THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

123-Avicii and Nicky Romero-I Could Be the One.

2013-Number 1 single.

Best Bit-At 3.00. In the religion of Buddhism ‘Avici’ is the lowest level of Hell, with most of the suffering, it is where those who have committed the worst crimes go.

Avicii was born Tim Bergling on September 8th, 1989, in Stockholm, Sweden, during his short lifetime he suffered from depression, culminating with him taking his own life on April 20th, 2018, at the age of 28. During his lifetime Avicii released two studio Albums,’True’ in 2013, and ‘Stories’ in 2015, and following his death a posthumous third Album ‘Tim’ was issued, containing previously unreleased material. Avicii has also released 56 singles as lead artist between 2008-2020, with 27 of those reaching the top 40 in his native Sweden, and eight making the Number 1 spot. While in the UK he has charted on 15 occasions, with two of his songs reaching Number 1, the other being ‘Wake Me Up’ in 2012. In America on the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 only two of his tracks have made their chart, with ‘Wake Me Up’ charting the highest when reaching Number 4. In March 2019 his family launched a mental illness and suicide prevention foundation in his name, the ‘Tim Bergling Foundation’ which also works to tackle climate change, and conserve endangered species. Avicci struggled with the pressures of touring, and it is said that although he was a performer he hated all the publicity it brought, which led to extreme stress. His death has led to a lot more awareness of mental health problems in the music business.

Six days after his death Avicii’s family issued a open letter which partly read, ‘Our beloved Tim was a seeker, a fragile artistic soul searching for answers to existential questions. An over-achieving perfectionist who travelled and worked hard at a pace that led to extreme stress. When he stopped touring, he wanted to find a balance in life to be able to be happy and to do what he loved most, music. He really struggled with thoughts about Meaning, Life, Happiness. He could now not go on any longer. He wanted to find peace. Tim was not made for the business machine he found himself in, he was a sensitive guy who loved his fans but shunned the spotlight.’

‘I Could Be the One’ has several writing credits, as well as Avicci the song is credited to the Dutch music producer Nicky Romero, Arash Pournouri who was also Avicci’s manager at the time, Linus Wiklund, Mans Wredenberg, and also Noonie Bao, who provides the songs unaccredited vocals. In 2017 Bao revealed that despite working on this song, and also another for Avicci from his 2013 Album ‘True,’ she never actually met him until a number of years later.

‘I Could Be the One’ has a very clever and memorable video that was directed by Peter Huang, who originates from Jiamusi, China, and stars the American comedy actress Inessa Frantowski. In the songs video Frantowski plays the part of a bored office worker who dreams of a more glamorous life, she finally plucks up the courage and buys a one way ticket to Barbados, but as she excitedly bursts out of the office and into the road, she is hit by a delivery van with a written sign on it saying ‘2Late.’ The songs lyrics are written to sound like a love song, but in my opinion it is someone telling themselves to live each day to the full, as there may not be a tomorrow.

‘I could be the one to make you feel that way, I could be the one to set you free. I could be the one to make you feel that way, I could be the one to set you free.’