Your Love Will Kill Me

"Your Love Will Kill Me" is the fourth single from British/Canadian singer Aimee Stevens. The song is to be released as an On Air/On Sale release, due on 28 October 2013, one week before the release of the singer's debut album "Papermade Hearts".

Musically, "Your Love Will Kill Me" is a ballad and the lyrics speak of staying strong and believing in oneself, after finally finding the strength to break away from an abusive relationship, something which Stevens had dealt with in the past. The track opens with a lonely piano that is soon accompanied by heavy percussion. Stevens showcases breathy and quivering vocals throughout the song. "Your Love Will Kill Me" was very well received by music critics and also by the media, with the majority of them praising Steven's vocals and the inspirational lyrics.

Writing and inspiration
"Your Love is a Drug" was written by Aimee Stevens. In an interview about the song, Aimee stated "it looks back a few years ago when I was trapped in an abusive relationship. I'd get not only emotionally, but physically hurt and attacked by my partner, yet I was too afraid to breakaway, and just longed for him to love me. This song is from my perspective several years on, now I'm a strong, grown woman. It's really me looking back and knowing I'll never be like that again, I've risen through the ashes. I was actually feeling amazing when I wrote it. It came from a really empowered place." When asked what she wants people who are also suffering from domestic violence to feel when they hear the song, Aimee said, "I think the lyrics say it already. You can hit the lowest low and face the darkest dark, but you can always get back up and get in the light. You're not alone, and things can get better, you just have to take the first step."

Background
The single is due to be released as an On Air/On Sale release, meaning it will be available to purchase as soon as it has premiered, Steven's first single to receive this release approach. Unlike Steven's previous singles, "Your Love Will Kill Me" shall be released worldwide simultaneously, being added to all countries ITunes at 00:01 on October 28, 2013.

The title of Steven's album "Papermade Hearts" is inspired by a line in "Your Love Will Kill Me": "Because my heart's not made of paper, it can only break so many times".

Composition
"Your Love Will Kill Me" is a ballad in which Stevens showcases breathy, quivering and powerful vocals. In the first verse, Stevens is only accompanied by a lonely, pulsing piano as she sings, "I opened up my heart to you, I gave you my all / And you got your happiness from watching me fall / But I tell you now you've built me up, I feel ten feet tall / I'm not the girl I used to be, just try and break through this wall." As the song progresses, the piano is accompanied by heavy percussion and breathy backing vocals. In the chorus, Stevens sings, "Because I loved you then, I love you now, I'll love you forever more / But I know your love will kill me, so deep in my heart I swore / That you live in my past, and that's where you'll always remain / I'm doing this for myself now, I'm staying away from your pain." In the second verse, Stevens "begins to find more strength". The song has a simple musical structure. Lyrically, the song is about staying strong and believing in yourself. According to Stevens, the song's lyrics symbolize her personal journey from where she used to be to "the happy healthy person [she is] today." The song deals with the difficulties she had been through in the past and overcoming the obstacles she faced. With the song, Stevens hopes that "people are able to relate to it and realize that they are able to rise above and overcome any obstacle, no matter the circumstances."

Critical reception
The song was very well received in reviews from music critics and also from the media. Bill Lamb of About.com rated "Your Love Will Kill Me" four and half out of five stars. He praised Steven's breathy vocals, the instrumentation and inspirational lyrics. Lamb concluded his review, "“Your Love Will Kill Me” is a complete change of pace from the current dominance of upbeat party tunes on the pop music landscape." Jason Lipshutz of Billboard was positive on the song, especially praising Steven's powerful vocal range. Grady Smith of Entertainment Weekly called the song "pretty inspiring" and wrote that "Steven’s raspy, crying-out vocal sounds gorgeous". Monica Herrera of Rolling Stone praised the song, describing it as a "tear-jerker ballad".

Music video
The official video premiered in the afternoon on 4Music, on 28 October 2013, the same day the song premiered.

The video begins with Aimee singing infront of a simple plain white background. The camera focuses on her and spins around her, showing her from different angles, but always surrounded by only white. As she sings, she is stood infront of a microphone stand, singing into that.

For the Middle 8, the camera spins around her slowly several times as the white background turns dark, and resembles a smashed up room, with glass scattered all over the floor, however after the middle 8 ends, the background goes back to simply white again, until the end of the song, where Aimee fades out as the screen becomes purely white.

Track listing

 * CD1
 * 1) Your Love Will Kill Me
 * 2) I Hope


 * CD2
 * 1) Your Love Will Kill Me
 * 2) Your Love Will Kill Me (Fred Falke Remix Edit)
 * 3) Your Love Will Kill Me (Tensnake Remix)
 * 4) Your Love Will Kill Me (Afterlife Remix)

Performances
The track has not been performed live yet.

Chart performance
The song was released on October 28, 2013 and debuted at #06 on the UK singles chart, giving Aimee her fifth consecutive top ten appearance. With first week sales of 61,288, it is also her highest first week sales ever. It debuted on the Pre-release chart at #5. The single debuted at #03 on the digital chart, giving Aimee her highest position on download, as well as her first top five. Stevens also debuted at #37 on the airplay chart as the weeks greatest gainer. The following week it rose to #24 then into the top twenty at #18 where it remained for two weeks before rising to #12.

Chart Run
TOTAL: 176,194
 * Week 1: #6 - 61,288
 * Week 2: #9 - 57,583
 * Week 3: #15 - 26,706
 * Week 4: #17 - 14,994
 * Week 5: #19 - 15,623