Dancing on My Own#Calum Scott version

Deep into sessions one "dark" week of November 2009 in Stockholm with longtime collaborator Klas Åhlund,{{cite AV media|people=BEIGE|date=26 August 2010|title=Robyn - Dancing On My Own|url=https://vimeo.com/14466333|access-date=13 April 2021|website=Vimeo|publisher=iHeartRadio}}{{cite magazine|last=McLean |first=Craig |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/957797/swedish-pop-sensation-robyn-brings-body-talk-to-united-states |title=Swedish Pop Sensation Robyn Brings 'Body Talk' To United States |magazine=Billboard |date=11 June 2010 |access-date=10 July 2010}} Robyn's "stormy"{{cite web|url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesbladet/a/L03wn4/kanner-mig-ensam-ibland|newspaper=Aftonbladet|title=Feeling lonely sometimes|date=29 November 2008|last=Nylén|first=Susanne|access-date=23 August 2020}} engagement to Swedish MMA fighter and contemporary visual artist Olof Inger was starting to fray.{{cite web|url=https://www.expressen.se/noje/extra/robyn-och-fastmannen-flyttar-isar/|newspaper=Expressen|title=Robyn and her fiancé move apart|date=4 January 2011|last1=Lillemägi|first1=David|last2=Brännström|first2=Linus|access-date=12 April 2021}} "Tired of the broken heart", Robyn returned to writing about "sad love", a theme that remained prevalent in her work because it was universal, yet continued to give her fresh ideas.{{cite AV media|people=robynbodytalkin|date=8 April 2011|title=Robyn chatting to Z100 New York|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG12LB26zyc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/LG12LB26zyc |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=13 April 2021|website=YouTube|publisher=Z100 New York}}{{cbignore}} After launching her own pop-up club series in Hornstull Beach, Söder in January 2010, Konichiwa Bitches goes Tutti Frutti,{{cite web|url=https://bon.se/magazine/bon-52/robin-miriam-carlsson/|title=Robin Miriam Carlsson is here again|last=Höller|first=Carsten|access-date=12 April 2021|magazine=Bon}}{{cite web|url=https://ng.se/artiklar/robyn-pa-strand|title=ROBYN ON THE BEACH|date=12 January 2010|last=Amiri|first=Parisa|access-date=12 April 2021|magazine=Nöjesguiden}} modeled after Christian Falk's A Love Supreme, Robyn became inspired by DJing, clubbing and people-watching throughout Stockholm.{{cite web|url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/41732/1/robyn-scandinavian-club-nights-stockholm-oslo|title=Robyn selects her favourite Scandinavian club nights|date=16 October 2018|last=Sylvester|first=Hermione|access-date=10 September 2020|magazine=Dazed}} Recalling how much the "dance world" had changed during the five years she spent promoting Robyn (2005), especially in America, Robyn realized it was finally ripe for exploitation: "It's really going to have its time now and not just be looked upon as kitsch."{{cite web|title=Robyn Talks Ambitious 2010 Plans|first=Ryan|last=Dombal|date=17 March 2010| url=https://pitchfork.com/news/38179-robyn-talks-ambitious-2010-plans/|access-date=3 December 2020|work=Pitchfork}} Conceptualizing club culture, Robyn created narratives for past patrons she had seen from situations she had witnessed, including their "expectations" for the night to "meet that person", reach a "good high", or experience "some kind of emotion", revisiting stories from Olof on his time as a doorman describing how they'd act then reminiscing on her time in New York City in 1997 promoting Robyn Is Here as a "lonely misfit teenager shoulder-shimmying alone in a gloomy corner" on Club Vinyl's "last ever" Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, The Shelter, and the "near mythological" Body&SOUL, respectively.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/features/nmes-greatest-songs-of-the-decade-the-2010s-2583527|title=Best Songs of the Decade: The 2010s| last=Hunt| first=El|date=4 December 2019|website=NME|language=en|access-date=8 December 2019}}{{cite web|title="She breaks the mould": how Robyn's pop classic 'Body Talk' changed the game| last=Hunt| first=El| magazine=NME| date=24 November 2020| url=https://www.nme.com/features/robyn-body-talk-10-year-anniversary-charli-xcx-kleerup-2821453|access-date=7 December 2020}} Robyn came to see clubs as "an important place for our generation—almost like a church or a place where we go to experience something that's bigger than ourselves",{{cite web|title=How the Club Inspired Robyn's Pop Epic 'Body Talk'|first=Alexandria|last=Symonds|date=6 July 2010|url=https://www.papermag.com/robyn-body-talk-1425696775.html|access-date=25 April 2021|work=Paper}} feeling it wasn't just "cool" but "important", and even "utopian", that "in the middle of all these other people doing the same thing" she could dance in her "own space" on her "own terms",{{cite web|title=Nightclubs that shaped Robyn|date=24 October 2018|last=Roney| first=Mirimba| website=Red Bull| url=https://www.redbull.com/se-en/music/Nightclubs-that-shaped-Robyn|access-date=12 April 2021}} wanting "to make a song called 'Dancing On My Own'" but still unsure "what it was going to be about".{{cite web|url=https://www.popjustice.com/articles/robyn-talks-body-talk/|title=Robyn talks 'Body Talk': "I'm always going to feel like an outsider"|access-date=27 October 2020|work=Popjustice|date=12 April 2010}}{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/interview/7817-robyn/|title=Robyn: The Interview|date=28 June 2010|last=Dombal|first=Ryan|access-date=29 July 2020|work=Pitchfork|publisher=Conde Nast}} Following the example of the "inherently sad, gay disco anthems" she loved, including tracks by Donna Summer with Giorgio Moroder, Sylvester, Billy Idol's "Dancing with Myself" (1980), Ultravox's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" (1984), and Sheila E's "A Love Bizarre" (1985),{{cite AV media|date=29 May 2018|title=Robyn on Her Career in Pop, Psychoanalysis and Starting a label|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRbMniuVcoc|access-date=22 October 2021|website=YouTube|publisher=Red Bull Music Academy}} the song's storyline eventually came to her, picturing "the god-awful feeling of a woman who is watching her ex get with someone new at a club".{{cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/8544230/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-songs-that-defined-the-decade|title=Songs That Defined the Decade: Robyn's 'Dancing on My Own'|magazine=Billboard|date=21 November 2019|last=Werthman|first=Christine|access-date=13 July 2020}}

"With an idea of a chorus in her mind," Robyn wanted to work further with Åhlund but couldn't stop "toying" with the song on her own, eventually reaching out to prior collaborator Patrik Berger for a "different perspective". Patrik had prepared for weeks before their first session at his Stockholm studio with a "slew of electronic beats and tracks for Robyn to write over". All of this was for naught as the first thing she said was, "Can we sit down and write a song on an acoustic guitar today? I'm so tired of writing over electronic beats and tracks." Their first result was an "acoustic 'campfire'" demo with three chords in the manner of a country song. The chorus came first quickly, followed by the chords and parts of the melody. After days of "fatten[ing]...up" that demo, the two of them realized "...they preferred the original and stripped it all back down" again. Patrik, facing pressure from Swedish music industry insiders "telling him what he should do" with the song, decided for the first time that "rather than following the pack", he'd write and produce the song "how he wanted to", following a new group of "sonic scholars" in the country breaking away from Max Martin's "school of pop".{{Cite web|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/music/how-stockholm-became-a-dominant-force-in-global-popmusic/article37541953/|title=The other Stockholm syndrome|website=The Globe and Mail|date=12 January 2018|last=O'Kane|first=Josh|language=en|access-date=14 December 2020}} Swapping "the acoustic guitar for synthesizers with frayed edges and a beat that aimed for a TKO," Patrik went "raw and gritty", "aiming for a 'window' of song" that would capture its "commercial appeal without destroying" its "myster[y]".

With this third demo, entitled "Right Over Here", compared by Robyn and critics to Glasvegas' "Geraldine" (2008){{cite AV media|people=r8ght|date=20 April 2011|title=Robyn - Music Special (Documentary 4/4) Subtitled CC|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiZTGvRDQHE&t=174s |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/OiZTGvRDQHE |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=22 October 2021|website=YouTube|publisher=SVT}}{{cbignore}}{{cite AV media|date=3 July 2019|title=Robyn: From Pop Puppet to Independent Icon|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A37w5qcShyM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/A37w5qcShyM |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=22 October 2021|website=YouTube|publisher=Trash Theory}}{{cbignore}} and later heard in part in 2018 at the Red Bull Music Academy in New York, Robyn and Patrik had finally settled on a blueprint for the final track. A "lot of time" was spent subsequently on "the individual components of the song: the drums, the bass and the pounding staccato it starts with". Lyrically, Robyn and Patrik were "super picky" and took even longer. Obsessively trying to come up with the right words to not "sugar-coat the experience" of all of the "messy moments of rejection," they both wanted "uncomfortably honest" lyrics designed to have each phrase read like a "little poem". "Weeks" were spent "texting each other...on lines" with "a couple of days [spent] on each" that filled a "handful of notebooks" by the end, with one entirely "scrapped", as "every single word needed to feel right."{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2019/06/10/730641583/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-alone-together-american-anthem|title=Alone Together: Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' Opens The Corners Of Community|website=NPR|date=10 June 2019|last=Sanders|first=Sam|access-date=19 September 2020}} Soon after completion of the song, Robyn became "conflicted" about having her collaborators and friends hear it. Recalling her excitement upon initially "sending the demo to the record label and telling them I thought we had a good single", its themes of "nostalgia and sentimentality" in retrospect came across like a "teenage version" of herself she was "happy to let go of". Robyn ended up deciding to include the song on Body Talk Pt. 1, working through "difficult" early promotion as the themes didn't "always feel true" to her.

