Teddy Swims doesn’t know why fans “lose control” when they hear his hit

Teddy swims recently celebrated the first anniversary of the release of “Lose Control,” his song that Billboard It was on the Hot 100 in March. Since Teddy released the song, it has been credited with 2 million copies by the RIAA and has become so popular that his shows around the world have sold out. And although he says he knew the emotional song would be a hit, he still can’t explain it.

“People listen to this song and I don’t know why they love it. I don’t know why,” he tells ABC Audio. “But I think that’s kind of the function of good music, right? It’s just like, ‘Ooh. That touches my heart. That just touches me. I need to hear that,’ you know?”

“And I don’t know why it works, but we all know it works,” he adds. “And I knew it would work.”

Although “Lose Control” sounds like a song about a guy who can’t be away from the woman he loves, Teddy says it was actually inspired by a drug-fueled, toxic relationship he was in.

“The substances we were taking kind of became the substance of our relationship,” he says. “We were both just addicted together, you know?” But he says the song covers that up well.

“You don’t really know what this song is about,” he notes. “It’s such a happy, fun song that anyone can dance to, jump to, or sing along to. But it’s actually about the darkest, most toxic emotional relationship. … It’s definitely a dark place.”

Teddy is currently touring Australia and will return to North America in early August for several festivals, including Lollapalooza.