Fly (Hilary Duff song)

"Fly" is a song by American actress and singer Hilary Duff for her 2004 self-titled third studio album. The song was written by Kara DioGuardi and John Shanks, who also produced the song. The song was first released in the United States on August 10, 2004, by Hollywood Records as the lead single from Hilary Duff. It was released again by Angel Records on March 13, 2006, in the United Kingdom as the fourth and final single from Duff's first compilation album, Most Wanted (2005).

"Fly"
Single by Hilary Duff
from the album Hilary Duff and Most Wanted
B-side	"Metamorphosis"
Released	August 10, 2004 (2004-08-10)
Length	3:44
Label	Hollywood
Songwriter(s)	Kara DioGuardi John Shanks
Producer(s)	John Shanks
Hilary Duff singles chronology
"Our Lips Are Sealed" (2004) "Fly" (2004) "Someone's Watching Over Me" (2005)
Music video
"Hilary Duff - Fly" on YouTube

Composition

The song's protagonist encourages listeners to "let go of your yesterday" and "reach for something when there's nothing left". Duff has described it as "an uplifting song in the face of all the negativity going around these days. It's about how people are scared to open up and show who they are inside because they're afraid of what others are going to say".^[1]

Critical reception

Stylus magazine said the song was very similar to Duff's previous single, "Come Clean" (2004), but called it "an easily excusable offense, as it improves on the template ... [it] rightfully leads off the album."^[2] Blender magazine said the song is "Urgent and theatrical" and "sounds like Evanescence—but the inspirational lyrics are pure Duff."^[3] John Shanks received a 2005 Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical for his work on "Fly" and recordings by Ashlee Simpson, Kelly Clarkson, Sheryl Crow, Robbie Robertson and Alanis Morissette.^[4]

Chart performance

"Fly" failed to enter the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S., but peaked at number 29 on Billboard's Mainstream Top 40 chart. As of July 27, 2014, the song had sold 284,000 digital copies in the United States.^[5]

Music video

The single's music video, directed by Chris Applebaum, combines black-and-white backstage footage with colorized shots of Duff performing the song live. The video was filmed in Worcester, Massachusetts during rehearsal for her Most Wanted Tour. Footage of the crowd was from opening night of the tour in Worcester. The video premiered on MTV's Total Request Live on August 26, 2004, debuted on the show's countdown on August 30 and reached number one on the countdown for one day. It spent twenty-eight days on the countdown, until October 27.^[6] There was about 100 or more fans there who won a contest to watch her perform and be in the video as a crowd. The making of the video and her tour in Worcester is on the 2004 DVD Learning to Fly. It is also featured on the Raise Your Voice DVD under bonus features.

Live performances

Duff performed "Fly" on the 2004 World Music Awards.^[7][8]

Track listings

Digital download[9] "Fly" – 3:45 Australian CD single[10] "Fly" – 3:45 "Fly" (Remix by Dan Chase) – 3:27 European CD single[11] "Fly" – 3:44 "Fly" (Remix) – 3:44

UK CD single[12] "Fly" – 3:43 "Fly" (Live AOL Session) – 3:44 UK maxi single[13] "Fly" – 3:43 "Metamorphosis" – 3:28 "Fly" (Remix) – 3:44 "Fly" (Video) – 3:43

Charts

Chart (2004–2006)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[14]	21
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[15]	8
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[16]	11
Canada CHR/Pop Top 30 (Radio & Records)[17]	26
Ireland (IRMA)[18]	10
Italy (FIMI)[19]	13
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[20]	36
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[21]	32
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[22]	24
Scotland (OCC)[23]	7
UK Singles (OCC)[24]	20
US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[25]	29

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label(s)	Ref(s).
United States	August 9, 2004	Contemporary hit radio hot AC radio	Hollywood	[26]
United States	October 19, 2004	Digital download		[9]
Australia	November 8, 2004	CD single	Hollywood Festival Mushroom	[27][28]
United Kingdom	March 13, 2006		Hollywood	[29]
Canada	May 9, 2006	Digital download		[30]

References

1. Sony Music. "Hilary Duff - Hilary Duff". The Star. Retrieved October 27, 2006.
2. Burns, Todd. "Hilary Duff" Archived February 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Stylus. September 24, 2004. Retrieved October 27, 2006.
3. "Editors' Picks: October 2004". Blender. September 24, 2004. Retrieved February 23, 2007. Archived February 2, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
4. "47th Annual Grammy Awards - Winners: Production" Archived June 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. VH1.com. Retrieved October 27, 2006.
5. "Ask Billboard: How Has Enrique Iglesias' 'Bailando' Become Such A Big Hit?". Billboard. July 27, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
6. "The TRL Archive - August 2004", "The TRL Archive - September 2004", "The TRL Archive - October 2004". popfusion.net. Retrieved March 23, 2007.
7. World Music Awards 2004 (TV 2004) – IMDb
8. "YouTube". www.youtube.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
9. "Fly (2004) | Hilary Duff | MP3 Downloads 7digital United States". Us.7digital.com. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
10. Fly (Australian CD single liner notes). Hilary Duff. Festival Mushroom Records. 2004. 021972.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. Fly (European CD single liner notes). Hilary Duff. Hollywood Records. 2004. 50467-5687-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. Fly (UK CD single liner notes). Hilary Duff. Angel Records. 2006. 0094635643022.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
13. Fly (UK maxi single liner notes). Hilary Duff. Angel Records. 2006. 0094635643107.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
14. "Hilary Duff – Fly". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
15. "Hilary Duff – Fly" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
16. "Hilary Duff – Fly" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
17. "R&R Canada CHR/Pop Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1574. September 24, 2004. p. 50. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
18. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Fly". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
19. "Hilary Duff – Fly". Top Digital Download. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
20. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Hilary Duff" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
21. "Hilary Duff – Fly" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
22. "Hilary Duff – Fly". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
23. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
24. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
25. "Hilary Duff Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
26. "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1567. August 6, 2004. p. 23.
27. "Hilary Duff.com.au — the official Australian website for all things Hilary Duff!". Archived from the original on December 5, 2004. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
28. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 8th November 2004" (PDF). ARIA. November 8, 2004. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 19, 2004. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
29. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. March 11, 2006. p. 29.
30. "Fly (2006) | Hilary Duff | High Quality Music Downloads 7digital Canada". Archived from the original on November 11, 2014. Retrieved November 10, 2014.

External links

• "Hilary Duff - Fly" on YouTube