"Rain on Me" is a song by American singers Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande from Gaga's sixth studio album, Chromatica (2020). They co-wrote it with Nija Charles, Rami Yacoub, Tchami, Boys Noize and its producers, BloodPop and Burns. An upbeat house, dance-pop and disco song, the track features a synth-disco beat and funk guitars. It explores resilience in defiance of the hardships in life, using rain as a metaphor for alcohol and its role in numbing emotional pain.
"Rain on Me" was released by Interscope Records as the album's second single on May 22, 2020. Music critics lauded the singers' vocals as well as the song's message. Upon entering at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, the track became Gaga's fifth and Grande's fourth number-one single in the United States. It marked the first all-female collaboration to debut atop the chart and made Grande the first artist to have four songs debut at the top spot. On Spotify, "Rain on Me" was the seventh most streamed song of summer 2020 and the most streamed song by a female artist globally during the season. Additionally, "Rain on Me" topped the charts in Canada, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Scotland, Singapore, and the United Kingdom.
The accompanying music video was directed by filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, and features Gaga and Grande dancing inside a giant arena during a rainstorm, with daggers falling from the sky. "Rain on Me" was nominated for seven MTV Video Music Awards, winning for Song of the Year and two other awards while being nominated for Video of the Year. The duo performed "Rain on Me" at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, while Gaga and Grande later included the song in their respective concert tours, The Chromatica Ball (2022) and The Eternal Sunshine Tour (2026). "Rain on Me" was further promoted with the release of mock news broadcasts in partnership with The Weather Channel in which Gaga and Grande both appeared. The song won the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, being the first female collaboration in history to win the category.
Background "Rain on Me" is a song by American singers Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande from Gaga's sixth studio album, Chromatica (2020), appearing as the fourth track in its track list. It was first referenced by Gaga in a March 2020 interview with Paper, at a time when her collaboration with Grande had not yet been revealed. She described it as a "celebration of all the tears". Gaga also revealed that the track was created with another prominent female pop artist who had likewise endured intense public scrutiny and trauma. She explained that the song emerged from deeply personal conversations about their lives, framing it as an exchange between two women reflecting on resilience, perseverance, and gratitude.
Speaking further on Apple Music's Beats 1 during a May 2020 interview with Zane Lowe, Gaga further talked about the writing process of the song. She said that Grande approached the collaboration with empathy and openness, rather than merely arriving to record vocals. Gaga noted that she encouraged Grande to take an active role, asking what she needed and how she wanted to work. During one studio session, Gaga was still emotionally distressed, and Grande responded with persistent gestures of support, telling her, "You're gonna be alright," and repeatedly reaching out in an effort to build a friendship. Gaga later admitted she initially pulled back out of shame and a reluctance to project her emotional state onto Grande, but a candid exchange—when Grande told her, "you're hiding"—became a turning point that strengthened their connection.
Recording and mixing
"Rain on Me" was written by Gaga, Grande, Burns, Nija Charles, Rami Yacoub, Bresso, Boys Noize and Chromatica executive producer BloodPop. It was produced by Burns, Bloodpop, with Tchami credited for additional production. Burns said his aim was to channel the kinetic spirit of classic house records such as Roger Sanchez's "Another Chance" and Stardust's "Music Sounds Better with You", creating a track that would "feel classic but modern at the same time." The song initially existed as a stripped-back acid house demo, but Burns explained that its sound evolved substantially during production. While the team recognized the song's strength, they felt the early version did not fully align with the album's sonic direction. At BloodPop's request, Burns reworked the instrumental, experimenting with new chord movements and progressions to shift its emotional tone. During this process, he instinctively introduced a bassline inspired by Gwen McCrae's "All This Love That I'm Givin" beneath the chorus, a change that marked a decisive breakthrough and clarified the track's final direction. The finished track has been noted by some listeners for its French house character, drawing comparisons to Daft Punk, while producer Tchami later revealed that an earlier version he worked on did not make the final cut, though BloodPop and Burns retained select elements from previous drafts when reworking the production. The collaboration also represented a notable milestone for Nija Charles, who felt that, as a young Black producer and songwriter, she had often been confined by industry expectations to R&B and hip-hop.
Recording and mixing of the track took place during the broader Chromatica sessions, which were developed over roughly two years across several studios in Los Angeles, including EastWest Studios, Westlake Recording Studios and Henson Recording Studios. Gaga's longtime engineer and vocal producer Benjamin Rice oversaw the recording and vocal production, working closely with Gaga and the song's producers during writing and production sessions. Rice employed an iterative workflow in which vocals recorded during early songwriting sessions could later be incorporated into the final arrangement, compiling and refining numerous takes over time. The final mix was completed through a collaborative process between Rice and mixer Tom Norris: Rice focused primarily on the vocal production and mixing, while Norris handled the instrumental elements and overall sonic balance. Norris later described "Rain on Me" as one of the most involved tracks on the album, noting that it underwent multiple production revisions and mixing adjustments over several months before the final version was completed.
