Immortal Queen
{{Short description|2024 single by Sia featuring Chaka Khan}}
{{Use Australian English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Immortal Queen
| type = single
| cover = Immortal_Queen_by_Sia.png
| caption = Bianca Costa remix cover
| artist = Sia featuring Chaka Khan
| album = Reasonable Woman
| released = {{start date|2024|5|3|df=yes}}
| recorded =
| genre = R&B{{Cite web|last=Dolan |first=Jon |date=3 May 2024 |title=Sia is the Motivational Speaker She Needs on Reasonable Woman |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/sia-reasonable-woman-review-1235013841/ |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240503131823/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/sia-reasonable-woman-review-1235013841/ |archive-date=3 May 2024 |access-date=29 April 2025 |magazine=Rolling Stone |quote=…Chaka Khan appears on the blast of R&B triumphalism called "Immortal Queen"…}}
| length = 3:20
| label = {{hlist|Monkey Puzzle|Atlantic Records}}
| writer =
- Sia Furler
- Greg Kurstin
- Chaka Khan
| producer = Greg Kurstin
| chronology = Sia
| prev_title = Fame Won't Love You
| prev_year = 2024
| next_title = I Forgive You
| next_year = 2024
| misc = {{Extra chronology
| artist = Chaka Khan
| type = single
| prev_title = Tekken 2
| prev_year = 2023
| title = Immortal Queen
| year = 2024
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}
{{Extra chronology
| artist = Bianca Costa
| type = single
| prev_title = La Vengeance
| prev_year = 2024
| title = Immortal Queen
| version = Remix
| year = 2024
| next_title = Sous les étoiles
| next_year = 2024
}}
{{Extra album cover
| header = Remix Cover
| type = single
| cover = Sia - Immortal Queen - Eve Remix.jpg
| border =
| alt =
| caption = Cover of the remix featuring Chaka Khan & Eve
}}
{{External music video|header=Lyric video|{{YouTube|P-pgjy865Ag|"Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan)"}}}}
}}
"Immortal Queen" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Sia featuring American singer Chaka Khan, recorded for Sia's album, Reasonable Woman. A lyric video for the song was released on 3 May 2024, the same day the album came out.
A remix featuring Brazilian-French singer Bianca Costa was released for digital download and streaming on 31 May 2024.{{cite web |url=https://www.prostudiomasters.com/album/page/262048 |title= Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan & Bianca Costa / Single)|website=Prostudio Masters|date=31 May 2024|access-date=16 November 2024}}{{cite web|url=https://www.shatterthestandards.com/p/new-music-drops-may-31-2024|title=New Music Drops: May 31, 2024 |website=Shatter the Standards|date=31 May 2024|access-date=16 November 2024}} Other remixes featuring Eve, Neneh Cherry or Debbie Harry were released in August 2024.{{cite web|url=https://hit-channel.com/sia-and-chaka-khan-revitalize-immortal-queen-with-neneh-cherry-on-new-remix |title= Sia and Chaka Khan Revitalize "Immortal Queen" with Neneh Cherry on New Remix|website=Hit Channel|date=19 August 2024|access-date=16 November 2024}}
Background
Sia announced Reasonable Woman in early 2024, revealing a diverse lineup of collaborations, including "Immortal Queen" with Chaka Khan. Khan first said she was working on the song during an interview with The Sydney Morning Herald in September 2023.{{Cite magazine |last=Michael Dwyer |date=2023-09-26 |title=Chaka Khan has worked with the best - and there's an Aussie next on her list|url=https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/chaka-khan-has-worked-with-the-best-and-there-s-an-aussie-next-on-her-list-20230922-p5e6wj.html/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |magazine=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en |archive-date=2023-10-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231019190128/https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/chaka-khan-has-worked-with-the-best-and-there-s-an-aussie-next-on-her-list-20230922-p5e6wj.html |url-status=live}}
In an interview with FLAUNT, Sia revealed that "Immortal Queen" was inspired by Beyoncé, stating: {{Blockquote|text=…I wrote it like a long long time ago, before I could ever think of calling myself a queen. I wrote it thinking about Beyoncé maybe 10 or 15 years ago. My managers were always telling me, ‘Immortal Queen’ is such a good song, it’s such a good song.’ And I thought that I could never sing it just by myself. I would have to have some queens on it, you know?"|author=Sia on FLAUNT{{cite web | title=Chaka Khan – We Plant These Seeds, and They Always Exceed Expectation | website=flaunt.com | date=2024-03-26 | url=https://www.flaunt.com/post/chaka-khan-fresh-cuts-issue | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240424151821/https://www.flaunt.com/post/chaka-khan-fresh-cuts-issue|language=en | archive-date=2024-04-24 | url-status=live | ref={{sfnref|flaunt.com|2024}} | access-date=2025-05-09}}
}} Sia continued, sharing the emotional moment when her managers contacted Chaka Khan to ask if she would feature on the song. Sia described her excitement, saying she could hardly believe the opportunity.
