How We Do (Party)

Background and composition

"How We Do (Party)" is a pop song. It was written by Victor Alexander, Kelly Sheehan and Bonnie McKee, and produced by The Runners and The Monarch. It was initially planned to be titled "Party and Bullshit" after the 1993 Notorious B.I.G. single from which this song borrows its refrain, but was later changed to "How We Do (Party)" in order to appeal to American radio programmers; additionally a radio edit changes the refrain to "Party and Party" for some versions of the song. Another radio edit that is commonly played changes the refrain to "Party and bull..." Ora described the song by saying it covers the feeling when you "wake up in the morning and want to take another whisky shot."

On 24 February 2012, Ora visited New York's Z100 radio station with her Roc Nation label boss, Jay-Z, to premiere the song. "How We Do (Party)" was released for digital download in the United States, Australia and New Zealand on 20 March 2012, as the lead single from Ora's debut album, Ora. It was later sent to contemporary hit radio and rhythmic contemporary radio playlists in the United States on 24 April 2012.

MTV Buzzworthy wrote that the song's composition is a "sugary sweet pop record [that] kind of reminds us a bit [of] Jessie J's 'Domino' and Katy Perry's 'Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)', but mixed with some dope".

Critical reception

The song received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Djbooth.net wrote "The Runners juxtaposing a pop-rock guitar with bass-booming reverb-drenched percussion as the singer/songwriter encourages listeners to let go of their cares and paint the town red. An eminently catchy ode to revelry and young love". MTV Buzzworthy described the song as "a power-pop punch of guitar strumming goodness". Idolator gave the song a mixed review, writing that it is "much less Rihanna-esque [than 'R.I.P.'], so there's hope. (…) [but] she sounds a mix of Jessie J and Karmin here".

Chart performance

"How We Do (Party)" debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart at number eight on 14 May 2012. It peaked at number five the following week, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ), for sales of 7,500 copies. In Australia, the song peaked at number nine. It was certified double platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for sales of 140,000 copies. In the United States, "How We Do (Party)" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 96 on the issue dated 9 June 2012. It has since peaked at number 62. In Ireland, the song debuted at number two on 3 August 2012 and reached number one the following week, becoming Ora's first number-one song in the country.

In the United Kingdom, the song went straight to number-one selling over 100,000 copies – making it Ora's third single to sell over 100,000 downloads in seven days. Ora also became the first artist in 2012 to score three No. 1 singles on the UK charts, following "Hot Right Now" and "R.I.P.". The song was certified gold by the BPI for sales over 400,000 copies in the UK.

Background

The music video for "How We Do (Party)" was shot in Coney Island, New York and directed by Marc Klasfeld. On 11 April 2012, a nine-second teaser of the video was posted to Ora's official Vevo account, which featured Ora in a room with fluorescent painted people and at the end of the teaser she is pictured laughing. Ora explained the video's concept, saying: "It's basically a big party with no judgement, so there's a whole bunch of people in there, from a guy who's got knickers on and who's colored in paint on his chest to an old man kind of shaking his hips around. ... It's definitely [about embracing] anyone who wants to come to a party." The video premiered on Ora's official Vevo account on 17 April 2012.

Synopsis

The video starts with a group of people dancing in a dark colored room wearing brights clothes, in which Ora then walks into the room wearing a crown and begins singing to the camera. In other scenes, Ora is jumping and dancing in a white colored room with other dancers. At 2 minutes 38 seconds, the music stops in which Ora laughs then says "And on that note party and bullshit, party and bullshit" and the scene changes to Ora in a fluorescent room with a group of people.

Ora starts off by wearing a gold crown. When the scene changes she is wearing a beanie hat with a black T-shirt and socks with a matching Jamaican flag pattern on them. At the garden scene, Ora is wearing a swim suit and an American flag patterned jacket. At the room, Ora is wearing a crop top with leopard print pants. Ora wears a gray top, denim shorts and purple heels when singing on a bed. In the final scene she wears a white T-shirt which is fluorescent.

Live performances

In April 2012, Ora sang a live acoustic version of the song on Wired 96.5 radio in Philadelphia. She later sang the song on 22 April 2012, while supporting Drake on his Club Paradise Tour. Ora performed the song while supporting Coldplay on their Mylo Xyloto Tour.

Track listing

1. "How We Do (Party)" – 4:06

1. "How We Do (Party)" – 4:06
2. "How We Do (Party)" (Gustavo Scorpio Club Mix) – 7:33
3. "How We Do (Party)" (Papercha$er Club Remix) – 6:11
4. "How We Do (Party)" (Sandro Silva Extended Club Mix) – 5:36
5. "How We Do (Party)" (Laidback Luke Club Remix) – 5:12

1. "How We Do (Party)" (Acoustic) – 4:20

1. "How We Do (Party)" (Clean Edit) – 4:06
2. "How We Do (Party)" (Gustavo Scorpio Radio Mix) – 4:22
3. "How We Do (Party)" (Papercha$er Club Mix) – 6:11
4. "How We Do (Party)" (Sandro Silva Extended Club Mix) – 5:36
5. "How We Do (Party)" (Laidback Luke Club Remix) – 5:12

1. "How We Do (Party)" – 4:06
2. "How We Do (Party)" (Gustavo Scorpio Club Mix) – 7:33

1. "How We Do (Party)" (Juhola & Denavi Remix) - 3:21