Breathe Me

"Breathe Me" is a 2004 song by Australian singer Sia featured on the album Colour the Small One. As a single it has sold over 1.2 million copies in the United States, as of 2014.^[1] The song became popular on alternative radio and has been used in many different forms of media, most notably in the series finale of Six Feet Under in 2005.

"Breathe Me"
Single by Sia
from the album Colour the Small One
B-side	"Sea Shells"
Released	19 April 2004
Recorded	2003
Studio	Heliocentric Studios (Rye, England)
Genre	Indie pop
Length	4:32
Label	Systemtactic Go! Beat Astralwerks
Songwriter(s)	Sia Furler Dan Carey
Producer(s)	Jimmy Hogarth
Sia singles chronology
"Don't Bring Me Down" (2003) "Breathe Me" (2004) "Somersault" (2004)
Music video
"Breathe Me" on YouTube

Critical reception

Rolling Stone called the song "delicate and haunting".^[2] The song has received increasingly positive reviews in years since its release, being described as "beautiful and moving."^[3]

Chart performance

In the United Kingdom, "Breathe Me" peaked at number 71 on 1 May 2004.^[4] The single also reached number 19 in Denmark in 2011 and number 81 in France in 2012.^[5][6] In the United States, the track charted at number 24 on the Rock Digital Songs, a component chart on the Billboard magazine.^[7]

Music video

The official music video was directed by Daniel Askill. It was shot over three days in a themed hotel in London and it is constructed with over 2,500 individual polaroid stills.^[8]

Track listings

• Maxi CD Pt.1

1. "Breathe Me" – 4:32
2. "Sea Shells" – 4:52

• Maxi CD Pt.2

1. "Breathe Me" – 4:34
2. "Breathe Me (Four Tet remix)" – 5:01
3. "Breathe Me (Ulrich Schnauss remix)" – 4:57
4. "Breathe Me (Mylo remix)" – 6:22
5. "Breathe Me (Mr. Dan remix)" – 4:38

• 10" Pt.1^[9]

1. A: "Breathe Me (Four Tet remix)" – 5:01
2. B: "Where I Belong (Hot Chip remix)" – 5:03

• 10" Pt.2

1. A: "Breathe Me (Ulrich Schnauss remix)" – 4:57
2. B: "Numb (Leila remix)" – 4:14

• 12" Single^[9]

1. A1 "Breathe Me (Mylo remix)" – 6:22
2. A2 "Breathe Me (Ulrich Schnauss remix)" – 4:57
3. B1 "Breathe Me (Four Tet remix)" – 5:01
4. B2 "Breathe Me (Mr. Dan remix)" – 4:38

Charts and certifications

Charts Chart (2004–2014) Peak position Denmark (Tracklisten)[5] 19 France (SNEP)[6] 81 UK Singles (OCC)[4] 71 US Rock Digital Songs (Billboard)[7] 24

Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[10] Gold 45,000‡ United Kingdom (BPI)[11] Gold 400,000‡ United States — 1,200,000[12] ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
Canada	19 April 2004	CD single (part 1)[13]	Go! Beat
		CD single (part 2)[14]
Germany		CD single (part 1)[15]	Go! Beat
		CD single (part 2)[16]
		Vinyl single[17]
United Kingdom		12"[18]
United States	20 April 2004	CD single (part 1)[19]	Go! Beat
	3 January 2006	Digital download[20]	Astralwerks

References

1. Knopper, Steve (20 April 2014). "Sia Furler, the Socially Phobic Pop Star". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
2. Walters, Barry (12 January 2006). "Sia: Colour the Small One : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009.
3. "Sia's "Breathe Me": An analysis of one of my favorite songs". PianoTV.net. 26 September 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
4. "Sia". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
5. "Sia – Breathe Me". Tracklisten. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
6. "Sia – Breathe Me" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
7. "Sia – Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on 17 July 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
8. Breathe Me music video Archived 29 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine, commentary by Daniel Askill.
9. "Breathe Me Release".
10. "Danish single certifications – Breathe Me". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
11. "British single certifications – Breathe Me". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
12. Knopper, Steve (20 April 2014). "Sia Furler, the Socially Phobic Pop Star". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
13. "Breathe Me Pt. 1: CD". Amazon.ca. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
14. "Breathe Me Pt. 2: CD". Amazon.ca. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
15. "Breathe Me: CD" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
16. "Breathe Me: CD" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
17. "Breathe Me: Vinyl" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
18. "Breathe Me: 12" Vinyl". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
19. "Breathe Me: CD". Amazon. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
20. "Breathe Me – Single". iTunes (US). Archived from the original on 3 March 2015.