Many years later Robyn and Patrik realized their leaps of faith with the song were worth it. After "taking a step back from what she'd created", working through "a lot of therapy" where she "worked on [...] and healed" herself, then felt the "song was talking back to her" when "thousands of fans" sang it back to her on her 2019 tour when she "cut the song just before the chorus", she realized the song had "moved on from its beginnings" and was no longer "conflicted" about "playing it live", feeling it had become "something that took on meaning for a lot of people in different ways". Meanwhile, Patrik was reaffirmed of his decision to break from Max Martin's formula despite "ang[er]" from many of his peers in Sweden, as it became "one of those songs where people came up to [him], talking about how much it mattered."

{{listen

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| description = A 28-second sample of the midtempo album version, featuring parts of the middle eight and chorus.

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"Dancing on My Own" was composed by Robyn and Patrik Berger. Featuring "elements of 'many different worlds'" she loves that make her "proud" of the track, including "80s rock ballads" and "queer electronica", with the goal of releasing a record that would meet the standard of Prince, two versions of the midtempo ballad{{Cite web|last=Braca|first=Nina|date=22 May 2019|title=Here Are the Lyrics to Robyn's "Dancing on My Own"|url=https://www.spin.com/2019/05/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-lyrics/|access-date=21 June 2021|website=Spin}} were released for the album then for radio, where "everything, bar Robyn's vocal, is electronic".{{cite web|url=https://www.shortlist.com/news/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-callum-scott-neil-tennant-pet-shop-boys|title=Betrayal, sadness, and defiance: Why it's time to reclaim Robyn's 'Dancing on My Own'|website=ShortList|date=8 June 2018|last=Fawbert|first=Dave|access-date=28 February 2021}} A third, downtempo, 'pared down',{{Cite web|url=https://inews.co.uk/culture/music/robyns-dancing-on-my-own-is-the-song-that-defined-the-decade-371486|title=Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' is the song that defined the decade|website=iNews|date=6 December 2019|language=en|access-date=14 June 2020}} piano-based version, recorded from her performance on 16 June 2010 on BBC Radio 1{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/sessions/2010-06-16_robyn|title=Live Lounge - Robyn|work=BBC Radio 1|publisher=BBC|access-date=8 March 2011}} was then released separately from the project on Radio 1's Live Lounge – Volume 5 on 22 October 2010.{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/bbc-radio-1s-live-lounge-vol-5-mw0002079080|title=AllMusic Review by Jon O'Brien|website=AllMusic|access-date=27 February 2021}} Both electronic versions keep a tempo of 117 beats per minute in common time,{{Cite web|url=http://www.spotontrack.com/track/dancing-on-my-own-radio-edit/2111110|title=Dancing On My Own - Radio Edit - Robyn|url-access=subscription|website=spotontrack.com|language=en|access-date=20 March 2017}} which NPR{{'s}} Sam Sanders implies was arranged deliberately as it was "situated [...] pretty close to what scientists say is the preferred walking tempo for humans". All three versions are in the key of G{{flat}} major, following an "immediately familiar one-five-four" chord progression of G{{flat}}{{small|5}}–D{{flat}}{{small|5}}–C{{flat}}{{small|5}} and traditional ABABCB structure except for one pre-chorus line following its first verse and one outro line of a portion of its chorus following its choral refrain that concludes the song, with Robyn's vocals spanning from D{{flat}}₄ to E{{flat}}₅.{{cite web|url=https://genius.com/Robyn-dancing-on-my-own-lyrics|title=Dancing On My Own - Lyrics|website=Genius|date=1 June 2010|access-date=23 May 2021}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.musicnotes.com/sheetmusic/mtd.asp?ppn=MN0089817_D1|title=Robyn "Dancing on My Own" Sheet Music in Gb Major (transposable) - Download & Print|last=Berger|first=Patrik|website=Musicnotes.com|date=17 January 2011|access-date=20 March 2017}}

[[File:Korg MONO-POLY.jpg|thumb|left|Korg Mono-Poly (MP-4)

analog synthesizer]] The "brutal", "direct", and "minimal" electropop album version, the first version of the song released, leaked on approximately 19 April,{{cite web|url=https://www.theawl.com/2010/04/robyn-dancing-on-my-own/|title=Robyn, Dancing on My Own|website=The Awl|date=19 April 2010|last=Johnston|first=Maura|author-link=Maura Johnston |access-date=25 February 2024}} then was released as a digital single the next day,{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/11884-dancing-on-my-own/|title=Best New Track - Robyn: "Dancing on My Own"|website=Pitchfork|date=20 April 2010|last=Dombal|first=Ryan|access-date=9 August 2020}} followed by its official release on 1 June 2010 as Body Talk Pt. 1's lead single.{{cite web|url=https://robyn.com/music/dancing-on-my-own/|title=Dancing on my own|website=robyn.com|access-date=27 February 2021}} Its focus is on its "relentless jackhammer" "iconic throbbing bass backbone" synth, made using the Korg Mono/Poly (MP-4) analog synthesizer. That is followed by the use of a "kick drum" on beats "1 and 3" and a "snare" on beats "2 and 4", both of which last through the entire song, accented with "eight repeated, robotic, hihat quavers halfway through [beginning at 1:57], [...] little clave tinkles in the verses [1:36] and the odd crash cymbal". A "sad piano motif" accompanies the song's "middle 8", the "one moment in the track when you're allowed to pause", then "[at 2:45]...the pause is broken by 16 snare hits, all at maximum volume, with no crescendo or dynamic," followed by a return to the choral refrain that closes out the song. USC musicologist Nate Sloan highlighted the "miracle" of the "lyrics [...] sparseness" and the "six seconds of silence between each line in the verse" which he observed "wasn't a lot of time in the abstract" but "eons" on a pop song, which NPR's Sam Sanders felt Robyn left to let the listener "live in that space – to give you time to insert all of your emotions and stories and feelings into the seconds between the lines". The song's second synth-pop version, designed for radio and first heard accompanying its music video when it premiered on 21 May 2010, was released as a bonus track to Body Talk Pt. 1{{'s}} iTunes release on 11 June 2010.{{cite web |url=http://itunes.apple.com/se/album/body-talk-pt.-1-bonus-version/id374131827 |title=Body Talk, Pt. 1 (Bonus Version) by Robyn |website=iTunes Store |location=Sweden |access-date=2 March 2019}}{{dead link|date=March 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} It mixes those elements at substantially different levels and most noticeably adds "an extra arpeggiated synth through the intro and the verse". James Montgomery of MTV News described the radio version as "a computerized kaleidoscope of chippy, chiming blips and piston-like drums."{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1653745/robyns-dancing-on-my-own-mtv-news-6-song-2010.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110119012048/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1653745/robyns-dancing-on-my-own-mtv-news-6-song-2010.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 January 2011|title=Robyn's 'Dancing on My Own' Is MTV News' #6 Song Of 2010|date=8 December 2010|last=Montgomery|first=James|work=MTV News|publisher=MTV Networks|access-date=7 March 2011}} Vanyaland{{'s}} Michael Marotta pointed out a small bell effect resembling last call that rings at the climax of the song in both electronic versions' middle 8, interpreting its inclusion as an indication the protagonist's time had run out in her last effort to gain notice from the ex-lover.{{Cite web|url=https://vanyaland.com/2019/12/17/decade-in-review-robyns-dancing-on-my-own-defined-our-life-on-the-internet/|title=Decade in ReView: Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' defined our life on the internet|website=Vanyaland|date=17 December 2019|language=en|access-date=16 June 2020}}

Robyn's "love letter" to Stockholm as indicated in her "favorite lyric" describing its weather in winter, a "big black sky over [her] town", the song's "bittersweet, voyeuristic narrative" is of "a woman dancing alone in a crowded club while her ex and his new lover look on",{{cite web|url= https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20191220-the-songs-that-truly-defined-the-2010s|title=The songs that truly defined the 2010s |website=BBC|date=20 December 2019|last=Dowling|first=Stephen|access-date=15 August 2021}} with a deliberate "bait and switch" of production that sounds in its opening "life-affirming" but in reality is backing what the listener soon realizes is a "bleak, wounded" "breakup song" lyrically, a deliberate "juxtaposition" "of light and dark at the same time" whose "magic" Robyn explained to Kindness at Red Bull Music Academy is what she's "drawn to when [she] make[s] music", and is "much more satisfying" to her than just one feeling or the other, which she'd found "predictable" and "boring". NPR's Sam Sanders felt these contrasts of "female empowerment through angst" in "lesser hands [...] might be confusing" but "[w]hen Robyn does it, it's human." Outside its story of the "total outsider" in "love sickness" "in the middle of the club" who's still "going to take care of herself and have a good time even though she's pretty dramatic and crazy", she left the rest of its narrative up for interpretation, explaining to Z100's JJ Kincaid that revealing every detail wouldn't have been "as interesting", preferring writing that brings out "emotion[s]....in a way that enables the listener to [...] connect to [the song] in their own way".

