Ex's & Oh's

For similarly named articles, see X's and O's (disambiguation).
"Ex's & Oh's"
Single by Elle King
from the album Love Stuff
Released September 23, 2014 (2014-09-23)
Format Digital download
Genre
Length 3:22
Label RCA
Writer(s)
  • Elle King
  • Dave Basset
  • Kristopher Gregory
Producer(s) Dave Bassett
Elle King singles chronology
"Ex's & Oh's"
(2014)		 "Under the Influence"
(2015)

"Ex's & Oh's" is the debut single by American singer and songwriter Elle King for her debut studio album, Love Stuff (2015). It was released September 23, 2014 as the album's lead single via RCA Records.[1] The song achieved success in the rock genre, peaking at number 1 on the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart, and later crossed over to adult pop radio. In June 2015, "Ex's & Oh's" was certified Gold by Music Canada.[2] "Ex's & Oh's" reached the top of the Alternative Songs chart in September 2015, becoming only the second song by a solo female to reach the top since 1996 after Lorde achieved the feat in 2013 with "Royals".[3] The song also became King's first top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Ex's & Oh's" received two nominations at the 58th Grammy Awards: Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song.[4]

Composition

"Ex's & Oh's" is an uptempo pop-rock[5] song that blends elements of alternative rock,[6] blues rock[7] and Southern rock.[8] The song was written by Elle King with the song's producer, Dave Bassett and King credits it with helping her shape the sound of the album.[9] Its instrumentation includes the banjo, guitar and drums and is influenced by country music.[7] The song's lyrics describe the narrator's past relationships with needy men and her tendency to "[chew] men up and eat them" [6][8] King describes how her ex-boyfriends are like ghosts; they always want to come back to her. She also explains how her feelings toward her boyfriends quickly shift and her carelessness over the relationship.

Critical reception

"Ex's & Oh's" received acclaim from most music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic labelled the song one of the highlights of Love Stuff, writing "When King walks a fine line between rock crunch and soul testifying, there's some fire."[10] Entertainment blog Renowned for Sound rated the song 4.5 stars out of 5; reviewer Marcus Floyd praised both King's storytelling ability and its catchy production ("it just has this attractive sound that makes you want to hear it again and again").[6] Bradley Stern wrote a very positive review of the song for MuuMuse in which he described the song as "ballsy, brash and profoundly #unapologetic."[7]

Music video

The music video for "Ex's & Oh's" premiered on May 1, 2015.[11] The video begins with King's character kicking her boyfriend out of their car in the middle of a desert, and then focuses largely on a barbecue party and other recreational activities at King's trailer campsite in the desert. The video occasionally cuts back to King's boyfriend trying to find her, which he eventually does. Featuring many scantily-clad male characters and scenes with clear sexual innuendos, the video inverts the objectification of women common in contemporary music videos, and has been praised by critics for this role reversal.[8][12] On the other hand, British website Popjustice described the video as "100% terrible"[13]

Live performances

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (2014–16) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[19] 5
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[20] 8
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[21] 4
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[22] 31
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[23] 14
Canada AC (Billboard)[24] 6
Canada CHR/Top 40 (Billboard)[25] 10
Canada Hot AC (Billboard)[26] 3
Canada Rock (Billboard)[27] 12
Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[28] 20
Denmark (Tracklisten)[29] 24
Germany (Official German Charts)[30] 14
Ireland (IRMA)[31] 28
Israel (Media Forest)[32] 4
Mexico Ingles Airplay (Billboard)[33] 1
Mexico Top 20 Inglés (Monitor Latino)[34] 5
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[35] 10
Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[36] 43
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[37] 3
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[38] 26
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[39]
[40]		 60
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[41] 41
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[42] 15
US Billboard Hot 100[43] 10
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[44] 1
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[45] 8
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[46] 1
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[47] 7

Year-end charts

Chart (2015) Position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[48] 35
US Billboard Hot 100[49] 73
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[50] 2
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[51] 22
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[52] 4
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[53] 6
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[54] 4

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[55] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[2] 2× Platinum 160,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[56] Platinum 15,000*
United States (RIAA)[57] Platinum 1,000,000[3]

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Country Date Format Label Ref.
United States September 23, 2014 Digital download RCA [1]
October 7, 2014 Adult album alternative [58]
May 11, 2015 Modern rock radio [59]

