"Sweet Dreams" is a song by American singer Beyoncé from her third studio album I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008). Originally titled "Beautiful Nightmare", it leaked online in March 2008. The song was written and produced by Beyoncé, James Scheffer, Wayne Wilkins, and Rico Love. Columbia Records released "Sweet Dreams" as the album's sixth single, to mainstream radio and rhythmic contemporary radio playlists in the United States on June 2, 2009, and elsewhere on July 13. It is an electropop song whose instrumentation includes synthesizers, a keyboard, and a snare drum. Beyoncé employs slinky vocals to deliver the lyrics, which describe a romantic relationship that the female protagonist believes could be a dream.

Music critics praised the beats, synthpop sound and Beyoncé's vocals in "Sweet Dreams". Some critics noted that the sliding bassline gave the song a dark quality and resembled the one used in some of Michael Jackson's songs on Thriller (1982). "Sweet Dreams" gained popularity for its electronic style, which contrasted her earlier R&B, urban, and releases. The song was nominated for the Viewers Choice Award at the 2010 BET Awards. "Sweet Dreams" peaked at number ten on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Sweet Dreams" topped the charts in New Zealand, and peaked within the top ten of the charts in many countries, including Australia, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, and the United Kingdom. "Sweet Dreams" was certified platinum in the United States, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

The song's accompanying music video was directed by Adria Petty, and was filmed in Brooklyn, New York. It mainly uses a green screen and effects, making the clip minimal and performance based. The video sees Beyoncé wearing a golden robot suit designed by French fashion designer Thierry Mugler. Critics described it as and noted that she reprised some of the choreography from her 2008 video for "Single Ladies". Beyoncé promoted the song by performing it live at the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards and occasionally during the I Am... World Tour (2009–10). "Sweet Dreams" was recognized as one of the most performed songs of 2009 at the 27th American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) Pop Music Awards. The song was used in a Japanese Crystal Geyser Water advertisement that featured Beyoncé.

Production and recording Initially titled "Beautiful Nightmare", "Sweet Dreams" became one of the first songs composed for Beyoncé's 2008 double album I Am... Sasha Fierce. Record producer Rico Love regarded writing "Sweet Dreams" with Beyoncé as "the experience of a lifetime". When Beyoncé went to the South Beat Studios in Miami Beach, Florida, she was not prepared to record and had to attend the opening concert of her husband tour. However, when she heard a demo of the song, she was impressed and wanted to record it immediately. She sang and recorded "Sweet Dreams" in 15 minutes.

Beyoncé, Wayne Wilkins and Jim Jonsin did additional writing and produced the song alongside Love at the same studio. Beyoncé and Love worked on the vocal arrangements; Beyoncé appreciated Love's background vocals in the hook and retained them. Jim Caruana assisted in recording the music. Love then recorded Beyoncé's vocals; the recording session lasted for an hour. Lastly, Wilkins mixed the track. "Sweet Dreams" appears on the Sasha Fierce disc of I Am... Sasha Fierce as it allowed Beyoncé to portray her alter ego Sasha Fierce, whom she described as her "fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken [...] and more glamorous side".

Composition and lyrical interpretation

"Sweet Dreams" is an electropop song that incorporates elements of rock. The song is built on undulating electro rhythms and a thumping beat; its groove fits into hip hop phrasing. It is mainly driven by a keyboard and also has guitar, piano,Sheet music for "Sweet Dreams". EMI Music Publishing (2008). synthesizer, snare drum and bass instrumentation. Many music critics noted that several components of "Sweet Dreams" are reminiscent of the songs on Michael Jackson's 1982 album Thriller. James Montgomery of MTV News said that the "gnarly low end" sounds like Jackson's song "Beat It" (1983). Nick Levine of Digital Spy noted that the electronic bassline is similar to those used in Jackson's songs "Thriller" (1983) and "Bad" (1987). Arielle Castillo of the Miami New Times wrote that Jackson could use the beat of "Sweet Dreams" to bring his style up to date.

The lyrics of "Sweet Dreams" are about a female protagonist who has insecurities about her new romantic relationship; she is confused about whether her relationship with her partner is a "sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare". The song starts with a bassline, which is occasionally interrupted by spare snare kicks, drum fills and Beyoncé's chanting, "Turn the lights on". She then adopts slinky vocals to begin the first verse. The chorus then starts with the line, "You can be a sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare / Either way, I don't wanna wake up from you". The song is written in the key of E-flat minor and has a tempo of122 beats per minute. Beyoncé's vocals span from D♭4 to F5 in the song.

Leak and release "Sweet Dreams" was leaked under its original title the day after it was recorded in March 2008, eight months before the album's release. It was the first time that a song by Beyoncé was leaked before its inclusion on an forthcoming album. She responded to the leak on her official website, thanking her fans for the positive response towards the song, before clarifying that it was a work in progress and that she did not intend to release new material in the near future. About the leak, Love told MTV News: I was more concerned that [Beyoncé] would feel that we did it. A lot of times producers or songwriters leak records because they feel if you put the song out there it would go [on to become a hit]. Usually a leak that far in advance of an album release puts the song in serious jeopardy of being excluded from the final track list. It was frustrating. I felt like you work hard to get in the studio to work with Beyoncé. [But] I was blessed ... that song turned out [to] have nine lives.