File:RobynDancingOnMyOwn.png The music video for "Dancing on My Own" premiered via Robyn's official Vimeo account on 21 May 2010{{cite web|url=http://idolator.com/5513491/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-video-2|title=Watch Robyn's "Dancing on My Own" Video|date=21 May 2010|last=Daw|first=Robbie|work=Idolator|publisher=Buzzmedia|access-date=7 March 2011}} and was released to YouTube on 28 May 2010, accompanied by its radio version. Directed by Max Vitali (who previously worked with Robyn on the second music video for her 2005 single "Be Mine!"), and choreographed by longtime collaborator Maria "Decida" Wahlberg, the music video was produced by Nils Ljunggren and HSI Productions, with filming by Erik Sohlstrom and editing by Johan Söderberg and Johan Wik. Wardrobe, hair, and makeup were done by Naomi Itkes, Ali Pirzadeh and Linda Öhrström, respectively.{{cite web|url=https://imvdb.com/video/robyn/dancing-on-my-own#credits|title=Credits|date=28 May 2010|access-date=9 July 2020}}

According to Robyn, Max, and 'Decida' from a behind-the-scenes black-and-white preview posted to Robyn's website the day before its release, it's meant to be a visually "simple" yet "still...atmospher[ic]" "performance video" aesthetically connected to her then "upcoming gigs and tour" that depicts "being sad on a dancefloor" in a "rave" or club" where other "people are dancing" and Robyn's choreography is meant to "[bring] out" a "pissed off [...] energy".{{cite web|url=https://www.idolator.com/5512151/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-video?chrome=1|title=A Behind-The-Scenes Look At Robyn's "Dancing on My Own" Video|last=Daw|first=Robbie|work=Idolator|date=20 May 2010|publisher=Buzzmedia|access-date=7 March 2011}}{{cite web|url=https://www.resume.se/marknadsforing/reklam/robyns-maxade-video/|title=Robyn's maxed out video|date=24 May 2010|work=Resumé|language=sv|first=Magnus|last=Helander|access-date=26 February 2021}} Robyn portrays the protagonist depicted in the song's lyrics while lip-syncing its lines in three scenes in the center of the club's dance floor, in a dark hallway of that club and in a separate "harshly lit rehearsal" setting. The microphone stand with no microphone in the latter setting BBC{{'s}} Fraser McAlpine argued was a deliberate direction as a metaphor for the song's narrative.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/chartblog/2010/06/robyn_dancing_on_my_own.shtml|title=Robyn - 'Dancing on My Own'|date=12 June 2010|last=McAlpine|first=Fraser|access-date=7 March 2011|work=BBC Music|publisher=British Broadcasting Corporation}} Robyn is occasionally watching her ex with another woman and trying to get his attention in both club settings prior to leaving – though not overtly, nor is there an obvious reference in the video as to who the ex and his girlfriend are among the club goers.{{cite magazine|url=http://music-mix.ew.com/2010/05/21/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-video/|title=Robyn stalks ex boyfriend in 'Dancing on My Own' video|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=21 May 2010|last=Wete|first=Brad|access-date=7 March 2011}}

'Decida' later explained to Billboard that "angry" choreography was inspired by "her own experiences as a teenager" channeling "Rosie Perez’s dance sequence in the opening credits to Do the Right Thing (1989)," while another choreographed moment of Robyn's "making out with yourself dance" where she turns "her back to the camera" and feigns intimacy with another person by "wrapping her arms around herself" was meant as a "moment of levity" from her "serious-faced" attempts to get her ex's attention, and she would continue to use both moves in subsequent live performances of the song. Reassessing her styling in the video with i-D years later, Robyn said she "loved" her wardrobes consisting of Philip Van De Roq jewellery chains attached to her ear and lapel, an altered Alexander Wang dress, and Sandra Backlund knitted armour, and only disliked her "hair", which she found "ridiculous", thinking she "[wasn't] sure what we were thinking there!"{{cite web|url=https://i-d.vice.com/en_uk/article/xwb5ew/tracing-robyns-most-iconic-music-video-looks-in-her-own-words|title=tracing robyn's most iconic music video looks, in her own words|date=28 January 2019|last=Hall|first=Jake|work=i-D|publisher=Vice Media|access-date=31 January 2020}}

Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork wrote of the video, "When you're a star, sometimes all you need to do is put on a casually stylish outfit, gaze into a lens, move your limbs around in a rhythmic manner, and-- just like that-- a high-quality music video is born. Robyn is a star. And that's exactly what happens in this video."{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/news/38883-video-robyn-dancing-on-my-own/|title=Video: Robyn: "Dancing on My Own"|date=21 May 2010|last1=Dombal|first1=Ryan|access-date=7 March 2011|website=Pitchfork Media}} Leslie Simon of MTV Buzzworthy named it a "Video You Need To Know" and wrote, "Amid a sea of strobe lights and PDA-stricken couples, Robyn seems cautiously fed up with dancing solo. Sad. We'll dance with you, lady!"{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/2295722/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-video/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321081318/http://www.mtv.com/news/2295722/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-video/|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 March 2017|title=Video You Need To Know: Robyn, 'Dancing on My Own'|date=26 May 2010|last=Simon|first=Leslie|work=MTV Buzzworthy|publisher=MTV Networks|access-date=26 February 2021}} Jake Hall of Dazed saw the video's "stand-out moment" as accompanying the song's "hammering drums transition into the final chorus", when Robyn is shown "ruthlessly throwing punches as strobe lights frame her wounded aggression."{{cite news|url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/32441/1/exploring-the-cult-appeal-of-robyn-s-dancing-on-my-own|title=Exploring the cult appeal of Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own'|publisher=Dazed|access-date=29 July 2020}}

"Dancing on My Own" received acclaim from music critics. Luke Lewis of NME praised it as "a comet-trail of sadness and exhilaration that's easily the equal of Robyn's breakthrough hit, 'With Every Heartbeat.'{{cite web |last=Lewis |first=Luke |url=http://www.nme.com/reviews/robyn--2/11370 |title=Album Review: Robyn – 'Body Talk Pt 1' (Konichiwa/Island) |work=NME|publisher=IPC Media |date=13 June 2010 |access-date=18 June 2010}} Fraser McAlpine of BBC Radio 1 was stunned at the about-face from the "fragile waif" displayed in that prior song, praising Robyn's "always [...] ready-packed" voice "with a whole world of pain and anguish", the song's "punishingly tough" production and new narrative, and her "toughness" which "lies in her ability to express total agony, and total assurance at the same time, via the medium of a plaintive chorus [...] {{rating|5|5}}" Nick Levine of Digital Spy lauded the "misty-eyed electro-disco tune" he similarly found "every bit as emotive" as her singles from Robyn, including "'Be Mine!' [...] If your bottom lip's not quivering like the bassline by the time the second chorus hits, you've taken waaay too many mood stabilisers [...] {{rating|5|5}}"{{cite web |last=Levine |first=Nick |url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/singlesreviews/a224767/robyn-dancing-on-my-own.html |title=Robyn: 'Dancing on My Own' |website=Digital Spy |date=14 June 2010|access-date=14 June 2010}}

Pitchfork{{'s}} Ryan Dombal appreciated it showed "the scuffs on her scepter" in comparison to her promotional singles from Body Talk Pt. 1, awarding it their famous "Best New Music" label the day of release, and the outlet's Tom Breihan during its promotion would deem it her "Euro-pop masterpiece."{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/40696-robyn-does-dancing-on-my-own-on-fallon/|title=Robyn Does "Dancing on My Own" on "Fallon"|website=Pitchfork|date=12 November 2010}}{{cite web|last=Dombal |first=Ryan |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/11884-dancing-on-my-own/|title=Robyn: "Dancing on My Own" |website=Pitchfork |date=20 June 2010|access-date=3 September 2020}} The Guardian{{'s}} Michael Hann stated that song's "pulsing synths and electronic percussion manage to sound both jackbooted and ineffably melancholy."{{cite news |last=Hann |first=Michael |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jun/11/robyn-body-talk-pt-1-cd-review |title=Robyn: Body Talk Pt 1 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media |date=11 June 2010|access-date=18 June 2010 |location=London}} Jer Fairall wrote for PopMatters that "[t]he aggressive stun-gun rhythm of 'Dancing On My Own' can't hide a classic drama-played-out-on-the-dancefloor scenario inherited from standard bearers like ABBA's 'Dancing Queen' and Madonna's 'Into the Groove', nor is it cold enough not to melt at the touch of Robyn's warm, yearning vocals or the song's shimmering keyboard chime."{{cite magazine |last=Fairall |first=Jer |url=http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/126549-robyn-body-talk-pt.-1 |title=Robyn: Body Talk, Pt. 1 |magazine=PopMatters |date=14 June 2010 |access-date=18 June 2010}}

Slant Magazine named "Dancing on My Own" the best song of 2010, writing: "Few artists risk Robyn's emotional nakedness, and with 'Dancing on My Own' she reveals the exquisite flipside to her more empowered 'With Every Heartbeat'".{{cite magazine |url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/feature/best-of-2010-singles/244/page_3 |title=Best of 2010: Singles |magazine=Slant Magazine |date=12 December 2010|access-date=30 December 2010}} The Guardian named it the best song of the year as well, writing: "'Dancing On My Own' is an extraordinary addition to Robyn's canon of skewed love songs; thoughtful and romantic enough for stuck-on-repeat listening, but with a pop sensibility that makes you want to head out in search of a dancefloor." Pitchfork named it the fourth best of 2010, saying that it "demonstrate[s] she is the Rocky Balboa of pop music."{{cite web |url=http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7895-the-top-100-tracks-of-2010/10/ |title=The Top 100 Tracks of 2010 |website=Pitchfork Media |date=13 December 2010 |access-date=21 December 2010}} Rolling Stone named it the twenty-sixth best song of 2010, writing: "The Swedish diva spots her beloved with another girl – then turns her sadness into sparkling pop, perfect for solo freakouts."{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/50-best-songs-of-2010-20101214/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-19691231|title=50 Best Songs of 2010: Robyn, "Dancing on My Own"|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=14 December 2010|publisher=Wenner Media|access-date=11 March 2011}} The song landed at number six on MTV's Best Songs of 2010, with James Montgomery writing: "as soon as 'Dancing' gets to that hair-raising build – a breathless rush of drums and adrenaline – you're no longer thinking about what Robyn's saying, really." In January 2011, the American music magazine The Village Voice{{'s}} Pazz & Jop annual critics' poll ranked "Dancing on My Own" at number three to find the best music of 2010. The song was nominated at the 53rd Grammy Awards in the category Best Dance Recording,{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/files/53rdpresslist113010.pdf|title=Final Nominations List|work=Grammy Award|publisher=National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences|access-date=1 December 2010}} but lost to "Only Girl (In the World)" by Rihanna.{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/nominees?year=2010&genre=49|title=Nominees And Winners - 12. Best Dance Recording|work=Grammy Award|publisher=National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences|access-date=8 March 2011}}

"Dancing on My Own" debuted at number two on the Sverigetopplistan chart on the issue dated 11 June 2010. The song ascended and descended between number two and number three over its first seven weeks, before reaching the top position on the issue dated 30 July 2010 where it remained for two weeks. The song became Robyn's first number one on the chart, as well as her seventh top-ten hit. It spent 18 consecutive weeks in the top ten and was present on the chart for a total of 40 weeks, finishing as the sixth best-selling song of 2010. In Denmark, "Dancing on My Own" debuted at number 33 on the issue dated 18 June 2010. After steadily ascending on the chart for several weeks, the song reached its peak of number two on the issue dated 6 August 2010. It has since then been certified platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry in Denmark for selling over 30,000 units.{{cite web |title=Certificeringer|url=http://ifpi.dk/?q=certificeringer&page=5 |publisher=IFPI Danmark |access-date=24 June 2011 |language=da |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120418143750/http://ifpi.dk/?q=certificeringer&page=5 |archive-date=18 April 2012 }} In Norway, the song debuted at number six, which became its peak.

