Dust My Shoulders Off

"Dust My Shoulders Off" is a song by Chinese singer and songwriter Jane Zhang. It features American rapper and producer Timbaland, and was released on October 14, 2016, through Montage Records.^[1] It was included on Zhang's first English-language studio album, Past Progressive (2019).

"Dust My Shoulders Off"
Single by Jane Zhang featuring Timbaland
from the album Past Progressive
Released	October 14, 2016 (2016-10-14)
Genre	R&B
Length	3:50
Label	Montage
Songwriter(s)	Jim Beanz Zhang
Producer(s)	Timbaland (also exec.) Beanz
Timbaland singles chronology
"Smile" (2015) "Dust My Shoulders Off" (2016) "?" (?)
Music video
"Dust My Shoulders Off" on YouTube

Critical reception

Jennifer Dill of E! Online said "The song tells the story of someone who may be having a rough day but who quickly decides to 'dust her shoulders off' in swaggy fashion. It features a catchy beat and a heartening don't-sweat-the-small-stuff vibe."^[2] PopCrush's Bradley Stern stated "The fresh and breezy, feel-good ode to sh-sh-shaking off the blues, gliding across folk-y harmonies recalling Oh Land and Timba and Jim Beanz’s knocking hip-hop beats, really doesn’t sound like anything on radio right now. 'The world keeps spinning, life goes on and on / I won’t cry for long' she confidently croons across the quirky and carefree production, shrugging off all of life’s little inconveniences. It's no secret that breaking into the American market in a big way is still an all-but-impossible feat for any Asian act — from any country. (Sad, but true.) We're inching there at a snail's pace with acts like Utada and CL, and BTS just notched the highest Korean-language debut on the Billboard 200 yet this week, but to see Jane riding high on the Top 10 out of nowhere is an absolute unexpected delight: it's not only a massive victory for C-Pop, but for the Asian music market as a whole. Here's hoping this is only the start of Jane's US success story."^[3]

Music video

On October 21, 2016, a 34-second teaser of the video was revealed.^[4] The music video, directed by Outerspace Leo, was released on October 28, 2016.^[5]

Eleven famous paintings are recreated and reenacted for this music video:^[5]

1. Edward Hopper "Nighthawks" (1942)
2. Vincent van Gogh "Selfportrait" (1889)
   • in which van Gogh is bitten in his ear by Mike Tyson
3. Jean-François Millet "The Gleaners" (1857)
4. Johannes Vermeer "Girl with a Pearl Earring" (c. 1665)
5. Andrew Wyeth "Christina's World" (1948)
6. Georges Seurat "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte" (1884)
7. Edvard Munch "The Scream" (1893)
   • in which the screamer's memory is erased by the Men in Black
8. Salvador Dalí "The Temptation of St. Anthony" (1946)
9. Maurits Cornelis Escher "Ascending and Descending" (1960)
10. Maurits Cornelis Escher "Another World Gallery"(1946)
11. René Magritte "The Son of Man" (1964)
    • in which the Son of Man transforms to Salvador Dalí

Live performances

In November 2017, Jane Zhang performed "Dust My Shoulders Off" at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Shanghai, China, along with "Work for It" and "808".^[6]

Track listing

Digital download^[1] / Streaming^[7]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Dust My Shoulders Off" (featuring Timbaland)	3:50

Accolades

Year	Organization	Award	Result	Ref.
2016	Hello Asia! C-Pop Awards	Best Single	Nominated	[8]
2017	Red Dot Design Award	Best of the Best	Won	[9]
2017	Golden Melody Awards	Best Music Video	Nominated
2017	ADC Annual Awards	Motion / Music Video: Bronze Cube	Won	[10]
2017	London International Awards	Music Video / Animation：Bronze	Won	[11]

Charts

Chart (2016)	Peak position
US Digital Songs (Billboard)[12]	31

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Worldwide	October 14, 2016	Digital download	Montage	[1]

Trivia

• The song has been used on various Hulu commercials.

References

1. Worldwide digital release of "Dust My Shoulders Off":

   • "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single by Jane Zhang on Apple Music". iTunes Store (US). October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
   • "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single by Jane Zhang on Apple Music". iTunes Store (UK). October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
   • "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single av 張靚穎 på Apple Music". iTunes Store (SE) (in Swedish). October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
   • "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single by Jane Zhang on Apple Music". iTunes Store (ZA). October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
   • "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single by Jane Zhang on Apple Music". iTunes Store (AU). October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
2. Jennifer Dill (October 28, 2016). "Spot All the Famous Painted Faces in Jane Zhang's Trippy New Video for 'Dust My Shoulders Off' - E! News". E! Online. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
3. Bradley Stern (October 21, 2016). "Who Is Jane Zhang, and Why Is She in the Top 10 on iTunes?". PopCrush. Townsquare Media. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
4. "Jane Zhang - Dust My Shoulders Off (Teaser) - YouTube". YouTube. October 21, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
5. "Jane Zhang - Dust My Shoulders Off (Official Video)". YouTube. October 28, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
6. "Jane zhang - victoria's secret 2017". YouTube. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
7. "Dust My Shoulders Off (feat. Timbaland) - Single by Jane Zhang | Spotify". Spotify. 14 October 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
8. "2016 Hello Asia! C-Pop Awards - Nominees Revealed!". Hello Asia!. 2016-12-15. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
9. "张靓颖《Dust My Shoulders Off》MV获红点设计大奖-新华网". www.xinhuanet.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
10. "Beijing Showcitytimes Entertainment Co., Ltd. / Dust My Shoulders Off". www.oneclub.org. Retrieved 2019-04-05.
11. "LIA Winners & Finalists | London International Awards". 2017.liaentries.com. Retrieved 2019-04-05.
12. "Jane Zhang - Chart history (Digital Songs)". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 1, 2016.