Lonelyhearts

"Lonelyhearts" is the third single from Audiodrama's album "This Digital Universe". The song is a collaboration with Candi, making this her first release in over three years. The song debuted at #1 in the United Kingdom, giving Candi her sixth number one single.

Background
"Lonelyhearts" was first heard when "This Digital Universe" was released. It received positive reviews from fans and critics and was considered a highlight from the album. In May 2016, discussing the single, "Audiodrama stated: Audiodrama turned to a long-missed name - Candi last graced the charts in 2013 with her singles 'Best Damn Night' and 'Goodbye', and she is finally returning to music three years later with this song. 'Lonelyhearts' is a club ballad with a downtempo four-to-the-floor rhythm and sweeping orchestral strings. Chace also provides a violin solo throughout the song."

Upon announcing "Lonelyhearts" as an official single, Audiodrama producer Katrina Benson stated that Candi was one artist the duo were adamant on working with, and that their collaboration would absolutely be released as a single.

"When we were planning for this album we weren't looking for a lot of big name guest features but Candi was the one name we'd agreed on from the beginning - before we'd even acquired the Paul and Alesha demos and before we worked on Lady Lou's album. So armed with that knowledge that we wanted this thing to happen we made sure the song was just right. Candi has been missing from the pop landscape for a long while and we felt a comeback was long overdue. I'm glad we get to be a part of that for her."

In her first interview in over three years, Candi also discussed the collaboration. "I didn't want to have any new music this year, but I couldn't say no to Audiodrama. They're one of the most talented and gifted acts around, and the moment I heard the song I fell in love with it. I was also a judge when they appeared on The Uraps Factor years ago, so it's very rewarding and humbling to see how far they've come."

The song was first performed together by Audiodrama and Candi on 10 September 2016, for the London show. Candi made a surprise appearance on the last stop of Audiodrama's UK 'Secret Universe' tour, and a video of the performance was uploaded to both Audiodrama's and Candi's VEVO pages. The performance featured a stripped back arrangement of the song, taking out the dance elements of the song and replacing them with a string orchestra. Chace Hadley's violin solo is highlighted in this new orchestral rendition, as are Candi's vocals. Due to the popularity of this orchestral take on 'Lonelyhearts', the collaborators have confirmed they will be releasing a studio version of the orchestral ballad version as a single in the US. The new version was released 23 September, and was also available as a separate digital download in the UK, where the single has already been released.

Release and reception
Idolator's Rachel Sonis felt the song sounded "like the summer anthem we’ve been waiting for all along". James Montgomery of MTV described it as "one of the more perfect pop songs to come down the pipeline in quite a while". Gerrick D. Kennedy from Los Angeles Times also gave a positive review, classifying "Lonelyhearts" as a "sweet, poppy confection with a bit of bite". Strong praise was focused on the pairing of Audiodrama and Candi, with PopJustice calling them a "perfect combination".

Music video
The music video premiered on 14 September 2016. Candi is seen out in a club; Katrina is the DJ of the evening, as seen in a cameo early in the video. Candi isn’t too interested in dancing Katrina’s set though, feeling lonely as she drinks shots. Around her are men trying to be sociable and chat her up, but she isn’t interested in conversation either as she looks longingly into nothing. Another scene shows Candi lying down looking glamourous, but with the same wistful longing as she sings about being away from her lover and missing him. Several close-ups highlight her jewellery and make-up. In a third scene Candi is sitting at a table between two men, with empty bottles and glasses in front of them. They are all ignoring each other as Candi sings directly into the camera. Meanwhile, the Candi in the red dress has had enough of being around people, and retreats to a less crowded part of the club, where she sits on the stairs and performs to the camera above her head. Toward the end of the video Candi has finally gotten tired of the night life, finishing up her last shot for the night and leaving while the club dances on, oblivious to her loneliness.

Track listing

 * CD Format
 * 1) "Lonelyhearts (Original Radio Edit)"
 * 2) "That's Hot (Audiodrama's Third Degree Burn Mix)"
 * 3) "Best Damn Night (Audiodrama's Disco Revival Club Mix)"
 * 4) "Lonelyhearts (Audiodrama's 12" Heartbreak)"


 * Digital EP
 * 1) "Lonelyhearts"
 * 2) "Lonelyhearts (Dave Audé Big Room Club Vocal)"
 * 3) "Lonelyhearts (Moto Blanco Club Mix)"
 * 4) "Lonelyhearts (Tony Moran & Warren Rigg Destination Club Mix)"

Performances

 * Audiodrama live tour, London - 10 September 2016

Chart performance
The single was released on September 19, 2016. The song charted at #1 in the UK with first week sales of 100,480 copies sold. The song debuted at #1 on the Digital Chart with 33,938 downloads, giving Candi her fourth number one on the digital chart. It achieved the rare feature of spending a second week at #1, with a further 31,247 downloads. Upon the song's announcement as a single it debuted at #32 on the Airplay chart and rose to #17 the following week before hitting #2 upon it's official release. The next week, the track finally rose to #1, giving Candi her seventh #1 on the Airplay chart.