MarketRunaway (Aurora song)
Company Profile

Runaway (Aurora song)

"Runaway" is a song by Norwegian singer-songwriter Aurora, included in her debut extended play (EP) Running with the Wolves (2015) and debut album All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend (2016). It was released on 7 February 2015 by Decca and Glassnote Records as the lead single of both projects. The song was written by Aurora with Magnus Skylstad and produced by the latter with Odd Martin Skålnes. Musically, "Runaway" is a downtempo folktronica, synth-pop, electronic, and electropop song with influences from Nordic-folk music. Its lyrics, which were inspired by the grief the singer experienced when being far from her family, express escaping reality and realising the need to return home.

Background and development
(pictured), who would later take a significant role in her career. Aurora began playing piano at age six, and she wrote most of the songs of her debut album, including "Runaway", at a young age. According to her, she wrote the song when she was 11 or 12 years old and created the melody on a piano she had at her home, which took approximately an hour. However, she preferred to keep her music private at the time she wrote the song. When a live performance at Aurora's high school's leaving ceremony and a recording of her song "Puppet" were uploaded online, she was quickly discovered by a representative of the Norwegian management agency of Artists Made Management. Even though she initially denied the proposal, she accepted it since her mother advised her that "maybe there's someone out there who desperately needs [her music]." Aurora was eventually paired with Norwegian musicians and producers Magnus Skylstad and Odd Martin Skålnes, who were responsible for the production of her debut album. Skylstad would also take a significant role in the singer's career, producing the majority of her music. which was uploaded to By:larm's website in late 2013 alongside another song titled "We Were Going to Do That". This early version of the song included piano, strings, bass, beat, and a different bridge, which the singer said it was omitted from the final version because she struggled singing that part live. In 2014, Aurora signed a recording contract with Petroleum Records in Norway, Glassnote Records in North America, and Decca Records in the rest of the world. "Runaway" was eventually re-recorded on winter 2014 at Lydriket Studio in Bergen. Skylstad and Skålnes recorded, produced, and mixed the song, while mastering was made by Alex Wharton. ==Composition and lyrical interpretation==
Composition and lyrical interpretation
"Runaway" is a downtempo folktronica, synth-pop, electronic, and electropop song with influences from Nordic-folk music. A "tenderly catchy" tune, its sparse production contains "echoing water droplet effects, creeping screeches, and windswept transitions." Sheet music for "Runaway" sets the key of A minor with a moderately slow tempo of 58 beats per minute. Aurora's vocals span a range between the notes of A3 and E5. Her vocals were compared to those of Emilie Nicolas, Lyrically, the song is about escapism and "realising you want to get home again." Aurora expanded that "home" for her refers to "where my parents are," which was something she reflected while touring. In an interview with The 405 she said: "It's strange how this song fits my life better now that I could ever imagine when I wrote the song itself. It's about how important it is to have a soft place to fall". According to Aurora, the lyrics "came out of nowhere" and that they became meaningful to her after she grew up. The verses cover various topics like "climbing trees, painting pictures, and dancing in the rain." At the chorus of the song she begs "Take me home, home where I belong." ==Release and reception==
Release and reception
"Runaway" was first originally released through Aurora's SoundCloud on 9 February 2015. On 16 February 2015, the song was released for digital download and streaming as the lead single on Aurora's debut EP Running with the Wolves. The single was later re-released for her debut album All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend (2016). Aurora also released two acoustic versions of the song: a guitar acoustic version on 5 March Miranda Feneberger from Paste wrote that the track "channels a soft power". A writer for Rolling Stone called the song a "viral lullaby." DIYs Sean Murray said that "Runaway" tackled more mature themes, regarding the song to be about "a former love." Will Hodgkinson of The Times characterised "Runaway" to be "about feeling lost that has a poetic wisdom belying her 19 years." He praised how Aurora "uses her clear and unadorned tones to good effect" in the song. Australian singer-songwriter Troye Sivan also commented about the song, saying it is "100% my fave song at the minute." Aurora was awarded a NOPA grant of kr 30,000 for this song in 2014. In January 2025, "Runaway" surpassed one billion streams on Spotify. The following month, Aurora released an orchestral version of the track alongside a 30-minute documentary celebrating its tenth anniversary. ==Commercial breakthrough==
Commercial breakthrough
