (2010).

Chart performance

In Australia, "Titanium" debuted at number 31 on the ARIA Singles Chart
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

 on August 15, 2011, and peaked at number five on September 5, 2011. It was certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

 (ARIA), for selling 210,000 digital copies. "Titanium" became Sia's highest charting single as a solo artist in the country as well as Guetta's ninth top-ten hit there. "Titanium" also debuted at number three on the Austrian Singles Chart, and at number nine on the French Singles Chart
Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...

. The song also reached the top ten in the charts of Belgium (Wallonia region), Finland, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. "Titanium" was a top twenty hit in Belgium (Flanders region), Canada and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 on August 20, 2011. "Titanium" also charted on the UK Dance Chart
UK Dance Chart
The UK Dance Chart is a chart compiled by The Official Charts Company from sales in record stores and digital downloads. Although the chart does not currently receive any airplay on the radio or television, the chart can be viewed on the BBC Radio 1 and The Official Charts Company website.Digital...

, where it peaked at number four. The song's lowest charting position was on the Slovak Airplay Chart at number 81.

Covers and usage in media

On October 31, 2011, contestant Andrew Wishart covered "Titanium" in the third season
The X Factor (Australia season 3)
The X Factor is an Australian television reality music competition, based on the original UK series, to find new singing talent; the winner of which receives a management contract and a Sony Music Australia recording contract. The 2011 season premiered on the Seven Network on 29 August 2011 and...

 of The X Factor (Australia). "Titanium" was also covered by contestant Martin Madeja on the second season
X Factor (Germany season 2)
The second Season of X Factor will start on the 30th August 2011. The auditions were held in April/May 2011. The Show will broadcast every Tuesday and Sunday. The Judges are Sarah Connor, Das Bo and Till Brönner .There are four phases:1. Auditions2. Bootcamp...

 of X Factor Germany
X Factor (Germany)
X Factor is the German version of The X Factor, a show originating from the United Kingdom. It is a television music talent show contested by aspiring pop singers drawn from public auditions....

 on November 8, 2011. The song was used in the fifth season
Gossip Girl (season 5)
The fifth season of Gossip Girl, an American teen drama based upon the book series by Cecily von Ziegesar and developed for television by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage...

 of the American television show Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl is an American young adult novel series written by Cecily von Ziegesar and published by Little, Brown and Company, a subsidiary of the Hachette Group. The series revolves around the lives and romances of the privileged teenagers at the Constance Billard School for Girls, an elite...

episode "I Am Number Nine", which aired on November 7, 2011.

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes for Nothing but the Beat.
  • Afrojack – songwriting, production, mixing
    Audio mixing (recorded music)
    In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...

  • Sia Furler – lead vocals, songwriting
  • David Guetta – songwriting, production
    Record producer
    A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

    , mixing
  • Giorgio Tuinfort – songwriting, production

Weekly charts

Chart (2011) Peak
position
Poland (Dance Top 50
Polish Dance Club Singles Chart
The Polish Dance Club Singles Chart is a chart compiled by ZPAV from the most popular songs in the clubs. Although the chart does not currently receive any airplay on the radio or television, the chart can be viewed on the DJ Promotion and ZPAV website....

)
47
Slovakia (Rádio Top 100 Oficiálna
Rádio Top 100 Oficiálna
Rádio Top 100 Oficiálna is the name of the Slovakian national airplay chart published by the IFPI Czech Republic on a weekly basis since the cancellation of the Slovakian national section on December 31, 2009....

)
81
US Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

66


Certifications

Country Certification
Australia (ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

)
3× Platinum
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