Skinny Live

Skinny Live
What have the artists said about the song?
What certifications did this track receive?
Did birdy write this song or did her director/manager write it?
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Released as the first single from For Emma, Forever Ago , “Skinny Love” is a song about a failed relationship and the regret that stems from it.
The term “skinny love” has two separate meanings. It can refer to a situation where two people love each other but are too shy to admit it or show it. It can also refer to an existing relationship in which there’s no love or emotional fulfillment, but only a codependent need for affirmation. In this case it’s the latter.
Justin Vernon discussed the meaning of the song in an interview with Pitchfork in 2011:
I’m not afraid to talk about [“Skinny Love”], but how do you guarantee it’s accurate? To say that “Skinny Love” is about Christy [Smith, Justin’s then girlfriend and a player on For Emma ] would not be entirely accurate. We dated and she’s an incredibly important person that I lived with for a long time, but it’s about that time in a relationship that I was going through; you’re in a relationship because you need help, but that’s not necessarily why you should be in a relationship. And that’s skinny. It doesn’t have weight. Skinny love doesn’t have a chance because it’s not nourished.
“Skinny Love” was certified 2x platinum by the RIAA on December 12, 2019.
Justin Vernon, the singer and lead of Bon Iver wrote this song in 2006 and it was released in 2007 on Bon Iver’s first album For Emma, Forever Ago . Birdy’s cover of the song was released in 2011.

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by

Catherine Walthall

July 14, 2022, 1:27 pm

Come on, skinny love, what happened here?
“Skinny Love” is likely indie-folk outfit Bon Iver’s most well-known song. The band, fronted and founded by singer/songwriter Justin Vernon, released the song in 2007 ahead of its 2008 album For Emma, Forever Ago . Vernon penned the track, along with eight other songs on Emma , while secluded in a remote cabin in his home state of Wisconsin. The frontman had been going through a painful period in his life, and thus, the haunting tune “Skinny Love.”
But what exactly do the song lyrics mean? And why is this love “skinny”? Read below to find out.
“Skinny Love” is a song about the painful pleading of one lover to another. The narrator is begging for the relationship to work, despite knowing that it ultimately will have to end.
Come on, skinny love, just last the year , the narrator pleads.
In a 2011 interview with Pitchfork , the media outlet wondered whether or not the love interest in “Skinny Love” was written about Christy Smith, Vernon’s former girlfriend.
“To say that ‘Skinny Love’ is about Christy would not be entirely accurate,” he replied. “We dated and she’s an incredibly important person that I lived with for a long time, but it’s about that time in a relationship that I was going through; you’re in a relationship because you need help, but that’s not necessarily why you should be in a relationship. And that’s skinny. It doesn’t have weight. Skinny love doesn’t have a chance because it’s not nourished.”
And there you have it, folks. A “skinny love” is one that cannot last. It is a relationship of deprivation.
What makes this song so particularly sorrowful? The answer lies in Vernon’s wordsmithing and falsetto vocals. Let’s check out some of the lyrics below.
Pour a little salt, we were never here.
The imagery of pouring salt is interesting. It invokes the healing properties of the mineral—anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties—but also the damaging properties of salt when poured upon the earth. The phrase and practice of “salting the earth” dehydrates the soil to the point of preventing crops from growing. A metaphor for a skinny love, perhaps?
And I told you to be patient And I told you to be fine And I told you to be balanced And I told you to be kind
Ah yes, the iconic chorus. Here’s where things really start to fall apart. The repeated usage of the past tense of the verb “tell” pokes holes in the narrator’s relationship with his lover. He wanted things to be “patient,” “fine,” “balanced,” and “kind.” But as we know, that didn’t happen.
And now all your love is wasted And then who the hell was I? And I’m breaking at the britches And at the end of all your lines
And a quick note on the album title that houses “Skinny Love,” For Emma, Forever Ago . “Emma isn’t a person,” Vernon revealed in 2009. “Emma is a place that you get stuck in. Emma’s a pain that you can’t erase.”
Just as popular as Vernon’s rendition is the cover version that British singer/songwriter Birdy released. Birdy, born Jasmine van den Bogaerde, dropped her rendition of “Skinny Love” as her debut single in 2011. The song saw international success and reaffirmed the song’s importance in today’s pop culture.
So, while Vernon’s relationship may not have lasted, his song “Skinny Love” most certainly has.
(Photo by Shirlaine Forrest/WireImage)
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This section needs expansion . You can help by adding to it . ( January 2015 )