The song was also teased in ESPNW's coverage of the 2024 Women's Final Four in Cleveland, further increasing anticipation for its release.{{cite web |url=https://espnpressroom.com/us/press-releases/2024/04/calling-on-cleveland-espns-megacast-presentation-of-the-2024-ncaa-womens-final-four-tips-off-friday-april-5/amp/ |title=Calling on Cleveland! ESPN’s MegaCast Presentation of the 2024 NCAA Women's Final Four Tips Off Friday, April 5 |website=ESPN Press Room |author=Katie Callahan |date=3 April 2024 |access-date=10 April 2025 }}
Composition
"Immortal Queen" is an R&B song. The sheet music for the song shows the key of F♯ minor and a tempo of 88 beats per minute.{{Cite web|title = Immortal Queen|url = https://www.musicnotes.com/sheetmusic/mtd.asp?ppn=MN0288674|website = www.musicnotes.com|date = 3 May 2024|access-date = 2025-02-03}}{{Cite web|title = Immortal Queen|url = https://tunebat.com/Info/Immortal-Queen-feat-Chaka-Khan-Sia-Chaka-Khan/3L5AK36OlaswwPI0WduBJg|website = www.tunebat.com|date = 3 May 2024|access-date = 2025-02-03}} It features lyrics that reference time travel, robot servants, and historical queens like Victoria and Sheba.
Reception
In a review of the album, Mark Kennedy from AP News said "Their new duet 'Immortal Queen' is everything you'd want in a combo of Sia and Khan — dueling soaring voices, preening egos and insane lyrics about time travel and robot servants."{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/sia-reasonable-woman-music-review-eff00c242e78c3a2194d47f5d8e05478#|title= Music Review: Sia soars with first solo album in 8 years, 'Reasonable Woman'|website=AP News|author=Mark Kennedy |date= 2 May 2024|access-date=16 November 2024}}
Pitchfork described the lyrics of "Immortal Queen" as "so incomprehensible they’re almost camp," citing its references to The Matrix, "cavemen bringing the cave queen carvings," and Queens Victoria and Sheba. The review criticized the song's lack of coherence, stating that it "makes no more sense in context, ping-ponging between uninspired synth arpeggios, than it does on paper."{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/sia-reasonable-woman/ |title=Sia: Reasonable Woman Album Review |website=Pitchfork |author=Eric Torres |date=6 May 2024|access-date=10 April 2025 }}
Personnel
- Sia – songwriting, vocals
- Chaka Khan – songwriting, vocals
- Greg Kurstin – songwriting, production, bass, mellotron, drums, engineering, keyboards, percussion, mixing, synthesizer
- Jackie Wongso – marketing
- Julian Burg – additional engineering
- Matt Tuggle – additional engineering
- Craig Kallman – A& R directing
- Chris Gehringer – mastering
Track listing
Digital download – album track{{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/immortal-queen-feat-chaka-khan/1729487131|title=Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan) - Single|author=Sia|publisher=Apple Music (US)|access-date=15 January 2025}}
- "Immortal Queen" (feat. Chaka Khan) – 3:19
Digital download and streaming – (feat. Chaka Khan & Bianca Costa){{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/immortal-queen-feat-chaka-khan-bianca-costa-single/1748191606|title=Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan & Bianca Costa) - Single|author=Sia|publisher=Apple Music (US)|access-date=6 January 2025}}
- "Immortal Queen" (featuring Chaka Khan and Bianca Costa) – 3:21
Digital download and streaming – (feat. Chaka Khan & Eve){{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/immortal-queen-feat-chaka-khan-eve-single/1760049731|title=Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan & Eve) - Single|author=Sia|publisher=Apple Music (US)|access-date=6 January 2025}}
- "Immortal Queen" (featuring Chaka Khan and Eve) – 3:32
Digital download and streaming – (feat. Chaka Khan & Neneh Cherry){{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/immortal-queen-feat-chaka-khan-neneh-cherry-single/1760049579|title=Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan & Neneh Cherry) - Single|author=Sia|publisher=Apple Music (US)|access-date=6 January 2025}}
- "Immortal Queen" (featuring Chaka Khan and Neneh Cherry) – 3:34
Digital download and streaming – (feat. Chaka Khan & Debbie Harry){{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/immortal-queen-feat-chaka-khan-debbie-harry-single/1762711482|title=Immortal Queen (feat. Chaka Khan & Debbie Harry) - Single|author=Sia|publisher=Apple Music (US)|access-date=6 January 2025}}
- "Immortal Queen" (featuring Chaka Khan and Debbie Harry) – 3:34
Release history
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |
| Region
! Date ! Format ! Version ! Label ! Ref. |
|---|
| scope="row" rowspan="4"| Various
| 31 May 2024 | rowspan="4"|Digital download and streaming | Bianca Costa Remix | rowspan="4"|Atlantic Records |
| 2 August 2024
| Eve Remix |
| 17 August 2024
| Neneh Cherry Remix |
| 30 August 2024
| Debbie Harry Remix |
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ Chart performance for "Immortal Queen" ! scope="col"| Chart (2024) ! scope="col"| Peak |
| scope="row"| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ){{cite web|url=https://aotearoamusiccharts.co.nz/archive/hot-singles/2024-05-10|title=NZ Hot Singles Chart|publisher=Recorded Music NZ|date=13 May 2024|access-date=10 May 2024}}
| 22 |
|---|
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Sia singles}}
{{Chaka Khan}}
{{Eve}}
{{Neneh Cherry}}
{{Debbie Harry}}
Category:Atlantic Records singles
Category:Songs written by Sia (musician)
Category:Songs written by Greg Kurstin
Category:Songs written by Chaka Khan
Category:Songs written by Eve (rapper)
Category:Songs written by Neneh Cherry