The song peaked at number 22 on the European Hot 100 Singles chart, becoming her highest-peaking solo song on the chart. On the UK Singles Chart, it debuted and peaked at number eight on the issue dated 26 June 2010, immediately becoming Robyn's best charting single in the country since "With Every Heartbeat" in 2007.{{cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artists/|title=Robyn|work=Official Charts Company|access-date=8 March 2011}} "Dancing On My Own" also reached number three on the UK Dance Chart. In the United States, "Dancing On My Own" debuted at number 40 on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. On the issue dated 17 July 2010, it reached its peak of number three and stayed on that position for two weeks.

File:Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2010 7.jpg]]

On 5 June 2010, Robyn gave her live premiere of the track's midtempo version for Sommarkrysset on TV4 at the Stora Scenen in Stockholm's Gröna Lund amusement park. On 16 June 2010 Robyn premiered the downtempo version of the track on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMwSL09Ec90 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/ZMwSL09Ec90 |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Robyn - Dancing on my own (BBC LIVE LOUNGE)|website=YouTube|access-date=5 March 2011}}{{cbignore}} The first live performance of the track on US television was on the Late Show with David Letterman on 19 July 2010.{{cite web|title=Here's Robyn "Dancing on My Own" For Letterman|url=http://stereogum.com/443622/heres-robyn-dancing-on-my-own-for-letterman/top-stories/lead-story/|access-date=8 March 2011|work=Stereogum|date=20 July 2010|publisher=Buzzmedia}} On 12 September 2010, Robyn performed a remix of the midtempo version with DJ deadmau5 at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, truncated by a commercial break.{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1647645/robyn-deadmau5-vma-teaser-clip.jhtml|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130129045925/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1647645/robyn-deadmau5-vma-teaser-clip.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 January 2013|title=Robyn And Deadmau5: A VMA Teaser Clip|date=12 September 2010|work=MTV News|publisher=MTV Networks|last=Warner|first=Kara|access-date=8 March 2011}} The two did not rehearse the performance until the morning of the show, and Robyn said, "I met him for, like, five minutes, and then we were playing."{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1647902/robyn-builds-on-vma-momentum-with-reactive-gossip-girl-cameo.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629205748/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1647902/robyn-builds-on-vma-momentum-with-reactive-gossip-girl-cameo.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 June 2011|title=Robyn Builds On VMA Momentum With 'Reactive' 'Gossip Girl' Cameo|date=15 September 2010|work=MTV News|publisher=MTV Networks|access-date=9 March 2011|last=Montgomery|first=James}} In 2010–2011, Robyn performed the song on other American television shows such as Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,{{cite web|url=http://www.theroundtableonline.com/2010/11/video-robyn-performs-dancing-on-my-own-on-jimmy-fallon/|title=Video: Robyn Performs "Dancing on My Own" on Jimmy Fallon|date=12 November 2010|work=The Round Table|access-date=8 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119042028/http://www.theroundtableonline.com/2010/11/video-robyn-performs-dancing-on-my-own-on-jimmy-fallon/|archive-date=19 November 2010|url-status=dead}} The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,{{cite web|url=http://exclaim.ca/MusicVideo/ClickHear/robyn-dancing_on_my_own_live_on_leno|title=Robyn "Dancing on My Own" (live on Leno)|date=25 November 2010|work=Exclaim!|access-date=8 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101129044137/http://exclaim.ca/MusicVideo/ClickHear/robyn-dancing_on_my_own_live_on_leno|archive-date=29 November 2010|url-status=dead}} The Ellen DeGeneres Show{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/robyn-sings-dancing-on-my-own-on-ellen-20110413|title=Robyn Sings 'Dancing on My Own' on 'Ellen'|magazine=Rolling Stone|publisher=Wenner Media|last=Perpetua|first=Matthew|date=13 April 2011|access-date=29 April 2011|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304214032/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/robyn-sings-dancing-on-my-own-on-ellen-20110413|url-status=dead}} Jimmy Kimmel Live!{{cite web|url=http://idolator.com/5823101/robyn-jimmy-kimmel-live|title=Watch Robyn's Body Talk On 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'|date=14 April 2011|last=Daw|first=Robbie|work=Idolator|publisher=Buzzmedia|access-date=15 April 2011}} and Saturday Night Live.{{cite magazine|url=http://music-mix.ew.com/2011/12/13/snl-taran-killam-robyn-call-your-girlfriend-video/|title='SNL' star Taran Killam's awesome interpretation of Robyn's 'Call Your Girlfriend' video: Watch it here|last=Anderdon|first=Kyle|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|publisher=CNN|access-date=16 January 2012}} She also performed it at the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/viral-videos/949363/robyn-dazzles-at-nobel-peace-prize-concert|title=Robyn Dazzles At Nobel Peace Prize Concert |last=Vick|first=Megan|date=13 December 2010|magazine=Billboard|publisher=Prometheus Global Media|access-date=4 February 2011}}

On 17 January 2011, Robyn attended the Grammisgalan to accept the awards for Best Song (for "Dancing on My Own"), Best Album, Best Female Artist and Best Composer.{{cite web|title=Grammis 2011 - Årets Kvinliga Artist - Robyn|website = YouTube| date=19 January 2011 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUOK2Q--qVw |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/TUOK2Q--qVw |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=6 December 2020}}{{cbignore}} On 15 March 2011 she performed the song along with "Fembot" and "With Every Heartbeat" at Studio Hamburg, Germany as part of a promotional mini-concert for Deutsche Telekom's Telekom Street Gigs, later broadcast on ProSieben's We Love In Concert series.{{cite web|url=http://www.intro.de/news/newsfeatures/23062749/telekom-street-gigs-mit-robyn-auftakt-in-hamburg-am-15-maerz-ticketverlosung|title=Telekom Street Gigs With Robyn|date=13 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110301233240/http://www.intro.de/news/newsfeatures/23062749/telekom-street-gigs-mit-robyn-auftakt-in-hamburg-am-15-maerz-ticketverlosung|access-date=28 October 2020|archive-date=1 March 2011}}

On 14 February 2025, Robyn performed the track live with David Byrne at the SNL 50 Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=ULuDHgWJf6NOnsKg&v=fYc3x3LgEJs&feature=youtu.be |title=Robyn and David Byrne: Dancing On My Own (Live) {{!}} SNL50: The Homecoming Concert |date=2025-02-15 |last=Peacock |access-date=2025-02-17 |via=YouTube}}

