Wicked Games

"Wicked Games" is the debut single by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd, and serves as the fifth track from his debut mixtape, House of Balloons (2011). It was written by the Weeknd, Doc McKinney, and Illangelo with the latter two producing. The song was remastered and released as the lead single from his 2012 compilation album, Trilogy, on October 22, 2012, through XO and Republic Records.

Background and release
The audio for the original version of "Wicked Games" was released on the Weeknd's YouTube on March 5, 2011. In 2012, its House of Balloons version would be promoted as the lead single from the mixtape, being sent to rhythmic contemporary radio stations on September 25, 2012. The song's remastered version was officially released through streaming services on October 22, 2012, as the lead single from his compilation album, Trilogy (2012).

Music video
The music video for "Wicked Games" premiered on October 18, 2012, on the Weeknd's YouTube account on Vevo. The video starts off with a woman dancing in a coat with no clothes underneath, before the camera pans to the singer, who is shown singing expressively. Since its release, the music video has received over 200 million views on YouTube.

Commercial performance
"Wicked Games" became the Weeknd's first solo single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 53, and remaining on the chart for 20 weeks. It was later certified three times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on January 30, 2019, for selling three million units in the United States.

Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes for Trilogy.


 * The Weeknd – composer, primary artist
 * Doc McKinney – composer, instrumentation, producer
 * Illangelo – composer, instrumentation, mixing, producer
 * Rainer Millar Blanchaer – composer

In other media
An orchestral cover version of the song was used in Westworld season 3 episode "The Mother of Exiles" arranged and composed by Ramin Djawadi.