"I'm Good (Blue)" is a song by French DJ and record producer David Guetta and American singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha. Produced by the former alongside Timofey Reznikov, it was written by the artists along with Kamille and Plested, with additional writing credits going to Jeffrey Jey, Massimo Gabutti, and Maurizio Lobina, as the song is a reworking of the Italian group Eiffel 65's "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" (1998). Marking the artists' fourth collaboration, the song was released for digital download and streaming by What a DJ and Warner on 26 August 2022. The song is included on Rexha's third studio album, Bebe (2023). A Latin version, featuring Lit Killah and Ludmilla, was released on 28 September 2023 and unveiled.
Despite working on the song in 2017 with no intention to release it, the artists were prompted to complete the song in 2022, after a snippet of it gained extensive popularity on social media. It is an upbeat dance-pop song that channels Rexha's excitement for a long clubbing night and the potential of an unforgettable night. The song was met with a warm reception from music critics for its lyrics, sound and collaboration between Guetta and Rexha.
"I'm Good (Blue)" garnered international success by attaining the number one position on rankings in 20 countries and securing a top 10 position in over 15 additional territories. The song reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the US Dance/Electronic Songs, Dance/Mix Show Airplay and Mainstream Top 40 charts. It stands as the third longest-running chart-topper in the Dance/Electronic chart, maintaining this position for 55 weeks. The song received multiple gold and platinum certifications as well as diamond in Brazil, Mexico, France, and Poland. Among several nominations, it triumphed as the Best Collaboration at the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards and Best Top Dance/Electronic Song at the 2023 Billboard Music Awards. The song also earned a nomination for the Best Dance/Electronic Recording at the 65th edition of the Grammy Awards. It was performed live at various occasions, among others at the American Music Awards, Brit Awards, Kids' Choice Awards, NRJ Music Awards and during the closing ceremony of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Contents
Background and composition
In 2017, David Guetta and Bebe Rexha began working on "I'm Good (Blue)" without intending to release it at the time.
In 2022, a snippet of the song garnered sudden popularity on the social media platform TikTok, prompting Guetta and Rexha to eventually finalise the song. Rexha described the start of the collaborative effort as a "last-second session the day of". As she explained, it all started with an unplanned message on social media, while Guetta was working on a recording and writing session in London. Guetta then played Rexha a remix of a song by Italian group Eiffel 65, and they started having fun with it, without any expectation of it turning into a finished song. Leading up to its premiere, they published several videos on their respective TikTok accounts in August 2022, with Rexha lip-syncing along to the song and Guetta playing it at the Ultra Music Festival in 2017, with a caption that read, "Should we release it?". The song marks the fourth collaboration between Guetta and Rexha, after "Hey Mama" (2015), "Say My Name" (2018) and "Family" (2021), most of whom achieved commercial success. What A DJ and Warner released "I'm Good (Blue)" for digital download and streaming in various countries on 26 August. The single, accompanied by remixes from notable artists such as French disc jockey Cedric Gervais, Italian Gabry Ponte and Dutch Tiësto, was published between from September to October 2022. An acoustic rendition of the song, incorporating guitars and vocals, followed in January 2023. Furthermore, the song was included on Rexha's third studio album, Bebe (2023).
"I'm Good (Blue)" was written by Guetta, Rexha, Gianfranco Randone, Kamille, Massimo Gabutti, Maurizio Lobina and Plested, and was produced by Guetta and Timofey Reznikov. It is composed in the key of G minor and time signature of common time with a tempo of 128 beats per minute. The song follows in the chord progression of Gm in the intro, Gm–F/G–EG-Cm/G-Gm-F/G-EG in the chorus and E♭-Cm-Gm-F-E♭ in the verse. It is an upbeat dance-pop, which interpolates Italian group Eiffel 65's single "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" (1998). The vocal range of Rexha in the song spans from a low note of D3 to a high note of F5. The lyrics of the song captures Rexha's anticipation of a long clubbing night ahead. She showcases her good mood and excitement of having one of the best nights, singing lines such as, "I'm good, yeah, I'm feelin' alright/ Baby, I'ma have the best freaking night of my life/ And wherever it takes me, I'm down for the ride."