Anticipation among several music journalists surrounding Robyn's social media announcement on 27 July 2018 of her first release of solo material in eight years, "Missing U", began a reassessment of the strength of her Body Talk series' "anchor",{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/sep/13/100-best-albums-of-the-21st-century|title=The 100 best albums of the 21st century|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media|access-date=26 April 2021|date=13 September 2019}} the original album version of "Dancing on My Own", and more broadly, its impact on other musical artists and the industry as a whole in the years that followed. In June 2018, Rolling Stone ranked that version of the song 19th on its list of 'The 100 Greatest Songs of the Century – So Far',{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/the-100-greatest-songs-of-the-century-so-far-666874/dancing-on-my-own-robyn-667033/|title=The 100 Greatest Songs of the Century – So Far|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=28 June 2018|language=en|access-date=3 January 2021}} in July 2018, NPR ranked it as the 49th greatest song by a female or nonbinary artist in the 21st century,{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/07/30/627398824/turning-the-tables-the-200-greatest-songs-by-21st-century-women-part-8|title=The 200 Greatest Songs By 21st Century Women+|website=NPR|date=30 July 2018|language=en|access-date=23 May 2021}} and in October 2020, The Guardian{{'s}} Alexis Petridis called it "the greatest pop single of the past 20 years".{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/oct/29/sam-smith-love-goes-review|title=Sam Smith: Love Goes review – heartbreak album plays it safe in hard times|website=The Guardian|date=29 October 2020|language=en|access-date=29 October 2020}} The track was considered the greatest of the decade by Rolling Stone,{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/the-100-best-songs-of-the-2010s-917532/obyn-dancing-on-my-own-dance-single-917543/|title=100 Best Songs of the 2010s|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=4 December 2019|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019}} NME, Stereogum,{{Cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/featured/best-songs-of-the-2010s-list/|title=The 200 Best Songs of the 2010s|website=Stereogum|date=5 November 2019|language=en|access-date=5 November 2019}} Slant,{{Cite web|url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/features/the-100-best-singles-of-the-2010s/5/|title=The 100 Best Singles of the 2010s|website=Slant|date=January 2020 |language=en|access-date=3 January 2020}} Consequence,{{Cite web|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/11/top-100-songs-of-the-2010s/11/|title=Top 100 Songs of the 2010s|website=Consequence of Sound|language=en|access-date=24 November 2019}} AP,{{Cite web|url=https://www.hotsr.com/news/2019/dec/15/ap-s-top-songs-of-the-decade-robyn-kell/|title=AP's top songs of the decade: Robyn, Kelly Rowland, Drake|website=Associated Press|date=15 December 2019|language=en|access-date=17 December 2019}} Insider,{{Cite web|url=https://www.insider.com/best-songs-of-the-decade-2010s-ranked-2019-11#1-dancing-on-my-own-by-robyn-113|title=The 113 absolute best songs of the past decade, ranked|website=Insider|access-date=15 December 2019}} Esquire,{{Cite web|url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a29817510/pop-culture-2010s-decade-analysis-essay/|title=The 2010s Fired the Gatekeepers of Culture and Gave You the Job|website=Esquire|date=25 November 2019|language=en|access-date=17 December 2019}} iNews, Vanyaland and Audiofemme.{{Cite web|url=https://www.audiofemme.com/with-dancing-on-my-own-robyn-made-the-jolene-of-the-2010s/|title=With "Dancing on My Own," Robyn Made the "Jolene" of the 2010s|website=Audiofemme|language=en|access-date=17 December 2019}} Time,{{Cite magazine|url=https://time.com/5725150/best-songs-2010s-decade/|title=The 10 Best Songs of the 2010s|magazine=Time|language=en|access-date=8 November 2020}} NPR listeners,{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2019/10/07/767905185/the-2010s-npr-listeners-pick-their-top-songs-of-the-decade|title=The 2010s: NPR Listeners Pick Their Top Songs Of The Decade|website=NPR|language=en|access-date=1 January 2021}} Paste,{{Cite web|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2019/10/best-songs-of-the-2010s-1.html?p=4|title=The 100 Best Songs of the 2010s|website=Paste|date=21 October 2019|language=en|access-date=4 November 2019|archive-date=14 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214182315/https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2019/10/best-songs-of-the-2010s-1.html?p=4|url-status=dead}} Good Housekeeping,{{Cite web|url=https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/g29862748/songs-that-define-the-2010s/?slide=2|title=28 Best Songs of the 2010s, for Better or Worse|website=Good Housekeeping|date=22 November 2019|language=en|access-date=3 January 2020}} The Interns{{Cite web|url=https://www.theinterns.net/2019/12/10/best-songs-decade/|title=The Interns' Best Songs of the 2010s|website=The Interns|date=9 December 2019|language=en|access-date=1 January 2021}} and The Wild Honey Pie{{Cite web|url=https://www.thewildhoneypie.com/playlists/top-200-songs-of-the-2010s|title=TOP 200 SONGS OF THE 2010S|website=The Wild Honey Pie|language=en|access-date=1 January 2021}} ranked it second, Pitchfork third,{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-songs-of-the-2010s/|title=The 200 Best Songs of the 2010s|website=Pitchfork|date=7 October 2019 |language=en|access-date=8 October 2019}} Elle{{Cite web|url=https://www.elle.com/culture/music/g30151906/best-2010s-songs/?slide=4|title=The 52 Best Songs That Defined The 2010s|website=Elle|date=13 December 2019|language=en|access-date=15 December 2019}} and Treble{{Cite web|url=https://www.treblezine.com/top-150-songs-of-the-2010s/|title=TOP 150 SONGS OF THE 2010S|website=Treble|date=6 January 2020|language=en|access-date=12 November 2020}} fourth and USA Today ninth.{{Cite web|url=https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/12/10-best-songs-2010s|title=The 10 best songs of the 2010s|website=USA Today|date=20 December 2019|language=en|access-date=20 December 2019}} Gorilla vs. Bear ranked it 12th,{{Cite web|url=http://www.gorillavsbear.net/gorilla-vs-bears-songs-of-the-decade-2010-2019/|title=gorilla vs. bear's songs of the decade: 2010-2019|website=Gorilla vs. Bear|date=7 October 2019 |language=en|access-date=11 January 2020}} Crack Magazine 13th,{{Cite web|url=https://crackmagazine.net/article/what-just-happened/the-top-100-songs-of-the-decade/|title=The top 100 songs of the decade|website=Crack|language=en|access-date=10 January 2020}} NBHAP 15th,{{Cite web|url=https://nbhap.com/sounds/must-listen-songs-of-the-2010s-part-4|title=100 Must Listen Songs Of The 2010s: Numbers #25– #01|website=NBHAP|date=20 November 2019|language=en|access-date=12 November 2020}} Uproxx 18th{{Cite news|url=https://uproxx.com/music/best-songs-of-the-2010s-ranked/9/|title=All The Best Songs Of The 2010s, Ranked|website=Uproxx|date=9 October 2019|language=en|access-date=10 December 2019}} and Harper's Bazaar 22nd.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/art-books-music/g30318319/best-2010s-songs/?slide=22|title=The 35 Best Songs of the 2010s|magazine=Harper's Bazaar|language=en|access-date=10 December 2019}} In September 2021, Rolling Stone, from a poll of more than 250 artists, musicians, producers, critics, journalists and industry figures, ranked the original album version of Robyn's "Dancing on My Own" at number 20, between Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" and John Lennon's "Imagine", on their reissued list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the decade's highest entry on their list.

Released at what Harper's Bazaar{{'s}} Natalie Maher deemed "the height of the pop renaissance" of the late 2000s/early 2010s, several columnists thought it took a decade for the song's influence to be appreciated critically due to the sharp contrast with its initial commercial reception, a result of several factors including its tone and theme. "Seamlessly ushering dance music to the forefront of the pop continuum by making a record and a single that was easily adaptable to radio play but didn't alienate its raw emotions, delivering a certain edge and undeniable melancholia", it arrived "just when brainless EDM started taking off in the US", and as Treble{{'s}} Jeff Terich observed, "the protagonist of every other pop hit from the early half of the decade [turned] a possible sexual encounter with a nightclub fling into the 'Most Important Moment on Earth,'" (and Robyn reminded us that "no, it doesn't always work out that way"). "Never touching the Hot 100" as Pitchfork{{'s}} Ryan Dombal noted{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-songs-of-the-2010s/|title=The 200 Best Songs of the 2010s|website=Pitchfork|date=7 October 2019|language=en|access-date=9 July 2020}} Fawbert saw it taking "another nine-and-a-half years" to reveal its impact over the course of the decade after "slowly unleashing its tentacles and hooking itself around the music world." The song "heralded the end of the glitzy, VIP-filled, champagne-drenched 'Club' era of songwriting" in Fawbert's view, and it "changed the trajectory of pop, indie and dance." Insider{{'s}} Callie Ahlgrim wrote that the song "served as a lodestar for so much of this decade's pop" when "the best work of countless female pop stars" that followed "bears the mark of Robyn's signature poptimism". Ahlgrim said that, without Robyn's influence, there would be "no Carly Rae Jepsen, no Charli XCX, no Lorde."{{cite web |url=https://www.insider.com/best-most-important-artists-of-the-decade-2010s#without-robyns-2010-album-body-talk-some-of-this-decades-best-music-wouldnt-exist-18 |last=Ahlgrim |first=Callie |title=The 20 top artists of the decade |date=23 December 2019 |website=Insider |access-date=7 March 2021}} Max Martin's manager said that Martin thought "Dancing on My Own" was "one of the best pop songs ever made," and years later at a dinner he told her that he continued to have a "lot" of female artists come into his studio, "...put your album on the table," and say, "I wanna make this!" Robyn described his response as "Well, fuck you, go work with her then!" which she found "very sweet."

In October 2020 The Guardian{{'s}} Alexis Petridis detailed the track's "brilliant electronic rebooting of the old disco trick whereby euphoric club music is paired with lyrical despair" and Pitchfork{{'s}} Jamieson Cox saw a similar dynamic when comparing her output to fellow Swedes ABBA for a September 2019 retrospective of their iconic greatest hits compilation released in 1992, expressing that she "became one of this decade's great pop heroes by pinning down that same sad-ecstatic balance and welding it to modern, muscular production."{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/abba-gold-greatest-hits/

|title=Gold: Greatest Hits|website=Pitchfork|language=en|access-date=31 October 2020}} NBHAP{{'s}} Norman Fleischer also felt ABBA's anthem "Dancing Queen" had "finally found a proper successor" in Robyn's track. Seeing the domination over the music landscape by the close of the 2010s of this kind of song "whose instrumental sets you up for good times, only to sucker punch your heart with lyrics of Biblical sadness," BBC{{'s}} Mark Savage solely credited Robyn and the single, arguing the "sad banger" had clearly "influenced an entire generation of songwriters."{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-53167325|title=Pop music is getting faster (and happier)|last=Savage|first=Mark|work=BBC News|date=9 July 2020|language=en|access-date=9 July 2020}} To that end, Lorde shared with Vice her "friendly fixation" with Robyn, including keeping a framed portrait of her on the piano during her performance of "Liability" on Saturday Night Live and in the studio as a "patron saint" to watch over the Melodrama sessions.{{Cite web|url=https://garage.vice.com/en_us/article/43ezvb/lorde-robyn-fixation|title=A Brief History of Lorde's Friendly Fixation with Robyn|last=Specter|first=Emma|website=Garage|date=26 October 2018|language=en|access-date=29 June 2020}}{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/6560649/lorde-robyn-dancing-on-my-own-studio-next-album|title=Lorde Uses Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' as Studio Inspiration|magazine=Billboard|language=en|access-date=29 June 2020}} Héloïse Letissier of Christine & the Queens, who presented Robyn with the award for Songwriter of the Decade, said that "as a songwriter I can only marvel at a song like 'Dancing On My Own' ...it's a gem of pop." Pop stars Charli XCX and Zara Larsson acknowledged Robyn's influence, with Charli XCX expressing that "Robyn has definitely been part of paving the way for pop stars who fall a little to the left of the Top 40 norm," and Larsson saying, "She's what I strive to be in a sense of making my own choices and staying true to myself."{{cite web|title="She breaks the mould": how Robyn's pop classic 'Body Talk' changed the game| last=Hunt| first=El| website=NME| date=24 November 2020| url=https://www.nme.com/features/robyn-body-talk-10-year-anniversary-charli-xcx-kleerup-2821453|access-date=7 December 2020}}