References

  1. 1 2 "Amazon.com: Ex's & Oh's: Elle King: MP3 Downloads". Amazon Music. Amazon.com. September 23, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Canadian single certifications – Elle King". Music Canada.
  3. 1 2 White, Emily (September 8, 2015). "Elle King Is Just Second Woman to Top Alternative Songs Chart in Two Decades". Billboard. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Grammy Nominations 2016: See the Full List of Nominees". Billboard. December 7, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Elle King Crowned No. 1 on Hot Rock Songs With 'Ex's & Oh's' | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
  6. 1 2 3 Floyd, Marcus (January 30, 2015). "Single Review: Elle King – ‘Ex’s & Oh’s’". Renowned for Sound. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 Stern, Bradley (September 24, 2014). ""Ex’s & Oh’s": Elle King Breaks Hearts With Her Blues Rock Anthem". MuuMuse. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  8. 1 2 3 Kinos-Goodin, Jesse. "Elle King throws a beefcake barbecue in new video for 'Ex's and Oh's'". CBC Music (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  9. ↑ Daniel, Danica (February 23, 2015). "Elle King Talks 'Love Stuff,' Sex Shops & Self-Confidence: "If Someone Wants To Make Fun Of Me They Can Go F---k Themselves." [Exclusive Interview]". Music Times. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  10. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Love Stuff - Elle King". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  11. ↑ ElleKingVEVO (May 1, 2015). "Elle King - Ex's & Oh's (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  12. ↑ Wass, Mike (May 1, 2015). "Elle King Turns The Tables In Raunchy "Ex’s & Oh’s" Video: Watch". Idolator. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Let's all get up to speed on a future UK Number One single - Popjustice". Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  14. ↑ YouTube - Elle King - Ex's And Oh's - 10/22/2014 - the Living Room, Brooklyn NY
  15. ↑ PasteMagazine - Song Premiere Elle King - Ex's & Oh's
  16. ↑ "Elle King performs 'Ex's & Oh's' on TODAY". TODAY. NBC. February 15, 2015. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  17. ↑ Stern, Bradley (April 6, 2015). "Elle King Performs "Ex’s & Oh’s" On ‘Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon': Watch". Idolator. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  18. ↑
  19. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Elle King. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Chart Search". Billboard Canada AC for Elle King. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  25. ↑ "Chart Search". Billboard Canada CHR/Top 40 for Elle King. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  26. ↑ "Chart Search". Billboard Canada Hot AC for Elle King. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Chart Search". Billboard Canada Rock for Elle King. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  28. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201550 into search.
  29. ↑ http://hitlisten.nu/default.asp?list=t40
  30. ↑ "Musicline.de – Elle King Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  31. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 5, 2016". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  32. ↑ "Elle King – Ex's & Oh's Media Forest". Israeli Airplay Chart. Media Forest. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Mexico Ingles Airplay". Billboard.
  34. ↑ "Top 20 México Inglés" (in Spanish). Monitor Latino. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  35. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  36. ↑ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  37. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2016-01-29". Scottish Singles Top 40. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  38. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  39. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  40. ↑ http://www.sverigetopplistan.se/
  41. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Elle King – Ex's & Oh's". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  42. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2016-01-29" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  43. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Elle King. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  44. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Billboard Hot Rock Songs for Elle King. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  45. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Billboard Adult Contemporary for Elle King. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  46. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Billboard Adult Pop Songs for Elle King. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  47. ↑ "Elle King – Chart history" Billboard Pop Songs for Elle King. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  48. ↑ "Canadian Hot 100: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  49. ↑ "Hot 100: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  50. ↑ "Adult Alternative Songs: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  51. ↑ "Adult Pop Songs: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  52. ↑ "Alternative Songs: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  53. ↑ "Hot Rock Songs: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  54. ↑ "Rock Airplay Songs: Year End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  55. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (February 6, 2016). "ARIA Singles: Zayn 'Pillowtalk' Is No 1". Noise11. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  56. ↑ "New Zealand single certifications". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  57. ↑ "American single certifications – Elle King". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
  58. ↑ "R&R :: Going For Adds :: Triple A" (Week Of: October 7, 2014). Radio & Records. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  59. ↑ "R&R :: Going For Adds :: Alternative" (Week Of: May 11, 2015). Radio & Records. Retrieved May 21, 2015.

External links

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