Night Changes

"Night Changes"
Single by One Direction
from the album Four
Released14 November 2014[1]
Recorded2014
Length3:47
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
One Direction singles chronology
"Steal My Girl"
(2014) 		"Night Changes"
(2014) 		"Drag Me Down"
(2015)

"Night Changes" is a song recorded by British-Irish boy band One Direction. It was written by the band alongside Jamie Scott, Julian Bunetta and John Ryan, while the production was handled by Bunetta and Ryan. The song was released on 14 November 2014 as the second and final single from their fourth studio album Four. It also marked their last single with member Zayn Malik.

Background and release

"Night Changes" was revealed as the album's second single in an interview with radio host Scott Mills.[2] The track was released on 14 November 2014, three days before the album's release.[3]

Composition and lyrics

Developing on the themes of "Live While We're Young" and "Story of My Life", the song explores the rapid passage of time, seizing the moment in life, and gaining love along the way. The harmonies in the chorus, backed by rounds of "Oohs", give the song added depth and a "big contemplative feel."[4] The song runs for 3 minutes and 47 seconds and begins in the key of A♭ major; 2 minutes and 28 seconds into the song, the key changes to B♭ major.

Music video

The official music video was released on 21 November 2014 and directed by Ben Winston.[5] This was One Direction's last video with Zayn Malik, as he departed from the band on 25 March 2015. Liam Payne's real-life girlfriend Sophia Smith was involved in the shoot, but did not appear on-screen.[6]

The video is a point of view of going on a date with all 5 members of One Direction. The five dates take place in five different locations: a date with Zayn Malik at a restaurant (which he appears to own as he greets some cooks and introduces his date to a waiter), a drive with Louis Tomlinson in his vintage car, a night in playing Monopoly and Jenga with Niall Horan at his house next to a fireplace, ice skating with Harry Styles and at a funfair with Liam Payne.[7]

As their dates progress, things end up going horribly wrong for all 5 members. Zayn's date's ex-boyfriend comes in, yells at her, then dumps water and spaghetti on Zayn, which prompts the date to leave Zayn as he looks on in disbelief.[8] Harry spots another couple doing a very complicated trick on the ice rink and attempts to do it with his date, causing both of them to fall and get injured. Liam takes his date on the Waltzer at the funfair, but becomes nauseated while on the ride and proceeds to vomit in his date's hat as they exit. Niall tends to his fireplace, but the sleeve of his shirt catches fire and he grabs a towel to put out the fire, which accidentally tips over a jug that spills the contents on his date's dress. Louis gets pulled over by the police presumably for speeding and tries to joke with the policeman to impress his date, which results in him getting arrested, and the date watches as Louis is driven away from her in the back of the police car.[7][9]

Commercial performance

A moderate commercial success, the track is one of the band's most critically acclaimed, receiving praise for contemplating the fleeting nature of life with depth and maturity. As of October 2024, "Night Changes" is the most-streamed song by the band on Spotify, with over 1.7 billion streams. After the death of Liam Payne in October 2024, the song began to climb the charts once again and rose to 6th place on Spotify's daily global song chart.[10]

Following Liam Payne's death in October 2024, the song saw a surge in sales and streams. The Official Charts Company showed "Night Changes" place at number 16 on the UK Midweek Singles Chart.[11] It entered the UK Singles Chart Top 100, on 25 October 2024, at number 6.[12]

Track listing

  1. "Night Changes" (Afterhrs Remix) – 3:40
  2. "Night Changes" (live acoustic session) – 3:40
  3. "Steal My Girl" (live acoustic session) – 3:46
  • CD single
  1. "Night Changes" (Afterhrs Remix) – 3:40
  2. "Night Changes" (live acoustic session) – 3:40
  • Music Video
  1. "Night Changes" - 4:00

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for "Night Changes"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[58] 6× Platinum 420,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[59] Platinum 80,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[60] Platinum 90,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[61] Platinum 100,000‡
Mexico (AMPROFON)[62] Platinum 60,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[63] 3× Platinum 90,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[64] Platinum 60,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[65] 2× Platinum 1,200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[67] Platinum 1,010,000[66]
Streaming
Greece (IFPI Greece)[41] Platinum 2,000,000†

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Peters, Mitchell (16 November 2014). "One Direction Performs New Single 'Night Changes'". Billboard. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  2. ^ "One Direction Songwriter Reveals The Story Behind Their Next Single, 'Night Changes'". MTV News. Archived from the original on 2 November 2014.
  3. ^ "One Direction Performs New Single 'Night Changes' - Billboard". Billboard.
  4. ^ "One Direction "Night Changes" Review: "Steal My Girl" Follow Up Gets Contemplative Ahead of 'FOUR' Release [LISTEN]". Music Times. 14 November 2014.
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  6. ^ Linds Foley. "Liam Payne's mystery date in One Direction's 'Night Changes' music video is revealed to be girlfriend Sophia Smith?". Sugarscape.
  7. ^ a b "Watch One Direction Seduce The Viewer in Their 'Night Changes' Video - Billboard". Billboard.
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  9. ^ "One Direction Takes You on Five Dates in Night Changes Music Video—Watch It Now! - E! Online". E! Online. 21 November 2014.
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  62. ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved 7 October 2020. Type One Direction in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and Night Changes in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
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