Becoming what NME{{'s}} Eli Hunt described as the "queen of the misfits,"{{Cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/big-reads/robyn-interview-nme-2018-2393916|title=The Big Read – Robyn: "I danced a lot on my own"|website=NME|date=26 October 2018|language=en|access-date=15 August 2020}} Robyn has been described as a gay icon because of the popularity of "Dancing on My Own", itself described as a gay anthem.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.anothermanmag.com/life-culture/10527/how-robyn-became-a-queer-icon-an-investigation |title=How Robyn Became a Queer Icon: An Investigation |date=28 September 2018 |last=Rasmussen |first=Tom |magazine=Another Man |access-date=7 March 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.idolator.com/5863391/robyn-discusses-identifying-with-queer-culture-in-out-magazine?adblock=1&firefox=1|title=Robyn Discusses Identifying With Queer Culture In 'Out' Magazine|date=17 May 2011|last=Bain|first=Becky|work=Idolator|publisher=Buzzmedia|access-date=7 March 2021}} Robyn said she "felt connected to the gay audience because there's an element to the culture that you have had to think about or make up your mind about what it is to be an outsider..."{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2010/11/01/robyn-gossip-girl-body-talk-interview-gay/|title=Robyn talks tonight's 'Gossip Girl' guest spot, the 'Body Talk' trilogy, and her gay following: An EW Q&A|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|language=en|access-date=29 January 2021}} By the late 2010s out singer/songwriter Sam Smith expressed that they thought the track made Robyn "a huge part of the LGBTQ community because we get to dance our pain away." Rolling Stone ranked "Dancing on My Own" at number 20 on their list of "25 Essential LGBTQ Pride Songs", describing the song as "deeply resonant to queer, marginalized people."{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/25-essential-lgbtq-pride-songs-199348/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-2010-193580/|title=25 Essential LGBTQ Pride Songs|last=Ravitz|first=Justin|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=June 2019|language=en|access-date=19 September 2020}}

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• Australia digital download{{cite web|url=https://itunes.apple.com/au/album/dancing-on-my-own-single/id372006420|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111221912/https://itunes.apple.com/au/album/dancing-on-my-own-single/id372006420|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 November 2012|title=Dancing on My Own - Single by Robyn|work=iTunes Store Australia|publisher=Apple, Inc|access-date=8 March 2011}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Radio Version) – 4:39
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Remix) – 6:25

• Germany/UK CD single{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.de/dp/B003L40AGQ|title=Dancing on My Own (2track inkl. Poster)|work=Amazon.de|language=de|access-date=7 March 2011}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Radio Edit) – 3:37
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Extended Remix) – 7:28

• Germany digital EP{{cite web|url=http://de.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-3/|title=Robyn - Dancing on My Own - MP3 Single-Download|work=7 Digital DE|language=de|access-date=7 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707071628/http://de.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-3/|archive-date=7 July 2011|url-status=dead}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Radio Edit) – 3:37
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Radio Version) – 4:36
3. "Dancing on My Own" (Buzz Junkies Edit) – 4:06
4. "Dancing on My Own" (Album Edit) – 3:37
5. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Remix) – 6:22
6. "Dancing on My Own" (Azzido Da Bass vs. Dirty Disco Youth Remix) – 5:52
7. "Dancing on My Own" (Jakwob Remix) – 4:10
8. "Dancing on My Own" (Buzz Junkies Remix) – 5:57

• Germany digital EP – Part 2{{cite web|url=http://de.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-part-2/|title=Robyn - Dancing on My Own Part 2 - MP3 Single-Download|work=7 Digital DE|language=de|access-date=7 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707065924/http://de.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-part-2/|archive-date=7 July 2011|url-status=dead}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix Edit) – 4:43
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix) – 7:45
3. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix Instrumental) – 7:46
4. "Dancing on My Own" (Jakwob Remix) – 4:10
5. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Radio Edit) – 4:21
6. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Remix) – 7:30
7. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Instrumental) – 7:30
8. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Extended Remix) – 7:28

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• Sweden/US digital download{{cite web|url=https://itunes.apple.com/se/album/dancing-on-my-own-single/id373331842|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111221859/https://itunes.apple.com/se/album/dancing-on-my-own-single/id373331842|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 November 2012|title=Dancing on My Own - Single by Robyn|work=iTunes Store Sweden|publisher=Apple, Inc|access-date=7 March 2011}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" – 4:48

• Sweden digital EP – Remixes{{cite web|url=https://itunes.apple.com/se/album/dancing-on-my-own-remixes/id391094938|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111221922/https://itunes.apple.com/se/album/dancing-on-my-own-remixes/id391094938|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 November 2012|title=Dancing on My Own (Remixes) by Robyn|work=iTunes Store Sweden|publisher=Apple, Inc|access-date=8 March 2011}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Remix) – 7:30
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Jakwob Remix) – 4:10
3. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix) – 7:45
4. "Dancing on My Own" (Chew Fu Remix) – 5:05
5. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Remix) – 6:25

• UK digital EP{{cite web|url=http://www.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-4/|title=Robyn - Dancing On My Own MP3 Downloads|work=7digital|access-date=8 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707072508/http://www.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-4/|archive-date=7 July 2011|url-status=dead}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Radio Version) – 4:39
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Remix) – 6:25
3. "Dancing on My Own" (Buzz Junkies Remix) – 6:00
4. "Dancing on My Own" (Jakwob Remix) – 4:10
5. "Dancing on My Own" (Azzido Da Bass vs. Dirty Disco Youth Remix) – 5:51
6. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Remix) – 7:30
7. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix) – 7:45

• US digital EP – Remixes{{cite web|url=http://us.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-1/|title=Robyn - Dancing On My Own MP3 music downloads|work=7 Digital US|access-date=8 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110114230900/http://us.7digital.com/artists/robyn/dancing-on-my-own-1/|archive-date=14 January 2011|url-status=dead}}

1. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix Edit) – 4:42
2. "Dancing on My Own" (Michael Woods Remix) – 7:44
3. "Dancing on My Own" (Fred Falke Remix) – 7:30
4. "Dancing on My Own" (Jakwob Remix) – 4:09
5. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Extended Remix) – 7:27
6. "Dancing on My Own" (Rex the Dog Remix Edit) – 3:24
7. "Dancing on My Own" (Buzz Junkies Remix) – 5:59

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The liner notes of the album Body Talk Pt. 1 provide the following credits:{{cite AV media notes|others=Robyn|title=Body Talk Pt. 1|year=2010|type=Liner Notes|publisher=Konichiwa Records}}

• Robyn – music, lyrics, co-production, instruments, programming
• Patrik Berger – music, lyrics, production, instruments, programming
• Niklas Flyckt – mixing

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|artist=Robyn|title=Dancing on My Own|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=2010|certyear=2024|access-date=13 July 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=single|region=Denmark|artist=Robyn|title=Dancing On My Own|award=Platinum|certyear=2011|relyear=2010|id=7315|access-date=24 April 2019}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Robyn|title=Dancing on My Own|award=Platinum|relyear=|certyear=2024|source=radioscope|access-date=19 January 2025}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=Dancing On My Own|artist=Robyn|type=single|award=Platinum|relyear=2010|certyear=2022|id=13506-1102-1|access-date=8 April 2022|salesamount=|salesref=|refname="bpi"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=single|region=United States|artist=Robyn|title=Dancing On My Own|award=Platinum|certyear=2019|relyear=2010|access-date=24 April 2019}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true}}

{{Infobox song

| name = Dancing on My Own

| cover = Calum Scott - Dancing on My Own.jpeg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = Calum Scott

| album = Only Human

| released = {{Start date|2016|4|15|df=yes}}

| genre = * Adult contemporary{{cite web|title=Only Acoustic - EP|website=iTunes|date=26 March 2021|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/only-acoustic-ep/1559608812|access-date=21 October 2021}}

• pop{{cite web|title=Dancing on My Own (Instrumental)|website=iTunes|date=24 June 2016|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/dancing-on-my-own-instrumental-single/1445015300|access-date=20 October 2021}}

| recorded = 2016

| length = {{duration|m=4|s=20}}

| label = WMG, Capitol

| writer = {{hlist|Robyn|Patrik Berger}}

| producer = John McIntyre

| next_title = Rhythm Inside

| next_year = 2016

| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|q31tGyBJhRY|"Dancing on My Own"}} }}

}}

Before he became famous, British singer Calum Scott posted a cover version to his personal YouTube channel on 1 March 2014, and later performed the song for his audition on Britain's Got Talent in April 2015, the original clip of which has garnered over 415 million YouTube views. "Naive about the [music] industry" and worried his "career was over" after he wasn't signed to Simon Cowell's Syco Entertainment when "the show was over and it went quiet", Scott thought his "opportunity was gone".{{cite web|title=Former Britain's Got Talent star Calum Scott: 'When Simon Cowell didn't sign me, I thought it was over'|website=Digital Spy|date=27 April 2016 |url=https://www.digitalspy.com/music/a792084/britains-got-talent-calum-scott-simon-cowell/|access-date=20 June 2021}} Tracking the data behind the sudden rise in engagement and speed of new subscribers to Calum's channel over several months, A&R executive Conrad Withey encouraged him to release the song officially. With Conrad's endorsement, Calum signed independently with Warner Music Group, and the song was released as his debut solo single on 15 April 2016, with a 3 June 2016 release in other territories under Capitol Records.

