"Til It Happens to You" is a song produced and performed by American singer Lady Gaga. She co-wrote the song with Diane Warren for the 2015 documentary film The Hunting Ground, which deals with campus rape in the United States. The song had leaked onto the Internet through an unofficial recording made at the film's premiere at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. It was later released by Interscope Records to digital retailers on September 18, 2015. The director and producer of the film had looked for someone influential to write a song for it, and music supervisor Bonnie Greenberg contacted Warren, who was interested. She wrote the song with Gaga and producer Nile Rodgers accompanied them during the recording, providing his suggestions.
A universal song about any kind of loss in life, "Til It Happens to You" was placed during two sequences in the film, highlighting the pain of sexual assault. The song consists of an orchestral production with strings and an emotional vocal delivery from Gaga. Lyrically, it asks listeners to stand in a victim's position and try to understand the turmoil they go through. "Til It Happens to You" was later included as part of a public service announcement video directed by Catherine Hardwicke. The video depicts various instances of violence against women and sexual assaults. It ends with a cautionary note about the effects of such distress, and individuals finding solace with their close friends and relatives.
A portion of the proceeds from retail sales was donated to organizations supporting victims of sexual assault. Commercially, the song reached the top thirty in Finland, Greece, and Spain, and it peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in March 2016. "Til It Happens to You" won an award at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics and it was nominated for Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards and for Best Original Song at the 88th Academy Awards, along with numerous other awards.
Last Updated: September 28, 2021