Critical reception
The critical reception of the collaboration between Guetta and Rexha in "I'm Good (Blue)" has been generally positive. Markos Papadatos from Digital Journal complimented Rexha's vocals for their "crystalline and breathy" quality, along with Guetta's "exceptional" production. Cameron Sunkel for EDM hailed the song as an "iconic jam", lauding both Rexha's "uplifting" lyrics and Guetta's production, writing that it "[adds] a biting bassline to the chorus". Billboard contributors Katie Atkinson and Keith Caulfield wrote that amidst "a sea of out-of-left-field hit songs this year ['the song'] stands out as one of the most unpredictable". Mike Wass from Idolator applauded the "iconic" sample, adding that "you can't help but be drawn into the song, if you like it or not." Neil Z. Yeung praised the song as an "EDM anthem". Franz Liesenhoff of DJ Mag found the song as a "not cheap copy or another 0815 slap house cover", complimenting the "iconic" melody and Rexha's "strong" vocals. As for Chris Vuoncino of We Rave You, the song "will only further catapult an already incredible career for [...] Rexha." Jack Spilsbury of the same publication praised Rexha's voice and found the song "exciting and thrilling, containing energy to accompany every club night or festival mainstage". Mike Wass for Variety wrote that, "With six hit collaborations to their credit creative, [their] chemistry is undeniable". Katrin Elsner for Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) commented that, "It's such an earworm that ['the song'] became a hit even before its official release". Bradley Stern for MuuMuse similarly explained that, "[it] is an obvious earworm, and a clear school dance/wedding/bar mitzvah smash in the making, on the level of Black Eyed Peas' ['I Got a Feeling']". Maura Johnston from the Boston Globe praised Rexha as a "robust-voiced" artist and Guetta's incorporation of the "insistent hook" and "parenthetical title" from "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" into the song. Annabel Ross for Mixmag labeled the song as a "smash" but found the song "somehow even more inane than Eiffel 65's bizarre word salad".
Accolades
In 2022, "I'm Good (Blue)" won an award in the category for the Best Collaboration at the MTV Europe Music Awards. Rexha was one of three ethnic Albanian artists, who were nominated in the same category on the same occasion. The song garnered a nomination for the International Song of the Year and Recovery/Adaptation at the NRJ Music Award. In 2023, it received nominations for the Best International Song at the Brit Awards, the Best Collaboration at the MTV Video Music Awards, along with the Dance Song of the Year and Favorite Use of a Sample at the iHeartRadio Music Awards. The song won an award in the category for the Top Dance/Electronic Song at the Billboard Music Awards and garnered two other nominations for the Top Collaboration and Top Global (Excl. U.S.) Song. Marking Rexha's third and Guetta's 11th nomination to date, the song was further nominated for the Best Dance/Electronic Recording at the Grammy Awards. Following its debut in which it amassed more than 140 million streams, the song achieved a significant milestone of over one billion streams worldwide in late January 2023. In 2023, it was ranked as the 14th and 31st most-streamed song on Spotify and Apple, respectively. Also in 2023, Billboard included it in its year-end lists of the best songs of the year.
Commercial performance
In the United States, the song attained a position within the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in November 2022, reaching its peak at number four on the issue dated 14 January 2023. Topping the Dance/Electronic Songs, Dance/Mix Show Airplay and Mainstream Top 40 charts, it further peaked at number two on the Adult Top 40 and number 21 on the Rhythmic rankings. The song maintained number one position on the Dance/Electronic Songs chart for a total of 55 weeks, marking the second longest-running chart-topper in the ranking's history. Rexha also holds the record as the longest-charting female artist at the number one position on the chart. In June 2023, it received double platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shifting more than 2,000,000 units in the US. In Canada, the song reached number one on the Canadian Hot 100 on 24 September 2022 and entered the top 50 on the Canada AC, Canada CHR/Top 40 and Canada Hot AC rankings. In July 2023, it garnered a 9× platinum certification from Music Canada (MC) for selling more than 720,000 copies in Canada.
In Australia, the song also peaked at number one the ARIA Singles Chart on 25 September 2022 and reached number four on the New Zealand Singles Chart on 19 September in New Zealand. In 2023, it received double platinum certification from the Recorded Music New Zealand (RMNZ) in New Zealand and quadruple platinum award from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) in Australia for shifting more than 60,000 and 280,000 units, respectively. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart on 23 September 2022 and became Guetta's seventh and Rexha's first number one single in the ranking. In November 2024, it garnered a triple platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for selling more than 1,800,000 copies in the UK. During the New Year's Eve 2022, the song reached number one on the Spotify's global chart and surpassed more than of 11.6 million streams, reentering the UK Singles Chart at number 10.
