Break Free

Harmonically, 'Break Free' is a study in deliberate simplicity: one four-chord Aeolian loop with no modulation and no borrowed chords. The absence of a raised seventh (D♯) keeps it firmly in natural minor and gives the track the broad, sky-high feel typical of 2014 EDM-pop. All the drama is earned through production — synth layers, drop architecture, and Grande's two-plus-octave range — not harmonic complexity.

The song's origin traces back to a Universal label showcase where Zedd heard an unknown singer backstage and immediately told his team he had to work with whoever that voice belonged to — it was Ariana Grande. The track had previously been written with Austin Mahone in mind, but scheduling conflicts while Mahone was recording his 2013 single 'Say Somethin'' left it unreleased. Grande described the eventual collaboration as 'super experimental' for her, noting she had never expected to record an EDM song.

Released July 2, 2014 as the second single from My Everything, 'Break Free' traded Grande's R&B comfort zone for full-throttle electro-EDM courtesy of Zedd and Max Martin. The track peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100, making Grande only the second lead female artist in chart history — after Adele — to hold three simultaneous top-ten slots on that chart. It has since moved over 1.9 million US copies and accumulated more than 1.2 billion YouTube views.