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Elton John and Britney Spears’ duet ‘Hold Me Closer’ shoots to No. 1 on iTunes
“Hold Me Closer” is finally here — and it’s already a hit.
Elton John and Britney Spears have released their highly anticipated duet, a reimagining of the legendary Rocket Man’s classic “Tiny Dancer.”
The new song, which hit streaming services Friday, is a euphoric midtempo, complete with Spears’ signature vocal runs over a chill dance beat that also interpolates John’s lesser-known 1992 song “The One.”
The collaboration instantly shot to No. 1 on iTunes in 35 countries and received high praise, including from Spears’ attorney, Mathew Rosengart.
“After our hard-fought success in removing her father as conservator and then the termination of the conservatorship, I was inundated with inquiries about what Britney would do next,” Rosengart tells Page Six exclusively.
“My response was simple: ‘For the first time in 13 years, that is up to one person and one person only: Britney.’ No one should be surprised that her first foray is a smash success,” the former federal prosecutor continues. “As I’ve said all along, Britney is a brilliant artist and iconic person. She’s been through a lot. Regardless of what she chooses to do next, if anything, I am so very proud of her.”
“Hold Me Closer” is Spears’ first official single since “Slumber Party,” which appeared on her 2016 album, “Glory.”
The pop princess’s team re-released “Glory” in 2020 while she was on a work strike over her conservatorship, from which she was freed in 2021 after describing it as “abusive.”
The deluxe edition of “Glory” tacked on three bonus tracks, “Mood Ring,” “Swimming in the Stars” and “Matches” featuring the Backstreet Boys, none of which received proper single treatment such as music videos or radio promotion.
The original version of “Tiny Dancer,” meanwhile, opened John’s 1971 album, “Madman Across the Water,” and was released as a single the following year.
While it was not an immediate commercial success, peaking at No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, the six-minute piano ballad has become a staple in John’s catalog and live concerts over the years. It also earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list at No. 47.
Page Six broke the news in July that John, 75, and Spears, 40, had secretly recorded “Hold Me Closer” with Andrew Watt, the producer behind hits such as Camila Cabello’s “Havana,” Miley Cyrus’ “Midnight Sky” and Justin Bieber’s “Peaches.”
“This was Elton’s idea, and Britney is a huge fan,” a music industry source told us at the time, teasing that John’s team was already calling it “the song of the summer.”
Spears said Wednesday that she was feeling “pretty overwhelmed” ahead of the release of her comeback tune.
“It’s pretty damn cool that I’m singing with one of the most classic men of our time … @eltonofficial 🚀!!!!” she tweeted, adding, “it’s a big deal to me !!!”
While the “Toxic” singer’s career has been on hiatus since 2019, she keeps dropping hints that she is thinking about returning to music.
Most recently, Spears — who is also working on a memoir — sang an edgy rendition of her 1998 debut single, “…Baby One More Time,” on Instagram alongside the caption, “I haven’t shared my voice in an extremely long time … maybe too long.”
