Lionhearted

"Lionhearted" was one of the first songs Porter Robinson wrote for Worlds. After listening to Urban Cone's vocals, Robinson found them to be the exact tone he needed for "Lionhearted". After flying them to North Carolina, where Robinson produced the album, Urban Cone found the instrumental reminiscent of Space Invaders (1978). Robinson and Urban Cone then wrote the lyrics with an imaginary battle in mind, coinciding with the album's general idea of escapism, fiction, and fantasy. Robinson said that "Lionhearted" was not one of his favorite songs on the album, but he still liked the idea of releasing it as an "anthemic" single.

On the track list, "Lionhearted" is chronologically the first track on Worlds with a faster tempo. It is an energetic, upbeat pop song, with stadium-crowd-sounding sections. With a similar sonic feel to the previous single "Sad Machine", "Lionhearted" was noted by critics such as Chris DeVille to combine Robinson's electro house with a space-y synthpop and dance-pop style inspired by other indie electronic acts, such as Passion Pit, M83 and Holy Ghost!.

On June 3, 2014, "Lionhearted" premiered on Stereogum and at BBC Radio 1, where DJ Zane Lowe called it "the hottest record in the world". It was officially released as the album's third single on June 17, accompanied by a music video which features Robinson and a group of women "wreak[ing] havoc around the city streets, resulting in an eruption of [color]", according to Mixmag's Carré Orenstein. Remixes of the song were released as a remix EP on July 15, 2014, and later in a limited edition box set of Worlds. A remix by Point Point appeared on Worlds Remixed (2015).

"Lionhearted" divided critics. Favorable reviewers, such as DeVille and Elissa Stolman for Vice, appreciated "Lionhearted" as a succseful blend of "windows-down teen nostalgia and rave-friendly power synths", and "a joyride through the galaxy with 'St. Elmo's Fire' blasting louder than the afterburners". While Variance writer found it "another intriguing layer" to Robinson's stadium-ready sound, detractors from Q and Beat found its stadium trance sound "incredibly dated" and "generic", with "[p]uffy synths and uninspired vocals" that diminish its potential. "Lionhearted" was a hit on the American dance charts. It reached number nine on Billboard's Dance Club Songs and number 25 on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, becoming the 72nd best-performing entry of 2014 on the latter chart.

Adapted from Spotify.

• Porter Robinson  , performer, writer, producer
• Emil Anders Gustafsson  , performer, writer
• Karl Erik Rasmus Flyckt  , performer, writer
• Ben Swardlick  , writer
• Eric Luttrell  , writer
• Andrew Coenen  , writer