"Salt" is a song by American singer Ava Max. It was released as the fourth single from her upcoming debut studio albumHeaven & Hell on December 12, 2019, through Atlantic Records on streaming services. It was initially released on YouTube and SoundCloud in 2018. It was co-written by Max, Autumn Rowe, Madison Love, Nicole Morier, and Cirkut, who also produced the song. The dance-pop song has also been regarded as a "fan favorite" by several publications, who praised the upbeat production. It peaked at number one in Poland, and charted in the top 10 in Austria, Finland, Germany, Norway, Russia, Ukraine, and Switzerland.
Background and composition
The song was initially released on YouTube and SoundCloud in 2018, where it gained 4 million views on the former by December 2019. On December 5, 2019, Max revealed the song's release date on social media, which was subsequently re-released as a single on several streaming services on December 12, 2019. Max acknowledged that the song's re-release was due to its high streaming numbers, despite containing no prior marketing or promotion. It was co-written by Max, Autumn Rowe, Madison Love, Nicole Morier, and Cirkut, the latter who solely produced the song. "Salt" is a dance-pop song, with elements of disco. It contains "pumping disco beats from the seventies and eighties" blended with Max's "vocal inflexions". A violin is heard in the introduction, while Wonder Woman and Marilyn Monroe are lyrically mentioned throughout the song, due to their icon status in femininity. It is based on common time, the tempo is 128 BPM and is played in the key of D-sharp minor. The song's lyrics describes the carefree nature of not crying over an ex.
Several publications have regarded "Salt" to be a "fan-favorite" since its 2018 release. Rania Aniftos of Billboard described the song as an "upbeat, sassy track about having fun after a sad spell", while Madeline Roth of MTV News called it "dance-pop blissfulness". Writing for Stereogum, Chris DeVille wrote that "Salt" was the best song out of Max's discography while also sounding similar to Lady Gaga. Shaoni Das of Music Talkers stated that the song is an "exhilarating dance number, awash in pools of glitter, glamour, and confidence".
Commercial performance
"Salt" peaked at number one on the Polish Airplay Top 100 on April 4, 2020. The song charted within the top 10 in Austria, Finland, Germany, Norway, Russia, Ukraine, and Switzerland.