With this early exposure, Conrad's Instrumental, a London-based AI algorithm-based A&R start-up looking to streamline "notoriously inefficient methods of talent discovery" using internet engagement to cut costs with a "data-driven" platform that would controversially prioritize "popular[ity]" over "artistry" in support of "online engagement", "internet stars" and "brand and content partnerships" rather than "musicians", reversing preconceived notions of building fanbases from scratch by capitalizing on those that already existed, went on to contract their services with the 'Big 3' and revolutionize A&R signing of artists.{{cite news|title=This startup finds the music megastars of the future|last=Ralston|first=William|date=30 April 2021|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/instrumental-music-talent|magazine=WIRED|access-date=16 May 2021}}{{cite news|url=https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/companies/instrumental/

|title=INSTRUMENTAL|website=Music Business Worldwide|access-date=16 May 2021}}

Scott's cover was noted for its "soft focus",{{cite news|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/overtones/dancing-on-my-own-together-capturing-that-robyn-feeling/|title=Dancing on My Own, Together: Capturing That Robyn Feeling|website=Pitchfork|last=Greene|first=Jayson|access-date=29 July 2020}} with critical reception being polarized, and streaming performance being very strong in the UK and Australia, followed by sleeper hit longevity throughout Europe. Two EDM remixes of the cover were commissioned and released by Calum's label from Tiësto on 15 July 2016{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCIPC17-O6g |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/TCIPC17-O6g |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Calum Scott - Dancing On My Own (Tiësto Remix/Audio)|website=YouTube|date=15 July 2016 |access-date=21 October 2021}}{{cbignore}} and Hull-based Ben Dooks on 29 October 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLhkD14Tatw |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/fLhkD14Tatw |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Dancing On My Own (Ben Dooks Remix)|website=YouTube|date=29 October 2018 |access-date=18 October 2021}}{{cbignore}} Different music videos were commissioned and released later in 2016 for Calum's cover as well as the Tiësto remix.

Reception to Scott's cover was polarized. Metro Weekly{{'s}} Sean Maunier called it a "stellar" confessional, noting its "subtle yet powerful" slight lyric changes to "reflect his own experience as a gay man" that were "casual" yet still "matter-of-fact, and all the more striking for it,"{{cite news|url=https://www.metroweekly.com/2018/03/music-review-calum-scotts-impressive-debut-with-only-human/|title=Music Review: Calum Scott's Impressive Debut with Only Human|publisher=Jansi, LLC|access-date=29 July 2020}} Ones to Watch{{'s}} Miro Sarkissian praised it as "stunning",{{cite news|url=https://www.onestowatch.com/blog/new-artist-discovery-calum-scott-wont-be-dancing|title=New Artist Discovery: Calum Scott Won't Be Dancing On His Own For Long|website=Ones to Watch|access-date=19 October 2021}} and Digital Journal{{'s}} Markos Papadatos found it "crisp and haunting".{{cite news|url=http://www.digitaljournal.com/a-and-e/music/op-ed-calum-scott-had-best-singing-audition-on-britain-s-got-talent/article/453306|title=Op-Ed: Calum Scott had best singing audition on 'Britain's Got Talent'|publisher=Digital Journal|access-date=8 September 2020}} BBC Newsbeat{{'s}} Steve Holden wrote that Calum's "second lease of life" he gave the song reached "a far wider audience in the mid-2010s", and Robyn shared with Steve she was "super happy" for Calum's success that got people to "know the song a little bit more", praising his "voice" and "interpretation [...] in a way that 'made the song come alive again.'"

On the other hand, both Noisey{{'s}} Grace Medford and Dazed{{'s}} Jake Hall wrote lengthy editorials harshly comparing Calum's cover to Robyn's original, similarly noting the irony of Calum pursuing the "commercial mechanisms of the music industry" which Robyn had rejected then lamenting his "undeserved praise" and "chart dominating power [...] for casting a miserable, faux-ballad shadow over a well-crafted pop song". The former excoriated it as "the aural experience of walking knee-deep in wet cement" with an instrumental that had "all the exuberance of a John Lewis Christmas advert", a "nasal whine the likes of which have gone unheard since James Blunt", and "breathy" syllables "chomp[ed]", "overenunciat[ed]" and "split" to sound more "regional and everyman", like the "shy guy" at "open mic",{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/yvpywk/when-will-pathetic-covers-stop-outperforming-the-originals|title=When Will Awful, Downbeat Covers of Songs Stop Outperforming the Originals?|website=Noisey|last=Medford|first=Grace|date=16 August 2016 |access-date=19 October 2021}} while the latter damned it with faint praise, arguing that despite his "undeniabl[y] pure, talented, amazing voice", the cover "stripp[ed] the song of its initial context," deeming it a "formulaic piano ballad" that "lost the duality which made the original so incredible." The Guardian{{'s}} Alexis Petridis likewise felt his cover "gormlessly sandblasted away the original's emotional complexity – a very realistic mix of despair, steely determination and euphoria – in favour of mournful bloke-at-a-piano emoting"{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/oct/25/robyn-honey-review-pop|title=Robyn: Honey review – beautifully personal pop perfection|work=The Guardian|access-date=26 November 2020}} and Pitchfork{{'s}} Jayson Greene also found it "dubious" and "weepy" in comparison to Robyn's.

Tiësto's remix of Calum's cover also had a polarized reception. USA Today{{'s}} Bryan Kalbrosky dismissed it outright as "inferior", arguing there was simply "no reason to listen" to it "so long as Robyn’s [original] exists"{{cite web|url=https://ftw.usatoday.com/2021/10/red-sox-dancing-on-my-own-robyn-tiesto-calum-scott|title=The Red Sox are obsessed with the inferior version of Robyn's classic 'Dancing on My Own'|website=USA Today|date=18 October 2021|access-date=19 October 2021}} while We Rave You{{'s}} Petar Lazarevic appreciated Tiësto "slowly envelope[d]" yet still left "plenty of room" for Calum's vocals, building "the presence of the glossy guitar riffs in the drop" which evoked "the lazy and comfortable feelings that accompany the early hours of the morning after a fantastic night".{{cite news|url=https://weraveyou.com/2016/10/calum-scott-dancing-tiesto-remix/|title=Calum Scott – Dancing On My Own (Tiësto Remix)|website=We Rave You|access-date=19 October 2021}}

In March 2018, Scott revisited the mixed reactions to his version. He said that those complaining he had ruined Robyn's song were counterbalanced by positive responses, for instance one person that had "just written to me and said that they've come out to their family because of my interpretation". He said he "didn't change the pronouns of the song" because he wanted the interpretation to always come from a "gay man's perspective".{{cite news|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uga4rnIjEoM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/Uga4rnIjEoM |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Calum Scott Talks About His New Album 'Only Human'|publisher=HuffPost|access-date=7 December 2020}}{{cbignore}}{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/calum-scott-dancing-on-my-own-critics_uk_5aa940d5e4b018e2f1c3d8e0|title=Calum Scott Responds To 'Dancing On My Own' Cover Criticism|publisher=HuffPost|access-date=8 September 2020}} He said the gay community have thanked him repeatedly for the song, saying "how much it means to them that they have a voice in music."{{cite web |url=http://www.newnownext.com/calum-scott-coming-out-day-video/10/2018/ |title=Calum Scott: Not Coming Out Sooner 'Ruined Most of My Teenage Years' |date=11 October 2018 |last=Rudolph |first=Christopher |website=NewNowNext |publisher=Logo TV |access-date=21 August 2021}}

The cover went viral on streaming services, with Spotify tracking it reaching number one in six countries while ranking in the Top 10 in over 20, peaking at number 2 in the Global Viral 50. On iTunes it charted in the top ten in more than 12 countries. The track had its greatest reception in the UK, where, despite little radio airplay (apart from West Hull FM), it climbed into the top 40 and slowly reached number 4 in July. It was then added to BBC Radio 2's C List playlist and peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart on 5 August. The track remained in the top three four months after its release and later that year it was revealed it was the most bought song of the summer in the country. Scott told the Official Charts Company on its reception there that he was "absolutely over the moon" at the news. The track went on to become the best-selling UK single by a British solo artist in 2016.{{cite web|title=Calum Scott Talks 'Dancing on My Own' and Making It in the Music Industry|url=https://attitude.co.uk/article/putting-the-record-straight-calum-scott-talks-dancing-on-my-own-and-making-it-in-the-music-industry/11829/|website=Attitude|date=18 August 2016|access-date=21 August 2021|archive-date=21 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210821211930/https://attitude.co.uk/article/putting-the-record-straight-calum-scott-talks-dancing-on-my-own-and-making-it-in-the-music-industry/11829/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |last1=Copsey |first1=Rob |title=The Official Top 40 Biggest Songs of Summer 2016 revealed |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-official-top-40-biggest-songs-of-summer-2016-revealed__16181/ |website=www.officialcharts.com |access-date=15 September 2020 |language=en}}

In the subsequent months and years, the track became a moderate sleeper hit in Europe, including by mid-2018 reaching 550M streams and becoming certified platinum in at least four countries.{{cite news|url=https://www.capitolrecords.com/calum-scott-releases-new-single-reason/|website=Capitol Records|title=Calum Scott Releases New Single "You Are The Reason"|access-date=20 September 2020}} Scott said in a press statement upon signing with Capitol Records in the U.S. that "when I recorded the song in my bedroom, I never thought for a second that it would reach as far as it has and bring this level of support from literally all over the globe...I'm completely overwhelmed by it all."{{cite web |title=Tiesto Remixes Calum Scott's "Dancing On My Own" (Robyn cover) |url=http://www.music-house.co.uk/eurosolution/news_article.html?newsitem_id=3042 |website=www.music-house.co.uk |access-date=15 September 2020 |date=19 July 2016}}

File:Calum Scott Dancing on My Own Music Video (2).jpg in the crowd]]

Self-produced by Calum Scott and directed by Ryan Pallotta, the video for the original version was released on 15 June 2016. A crowd of silent people dressed in white are looking towards a light source. Among them, Scott mouths the song lyrics. A man and a woman move through the crowd to find each other. By April 2020 the video had received over 400 million YouTube views.{{cite web|url=https://entertainment-focus.com/2016/06/15/calum-scott-unveils-dancing-on-my-own-video/|title=Calum Scott Unveils Dancing on My Own Video|date=15 June 2016 |access-date=9 September 2020}}