Sean Carey
Matthew McCaughan
Michael Noyce
Justin Vernon

" Skinny Love " is a song written by American musician and songwriter Justin Vernon . It was originally released by indie folk band Bon Iver , of which Vernon is a member, in 2007. A cover version by the British vocalist Birdy was released in 2011. Both versions charted internationally and have been featured in multiple television and film soundtracks . The song has since become a popular tune for various singing competition shows around the English-speaking world. [1]

"Skinny Love" was the first single released from Bon Iver's 2007 debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago , in the United States. The song was released as a single in the United Kingdom on April 28, 2008. While "Skinny Love" has been considered a reference to singer Justin Vernon 's relationship with former girlfriend Christy Smith, [2] Vernon countered this as "not entirely accurate [...] it's about that time in a relationship that I was going through; you're in a relationship because you need help, but that's not necessarily why you should be in a relationship. And that's skinny." [3]

The song was used in the second episode of Grey's Anatomy ' s fifth season. The digital download track "Skinny Love" was selected to be iTunes (UK) single of the week and was available for free during that time, as well as being featured as the track of the day on National Public Radio . On October 6, 2008, "Skinny Love" was featured in the NBC series Chuck ( season 2, episode 3 ). [4] [5] On December 11, 2008, Bon Iver performed "Skinny Love" on the Late Show with David Letterman . [6] On January 26, 2009, "Skinny Love" was announced at #21 by the Australian national radio station Triple J in the annual Hottest 100 countdown of the previous year's best songs. [7] In July 2009, "Skinny Love" was announced at #92 in Triple J 's Hottest 100 of All Time countdown. [8] In June 2013, "Skinny Love" was announced at #16 in Triple J 's Hottest 100 of the Last 20 Years countdown. [9]

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

British musician Birdy released a cover version of the song in 2011 as her debut single. The single has been B-listed on Xfm and is a particular favourite with listeners of Shak's overnight show. The song was also chosen as "Record of The Week" [16] by UK radio DJ Fearne Cotton . This version was used in Season 2 Episode 21 of The Vampire Diaries and in Season 1 Episode 1 of Prisoners' Wives .

The song also skyrocketed in Australian popularity within the ARIA Charts ' top ten, partly because of Bella Ferraro , an X Factor 2012 Top Four contestant who performed the song at the X Factor auditions aired in Australia in August 2012. The song reached number two on the ARIA Singles Chart in September, kept off the number-one spot by Guy Sebastian 's song " Battle Scars " for three weeks. [17] A similar event took place in New Zealand in May 2013 after X Factor winner Jackie Thomas performed the song at her audition. The song entered the top 40 for the first time and reached number two on the RIANZ chart following the broadcast, behind Robin Thicke 's " Blurred Lines ". [18]

In 2011, "Skinny Love" sold 259,000 copies in the UK, becoming the third biggest selling rock single of that year. [19] As of August 2016, the song had sold 744,502 copies in the UK. [20]

Birdy's version of the song was serviced to US contemporary hit radio on February 11, 2014. [21]

There are three music videos for this single. The first music video for the song was uploaded to YouTube on April 1, 2011. [22] It features Birdy playing the piano of walking in a dark house. The second music video was shot in one take and framed on Birdy's face. The camera changes focus as she sings. It was uploaded on October 14, 2011. [23] The third music video was uploaded on January 15, 2014. [24]

* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

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