Bethany Mota, the 18-year-old YouTube beauty and lifestyle sensation from California, has released her first single “Need You Right Now” featuring Mike Tompkins. Following its midnight release on iTunes, Mota is premiering the track’s official lyric video exclusively on Billboard.com:
Courtesy Photo
Need You Right Now” made a splash in the Twittersphere after its midnight release on iTunes, with chatter from fans driving the track to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard + Twitter Realtime charts. When she first announced the single a week ago, it became a trending topic worldwide. At the time of posting, the single has reached a high point of No. 4 on the iTunes chart, climbing from No. 31 as fans (including Kevin Jonas) continue to tweet their support.
Credited as the featured artist and the track’s producer is Mike Tompkins, another prominent YouTuber with more than 1.3 million subscribers to his name.
I had so much fun collaborating on this song with Mike [on the track] and am very excited for everyone to hear it! said Bethany Mota in an email to Billboard.
Tompkins rose to prominence on the platform thanks to his unique a cappella stylings and by covering prominent pop artists, from fun. to Beyonce. In 2013 Tompkins was the opening act for The Jonas Brothers and Karmin tour, and recently he co-wrote and produced Jennifer Hudson’s single “Walk It Out” with Timbaland.
The song is out! Go get it congrats @BethanyMota Need You Right Now (feat. Mike Tompkins) – Single by Bethany Mota https://t.co/tjbXPx3g4q
— kevin jonas (@kevinjonas) October 13, 2014
Mota made her television debut on ABC’s Dancing With The Stars this fall, where she’ll continue competing alongside new instructor Mark Ballas on Monday, Oct. 13. She was on the cover of the September issue of Seventeen Magazine, becoming the first YouTuber to grace the publication’s cover.
Bethany Mota has a new line with Aeropostale coming out on Oct. 18. To help promote the release of “Need You Right Now,” anyone who downloads the song can get a discount on the clothing line during the weekend of its launch (Oct. 18-19).