After a years-long absence, Adele returned out of nowhere and found a way to tug at your heart again. All it took was one simple word: "Hello." Now she is ready to make up for all the lost time, revealing “When We Were Young” as the second single from her blockbuster album "25."
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“Let me photograph you in this light in case it is the last time that we might be exactly like we were before we realized we were sad of getting old,” the British pop singer croons longingly on the sultry disco ballad.
True to theme, the announcement was accompanied by a photo of a young Adele. The cover art, which was first posted on Facebook, is a years-old Polaroid image of the singer from before she was famous. Dressed in a black turtle neck, a strawberry blonde Adele shows off her missing front teeth with a warm smile.
In an interview with “Sirius XM Music,” Adele described the plot of “Young” like this: “Where you can’t find the time to be in each other’s lives, and then you’re all thrown together at this party when you’re like 50. And does it matter? And you have so much fun, and you feel like you’re 15 again.”
Adele wrote the song over a three-day visit to Los Angeles to see Tobias Jesso Jr. She had fallen in love with his song “Hollywood,” and the two wrote the sultry disco balled on a piano once owned by the legendary composer Philip Glass. And if you like what you hear, more of this sound may be in store: Adele has since referred to Jesso and his '70s vibe as her “secret weapon.”
A live version of “Young” recorded at the Church Studios in London was released in the promotional lead up to "25." It was subsequently performed at Adele’s Radio City Music Hall special and on "Saturday Night Live." The singer will next take the public stage at the Grammy Awards on Feb. 14, making another live performance likely.
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“Hello” debuted as the No. 1 single in the U.S. and remained atop the Billboard Hot 100 for 10 consecutive weeks before ultimately being dethroned by Justin Bieber’s “Sorry.”