“Hold Me Closer,” the much-hyped single by Elton John and Britney Spears, took a big tumble on the charts in its second week.
On the Billboard Hot 100, which tracks U.S. sales, streams and radio airplay, the song fell from No. 6 to No. 23. On the Canadian Hot 100, it is at No. 11 after debuting at No. 3.
Across the pond, “Hold Me Closer” slipped five spots to No. 8 in its second week of release.
A reimagining of John’s 1971 classic “Tiny Dancer” that kicks off with the first verse of his 1992 song “The One” and interpolates a bit of 1976's "Don't Go Breaking My Heart," the track was produced by Andrew Watt and Canada’s Cirkut (aka Toronto-born, Nova Scotia-raised Henry Walter).
The pair crafted “Hold Me Closer” by rearranging the original strings, guitar, piano and background vocals from “Tiny Dancer” and adding bass by Watt and drum programming by Cirkut. John, 75, added new piano parts and Spears, 40, recorded her vocals at Watt’s home studio in California. (John's original vocals from the '70s were used.)
The project was revealed by Page Six in July and had fans buzzing since it is the first new music from Spears since 2016. (Paris Hilton predicted it would become "iconic.") John revealed the title in early August and previewed the song at a bar in Cannes a few days before its Aug. 26 release.
“If it is a big hit, and I think it may be, it will give [Spears] so much more confidence than she’s got already and she will realize that people actually love her and care for her and want her to be happy,” John told The Guardian.
Though it hasn’t been a blockbuster hit, there is still hope for “Hold Me Closer.”
In 2021, John and Dua Lipa released “Cold Heart,” a mashup by Australian trio Pnau of John’s “Rocket Man,” “Sacrifice, “Kiss the Bride” and “Where’s the Shoorah?” that needed time to catch fire.
The track took eight weeks to reach No. 1 in the UK and 19 weeks in Canada. On the U.S. singles chart, “Cold Heart” debuted at No. 81 and didn’t make it into the Top 10 until January 2022 (it peaked at No. 7).