Even Will Smith loves “Heat Waves”: Glass Animals’ frontman says, “It’s totally blowing my mind”Even Will Smith loves “Heat Waves”: Glass Animals’ frontman says, “It’s totally blowing my mind”

Jennifer McCord

Glass Animals‘ “Heat Waves” has been around since June 2020, but only recently broke into the top five on the Billboard Hot 100, thanks to a late 2021 surge on TikTok. It’s also earned the band a Grammy nomination, the number-one spot on Spotify’s Global Top 50 Chart and so many other accolades that frontman Dave Bayley can barely take them all in.

“I feel like I’m kind of holding on to its coattails at the moment and trying to keep up, so much has been happening,” Dave says of “Heat Waves.” “It’s totally blowing my mind!”

Dave initially wrote “Heat Waves” about missing a close friend who’d died, but he says the song’s success has given it a whole new meaning.

As he explains, “I think seeing people have such an amazing reaction to it…saying that the song really helped them, and…the way people have responded creatively: making remixes, covers, doing amazing things in the digital space, like creating Minecraft castles and even memes…all of that just makes what was a very sad situation so positive.”

And speaking of the digital space, Dave says he really enjoys the TikToks that focus on the “Heat Waves” line “sometimes all I think about is you.”

“I made one about missing my dog while we were on tour. So I’ve seen a few of those now…adorable,” he laughs. “I’ve seen some funny ones about somebody eating a salad and then they look out the window and…they’re looking at some really unhealthy burger joint — that was hilarious.”

Best of all, Dave says, “Will Smith did one the other day! About The Fresh Prince and kind of reminiscing about his time on that show…I love that show! Brilliant! So that was, like, super-special to me.”

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