Like A Narcissist

"Like A Narcissist" is a song by American indie pop band Curriculum. Written by members Gregory Preston Olivier, Phillip Mandelbaum, and Wyatt van Cleef and produced by Dana Breckenridge (giving him his first full sole production credit and also being his first where he did not co-write), the song was released on 30 December 2013 as the lead single from the band's second studio album Sophomore (2014).

The song touches on the topic of narcissism and is lyrically about the dangers and perils of dealing with someone who has narcissistic personality disorder, claiming that they will wreak havoc in people's lives. The song was rumored to be inspired by each of the band members' brothers and fathers, though they deny this; regardless the band were sued by their own brothers and fathers for "slander" who thought the lyrics of the song were aimed at them. Sonically, the song borrows elements of alternative, rock, pop, and urban music, making it one of the most experimental songs the band has ever made.

"Like A Narcissist", which premiered in November 2013, received extremely positive reviews from critics, who mostly agreed that it was their best song to date and predicted it would be a big commercial success for the group. Indeed, the single became the group's second single to peak at #2 on the UK Singles Chart, though it has become their fastest-selling single to date, selling 463,000 copies in six weeks. Certified Platinum by the Urapopstar Recording Association Phonographic Society (URAPS), it is one of the group's best-selling singles to date.

Background
"Like A Narcissist" was written and recorded in the same day on 2 June 2013 in a recording studio in London, England, United Kingdom. Written and recorded for the band's second studio album Sophomore, where it was one of the first to be added to the album, the song was initially called "They're A Narcissist". The song eventually went through a few name changes and was almost called "Narcissism", "The Narcissist", "Terrorism", and "Like A Terrorist". Eventually, "Like A Narcissist" was chosen as the song's title.

Writing
"Like A Narcissist" was written by Gregory Preston Olivier, Phillip Mandelbaum, and Wyatt van Cleef; it is one of the first songs of the band's to not be co-written by member Dana Breckenridge and former constant collaborator Stephanie Kesh. Kesh went on to pursue other musical endeavors and Breckenridge decided to focus on producing songs for the band and gave up songwriting and co-writing with them as a result.

The song addresses the topic of narcissism and is lyrically about the dangers and perils of dealing with someone who has narcissistic personality disorder. Considered by the band to be a "cautionary tale of sorts", the song tells a person that narcissists will wreak havoc in the lives of people, ultimately vilifying them as mean-spirited and heartless.

The song was rumored to be about the older brothers and fathers of each of the band members, who just so happen to have some degree and type of narcissistic personality disorder. The band, however, denies this, saying that they were inspired to write the song about "all narcissists". Olivier admitted that he came up with the song's topic after reading stories of people who had bad experiences with narcissists.

Composition
"Like A Narcissist" was produced by Dana Breckenridge, giving him his first full sole production credit. Being one of the first songs that were produced by Breckenridge, he gave up co-writing with the band to focus on producing this song and others for them. Breckenridge took over as the band's chief producer after the band's constant collaborator, Shawn Middlesbrough, went to pursue a music career with his wife, Kesh (ultimately together to be known as Cerise + Victor).

The song is an alternative song that combines elements of pop, rock, and urban music. Being one of the most experimental songs the band has ever made, the song switches styles of genres, beats, and tempo throughout the song.

Throughout its duration, the song has a frantic rock-styled uptempo beat that is intertwined with a mid-tempo urban style beat. The frantic rock beat plays throughout the verses until it switches to the mid-tempo urban beat for the first part of the chorus; eventually it switches back to the frantic rock beat at the second part of the chorus. Instrumentation is sparse during the verses, relying on vocal arrangements for its melody until the bridge and chorus kicks in.

The song begins with van Cleef chanting "They'll keep coming for you" which is intertwined with Olivier singing "NPD, narcissism/NPD, terrorism". Being the de facto lead singer of the band, Olivier sings lead throughout the song though Mandelbaum provides backing and additional lead vocals throughout the song, often harmonizing with Olivier in parts of the song. All of the members vocals are heard during the chorus. Throughout the verses, Olivier sings in a rapid but rhythmic pace while during the chorus he sings at a steadied tempo. Olivier sings in his higher register/range throughout most of the song.

Promotion and release
The song randomly premiered on 2 November 2013, with no prior announcement from the band. Soon after its premiere, the band announced it as the lead single from their second studio album Sophomore. The single was originally set to be released on 2 December 2013 but was eventually pushed back to 30 December 2013, mainly because the band wanted the single to be one of the first charting singles of 2014 (the first chart for that week would've been released in January 2014). Released on 30 December 2013, the single was released in two formats on digital download.

The single's release was almost blocked due to various professional issues regarding the band, including the shutdown and collapse of their management CHRIS in late 2013 and the band getting sued by each of their fathers and older brothers over the lyrics to the song.

