Speak Out Now

"Speak Out Now" was first released in the United States for digital consumption on 1 January 2011.[1] However, it was not distributed as a commercial single, nor in Oh Land's native Denmark, until 28 November 2011 as a digital download.[2] Both releases were handled by Fake Diamond Records, who had previously distributed the releases for both Oh Land (2011) and her debut album Fauna (2008).[3] On 5 December of the same year, the parent album was reissued in its deluxe edition, featuring three previously unreleased bonus tracks: "Speak Out Now", "Twist", and "En Linedanser".[4] The single was written by Oh Land, Kristian Leth, and Fridolin Nordsø, with production being handled by the latter two.[4] It serves as the opening and closing theme to the Danish TV series Rita, which debuted in February 2012.[5]

"Speak Out Now" received mixed to favourable reviews from music critics. A reviewer from Scandipop called it "charmingly upbeat and joyful", in addition to naming it the "more mature sister" to album track "We Turn It Up".[6] Becky Bain of Idolator was more mixed, stating that it was less interesting than both "Sun of a Gun" and "White Nights".[7] On a list published by The Euro TV Place, which displays the "10 Best Euro TV Theme Songs" according to the publication, Oh Land's single was placed at number three; the site's consensus reads, "[...] this tune is as peppy and catchy as they come. Anyone who's watched Rita has probably danced to it in her or his seat during the show's title credits."[5]

For the week ending 17 February 2012, "Speak Out Now" debuted on Denmark's Tracklisten chart at number six. The following week, it reached its peak position of number four; including its first appearance on the chart, it spent seven consecutive weeks on their top ten.[8] Furthermore, on the digital component section of the aforementioned chart, which is compiled by Billboard, it debuted and peaked at number four, for the week on 3 March 2012. It lasted an additional six weeks there before departing.[9] On 30 March 2012, "Speak Out Now" was certified Gold in Denmark for digital sales exceeding of 10,000 copies.[10] It was similarly successful on Danish radio stations, where it received significant airplay. It peaked at number eight on Tracklisten's official airplay chart and spent a total of eighteen non-consecutive weeks charting.[11][12]

An accompanying music video for "Speak Out Now" was released on 10 February 2012. For the visual, the singer appears in various scenes, including in a forest and in a "flooded greenhouse".[7] The video was highlighted by Eliot Glazer of Vulture.com, who joked "the beautiful Danish weirdo is going through her 'lace phase'";[13] additionally, the staff at Electronic Beats declared it "stunning".[14] The music video is recorded at Randers regnskov.