Good Time (Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen song)

Background and production

On June 14, 2012, Adam Young announced that he would be collaborating with Carly Rae Jepsen on a new song, projecting that it would be released on June 26, 2012. On June 20, Young pre-released the single "Good Time" via his SoundCloud account. On June 26, the song was officially released on iTunes. In 2013, an acoustic version of the song was released on Owl City's The Midsummer Station - Acoustic EP.

According to Young, the collaboration happened to be a "happy accident". He was searching for a female vocalist and his manager Steve Bursky, suggested Jepsen. Just before "Call Me Maybe' became a hit, he contacted her in February, after his manager forwarded him a link to her YouTube channel. Young "loved" her voice and decided to ask her for a collaboration. He also added: "It was this whole worlds-collide thing, and it was this kind of dream come true... [She was] so kind to lend her talent to this song, so yeah, it worked out."

Jepsen recalled: "Actually [I found out about the track] through [my label head] Scooter Braun. He sort of played me the song in one of the first weeks I came down to L.A. to meet him. I heard it and I was just like, 'This is amazing. I would love to sing on this.'"

Critical reception

The song has received positive reviews from critics, including Billboard: "It only makes sense that he's joined by Jepsen...[on] a track that could become a radio staple for the rest of the summer," and Entertainment Weekly: "'Good Time' goes down easier than a frozen margarita at a beachfront tiki bar." On his site The Re-View, British critic Nick Bassett referred to the song as "an uplifting, out and out pop duet which will most definitely ensure that neither artist has to settle for a 'one hit wonder' tag." Lewis Corner of Digital Spy stated that the track is an "addictively fizzy, sweet treat." Jocelyn Vena of MTV compared the song's lyrics to Katy Perry's, "Last Friday Night" and the Black Eyed Peas', "I Gotta Feeling" for its references to, "sleeping in their clothes after all that partying, staying up all night and generally pledging to have fun." Bill Lamb of About.com stated, "The pair are ultimately very charming and appealing together. It is quite possible they may have another chart-topping pop hit to follow up each of their #1 debut singles." However, he criticized the song by stating, "there is nothing that sounds original here."

*Slate'''s Forrest Wickman also called it a "worthy successor" to "Call Me Maybe". He pointed to how "the song opens with a familiar story, and then subverts it, by removing anything that's not squeaky clean." Like Kesha in "TiK ToK," the singer begins the song waking up after a night of hard partying, in his clothes with a song by Prince inside his head. But in contrast, Wickman observes, he's "on the right side of the bed", not hung over, and ready to go out again the next evening. "When a children's choir is tossed in at the end, it's a bit gratuitous, but in this wholesome song why not," he concludes. "'Good Time' is a guilty pleasure, without the guilt." Rolling Stone called the song "mediocre dance pop". Chris Richards of The Washington Post noted that song doesn't get good until Jepsen's verse. Barry Nicolson of *NME'' wrote, "it's a long way down for docile Canadian Carly Rae Jepsen, whose follow-up is so nondescript I literally can't be bothered to describe it. The words 'Featuring Owl City' say more than a paragraph of adjectives ever could."

Commercial performance

In the US, the song debuted at number 32 on the US Pop Songs chart and number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week dated July 11, reaching number eight a few weeks after. The song is the second (and, as of 2025, the most recent) to make the top ten on the chart for both artists; Owl City's first top ten single since "Fireflies", and Jepsen's second consecutive one after "Call Me Maybe." It had sold a million copies in the United States by August 29, 2012, and was certified double platinum by the RIAA. It sold 2,249,000 copies in the US by the end of 2012.

It peaked atop the charts in Canada and New Zealand, becoming Owl City's first number one single and Jepsen's second in both countries. The song debuted at number 17 on the UK Singles Chart on August 26, 2012. It rose to number five the following week, becoming Owl City's first top 5 UK hit since "Fireflies" reached number 1 in early 2010, and Jepsen's second top 5 UK single of 2012.

Music video

Background

A teaser for the music video was released on June 20, 2012. The music video was directed by Declan Whitebloom and officially premiered via Vevo on July 24. Most of the video was shot at Silver Mine Lake in Harriman State Park in New York and the rest in New York City.

Synopsis

The music video begins with Jepsen waiting by her Fiat 500 in front of an apartment, when her friends then come out and join her. They then drive away from the haze of New York City. As they drive away, the video alternates between shots of Jepsen and Young with his own group in a Mercury Cougar as they drive down a forest road. They eventually meet up at a small cabin-like building and start drinking slushies. As Jepsen's verse starts, she is shown walking through the forest, with other shots of the rest of the group walking and coming to a campground. Once the hook and chorus begin, Young is seen by a lake, along with other shots of Jepsen and the rest of the group. As the sky darkens, they start dancing around a bonfire. The video concludes with shots of the group dancing and partying through the night.

Live performances

Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen performed "Good Time" at America's Got Talent Wild Card results show on August 22, 2012, and the next day on Today. The duo also performed it in New York on August 25, 2012, during Arthur Ashe Kids' Day, an event that marks the start of the U.S. Open; The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on August 28, and Conan on August 29. Jepsen performed "Good Time" with Cody Simpson on Justin Bieber's Believe Tour (selected dates), and with Jared Manierka on her headlining The Summer Kiss Tour.

Lawsuit

In October 2012, Alabama singer and songwriter Allyson Nichole Burnett filed a copyright infringement suit authored by attorney Neville Johnson in a California federal court against Jepsen and Young as well as several publishing companies and performing rights groups. She claimed that Young, Matt Thiessen and Brian Lee copied a prominent motif of her 2010 song, "Ah, It's a Love Song". The lawsuit noted several similarities between the two songs, including an identical pitch sequence (5-3-5-3-2), melodic contour (down, up, down, down), rhythmic construction (8th rest, 8th note, 8th note, 8th note, 8th note, 8th rest, quarter note), and timbre (textless vocals). Burnett also stated that she suffered "emotional and psychological damage" from fans asking why she copied the song.

In January 2014, Jepsen's music publishing company, BMI, reached an agreement with Burnett to place over $800,000 in royalties in an escrow account for the plaintiff's benefit. In return, Burnett agreed to drop her lawsuit. In June 2014, the suit was dropped, after an investigation revealed the song to be an original work. The royalties in escrow were returned to both, with Owl City receiving $525,901.77.

Awards and nominations

Track listing

• ;Digital download

1. "Good Time" – 3:26

• ;CD single

1. "Good Time" – 3:26
2. "Good Time" (Adam Young Remix) – 3:10

• ;UK digital remixes EP

1. "Good Time" – 3:26
2. "Good Time" (Adam Young Remix) – 3:10
3. "Good Time" (Fred Falke Full Remix) – 6:18
4. "Good Time" (Wideboys Club Remix) – 5:31

Credits and personnel

Recording locations

;Sources:

• Owl City's vocals recorded at Sky Harbor Studios, Owatonna, Minnesota, United States
• Carly Rae Jepsen's vocals recorded at Signalpath Studios, Almonte, Ontario, Canada
• The Minneapolis Youth Chorus's vocals recorded at The Terrarium, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Personnel

;Sources:

• Adam Young – songwriter, producer, recording, instruments, Minneapolis Youth Chorus vocal recording, vocals
• Matthew Thiessen – songwriter, background vocals
• Brian Lee – songwriter
• Ted Jensen – mastering
• Carly Rae Jepsen – vocals
• Robert Orton – mixing
• Minneapolis Youth Chorus – additional vocals
• Ryan Stewart – Carly Rae Jepsen vocal production
• Ken Friesen – Carly Rae Jepsen vocal recording

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

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