Cover art
The cover art features a seemingly old picture from the either the late 1980s or early 1990s of four well-groomed and "preppy-looking" young men, who look as if they are taking a school photo for their prep/high school or college. The four young men appear to be smiling in a smug manner and have possess a look in their eyes that has been described by many observers to be "empty, evil, and soulless".

It is rumored that the four young men are actually the band members' older brothers and that the photo was taken in the early 1990s. The band made no comment about the true identity of the four young men though lead singer Olivier sarcastically stated that they were the "Dementors from Azkaban" (referencing to the Harry Potter series).

Lawsuit
Shortly after the band premiered "Like A Narcissist", the band was sued by each of their older brothers and fathers for the song's lyrics. With the lawsuit being worth an unknown millions of dollars, the band's brothers and fathers sued them for slander, damage to character and reputation, and emotional distress, claiming that the band had wrote the song about them with "malicious and opportunistic intent". Though the band's brothers and fathers has narcissistic personality disorder, and the song is about dealing with someone who has narcissistic personality disorder, they deny that the song is about any of their relatives, including their brothers and fathers, or anyone else specific for the matter.

The case went to trial for a week and the band was represented by Olivier's brother-in-law, Arlington Olivier. One week after the case started, the judge dismissed the lawsuit claiming that it was "erroneous and frivolous", essentially making the band win the case. Had the band lost the lawsuit, they would have had to pay millions of dollars to their brothers and fathers and would have had to withdraw the single for official release. The band's brothers and fathers had also tried to block the song from playing on radio and its audio video on YouTube and VEVO, though that motion failed as well.

Critical reaction
After its sudden premiere, critics and fans gave the song generally to overwhemingly positive feedback for the song. Many called it their best song to date. Critics and fans praised the song's production, its changing style of tempo and beats in which it was called "pleasantly schizophrenic", and the vocals from the band. Many critics and fans predicted that the single would be the band's biggest hit.

Commercial performance
On the week ending 5 January 2014, "Like A Narcissist" debuted at #4 on the UK Singles Chart, selling 67,797 copies in its first week. In its second week, on the week ending 12 January 2014, the single rose to #3 with weekly sales increasing to 78,047 copies. In its third week on the chart and on the week ending 19 January 2014, "Like A Narcissist" rose and peaked at #2 on the UK Singles Chart, experiencing a further weekly sales increase to 83,182 copies sold. In its fourth week, the single spent a second week at #2 while its weekly sales further increased to 91,220 copies sold; within four weeks, "Like A Narcissist" had sold over 300,000 copies and was certified Platinum in the UK. Peaking at #2 on the UK Singles Chart, and after charting for a total of six weeks, "Like A Narcissist" has sold 463,532 copies in total, making it the band's fastest-selling single to date; by comparison, the band's previous single "All Pink Everything", which was also still on the charts when "Like A Narcissist" began charting, managed to selling 478,330 copies in 16 weeks. "Like A Narcissist" has been certified Platinum by the Urapopstar Recording Association Phonographic Society (URAPS).

The single also peaked at #1 on the UK Downloads Chart, their first chart topper there, and #2 on the UK Top 40 airplay chart.

In the United States, the single debuted at #37 on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually peaking at #10. The single also became their fifth #1 single on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart. The song also charted at #15 on the Billboard Rock Songs chart.

Internationally, the single has charted within the top five or top ten in nearly all of the countries it was released in. In Canada, the single peaked at #7 on the Canadian Hot 100 while reaching #1 on the Canadian alternative charts, while in Ireland the single reached #2. In Australia, the single peaked at #3 and in New Zealand, it peaked at #4. The single peaked at #2 in Germany and #3 in Iceland. In the Netherlands, the single peaked at #1 on both the MegaCharts and the Dutch Top 40, becoming their first #1 single in the Netherlands.

Background
The band flew from the UK to Austin, Texas, United States to shoot their video for "Like A Narcissist", mainly because the video's director, Avery Chester Athanasiadis, uncle of Olivier, refused to leave the United States. Athanasiadis also lives in Austin. The video was shot between 3-6 November 2013 and was mostly filmed on a sound stage. The band also went to shoot the music video for the single's b-side "Playground" on 7 November 2013 in Galveston, Texas.

A teaser to the video titled "The Narcissistic Threat" was released on 17 December 2013. More teasers were planned to be released up until the video's premiere but never came into fruition or simply were never uploaded/released.

On 4 January 2014, the video premiered on YouTube and Vevo. In the video, an a cappella version of the song is heard instead of its regular studio version.

Plot
The video begins with Breckenridge in full-face ghoul-like makeup where he is smiling in a "creepy" fashion while he slow claps. Gregory Preston is shown admiring himself in a full-pane mirror, which latter reveals itself to be a room full of mirrors covering every part of the room from top to bottom and ceiling and floor. Phillip is seen playing with his friends while a hooded figure quietly plans to prey on them and Dana is seen walking towards two babies with one painted in gold and the other in a black wool-like fur costume. Dana instantly admires the gold baby and immediately detests the black wooled baby.