Under the song's original title "Beautiful Nightmare", "Sweet Dreams" gained some attention in the United States, where it amassed enough airplay to chart at number on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart and at number on the Pop 100 Airplay chart. "Broken-Hearted Girl" was initially intended as the sixth US and fourth international single alongside the stateside-only single "Ego" (2009). However, its release was scrapped at the last minute, and replaced by "Sweet Dreams", which Beyoncé selected for release as a summer single because she wanted a dance song. She added, "It's very rare to find an uptempo song [...] that's not just about going to a club or partying or being a sexy girl".

"Sweet Dreams" was added to US contemporary hit radio and rhythmic contemporary radio playlists on June 2, 2009. Dance remixes of the song alongside the album version of "Ego" and its remixes were later released together on the same digital EP on August 17, 2009, in the US.

Critical reception Reviews "Sweet Dreams" was acclaimed by critics, some of whom praised its dark tone and electropop sound that differed from Beyoncé's previous work. James Montgomery of MTV News wrote that Beyoncé's vocals, which he called "icy and cool, slippery like mercury [and] nothing to scoff at either", help make the song an "undeniable smash" that is unique compared to the work of other artists. Jennifer Vineyard of the same publication argued that the rock elements and smooth vocals contribute to Beyoncé's "fierce" alter ego, who "dares the listener to dream of her, warning that it might be a 'beautiful nightmare'." Arielle Castillo of the Miami New Times noted that "Sweet Dreams" is another one of Jim Jonsin's productions with a keyboard-propelled arrangement, but unlike the material Jonsin crafted for Soulja Boy, the song is "swirling, and darker". Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle and Gary Trust of Billboard magazine agreed and said the song is one of Beyoncé's purest dance songs and is "an irresistible call to the dance floor". Describing "Sweet Dreams" as a "cool dance track", Dennis Amith of complimented its arrangement, calling it "experimental" with "cool transitions".

Adam Mazmanian of The Washington Times described the song as "a gritty slow grind with a salacious bassline" and noted that Beyoncé "delivers a near parody of a voice" while singing the chorus. Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork Media wrote that "Sweet Dreams" sounds like a song Rihanna would sing. Echoing Dombal's sentiments, Nick Levine of Digital Spy wrote that the best song on the Sasha Fierce disc is a "dark[ish] electropop track called 'Sweet Dreams', [which] actually sounds like the cousin of Rihanna's 'Disturbia'". On a separate review for the single, Levine awarded "Sweet Dreams" a rating of four stars out of five, and commented that the song seduces listeners with its catchy chorus hook, and thereafter keeps them intrigued by "placing a hint of darkness just beneath the shiny, synthy surface". Spence D. of IGN Music wrote that though "Sweet Dreams" is not a "stellar track", it is superior to other album tracks, including "Diva" and "Radio". Similarly, Vicki Lutas of BBC Music wrote that even though "Sweet Dreams" appears to lack something, it is undeniably a good song overall. She added that "Sweet Dreams" may not be Beyoncé's finest or most memorable work, but it remains her best offering since her 2003 song "Crazy in Love". Lutas also commended Beyoncé's vocal delivery, which she described as "beautiful and soft, yet strong and powerful". Talia Kraines of the same publication wrote that "Sweet Dreams" is one of the standout tracks on the Sasha Fierce disc though she believed Beyoncé did not get as experimental as she did on her 2006 song "Ring the Alarm".

Recognition and accolades "Sweet Dreams" earned Beyoncé the Best Female Vocal accolade at the 2009 Music MP3 Awards. It was nominated for Best R&B/Urban Dance Track at the 25th Annual International Dance Music Awards, but lost to the Black Eyed Peas' 2009 song "I Gotta Feeling". It was also nominated for the Viewers Choice Award at the 2010 BET Awards. The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) recognized "Sweet Dreams" as one of the most performed songs of 2009 at the 27th ASCAP Pop Music Awards. On the occasion of Beyoncé's thirtieth birthday, Erika Ramirez and Jason Lipshutz of Billboard magazine ranked the song at number 21 on their list of Beyoncé's 30 biggest Billboard hits, and noted that its electropop sound, which was in contrast to Beyoncé's previous singles, showcased her range of talent. On The Village Voices 2009 Pazz & Jop singles list, "Sweet Dreams" was ranked at number 115. In 2013, John Boone and Jennifer Cady of E! Online placed the song at number five on their list of ten best Beyoncé songs, writing that Beyoncé "stepped away from R&B roots with this surreal electropop tune, which features these standout lyrics: 'My guilty pleasure, I ain't going nowhere / As long as you're here, I'll be floating on air' (which, from Bey's mouth, sounds like the greatest threat ever)".

Chart performance