Solange wrote "Cranes in the Sky" eight years before the album's release, in the aftermath of her break-up with the father of her child–whom she had been with for seven years, since age 13.[8][9][10] In 2008, producer and singer Raphael Saadiq handed Solange a CD with a few instrumentals on it. One consisted simply of drums, strings, and bass. Two months later, Solange wrote "Cranes in the Sky" while listening to the instrumentals in a Miami hotel. In 2016, when she had finished writing and creating A Seat at the Table in New Iberia, Louisiana, Solange revisited "Cranes in the Sky"—shortly after which she called Raphael and asked if he would help produce a few other songs on the album.[11]
Lyrically, the song explores the idea of attempting to avoid the elephant in the room. It describes a person looking to distract themselves in various ways from an unaddressed sadness. In speaking of the title, Solange explains a situation where sudden economic growth turned a once quiet, tranquil town into a busy, construction-infested city, where mechanical cranes block the view of the scenery. She says, "Like so much of America, [in that town] there was just so much real estate development. And, literally everywhere that I looked, I saw a crane in the sky. You could not look down any street without seeing dozens and dozens of them, and it felt very heavy. They were an eyesore [...] and so disruptive to a place that I found peace in."[12] She continued, saying that "all this excessive building" was not "really dealing with what was in front of us".[9]
Critical reception
"Cranes in the Sky" was ranked at number 7 on Rolling Stone's "50 Best Songs of 2016" list: "Solange drops a song that can always stop you dead in your tracks, no matter where or when you hear it – describing the kind of sadness she can't escape by crying, drinking, sexing or shopping it away. The music builds from quiet meditation – that Raphael Saadiq bass – into towering soul."[13]Billboard ranked "Cranes in the Sky" at number 12 on their "100 Best Pop Songs of 2016" list: "Post-adolescent angst has rarely been as pretty as Solange makes it sound in this delicate, lilting single — which you're as likely to hear on Hot 97 as at your local coffee shop. An orchestral beat from Raphael Saadiq supports the song's lyrical quest for serenity, creating a sort of musical safe space for the beautiful, uncluttered respite that Solange spends the single desperately searching for."[14]Pitchfork listed "Cranes in the Sky" as the 3rd best song of 2016.[15] In the annual Village Voice's Pazz & Jop mass critics poll of the year's best in music in 2016, "Cranes in the Sky" was also ranked at number 3.[16] In 2018, NPR ranked the song as the 12th greatest song by a female or nonbinary artist in the 21st century. [17]
The music video for "Cranes in the Sky" was directed by Solange and Alan Ferguson, and released on October 2, 2016 alongside the music video for "Don't Touch My Hair."[5][18]
Commercial performance
In the United Kingdom the song charted at number 29 on the UK R&B Singles chart on October 7, 2016.[19] In the week of October 22, 2016, "Cranes in the Sky" debuted at number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 and 28 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in the United States.[20][21]
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of A Seat at the Table.[22]