Different scenarios show what's happening during the members' dilemma. Gregory Preston continues to admire himself in the mirror and starts to slowly put on makeup and woman's clothing to "make himself look better", ultimately transforming into a woman for his new look. Phillip is playing with his friends until the hooded figure attacks them, causing them to run into the nearby woods for their lives; the hooded figure, however, is quickly catching up to them and kills off three of Phillip's friends while they're running, eventually leaving Phillip to fend for himself as the lone survivor. Wyatt continues to favor the gold baby and mistreat the black wool "sheep" baby.

Wyatt and the gold baby mistreatment of the black sheep baby pushes him too far, causing him to suddenly turn into a vicious ram who chases both Wyatt and the gold baby to a cliff where they nearly fall off but barely hang on to the cliff's ledge. The black sheep baby overcomes his anger and tries to save Wyatt and the gold baby, until he remembers their cruelty which prompts him to let go of both Wyatt and the gold baby from the ledge, seemingly sending them to fall to their deaths. The black sheep baby, now free from his abusers, walks away and bumps into three other normal looking babies who free him from his black wool sheep costume, puts him in normal clothes, and happily walks away with him.

The final sequence of the video shows Phillip being chased to a cliff by the hooded figure, who grabs Phillip by the neck and tries to choke him near the edge of the cliff. The hooded figure suddenly lurches forward and falls off the cliff, dropping Phillip safely to the ground. Phillip looks up to see that his three friends, who were thought to be killed by the hooded figure, had actually survived and miraculously recovered from their injuries. The three friends (played by the rest of the band but in different roles than their other storylines in the videeo) reveal that they are his protectors to save him from "further harm". The statement alarms Phillip who goes to the edge of the cliff and sees the hooded figure still hanging on the ledge. Phillip takes off the hooded figure's hood, revealing to be the gold baby as an adult seeking vengeance on Phillip, who was once the black sheep baby. Phillip and the hooded figure/adult gold baby have one final exchange in which the adult gold baby realizes that Phillip will never as miserable as he is with his life. The gold baby lets himself go from the cliff and drops to his death, this time for good.

The video ends the way it started with Dana in ghoulish makeup, smiling in a haunting manner while he slow claps.

Concept
The concept of the video was to display different aspects of narcissism. Gregory Preston's mirror storyline represents how a narcissist is always concerned with their self-image and are always insecure about themselves, despite their bravado and brag-like ways. Wyatt's and Phillip's storyline ended up intertwining with each other. Wyatt's storyline with the gold baby and the black sheep baby were to focus on narcissistic parents who, should they have multiple children, tend to single out one of their children as the "golden children" while another one is treated as the "black sheep" of the family. In the video, Wyatt plays a narcissistic father who favors his "golden child" (the gold baby) and detests the "black sheep of the family" (the black sheep baby). When the black sheep baby pushes, Wyatt and his the gold baby (his narcissistic brother) off the cliff, it was to represent how children and victims of narcissistic parents can cut off contact for the good of their own lives. The black sheep baby's three friends are named Self-Esteem, Confidence, and Self-Respect, who just so happened to appear once he cut off contact with his narcissistic family. When the hooded figure comes to attack Phillip and his friends, it shows that he is miserable and wants to him miserable by wreaking havoc in his life. Dana, with the simple ghoulish-makeup and haunting smile, represents the "look" of the narcissist which is "charming but deceptive" and also "dangerous and evil".

Reception
The video received positive reviews from critics and fans who praised the song's visual direction. The storylines were especially praised though they were also compared to other videos as well, with somewhat similar concepts. Olivier in drag also caught a noticeable amount of attention.

Cover versions
Raphael Monaghan covered "Like A Narcissist" on 30 January 2014 for his appearance on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. Raphael's version had more of a minimalistic/nearly acappella acoustic approach to it. Raphel's version of "Like A Narcissist" was featured as a b-side for his single "More Than This".

Formats and track listing

 * Digital download #1
 * 1) "Like A Narcissist" - 3:42
 * 2) "Playground" - 3:23


 * Digital download #2
 * 1) "Like A Narcissist" (Extended Mix)
 * 2) "Like A Narcissist" (Histrionic-Borderline-Antisocial Edit)
 * 3) "Like A Narcissist" (Cluster B Disorder Mix)
 * 4) "Like A Narcissist" (A cappella)

Credits and personnel

 * Recorded and mixed in London, England, United Kingdom


 * Songwriting - Gregory Preston Olivier, Phillip Mandelbaum, and Wyatt van Cleef.


 * Composing and production - Dana Breckenridge


 * Vocals - Gregory Preston Olivier (lead), Phillip Mandelbaum (backing and additional lead), Wyatt van Cleef (backing vocals and spoken chants), and Dana Breckenridge (backing vocals; uncredited).


 * Instrumentation - Gregory Preston Olivier (guitar and synthesizers), Phillip Mandelbaum (guitar), Wyatt van Cleef (drums), and Dana Breckenridge (bass and synthesizers).