Wrong Direction (song)

"Wrong Direction" is a song by American singer Hailee Steinfeld and was released by Republic Records on January 1, 2020.^[1] The song serves as the lead single from Steinfeld's second EP Half Written Story (2020).

"Wrong Direction"
Single by Hailee Steinfeld
from the EP Half Written Story
Released	January 1, 2020 (2020-01-01)
Length	4:09
Label	Republic
Songwriter(s)	Elizabeth Lowell Boland Hailee Steinfeld Skyler Stonestreet Stephen Kozmeniuk
Producer(s)	Koz
Hailee Steinfeld singles chronology
"Afterlife" (2019) "Wrong Direction" (2020) "I Love You's" (2020)
Music video
"Wrong Direction" on YouTube

Background and composition

Steinfeld first teased the song's release by posting a picture on social media with the caption "1/1".^[2] Later that day she announced the song's title.^[3] It is speculated that the song is about Steinfeld's split from ex-boyfriend Niall Horan in 2018. Its title is also presumed to be a reference to Horan's band One Direction, who are currently on hiatus.^{[4][5][6][7][8]}

"Wrong Direction" was written by Elizabeth Lowell Boland, Hailee Steinfeld, Skyler Stonestreet and Stephen Kozmeniuk, and was produced by Koz. The song runs for four minutes and eight seconds.^[9] Ashley Iasimone of Billboard characterized "Wrong Direction" as "an emotional ballad that addresses a past relationship".^[10]

Music video

The Alexandre Moors-directed music video was released on January 8, 2020, via YouTube premiere.^[11]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.^[12]

• Hailee Steinfeld – vocals, songwriting
• Koz – production, songwriting, bass guitar, drums, programming, synthesizer
• Lowell – songwriting, backing vocals, piano
• Skyler Stonestreet – songwriting, backing vocals
• Todd Clark – backing vocals
• Matt Snell – assistant recording engineering, studio personnel
• Phil Hotz – assistant recording engineering, studio personnel
• Josh Gudwin – mixing, studio personnel
• Drew Jurecka – string arrangement

Track listing

Digital download^[13][12]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wrong Direction"	4:08

Charts

Chart (2020)	Peak position
Ireland (IRMA)[14]	61
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[15]	9
Scotland (OCC)[16]	71

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[17]	Gold	20,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[18]	Gold	40,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	January 1, 2020	Digital download streaming	Republic	[13][12]