Hello
by Martin Solveig (featuring Dragonette)

Album: Smash (2010)
Charted: 13 46
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song by the French electropop DJ and producer Martin Solveig became his first top 20 hit in the UK. It also topped the charts in several European countries including Belgium and the Netherlands.
  • The song features Canadian electropop group Dragonette. Their singer, Martina Sorbara, also provided the vocals for Kaskade's dance hit, "Fire In Your Shoes."
  • When South Africa's landline operator Telkom launched its Mobile arm 8ta(Heita) in 2010, it used this tune as its theme song for its adverts.
  • The music video for the song was recorded at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris and finds Martin Solveig facing another French DJ, Bob Sinclar, in a tennis match. Tennis stars Novak Djokovic and Gaël Monfils both make cameo appearances in the clip.
  • The song was used in an American advertising campaign by Trident to promote its new Vitality line of chewing gum.
  • The video features tennis player Solveig smitten with a girl who's unavailable. "The story in the song focuses on the character of the girl," he told Billboard magazine, "who just came to say 'hello' and nothing else."
  • The song was used in promo spots for the Zooey Deschanel starring sitcom New Girl.
  • Unusually, Solveig recorded the song after he shot the video. He explained why to Artist Direct: "I was working on a short movie as a director --that is my other passion. I direct videos. It was not meant to become a music video. The film was a story where you mix reality and fiction, which I like about making film. The inspiration for the song came from the shooting of this video. It was a bit of a premiere. It was shot for broadcast TV and we agreed with the directors of the tournament [The French Tennis Open, with 12,000 spectators on hand] to let us play a fake game for 15 minutes, so everyone was caught off guard, including the audience, and that inspired the song."
  • Martin Solveig's birth name is Martin Picandet. He chose his pseudonym as an homage to the French actress Solveig Dommartin.
  • "Hello" plays during Ted Lasso Season 2 Episode 9 ("Beard After Hours"). The music discovery website Tunefind reported the track's placement in the Apple show was their most-searched song sync in 2021.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Wherefore Art Thou Romeo Lyric

Wherefore Art Thou Romeo LyricMusic Quiz

In this quiz, spot the artist who put Romeo into a song lyric.

Jason Newsted (ex-Metallica)

Jason Newsted (ex-Metallica)Songwriter Interviews

The former Metallica bassist talks about his first time writing a song with James Hetfield, and how a hand-me-down iPad has changed his songwriting.

Experience Nirvana with Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt

Experience Nirvana with Sub Pop Founder Bruce PavittSong Writing

The man who ran Nirvana's first label gets beyond the sensationalism (drugs, Courtney) to discuss their musical and cultural triumphs in the years before Nevermind.

Tim McIlrath of Rise Against

Tim McIlrath of Rise AgainstSongwriter Interviews

Rise Against frontman Tim McIlrath explains the meanings behind some of their biggest songs and names the sci-fi books that have influenced him.

Famous Singers' First Films

Famous Singers' First FilmsSong Writing

A look at the good (Diana Ross, Eminem), the bad (Madonna, Bob Dylan) and the peculiar (David Bowie, Michael Jackson) film debuts of superstar singers.

Jon Anderson

Jon AndersonSongwriter Interviews

Jon Anderson breaks down the Yes classic "Seen All Good People" and talks about his 1000 Hands album, which features Chick Corea, Rick Derringer, Ian Anderson, and many other luminaries.