Upon its release, "Runaway" was streamed over a million times in six weeks on the streaming platform Spotify. The song did not impact any record charts until it gained attention in 2021 with a trend on the video-sharing platform TikTok. The trend consisted of posing while using a filter that repeatedly changed to a "starry sky" background. Aurora herself later posted a video on TikTok using the filter. "Runaway" became Aurora's most successful single in her native Norway, charting at number 14. The song did not enter the US Billboard Hot 100, though it peaked at number one on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, spending 2 weeks in that position. Due to the popularity of "Runaway" in streaming services and its six-year anniversary in 2021, Aurora released a series of compilation EPs that contained her released songs at the time. The song was eventually included on the compilation EP For the Humans Who Take Long Walks in the Forest, released on 4 February. The same day, Aurora posted a YouTube video clip subtitled "Tik Tok Fan Edition", which included several clips that were published to TikTok. ==Music video==
Music video
Background and release A music video for "Runaway" was directed by Kenny McCracken, who would later be the director for three other singles of All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend ("Conqueror", "Half the World Away", and "Murder Song (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)"). The video was filmed in early 2015 in various landscapes of Bergen near Aurora's hometown and took three days to film it. About filming the video, Aurora told in an interview with NME: "It was extremely cold... I didn't have a lot of clothes. We were stood in the middle of the snow for a lot of hours. I was sick for a lot of time after, which I always am after a video because I insist to have them outside in the cold." The clip was released on 26 February 2015. Synopsis and reception In the music video for "Runaway", Aurora appears wearing a parka and a wool jumper as the video progresses. In one scene she is seen sleeping on the ground. American singer-songwriter Billie Eilish credits the video of this song as one of the reasons she began working on music. In response, Aurora said that "'Runaway' has served the purpose music should serve." The music video is Aurora's most successful music video as a solo artist, and as of June 2025 it has accumulated more than 700 million views. ==Live performances and usage in media==
Live performances and usage in media
Aurora has promoted "Runaway" through a number of live performances. She first sang the early version of the song on 20 February 2014 among some of her songs at the Nabovarsel Minifestival in Bergen, which the singer described as her first "real" performance with a band. She also performed the song at the 2014 festivals of by:Larm and Øyafestivalen. These performances depicted the demo version of the song rather than the final one. Aurora first performed the released version of the song on 2 July 2015 during the talk show Lindmo. On 9 November 2015, she performed the song in an acoustic session at NPR Tiny Desk. "Runaway" was also one of the songs Aurora performed at the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize Concert. She performed the song along with others from her debut album in a concert promoted by Honda Stage at the Bowery Ballroom to promote All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend. The song was added to the setlist of a 2016 world tour in support of All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend. "Runaway" was used at the finale of the third season of the Fox American television psychological thriller series The Following. Norwegian singer and rapper Cezinando covered the song for NRK P3 on 21 April 2015. The song was included in the setlist of a collaborative virtual concert for the video game Sky: Children of the Light, which premiered on 8 December 2022. ==Track listings and formats==
Track listings and formats
Digital download / streaming • "Runaway"  – 4:13 • Promotional CD single • "Runaway"  – 4:10 • Digital download / streaming – Guitar Acoustic • "Runaway (Guitar Acoustic)"  – 4:19 • Digital download / streaming – Piano Acoustic • "Runaway (Piano Acoustic)"  – 4:48 • Digital download / streaming – Runaway (Lvl. 2) • "Runaway (Lvl. 2)"  – 3:33 • 12-inch single – Runaway • "Runaway"  – 4:08 • "Runaway (Lvl. 2)"  – 3:33 • 7-inch single – Runaway • "Runaway"  – 4:08 • "Runaway (Piano Version)"  – 3:33 ==Credits and personnel==
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend. Recording and management • Recorded and mixed at Lydriket Studio (Bergen, Norway) • Mastered at Abbey Road Studios (London) • Published by Ultra Music Publishing Europe SG PersonnelAurora Aksnesvocals, songwriting, piano, synthesizer • Odd Martin Skålnessynthesizer, recording, production, mixing • Magnus Åserud Skylstadsongwriting, synthesizer, drums, percussion, recording, production, mixing • Alex Whartonmastering ==Charts==
Charts
Weekly charts Year-end charts ==Certifications==
Certifications
{{Certification Table Entry|region=India (IMI)|award=Platinum|number=14|certref= ==Release history==
tickerdossier.comtickerdossier.substack.com