Burn the Ships (song)

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"Burn the Ships"
Single by For King & Country
from the album Burn the Ships
Released30 August 2018 (2018-08-30)
Genre
Length3:40
LabelWord Entertainment
Songwriter(s)
For King & Country singles chronology
"God Only Knows"
(2018) 		"Burn the Ships"
(2018) 		"Together"
(2020)
Music video
"Burn the Ships" on YouTube

"Burn the Ships" is a song performed by an Australian Christian pop duo For King & Country. The song impacted Christian radio in the United States on 30 August 2018,[1] becoming the third single from Burn the Ships (2018). The song was written by Matt Hales, Seth Mosley, Joel Smallbone and Luke Smallbone.[2]

The song peaked at No. 3 on the US Hot Christian Songs chart, becoming their eleventh top ten single.[3]

Background[edit]

"Burn the Ships" was initially availed on 28 September 2018 as the fifth promotional single from Burn the Ships (2018).[4] In an interview with Billboard,[5] the duo shared the inspiration of the song, saying that it came from Luke Smallbone's wife, Courtney, battling with an addiction to prescribed medication, combined with an historical incident during the Spanish conquest of Mexico in 1519 AD, where a Spanish commander named Hernán Cortés, landed his ships on enemy shores unaware of what awaited his arrival. To ensure that the men were committed to their mission, he proclaimed, "Burn the ships!"[6] Luke Smallbone shared in an interview with NewReleaseToday that the song became the album's title track after realising that the theme of "no retreat" was recurring on the album especially in songs like "Never Give Up" and "Fight On, Fighter" and he opined that "it makes the album and the title feel potent."[7]

The song was released to Christian radio in the United States on 30 August 2019, becoming Burn the Ships' third official single.[1] A radio-adapted version of the song was released in digital format on 27 September 2019.[8] On 4 October 2019, For King & Country released a remix of the song by R3hab.[9]

Composition[edit]

"Burn the Ships" composed in the key of F major with a tempo of 94 beats per minute.[10] For King & Country's vocal range spans from C3 to C5.[11]

Commercial performance[edit]

The song reached No. 1 on Billboard's Christian Airplay chart. It has sold 32,000 copies in the United States as of November 2019.[12]

Music video[edit]

The music video of "Burn the Ships" was published on For King & Country's YouTube channel on 5 October 2018,[13] celebrating the release of the album, which arrived on the same day. It was filmed on Lady Washington,[14] the duo singing aboard the ship before leaving an explosive and retreating to shore.

Accolades[edit]

Awards
Year Organization Award Result Ref
2020 GMA Dove Awards Song of the Year Nominated [15]
Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year Nominated

Track listing[edit]

"Burn the Ships" (Single Edit)[8]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Burn the Ships" (Single Edit)
3:40
"Burn the Ships" (R3hab Remix)[9]
No.TitleLength
1."Burn the Ships" (R3hab Remix)2:26

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[29] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history[edit]

Region Date Version Format Label Ref.
United States 30 August 2019 Single Christian radio Word Entertainment [1]
Various 27 September 2019
[8]
4 October 2019 R3hab remix [9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "for KING & COUNTRY - Burn The Ships - Daily Play MPE®Daily Play MPE®". Daily Play MPE®. Destiny Media Technologies Inc. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  2. ^ Monger, Timothy. "Burn the Ships - for KING & COUNTRY | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  3. ^ a b "For King Country Chart History (Hot Christian Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  4. ^ Longs, Herb (28 September 2018). "For KING & COUNTRY Releases Title Track From New Album". The Christian Beat. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  5. ^ Price, Deborah Evans (8 October 2018). "For King & Country on the Struggles That Informed 'Burn the Ships,' Their 'Most Mature Record' Yet | Billboard". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood Reporter Media Group. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  6. ^ "for KING & COUNTRY: burn the ships | world tour 2019 | Tivoli Foundation". Tivoli Theatre Foundation. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  7. ^ Frederick, Jake (25 October 2018). "for KING & COUNTRY: Burning Ships | AN NRT EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW | NewReleaseToday". NewReleaseToday. NRT Media, Inc. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  8. ^ a b c "Burn the Ships (Single Edit) - Single by for KING & COUNTRY on Apple Music". Apple Music. United States. Apple Inc. 27 September 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  9. ^ a b c "Burn the Ships (R3hab Remix) - Single by for KING & COUNTRY on Apple Music". Apple Music. United States. Apple Inc. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Key & BPM for Burn The Ships by for KING & COUNTRY | Tunebat". Tunebat. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  11. ^ "For King & Country "Burn the Ships" Sheet Music in F Major - Download & Print - SKU: MN0190063". Musicnotes.com. 7 November 2018. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  12. ^ Bjorke, Matt (30 November 2019). "Top 30 Digital Country Songs: November 24, 2019". Rough Stock. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  13. ^ "for KING & COUNTRY - burn the ships (Official Music Video) - YouTube". YouTube. YouTube, LLC. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  14. ^ Longs, Herb (5 October 2018). "For KING & COUNTRY Celebrates Album Release With Stunning "Burn The Ships" Video". The Christian Beat. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  15. ^ "2020 Nominees | The 51st Annual GMA Dove Awards". GMA Dove Awards. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  16. ^ "UK Cross Rhythms Weekly Chart". Cross Rhythms. 15 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  17. ^ "For King Country Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  18. ^ "For King Country Chart History (Christian Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  19. ^ "For King & Country Chart History (Christian AC)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  20. ^ "Hot Christian Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  21. ^ "Christian Airplay Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  22. ^ "Christian AC Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  23. ^ "Christian Pop Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  24. ^ "Cross Rhythms– Year-End 2020". Cross Rhythms. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  25. ^ "Hot Christian Songs - Year-End | Billboard". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  26. ^ "Christian Airplay Songs - Year-End | Billboard". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  27. ^ "Christian AC Songs - Year-End | Billboard". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  28. ^ "Christian Pop Songs - Year-End | Billboard". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  29. ^ "American single certifications – For King & Country – Burn the Ships". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
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