I Finally Understand

"I Finally Understand" (stylized in lowercase) is a song by Charli XCX, released on 7 May 2020 as the third single from her fourth studio album, How I'm Feeling Now. As with all previous singles from the album, three official covers were released for the song. The song was first announced on Charli XCX's Twitter on 2 May 2020.

"I Finally Understand"
Designed by POLYGON
Single by Charli XCX
from the album How I'm Feeling Now
Released7 May 2020 (2020-05-07)
RecordedApril 2020
Genre
Length2:31
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Benjamin Keating
Charli XCX singles chronology
"Claws"
(2020)		 "I Finally Understand"
(2020)
Spotify cover
Designed by Jon Emmory
Apple Music cover
Designed by Allison Zuckerman

Composition

"I Finally Understand" is a UK garage and Baltimore club-influenced electropop song described as an "ode to her boyfriend".[1][2][3] The song has been described as "groove-driven" and having "a more straightforward pop format than 'forever' or 'claws' but with a no less diverse sonic palette."[4][5] In the lyrics, she also delves into her struggles with mental health with the line "My therapist said I hate myself really bad."[6]

Critical reception

Callie Ahlgrim and Courteney Larocca both contributed to an article for Insider. Ahlgrim wrote that the song was "super catchy, cleaner and more minimalistic than much of the album, and very strong lyrically", while Larcocca found that the track's "steady beat throughout [reminded her] of Grimes' 'Oblivion'", in addition to "[loving] how completely overdramatic Charli is about finding a love so strong".[7] Anna Gaca from Pitchfork felt that the song was "devoted to sincere, immediate romance and pleasure".[8] Stereogum listed the song as the 5th best song of the week of 8 May 2020, praising the song for not being "a love song in the stereotypical, classic sense", while finding some lyrics "sexual as all hell", saw "raw vulnerability at work", concluding that the track was at "some level, a dance-pop song, and dance-pop songs almost never get as real as that".[9] Josiah Hughes from Exclaim! called the track an "excellent tune from her endless catalogue of hits" as "Charli XCX's seemingly unstoppable pop reign continues".[10] Mike Wass from Idolator called the song "another flawless banger" as the "anthem deals with matters of the heart", furthermore being "another stellar pop song that benefits from being a little rough around the edges". Wass soon included the track in top thirty best pop songs of Q2, 2020.[3][11] Josiah Skallerup, writing for Riff Magazine, called the song "one of the most poignant shelter-in-place tunes, built out of a drum-and-bass loop", as the "song chronicles a myriad of feelings that are likely coming up for many of us—insecurity, depression and anxiety—as well as the potential we all have to break through those feelings to heal by tapping into some personal reflection and growth" during quarantine.[12]

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[13]

  • Charli XCX - lead and backing vocals, songwriting, recording
  • Benjamin Keating - production, vocal production, songwriting, backing vocals, synthesizer, bass, drums
  • A. G. Cook - additional production, vocal production, drum programming, synthesizer, bass, drums
  • Stuart Hawkes - mastering
  • Geoff Swan - mixing

References
  1. The Fader (7 May 2020). "Listen to Charli XCX's new single "i finally understand"". The Fader. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  2. Clare Shaffer (7 May 2020). "Charli XCX Drops Ode to Her Boyfriend 'I Finally Understand'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  3. Mike Wass (7 May 2020). "Another Banger! Charli XCX Drops "I Finally Understand"". Idolator.
  4. DERRICK ROSSIGNOL (7 May 2020). "Charli XCX's Groove-Driven 'I Finally Understand' Is Her Latest 'How I'm Feeling Now' Preview". Uproxx. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  5. TV News Desk (7 May 2020). "Charli XCX Shares New Single 'I Finally Understand'". Broadway World. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  6. Moen, Matt (8 May 2020). "Charli XCX Finds Clarity on 'i finally understand'". Paper. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  7. Callie Larocca, Courteney Ahlgrim. "Charli XCX's 'How I'm Feeling Now' is a masterclass in experimental pop for the genre-less generation". Insider. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  8. Gaca, Anna. "Charli XCX: how i'm feeling now". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  9. "The 5 Best Songs Of The Week". Stereogum. 8 May 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  10. Hughes, Josiah. "Charli XCX Finally Understands on New Single "I Finally Understand"". Exclaim!. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  11. Wass, Mike (7 July 2020). "The 30 Best Pop Songs Of Q2, 2020". Idolator. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  12. Skallerup, Josiah (15 May 2020). "REVIEW: Charli XCX shares a future pop diary while sheltering in place on 'How I'm Feeling Now'". RIFF Magazine. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  13. "I Finally Understand by Charli XCX". Tidal. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
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