"I'm Good (Blue)" achieved number one on the rankings in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland. The song reached the top 10 in Bulgaria, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, New Zealand, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia and Ukraine. It also entered the top 20 in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, India, Malaysia, Panama, Puerto Rico and Spain. "I'm Good (Blue)" achieved several certifications in various countries, including gold in Argentina, double platinum in Denmark and Germany, triple platinum in Italy, and quadruple platinum in Austria, Portugal and Spain. Furthermore, it attained diamond certifications in France, Mexico and Poland along with double diamond status in Brazil.
Music video
Preceded by the release of a lyric video on 26 August 2022, the official music video for "I'm Good (Blue)" premiered to YouTube on 20 September 2022. Behind-the-scenes footage from different stages of filming was published on the platform on 30 November. Directed by KC Locke of Swords & Eagles, the music video was filmed in September at various locations spanning across the Spanish island of Ibiza, including at the renowned Ushuaïa nightclub. The music video begins with a sequence as the camera descends through a cloudy sky, transitioning to the portrayal of Guetta playing a synthesizer in an indoor setting. Following this, Rexha enters the subsequent scene, delivering a performance on a yacht surrounded by the sea. The scenes then transition to a mansion setting, portraying a gathering of individuals, including Guetta and Rexha. The video further progresses into a live performance scene at Ushuaïa, featuring both artists captivating a substantial crowd. Throughout the video, interspersed shots showcase Guetta and Rexha separately at different locations, each delivering performances of the song. The culmination of these sequences leads to a moment as the artists come together before their joint performance at Ushuaïa. During the filming process, Rexha revealed that the team had to take a brief break due to motion sickness, adding, "But I knew that if I threw up, it would make it worse. [...] So I was like, I cannot throw up. I can't".
Live performances
On 13 November 2022, Guetta and Rexha premiered their collaboration "I'm Good (Blue)" for the first time at the MTV Europe Music Awards, delivering a blue and black-themed show. During the performance, Guetta mixed live on a podium while Rexha was accompanied by a group of blue-dressed dancers. Following this, Rexha went on to perform the song by herself at the NRJ Music Awards in France on 18 November and at the American Music Awards in the US on 20 November. At the latter event and during her futuristic-described show, the singer was similarly joined by a team of professional dancers throughout the performance. She wore a metallic, silver and black leather bodysuit with metallic fabric highlights and a pair of low-heeled pointed-toe black leather boots. On 24 November, Guetta and Rexha reunited to further perform the song during the halftime show of the Detroit Lions Thanksgiving Day match. On 11 February 2023, Guetta performed the song independently at the Brit Awards in the UK, with British singer Sam Ryder filling in for Rexha. Rexha continued her live performances at the Kids' Choice Awards on 4 March. A distinctive rendition occurred on 19 November, when Rexha presented a slowed-down orchestral version of the song, accompanied by a string section. On 22 December, Guetta and Rexha delivered another performance of the song at the closing ceremony of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Track listing
Digital download and streaming
"I'm Good (Blue)" – 2:55
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Extended) – 3:39
Digital download and streaming
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Acoustic) – 2:18
Digital download and streaming – Remixes #1
"I'm Good (Blue)" – 2:55
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Tiësto Remix) – 2:58
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Cedric Gervais Remix) – 2:59
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Brooks Remix) – 2:49
"I'm Good (Blue)" (DJs from Mars Remix) – 2:43
Digital download and streaming – Remixes #2
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Oliver Heldens Remix) – 3:06
"I'm Good (Blue)" (R3hab Remix) – 2:47
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Gabry Ponte Remix) – 2:45
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Header Remix) – 3:42
"I'm Good (Blue)" (Ralph Wegner Remix) – 2:58
"I'm Good (Blue)" – 2:55
Digital download and streaming – 2023 version
"I'm Good (Blue) (feat. LIT Killah & LUDMILLA) [2023 Version] – 2:41
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from Spotify and Tidal.
David Guetta – lead artist, production, programming, songwriting
Bebe Rexha – lead artist, songwriting
AHH – additional production
Bryce Bordone – assistant mixing engineer
Gianfranco Randone – songwriting
Kamille – songwriting
Massimo Gabutti – songwriting
Maurizio Lobina – songwriting
Mitch Allan – vocal production
Plested – songwriting
Serban Ghenea – mixing
Timofey Reznikov – mastering, mixing, production, programming