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"Scared to Live" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his fourth studio album After Hours. He performed the song for the first time on March 8, 2020, with American musician Oneohtrix Point Never, during an episode of Saturday Night Live. The SNL version of the song was officially released alongside the deluxe edition of its parent album on March 23, 2020. The Weeknd wrote and produced the song with Max Martin and Oscar Holter, writing credits also going to Belly and Oneohtrix Point Never. Elton John and Bernard Taupin received additional songwriting credits for the interpolation of John's 1970 single "Your Song".

Background and promotion

In early February 2020, SNL confirmed that it was going to have the Weeknd as a musical guest on March 7, 2020. During the episode, the Weeknd performed the comedic skit "On the Couch" with Kenan Thompson and Chris Redd, and two songs from his album After Hours: the single "Blinding Lights" and the previously unreleased "Scared to Live" with Oneohtrix Point Never. The studio version of the song was then released on March 20, 2020, alongside the rest of the album.

Elton John shared in an interview with New Zealand radio presenter Zane Lowe that he was happy with the interpolation of "Your Song" in Scared to Live, stating, “I’m so blown away, I mean, just to be part of his record, for someone my age and as someone who loves what he does, I’m so thrilled and I just love him. I just think … I was watching a couple of things this morning that were the same old stuff, the rap stuff and I was thinking, ‘Good old Abel, he’s making music. He’s making proper music.'”

Lyrics and composition

"Scared to Live" has been described as a synth-pop ballad that maintains the strong traditional pop and adult contemporary sonics of John's "Your Song". Lyrically, it details the ending of a relationship the Weeknd had with a former lover that left them questioning if they could ever discover love again. The Weeknd encourages his past partner to move on from their past and find themselves, apologizing for the faults he made while still yearning for the connection that they once had.

Critical reception

The song received universal critical acclaim and was considered a highlight from its parent album, with the ballad's minimalistic nature, sincere lyrics, and the Weeknd's vocals receiving particular praise. Journalists also commended the maturity in the song's lyrics, while noting its sound as being reminiscent of ballads performed by Phil Collins in the past. Vibe writer Jack Riedy complimented the imagery, “The listener can practically see the disco ball spinning over a gaggle of youths at their prom’s last dance as Tesfaye urges them don’t be scared to live again”.

Seth Wilson of Slant wrote that the song "displays the grandeur of a pop ballad, with a swooning earworm of a chorus and lyrics that tenderly reflect on a past love, and with a maturity that comes only with hindsight. The song nearly edges into schmaltz, but it's full of surprises, including a nod to Elton John's 'Your Song' that's so well integrated into the chorus it's easy to miss." Micah Peters from The Ringer called the composition "a soaring ballad in which The Weeknd expresses joy and pain where once there was crushing melancholy". NME reviewer Will Richard named the piece a "shimmering, emotive ballad". Craig Jenkins of Vulture praised the song's "glistening synths over trap drums with delightful deviations. The writing’s tight and there’s a cohesion of sound and vision". In an AllMusic review, Andy Kellman states that "Scared to Live" is "so clean and down the middle that it resembles a box-office crossover bid from an artiste swallowing his pride to record a tame song. It is one of Tesfaye's best performances, his voice soaring and swooping, signifying numbness and codependency, sorrowful about wasted time while encouraging emotional convalescence".

Commercial performance

Following the releasing of its parent album, "Scared to Live" debuted at number 24 on the US Billboard Hot 100 dated April 4, 2020. It was the fifth highest charting track from After Hours.

Live performances

The song was first performed live on SNL alongside "Blinding Lights" on March 7, 2020. The performance was introduced by Daniel Craig and featured the Weeknd wearing a bandaged, bloodied nose and red suit, as part of a persona portrayed in the art direction for the After Hours era. Oneohtrix Point Never accompanied him on the synthesizer.

Personnel

Credits adapted from Genius.

• The Weeknd – songwriting, vocals, production, keyboards, programming, bass, guitar, drums
• Max Martin – songwriting, production, keyboards, programming, bass, guitar, drums
• Oscar Holter – songwriting, production, keyboards, programming, bass, guitar, drums
• Belly – songwriting
• Oneohtrix Point Never – songwriting, synthesizer programming (SNL Live)
• Elton John – songwriting
• Bernard Taupin – songwriting
• Dave Kutch – mastering
• Kevin Peterson – mastering
• Shin Kamiyama - engineering
• Sam Holland - engineering
• Michael Ilbert - engineering
• Serban Ghenea - mixing engineer
• John Hanes - mixing engineer