Composition
"Rain on Me" is a house, dance-pop, and disco song, with electropop, French house, and Eurodance elements. It was composed using common time in the key of C minor, with a tempo of 123 beats per minute. Most of the song follows a Cm7–Amaj9 sequence, while the first verse and second pre-chorus add a B(add4) and both pre-choruses include an Fm11 at the end. The track features an upbeat production consisting of synth-pop instrumentals, an R&B-influenced synth-disco beat, synth claps, funk guitar strums, and rolling synths. It opens with a stripped-down verse with Gaga's vocals at the forefront. Then, a French house bass and thundering percussion play in the background. The mid-90s house-pop hook contains a pitched-down vocal loop. In the chorus, which is described as thundering, the beats build up, which then drops into a techno beat. After doing ad-libs, Grande joins in the second verse, where hand-clapped beats are added. The final chorus "explodes" with the singers belting the song.
Gaga's and Grande's vocals, which were described as "booming", span from the low note of G3 to the high note of B5. Vocally, Gaga makes use of spoken word deliveries, and Grande uses her "signature" high note octave. Lyrically, the song addresses perseverance through hardship, emphasizing that emotional vulnerability—such as crying, stumbling, and falling apart—is a necessary part of survival, healing, and finding meaning in painful experiences. Rain is used as a metaphor for alcohol and its role in numbing emotional pain, informed by Gaga's reflections on heartbreak and sobriety. She has explained that the chorus was written to intentionally suggest both intoxication and sobriety, with its opening line sounding like either "I'd rather be drunk" or "I'd rather be dry," underscoring the song's central tension between numbing pain and pursuing healing.
Release and promotion "Rain on Me" was officially announced on April 22, 2020, when Gaga shared the tracklist of her Chromatica album. On May 15, 2020, both Gaga and Grande posted the single's cover art on Instagram and Twitter to announce its release a week later. It was issued as the album's second single on May 21, 2020, at 21:00 PT (4:00 UTC on May 22, 2020). The song was also promoted through an Amazon Music lyric video commercial. To coincide with the single release, rain-themed merchandise items were made available in Gaga's official online store, such as rainboots, ponchos, and umbrellas. On May 27, 2020, a limited 7-inch vinyl with alternate artwork became available to ship on Lady Gaga's official web store.
On May 26, 2020, Gaga and Grande shared a one-minute promotional skit in partnership with The Weather Channel, delivering a mock weather forecast while holding an umbrella and joking about wanting to "celebrate the rain". A second weather-themed clip followed on May 28, filmed in Gaga's pool and Grande's bathtub. On August 26, 2020, Gaga announced an online competition offering a $10,000 cash prize, inviting participants to design a "Rain on Me"–inspired poster using Adobe creative applications.
Critical reception "Rain on Me" received widespread critical acclaim following its release, with several outlets considering it one of Gaga's strongest releases. Contributors of Vulture and Attitude predicted the song would be especially popular with her gay audience. Many critics praised the track's euphoric production and emotional tone, frequently describing it as a cathartic and empowering dance anthem. Adam White of The Independent called it "three minutes of euphoric melodrama" and a "theatrical and replenishing triumph", while Joey Nolfi of Entertainment Weekly wrote that the song takes listeners "to sonic heaven" with its "therapeutic banger" energy. Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times similarly described it as a "fist-pumping self-empowerment jam".
Reviewers also highlighted the chemistry between Gaga and Grande, emphasizing how their vocal interplay strengthens the song's impact. Rania Aniftos of Billboard praised the track for foregrounding the powerful vocals of both Grande and Gaga. Althea Legapsi of Rolling Stone labeled the track "rejuvenating", noting its call-and-response structure as the singers "tout the rejuvenating aspects of the situation, despite the metaphorical bad weather sentiments." Quinn Moreland of Pitchfork likewise praised the emotional connection between the two artists, writing that the song "draws its power from two women connecting on an emotional level." Dave Quinn of People singled out Grande's "signature high note octaves" alongside Gaga's "bold voice". Matt Melis of Consequence wrote that "Gaga and Grande have vocal chops for miles", and called it a "dynamite feature". He also highlighted its uplifting message: "No matter how bad the storm gets, we will endure and perhaps come out a little cleaner on the other side for the pain."