Heartbeat (Ashton Stone Single)

***Heartbeat*** is the second single from American singer Ashton Stone's debut album *Starlight*. Released on August 25, 2008, by A1 Records, the song was written by Ashton Stone, Busbee and Cirkut. Recording was done at Abbey Road Studios in London, England, in early 2008. The song explores an idealized version of Stone's idea of the perfect romance.

Heartbeat was received generally well by critics, with the song's production and Stone's vocals being considered the highlights of the track. "Heartbeat" went on to become Stone's second number one single in the US, reaching the top of the Hot 100. Internationally the single reached the top 10 in Canada, peaking at number nine. In Europe the single reached the top 40 of numerous countries, and the top ten in Italy.

The music video was shot in Los Angeles, directed by Joseph Khan, taking place in rooftop nightclub with Stone following a mysterious girl through the club. Critical reception of the video was very positive, complimenting the narrative and thematic elements.

## Background and Composition

Heartbeat was written by Stone, Cirkut and Busbee, while the production was handled by Cirkut. Stone explained in an interview that the song was written during a time where he felt homesick, after a month living in London, with Stone stating that he often uses escapism, and daydreaming to get through loneliness, and uses that as inspiration for his music. The song's lyrical content explores the idea of a perfect romantic relationship, and unconditional love. The songs production is a up-tempo dance-pop song, with soft rock influences.

## Release and Promotion

"Heartbeat" was released internationally for digital download on August 25, 2008 by A1 Records, serving as Stone's second single. The single would impact US contemporary hit radio on September 23, 2008, and US rhythmic the next day. in Europe the single would become a moderate hit, charting in several countries and receiving airplay.

To promote the single Ashton would continue to do extensive radio promotional tours, and interviews with television, and music publications. Stone would also continue his "Ashton Adventures" Youtube series, and doing fan meet and greets where he would sign autographs and take pictures with fans. He would make his first music festival performance at the 2008 Made In America Festival, performing "Starlight", "Heartbeat" and a cover of Nicholas Stewart's "Someday".

## Critical Reception and Commercial Performance

"Heartbeat" received generally well reviews from music critics. Alfie May of Exclaim.ca complimented the song call it "a very fun sweet and innocent song, lyrically it maybe nothing all to special, but coupled with the production and Stone's vocal delivery the song is elevated, and becomes a strong pop dance track". Christian Hunt of the Chicago Tribune noted that "Heartbeat" was a very decent second single from the young teen popstar, complimenting the songs production.

In the United States "Heartbeat" would debut on the US Hot 100 at number 41. The single would enter the top ten on its 13th week, eventually rising to number one on December 23, 2008. "Heartbeat" would go on to become certified 7x Platinum by the RIAA. In Canada the single would go on to peak on the Canadian Hot 100 at number nine, becoming certified Gold in the country. In Europe the single would go on to become a moderate hit. entering the top 40 of numerous countries, and charting in the top ten of Italy, becoming certified platinum.

## Music Video

The music video for "Heartbeat" was directed by Joseph Khan, filmed in Los Angeles on a rooftop nightclub. The video premiered on September 6, 2008. It is set at a bar with Stone noticing a girl looking at him, and gestures for him to follow her. Throughout several scenes, Stone and the girl intimately dance together and caress the other person's hair. The video ends with Stone catching up to the girl, and leans in for a kiss, before she evaporates into smoke. The video was received very positively by critics, Henry Walsh of *The Huffington Post* said the video "is very suggestive, and adds a new dimension to the song". With Emily Clarke of Elle noted that the music video is portrayed as "a good CW drama".

Stone explained in the nineteenth episode of his "Ashton Adventures" series the main idea behind the music video for "Heartbeat": "I knew I wanted to do something more narrative focused, and also I watched a lot of *mystery movies* recently. Those definitely influenced the synopsis. And Joseph Khan really helped flesh out the idea I had, and made it come to life."

## Track listings

**US/Canadian CD Single**

1. "Heartbeat" - 3:23
2. "Heartbeat (Tritonal Remix)" - 5:12
3. "Heartbeat (Goldfrapp Remix)" - 4:55
4. "Heartbeat (Instrumental Version)" - 3:23

**European CD Single**

1. "Heartbeat" - 3:23
2. "Heartbeat (Tritonal Remix)" - 5:12
3. "Heartbeat (Acoustic Version)" - 3:37
4. "Starlight" - 3:39

**Australian CD Single**

1. "Heartbeat" - 3:23
2. "Heartbeat (Acoustic Version)" - 3:37
3. "Heartbeat (Instrumental Version)" - 3:23
4. "Starlight" - 3:39

**Remixes EP**

1. "Heartbeat" - 3:23
2. "Heartbeat (Tritonal Remix)" - 5:12
3. "Heartbeat (Goldfrapp Remix)" - 4:55
4. "Heartbeat (Justice Remix) - 7:12
5. "Heartbeat (Instrumental Version)" - 3:23
6. "Heartbeat (Acoustic Version)" - 3:37

## Credits and Personnel

* Ashton Stone - Lead vocals, songwriting, background vocals, guitar
* Cirkut - Songwriting, production, instrumentation, music programming, engineering
* Busbee - Songwriting, instrumentation
* Noah Fulton - mixing, mastering
* Arthur Collins - mastering, engineering