Clarity (Zedd song)

The German musician Zedd began "Clarity" as a collaboration with the American musician Porter Robinson amid their Poseidon tour. They began producing the song and its chords together until their tour ended. Zedd then finished the song alone as an instrumental.^[1] The vocal part of "Clarity" was initially written by Matthew Koma for another of Zedd's tracks, "Lost at Sea". Zedd felt that that topline was "too emotional" for that song, and instead used it for "Clarity".^[2] Zedd sent a demo of the song to Robinson, who did not enjoy the result and told Zedd to finish the song himself.^[1]

Zedd tried to find multiple singers for "Clarity", but he wasn't happy with any of their vocals, and even considered not including the song on the Clarity album. However, "days before the deadline", his manager showed him the English singer Foxes, which Zedd enjoyed. He contacted the singer via Skype for a 15 minutes chat, who accepted the offer to sing on "Clarity".^[3] The American singer Skylar Grey is credited as a co-writer,^[4] who had recorded vocals for the track before Foxes was chosen.^[5] The English musician Jonny Harris, credited as "Ghostwriter", recorded Foxes's vocals.^[6]

"Clarity" has a tempo of 128 beats per minute, and is written in the A♭ major key.^[7] It has been characterized as electronic dance music (EDM),^[8][9][10] dance-pop,^[11] and progressive house.^[12] Spin's Brennan Carley described it as "nouveau disco for the masses by way of choral-infused electronica",^[13] and Andy Kellman of AllMusic described it as "stadium-ready".^[14] According to Billboard, the "searching synths" of the track play under the "sweet, love-pained vocals" of Foxes.^[15] They called the lyrics "evocative yet accessible",^[9] and Kellman said they "reflect the immediacy and desperation of adolescent relationships".^[14] Billboard described the drop as "big room-reminiscent"^[16] and coming "like a waterfall, more a cascade of notes than a barrage of noise".^[15]

"Clarity" appeared on Zedd's debut album Clarity, first released in Germany on 5 October 2012.^[17] The song was first sent to contemporary hit radio in Italy on 14 November 2012.^[18] In January 2013, Zedd and Foxes performed an orchestral version of the song at Late Night with David Letterman.^[19][20] On 1 February, it was released as a standalone single on Apple Music,^[21] and a 4-track remix EP released on 12 February, featuring remixes from Zedd himself, Tiësto, Style of Eye, and Brillz.^[22] Zedd released an extended mix of the song exclusively on Beatport on 18 February 2018.^[23]

Billboard found the production "top-notch",^[9] with Vice describing the refrain as "joyous" and the synth lines as "divine".^[8] Chris DeVille of Stereogum said that Foxes's "powerful voice lends [the song] so much oomph",^[10] with Peter Kadunias of Gigwise calling her vocals "gorgeous".^[25] Billboard praised the lyrics as "perfect" and "heart-wrenching".^[16] Kellman felt it was one of the "peak moments" of the Clarity album.^[14] "Clarity" was nominated for Artist to Watch at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.^[26] It won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 56th Grammy Awards in 2014,^[27] in what Zedd called "an unbelievable and unforgettable moment in my life". It remains Zedd and Foxes's only nomination and win in the awards.^[28] It was nominated for Best Musical Collaboration at the 2014 Radio Disney Music Awards^[29] and Top Dance/Electronic Song at the 2014 Billboard Music Awards.^[28]

Billboard named it one of the "50 game-changing EDM tracks" of 2013.^[30] In 2015, Spin named it used tenth greatest electronic dance music (EDM) anthem of the first half of the 2010s.^[13] In 2016, Billboard chose it as the best song in Zedd's discography, saying: "'Clarity' was one of the genre’s first big crossover anthems, but it set a standard in pop that moves far beyond festival stages".^[15] In 2017, Vice ranked it as the 73rd best EDM song of all time.^[8] In 2019, Billboard staff considered it the 19th greatest dance song of the decade.^[16] That same year, Chris DeVille of Stereogum named "Clarity" a one-hit wonder for Foxes.^[10] In 2023, Billboard ranked it the 15th best EDM love song,^[9] and in 2025, they named it the 96th best dance song of all time.^[31]

"Clarity" appeared in the main weekly charts of multiple countries, including Australia,^[32] Belgium,^[33] Brazil,^[34] Canada,^[35] Czech Republic,^[36] Germany,^[37] Ireland,^[38] Netherlands,^[39] New Zealand,^[40] Scotland,^[41] Slovakia,^[42] United Kingdom,^[43] and the United States.^[44] In the U.S., it reached the number one spot of Billboard's Dance Club Songs^[45] and number two on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs^[46] and Pop Airplay.^[47] It appeared in the year-end charts of Australia,^[48] Canada,^[49] the U.K.,^[50] and the U.S.^[51] In decade-end charts, it sits at 31 of Billboard's Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.^[52] "Clarity" has received multi-platinum certifications in Australia,^[53] Brazil,^[54] New Zealand,^[55] and the U.S.;^[56] platinum in Canada,^[57] Sweden,^[58] and the United Kingdom;^[59] and gold in Denmark,^[60] Germany,^[61] Italy,^[62] and Mexico.^[63]

Adapted from the Clarity album liner notes.^[6]

• Songwriters – Anton Zaslavski, Matthew Koma, Porter Robinson, and Holly Hafermann
• Production and mixing – Zaslavski
• Background vocals – Zaslavski, Jesse Taub, RJ Colston, Kevin Feller, Priya Prins, Drew Ressler, Malachi Matt, and Robinson
• Vocal editing – Ryan Shanahan and Zaslavski
• Additional engineering – Taub
• Vocals – Louisa Rose Allen
• Vocal recording – Jonny Harris

• List of number-one dance singles of 2013 (U.S.)