File:Calum Scott (Tiesto Remix) Dancing on My Own Music Video.png

The official video for the Tiësto remix was commissioned by Capitol Records and released on 4 October 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dc-4BSn7czg |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/dc-4BSn7czg |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Calum Scott - Dancing On My Own (Tiësto Remix)|website=YouTube|date=4 October 2016 |access-date=9 September 2020}}{{cbignore}} Co-directed by Josh Killacky and David Moore, and edited by Alex Ditommaso, the video depicts a man pursuing a woman who is no longer his lover. With Moore shooting video while riding a hoverboard in a stark studio space, Josh Killacky and Haley Fitzgerald perform a modern dance routine, choreographed by Killacky.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuMN9QR0x7Q |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/YuMN9QR0x7Q |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Calum Scott: "Dancing On My Own" Behind The Scenes!|website=YouTube|date=9 October 2016 |access-date=9 September 2020}}{{cbignore}}

The cover aired on the 20th episode, "Kill 'em All" of The CW series The Vampire Diaries, broadcast 29 April 2016, while Caroline makes soup for Bonnie while ranting to Alaric about Stefan, commitment and closure. It also aired on the 24th episode, "Ring of Fire" of the ABC series Grey's Anatomy, broadcast 17 May 2017, while Nathan asks Meredith details about Megan, then hugs her in celebration and drives off. Scott promoted the track throughout 2016 and 2017 most notably on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Good Morning America, Elvis Duran and the Morning Show, Good Morning Britain, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Dancing with the Stars. Following the 10th episode "Brainwave Jr." of the DC Universe series Stargirl in July 2020, the cover "racked up 10.5 million U.S. on-demand streams, along with 3,000 digital downloads, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data", topping The Hollywood Reporter's Top TV Songs Chart.{{cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/calum-scott-stargirl-claim-no-1-spot-on-top-tv-songs-chart-for-july-2020|website=The Hollywood Reporter|title=Calum Scott, 'Stargirl' Claim No. 1 Spot on Top TV Songs Chart For July 2020|last=Rutherford|first=Kevin|access-date=8 September 2020}} During the 2021 MLB postseason, the Boston Red Sox adopted the Tiësto remix of the song as their postseason anthem, playing the song in their celebrations after their Wild Card Game win over their rivals, the New York Yankees, and their series win over the Tampa Bay Rays.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/15/sports/baseball/red-sox-dancing-on-my-own.html|title=Why Are the Boston Red Sox Singing 'Dancing on My Own'?|newspaper=The New York Times|date=15 October 2021|last1=Lemire|first1=Joe}} During the 2022 MLB postseason, the Philadelphia Phillies also adopted the Tiësto remix of the song as their own postseason anthem,{{Cite news|url= https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/how-dancing-on-my-own-became-an-unofficial-phillies-anthem/ar-AA13r8gG|title= How 'Dancing on My Own' became an unofficial Phillies anthem}} with the team carrying it over into the 2023 season as well.

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Belgian singer Kato Callebaut performed Robyn's downtempo version as part of her audition on Idool 2011 then released her studio cover, receiving a gold certification for 10,000+ copies sold.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJn7o5Qe5DU |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/oJn7o5Qe5DU |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Kato - Dancing on my own - Idool 2011 (finale)|website=YouTube|date=23 May 2011 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} American rock band Kings of Leon performed but never officially released a cover of Robyn's ballad during a session on Zane Lowe's show on BBC Radio 1, officially posted by the show to their YouTube channel on 10 September 2013, which Billboard{{'s}} Jason Lipshutz went on to describe as an "injection" of its "muscular Southern rock stylings" with "meaty guitar riffs", "Caleb Followill's signature growl in full effect", and with the "'Whoa-oh-oh's' echo on the chorus", a recalling of the singer's "epic "Use Somebody" flare-ups".{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/5687379/kings-of-leon-covers-robyns-dancing-on-my-own-for-bbc-watch/

|title=Kings of Leon Covers Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' For BBC: Watch|magazine=Billboard|language=en|access-date=7 December 2020}} Instinct{{'s}} Jeremy Hinks slammed it as "nails on a chalkboard,"{{Cite web|url=https://instinctmagazine.com/dancing-on-my-own-and-loved-no-matter-what-the-power-of-calum-scott-his-music/|title='Dancing On My Own' and Loved 'No Matter What' – The Power Of Calum Scott & His Music|website=Instinct|date=17 June 2020|access-date=19 October 2021}} while Spin{{'s}} Marc Hogan praised it as "disarmingly effective" and having brought out Robyn's "smart songwriting", noting their connection to her "deeply conflicted relationship with mainstream success".

American a cappella group Pentatonix released a cover of her mid-tempo version in July 2017 with a music video, presenting their first track as a quartet instead of a quintet.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyglnLD2joM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/dyglnLD2joM |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Dancing On My Own - Pentatonix (Robyn Cover)|website=YouTube|date=31 July 2017 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} American actress Elle Fanning performed the mid-tempo version as the character Violet in the film Teen Spirit, released in September 2018, and her recording, described as "unassuming" yet "impressive" by MTV,{{Cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/3116855/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-elle-fanning/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190315195623/http://www.mtv.com/news/3116855/robyn-dancing-on-my-own-elle-fanning/|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 March 2019|title=Robyn's 'Dancing on My Own' Gets A Teen Movie Remake Thanks To Elle Fanning|website=MTV|language=en|access-date=17 April 2021}} was subsequently released in April 2019 as part of its soundtrack with a promotional music video depicting her role, aiming for pop stardom.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztZL9hY1vMg |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/ztZL9hY1vMg |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=TEEN SPIRIT {{!}} "Dancing On My Own" Music Video|website=YouTube|date=9 April 2019 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} Singer/songwriter Kelly Clarkson covered the downtempo version on 28 February 2019 in Dallas, Texas, on her Meaning of Life Tour.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCdE2pCMpxI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/aCdE2pCMpxI |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Kelly Clarkson covers Dancing On My Own - Robyn / Calum Scott (Live)|website=YouTube|date=23 April 2019 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} Robyn went on to tell Newsbeat in 2020 that she "really liked" Kelly's version, noting "she has a really powerful voice. She recorded one of my favorite Max Martin songs, "Since U Been Gone", which I covered in the Radio 1 Live Lounge. So that's funny."

Alternative rock band Grouplove released an indie pop cover of the midtempo version in March 2020, described as "electric" and "passionate" by Flood Magazine,{{Cite web|url=https://floodmagazine.com/79159/watch-grouplove-cover-robyns-dancing-on-my-own/|title=Watch Grouplove Cover Robyn's "Dancing on My Own"|website=Flood Magazine|language=en|access-date=17 April 2020}} promoting it on Cover Nation,{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeooB3GCAcY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/UeooB3GCAcY |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Grouplove covers Dancing On My Own - Robyn - EXCLUSIVE!!|website=YouTube|date=3 March 2020 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} Sirius XM{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMCwPTaAMd8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/TMCwPTaAMd8 |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Grouplove - Dancing On My Own (Robyn Cover) [Live @ SiriusXM]|website=YouTube|date=12 March 2020 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} and ALT 98.7.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGiqWqXNOcQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/cGiqWqXNOcQ |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Grouplove Covers Robyn's "Dancing On My Own" {{!}} ALT 98.7's Under The Covers|website=YouTube|date=19 March 2020 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} American folk singer Willie Watson, former founding member of Americana and bluegrass band Old Crow Medicine Show, released a folk version of the song in May 2020, dedicating it in a live stream performance of the song from his own studio to everyone "dancing on their own" amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3F73gNE8QQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/E3F73gNE8QQ |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Dancing On My Own - Willie Watson|website=YouTube|date=15 May 2020 |language=en|access-date=10 July 2020}}{{cbignore}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IrpgGAiF8o |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/_IrpgGAiF8o |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Dancing On My Own - Willie Watson (Live in Studio)|website=YouTube|date=8 April 2020 |language=en|access-date=8 April 2020}}{{cbignore}} In December 2020 English singer/songwriter and model Karen Elson released a downtempo alternative country version on her EP, Radio Redhead, Vol.1.{{Cite web|url=https://williamsonsource.com/karen-elson-releases-covers-ep/|title=Karen Elson Releases Covers EP|website=Williamson Source|date=20 December 2020|language=en|access-date=20 December 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foyqJUG2TAc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/foyqJUG2TAc |archive-date=15 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Karen Elson - Dancing On My Own (Official Audio)|website=YouTube|date=17 December 2020 |language=en|access-date=20 December 2020}}{{cbignore}} Los Angeles-based garage punk band the Regrettes released a cover of the midtempo version in March 2023.{{Cite web|url= https://www.nylon.com/entertainment/the-regrettes-cover-robyn-dancing-on-my-own |title=HEAR THE REGRETTES '80S-FIED COVER ROBYN'S "DANCING ON MY OWN"|website=Nylon|date=24 March 2023 |language=en|access-date=20 April 2023}} Tove Lo covered the song in October 2022 for Like a Version on Australian radio station Triple J with the cover subsequently being released on the station's YouTube channel as well as music streaming services.{{Citation |title=Tove Lo covers Robyn 'Dancing On My Own' for Like A Version | date=13 October 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khPfEwiZlMI |access-date=2023-06-17 |language=en}} Canadian alternative rock band Arkells covered the song in May 2024 on their album Disco Loadout, Volume I.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=8urQw1eNSsXf9uQ4&v=lnAvaJ_73jo&feature=youtu.be |title=Arkells - Dancing On My Own |date=2024-05-17 |last=Arkells Music |access-date=2025-02-17 |via=YouTube}}

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Category:2010 singles

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Category:Robyn songs

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Category:Songs written by Robyn

Category:Electropop ballads

Category:Songs about dancing

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