"A Thousand Years" is a song by American singer-songwriter Christina Perri

Christina Perri

Christina Judith Perri is an American singer and songwriter from Philadelphia. Her song "Jar of Hearts" charted in the United States after it was featured on the Fox television show So You Think You Can Dance in 2010. Rolling Stone named her the "Band of the Week" on October 26, 2010...

. It is taken from the album The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (soundtrack)

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the film, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1. It is the fourth soundtrack in the saga's chronology, and was released on November 8, 2011. The soundtrack is once again produced by...

. The song serves as the second single from the album. The song was released as a digital download on October 18, 2011 worldwide.

Background

The lyrics of the song includes Perri singing, "Heart beats fast/Colors and promises/How to be brave/How can I love when I'm afraid to fall/Watching you stand alone/All of my doubt/Suddenly goes away somehow/One step closer." It is followed by chorus, "I have died every day waiting for you/Darling don't be afraid/I have loved you for a thousand years," Christina sings as the music soars. "I'll love you for a thousand more."

A official lyric video of the song was premiered on October 17, 2011 via Perri's official Facebook and Twitter pages as well as her official website.

Critical reception

Critics praised the song for its lyrics as well as Christina's voice. Bill Lamb from About.com gave the song 4 stars (out of 5) saying that, "Initially, it sounds just a bit sappy and even a bit twee, however, stick with it and as the Waltz time begins to sway more and more the song moves into a bridge that is stunningly gorgeous. It then melts back down into a gentle place before sweeping along into a pleasing conclusion." He also praised Christina's voice saying, "She uses her voice to a great effect sounding almost as if we were sitting with a friend who chooses to speak to us in a song instead of everyday speech patterns. Instead of pushing her voice to power through a huge chorus, she lets the backing track do the speaking."

Chart performance

On the week of October 23, 2011, the song debuted at No. 74 on the US Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 chart. and No. 70 on Canadian Hot 100

Canadian Hot 100

The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007...

.

Charts

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Chart (2011)	Peak position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... )	70
US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...	43
US Adult Pop Songs (Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... )	24

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label
United States	October 18, 2011	Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...	Atlantic Atlantic Records Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
Canada			WEA International Inc.
Australia
United Kingdom	November 7, 2011	Digital download (album only)	Atlantic