Righteous (song)

"Righteous" is a song by American rapper Juice Wrld. It is the first posthumous single released with him as the lead artist. It was released on April 24, 2020, via Grade A Productions through exclusive licensing to Interscope Records, as the lead single for his posthumous album, Legends Never Die.

"Righteous"
Single by Juice Wrld
from the album Legends Never Die
Released	April 24, 2020 (2020-04-24)
Genre	Alternative rock[1] emo rap[1]
Length	4:03
Label	Grade A Productions Interscope
Songwriter(s)	Jarad Higgins Nick Mira Ryan Vojtesak
Producer(s)	Nick Mira Charlie Handsome
Juice Wrld singles chronology
"No Me Ame" (2020) "Righteous" (2020) "Tell Me U Luv Me" (2020)
Music video
"Righteous" on YouTube

Background and composition

Juice Wrld's family announced "Righteous" would be releasing hours before it was released at midnight on April 24, 2020.^[2] Rolling Stone described the song as "pensive" and that it "addresses anxiety and trying to quell it by self-medicating while also acknowledging the cyclical addiction that ensues."^[3]

Lyrically, Juice Wrld dances around the theme of death in the song with the lyrics "Over ice, I'm freezing/Beautiful eyes, deceiving/We may die this evening/Coughing, wheezing, bleeding," and "High, I'm an anxious soul/Blood moons are my eyes, stay low/Red and black, they glow/Under attack, in my soul/When it's my time, I'll know."^[2]

Stylistically, Stereogum describes the track as a "melancholy swoon built from arpeggiated guitar riffs and moonbeam melodies; it's all smooth edges, moody textures, breathy vocals."^[4]

"Righteous" was produced by Nick Mira and Charlie Handsome. Mira has worked with Juice Wrld in the past on multiple songs, including Juice Wrld's multi-platinum-certified single, "Lucid Dreams".^[5] The song was recorded at Juice Wrld's home studio in Los Angeles.^[3]

Music video

The official music video for the song was published on the same day the song was released on Juice Wrld's YouTube channel.^[6] The video was directed, shot and edited by Steve Cannon.^[7]

The first half of the video shows footage of Juice Wrld in his daily life including touring, traveling and recording at various studios.^[8] The second half of the video is an animation depicting Juice Wrld fighting his inner demons before changing forms and leaving Earth.^[9] The video concludes with him disappearing into space.^[8]

Cannon first started working with Juice Wrld in March 2018 as a photographer and videographer.^[10]

Personnel

Credits adapted from Spotify.^[11]

• Jarad Higgins – vocals, composition
• Nick Mira – writer, producer
• Ryan "Charlie Handsome" Vojtesak – writer, producer

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2020) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[12] 15 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[13] 26 Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[14] 12 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[15] 9 Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[16] 47 Denmark (Tracklisten)[17] 32 Estonia (Eesti Tipp-40)[18] 8 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[19] 19 France (SNEP)[20] 186 Germany (GfK)[21] 48 Greece (IFPI)[22] 20 Hungary (Stream Top 40)[23] 18 Iceland (Tónlistinn)[24] 21 Ireland (IRMA)[25] 7 Italy (FIMI)[26] 76 Lithuania (AGATA)[27] 20 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[28] 38 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[29] 14 Norway (VG-lista)[30] 20 Portugal (AFP)[31] 41 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[32] 31 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 38 UK Singles (OCC)[34] 26 UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[35] 14 US Billboard Hot 100[36] 11 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[37] 8 US Rolling Stone Top 100[38] 3

Year-end charts Chart (2020) Position US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[39] 56

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[40]	Platinum	70,000‡
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[41]	Gold	20,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[42]	Platinum	80,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[43]	Gold	45,000‡
Portugal (AFP)[44]	Gold	5,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[45]	Gold	400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[46]	2× Platinum	2,000,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	April 24, 2020	Digital download	Interscope Grade A	[2]

References

1. "Juice WRLD – Righteous". Retrieved April 4, 2022 – via genius.com.
2. Woods, Aleia (April 24, 2020). "Hear Juice Wrld's First Posthumous Song "Righteous"". XXL Mag. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
3. "Hear Juice WRLD's First Posthumous Single xRighteous'". Rolling Stone Australia. April 24, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
4. "Juice WRLD - "Righteous"". Stereogum. April 24, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
5. Suskind, Alex; Enis, Eli. "Friday Five: Juice WRLD's 'Righteous', the Killers' snappy new single, and more". EW.com. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
6. Juice WRLD (April 23, 2020). "Juice WRLD - Righteous (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
7. Murphy, Chris (April 24, 2020). "Juice WRLD's First Posthumous Single and Music Video, 'Righteous,' Is Here". Vulture. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
8. Cubit, Brea (April 25, 2020). "Juice Wrld's Posthumous Video For "Righteous" Is an Emotional Ode to the Rapper's Life". POPSUGAR Entertainment. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
9. Roth, Madeline (April 24, 2020). "Juice WRLD Flies Into The Cosmos In His Posthumous 'Righteous' Video". MTV News. Archived from the original on April 28, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
10. Nelson, Keith Jr. (January 29, 2019). "Tour Tales | Steve Cannon talks shooting Juice Wrld on tour and the funny moments that go down". REVOLT. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
11. "Righteous by Juice WRLD on Spotify". Grade A Productions/Interscope Records. 2020.
12. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
13. "Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
14. "Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
15. "Juice Wrld Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
16. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 29. týden 2020 in the date selector. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
17. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". Tracklisten. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
18. "EESTI TIPP-40 MUUSIKAS: Mängu "Fortnite" toel on Travis Scott taas kõrgel tabelis". Eesti Ekspress (in Estonian). Retrieved May 8, 2020.
19. "Juice Wrld: Righteous" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
20. "Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
21. "Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
22. "Official IFPI Charts Digital Singles Chart (International) Week 28 2020". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
23. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
24. "Tónlistinn – Lög" [The Music – Songs] (in Icelandic). Plötutíðindi. Archived from the original on May 7, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
25. "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
26. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". Top Digital Download. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
27. "2020 18-os savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. May 4, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
28. "Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
29. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
30. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". VG-lista. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
31. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
32. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". Singles Top 100. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
33. "Juice Wrld – Righteous". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
34. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
35. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
36. "Juice Wrld Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
37. "Juice Wrld Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
38. "Top 100 Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 2, 2020.^{[permanent dead link]}
39. "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2020". Billboard. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
40. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
41. "Brazilian single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
42. "Canadian single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous". Music Canada. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
43. "Danish single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
44. "Portuguese single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
45. "British single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
46. "American single certifications – Juice Wrld – Righteous". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 1, 2021.

External links

• "Righteous" Music Video on YouTube