Released May 10, 2010 Genre Pop rock Label Epic | Recorded 2009-2010 Length 3:27 | |
Format CD single, digital download | ||
"King of Anything" is a song written and recorded by American singer Sara Bareilles. The song was produced by Neal Avron, and served as the first single from the album Kaleidoscope Heart (2010). The song was nominated at the 53rd Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, though it ultimately lost to Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance". The song was her second time being nominated for the category and her third nomination overall.
Contents
Background
"'King of Anything' is sort of a 'f*** you' song," Bareilles said. "I've had more unsolicited advice on my life than I care to mention, and this was how I dealt with it. It felt empowering to turn that frustration into music, especially a song that doesn't even sound angry. That's sort of what 'Love Song' was as well. Apparently, I don't get over things very quickly."
Release
"King of Anything" was released to radio in the USA on May 10, 2010. It was released for sale on June 22, 2010. It was released in Europe in the spring of 2011.
Music video
The music video was released on June 29, 2010. It was filmed in Vancouver, Canada by director Laurent Briet and features Sara singing in a number of different places accompanied by a brass band; in a restaurant, on a bus, in a music store, standing in front of a mural and finally in a garden of flowers. The scenes of the video are all fragmented throughout. A behind-the-scenes of the video was released on Bareilles' official Facebook page. Bareilles states in the behind-the-scenes video that she had input in the making of the music video, writing a treatment for it as soon as she had written the song.
Charts and certifications
In the week dated July 5, 2010, this song debuted on #59 in Billboard Hot 100, making it her second entry and also her highest debut on the chart so far. It peaked at #32, becoming her second top 40 single in the United States, after "Love Song". It charted highest in the Netherlands, where it reached #21.
"King of Anything" was certified Platinum in the United States by the RIAA. It has sold 1,468,000 copies in the US as of November 2013.