"Shotgun" is a song by British singer-songwriter George Ezra. The song was written by Ezra, Fred Gibson and Joel Pott and produced by Cam Blackwood. It was released as a digital download on 18 May 2018, as the third single from Ezra's second studio album, Staying at Tamara's. The song reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Ezra's first number-one song in the United Kingdom and was certified septuple platinum there. In addition, it topped the ARIA Singles Chart in Australia, also becoming Ezra's first number-one there, as well as the Irish Singles Chart and New Zealand Singles Chart.
Composition "Shotgun" is originally in the key of F major, with a tempo of 116 beats per minute and a chord progression of F–B–Dm–C.
In 2019, it was revealed that Irish country music singer Derek Ryan will be awarded royalties (of seven and a half per cent) for the song due to its similarity to the chorus of Ryan's song Flowers In Your Hair released in 2014.
Critical reception In a review for NME, Rhian Daly described the song as "anthemic" with a "balmy sound". Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger named it "a song about summer travel which sounds, like all [of Ezra's] songs, exactly like it was first written on a borrowed acoustic in a rented villa on the Adriatic. You play the role of a fellow guest trying to sleep."
Music video A lyric video, which has Ezra performing the song in multiple locations, was first released on YouTube on 18 May 2018 and has over 300 million views as of March 2022. The official music video was also released on YouTube on 14 June 2018 and has over 70 million views as of March 2022.
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (2018–19) Peakposition Croatia Airplay (HRT) 3 Denmark (Tracklisten) 2 Hungary (Editors' Choice Top 40) 16 Ireland (IRMA) 1 Israel (Media Forest) 3 Italy (FIMI) 96 Luxembourg Digital Songs (Billboard) 3 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) 1
Year-end charts Chart (2018) Position Australia (ARIA) 9 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) 18 Belgium (Ultratop Flanders) 8 Belgium (Ultratop Wallonia) 24 Denmark (Tracklisten) 29 Germany (Official German Charts) 66 Iceland (Tónlistinn) 79 Ireland (IRMA) 1 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) 3 Netherlands (Single Top 100) 22 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) 37 Poland (ZPAV) 16 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) 34 UK Singles (OCC) 3 US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard) 39 Chart (2019) Position Australia (ARIA) 22 Belgium (Ultratop Flanders) 42 Belgium (Ultratop Wallonia) 84 Denmark (Tracklisten) 50 France (SNEP) 177 Iceland (Tónlistinn) 96 Ireland (IRMA) 24 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) 16 Poland (ZPAV) 94 UK Singles (OCC) 12 US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard) 13 Chart (2020) Position Australia (ARIA) 100 UK Singles (OCC) 52 Chart (2021) Position UK Singles (OCC) 94 Chart (2022) Position UK Singles (OCC) 82
Decade-end charts Chart (2010–2019) Position Australia (ARIA) 75 UK Singles (Official Charts Company) 15
Certifications
Release history Region Date Format Label United States 13 August 2018 Hot adult contemporary Columbia 22 January 2019 Contemporary hit radio
See also List of best-selling singles in Australia
References