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

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2. Young, Alex (March 8, 2020). "The Weeknd debuts new song on SNL, appears in "On the Couch" sketch: Watch". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
3. "The Weeknd Shares Deluxe Version of After Hours: Listen". Pitchfork. March 23, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
4. "The Weeknd & David Byrne to Perform on 'Saturday Night Live'". Billboard. February 6, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
5. "Watch The Weeknd Perform "Blinding Lights" and "Scared to Live" on 'SNL'". Complex. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
6. "The Weeknd's 'After Hours' Track List: See Here". Billboard. March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
7. Aniftos, Rania (March 23, 2020). "Here's What Elton John Thought About The Weeknd's Use of 'Your Song' on 'Scared to Live'". Billboard. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
8. "The Weeknd Performs New Ballad "Scared To Live" On SNL". Hidden Jams. March 8, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
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16. Riedy, Jack (March 24, 2020). "The Narcotic Odyssey Of The Weekend's 'After Hours'". Vibe. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
17. Wilson, Seth (March 28, 2020). "MUSICReview: The Weeknd's After Hours Is a Triumphant Depiction of Heartbreak". Slant Magazine.
18. Peters, Micah (March 25, 2020). "Abel Tesfaye's 'After Hours' is his most accomplished and coherent project to date—and something to project your basest desires onto". The Ringer.
19. Richard, Will (May 31, 2020). "Watch The Weeknd debut new song 'Scared To Live' on SNL". NME.
20. Jenkins, Craig (May 31, 2020). "The Best Albums of the Year (So Far)". Vulture.com.
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22. Zellener, Xander (March 30, 2020). "Every Song From The Weeknd's 'After Hours' Is on the Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
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24. Haylock, Zoe (March 9, 2020). "The Weeknd and His Bloody-Nose Debut 'Scared to Live' on SNL". Vulture. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
25. "'Saturday Night Live' recap: Craig, Daniel Craig". EW.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
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External links

• Scared to Live (Audio) on YouTube
• Scared to Live (Live on Saturday Night Live audio) on YouTube

v t e The Weeknd songs
Discography Songs
Trilogy	House of Balloons "High for This" "House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls" "The Morning" "Wicked Games" "Twenty Eight" Thursday "The Zone" "Rolling Stone" Echoes of Silence "D.D" "Echoes of Silence"
Kiss Land	"Belong to the World" "Live For" "Wanderlust" "Kiss Land" "Odd Look"
Beauty Behind the Madness	"Tell Your Friends" "Often" "The Hills" "Acquainted" "Can't Feel My Face" "Earned It" "In the Night" "Prisoner"
Starboy	"Starboy" "Party Monster" "False Alarm" "Reminder" "Rockin'" "Secrets" "Stargirl Interlude" "Sidewalks" "Six Feet Under" "A Lonely Night" "All I Know" "Die for You" "I Feel It Coming"
My Dear Melancholy	"Call Out My Name" "Try Me" "Wasted Times" "I Was Never There" "Hurt You"
After Hours	"Alone Again" "Too Late" "Hardest to Love" "Scared to Live" "Snowchild" "Escape from LA" "Heartless" "Faith" "Blinding Lights" "In Your Eyes" "Save Your Tears" "Repeat After Me (Interlude)" "After Hours" "Until I Bleed Out"
Dawn FM	"Gasoline" "How Do I Make You Love Me?" "Take My Breath" "Sacrifice" "Out of Time" "Here We Go... Again" "Is There Someone Else?" "I Heard You're Married" "Less than Zero" "Moth to a Flame"
The Idol	"Double Fantasy" "Popular" "One of the Girls"
Hurry Up Tomorrow	"Dancing in the Flames" "Timeless" "São Paulo"
Other songs	"Crew Love" "Remember You" "One of Those Nights" "Sexodus" "Elastic Heart" "Or Nah" "King of the Fall" "Love Me Harder" "Might Not" "Nocturnal" "FML" "Low Life" "6 Inch" "Wild Love" "Some Way" "Comin Out Strong" "Lust for Life" "A Lie" "Curve" "Pray for Me" "What You Want" "Skeletons" "Wake Up" "Lost in the Fire" "Price on My Head" "Power Is Power" "Smile" "Over Now" "Off the Table" "Hawái" "You Right" "Better Believe" "One Right Now" "La Fama" "Die for It" "Hurricane" "Tears in the Club" "Poison" "Creepin'" "Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength)" "K-pop" "Circus Maximus" "Another One of Me" "Young Metro" "We Still Don't Trust You"
Category

• 2020 songs
• The Weeknd songs
• Songs written by the Weeknd
• Songs written by Belly (rapper)
• Songs written by Max Martin
• Songs written by Oscar Holter
• Elton John
• Song recordings produced by Max Martin
• Song recordings produced by the Weeknd
• 2020s ballads
• Pop ballads
• Synth-pop ballads
• Synth-pop songs
• Traditional pop songs
• Canadian synth-pop songs