"Up in the Air" is a song recorded by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, featured on their fourth studio album, Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013).

Written by lead vocalist Jared Leto, who also produced the song with Steve Lillywhite, "Up in the Air" is an introspective and passionate track reflecting upon human consciousness.

The track peaked at number three on the Alternative Songs in the United States and garnered significant commercial outcomes internationally, reaching the top fifteen of Finland, Lebanon, Portugal, and Russia.

[7] Jeff Benjamin from Fuse felt that with its four-on-the-floor beat, "dance-y" synthesizers and trance effects, the song is "crafted for 2013's EDM-obsessed music world".

[8] Ryan Reed from Billboard acknowledged the band's progression, considering the song a departure from the group's previous arena-friendly alternative rock sound.

[9] Kaitlyn Hodnicki from Stature magazine found the "seductive" throbbing beat of the track "completely at ease with Jared's risqué lyrics".

[10] Leto described "Up in the Air" as a passionate and energetic song that "feels really free" but also features the concept of constraint and tension, particularly evident in the line "I'll wrap my hands around your neck so tight with love".

[12] In February 2013, Thirty Seconds to Mars announced that "Up in the Air" would be the lead single from their fourth studio album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013).

[13] On March 18, 2013, the single premiered from the International Space Station, after a Q&A session with the band and astronaut Thomas Marshburn that was broadcast worldwide on NASA TV and VyRT.

[16] Jared Leto told MTV News that with the launch of the song into space the band wanted to start the new chapter of their career in an "appropriately massive manner".

Kyle Anderson, writing for Entertainment Weekly, called the song a "throbbing modern-rock anthem" which offers "visceral, hands-up hedonism".

[19] Lewis Corner from Digital Spy gave "Up in the Air" four stars out of five and commented that the band manages to retain its "trademark lad-rock sound while rejuvenating it with chart-friendly electronics".

[21] Johan Wippsson of Melodic magazine chose it as a highlight on Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams, and commended its "bombastic and huge choruses".

[10] Joseph Atilano from the Philippine Daily Inquirer gave the song a positive review, noticing the band's tendency to "explore and employ technological advances to diversify their sound and to keep them from becoming too predictable".

[27] Andy Baber from musicOMH felt that "Up in the Air" continues the "pulsating start" to the album, noticing Leto's "emotive wailings" abounding over "throbbing synths".

[40][41] On January 30, 2013, Thirty Seconds to Mars posted on their website a casting call for extras and off-road vehicles, announcing that they were preparing to shoot a short film for "Up in the Air".

[7] In an interview with MTV News, he unveiled that the crew recruited scores of extras and a number of surrealist street performers to appear in the video.

He wrote, "filled with eye-popping time-lapse photography [...] the clip skims along the surface of the earth, providing the viewer with unbelievable images of aurorae borealis, lightning storms and vast grids of twinkling city lights".

[50] It includes burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese riding a mechanical bull, gymnasts Jordyn Wieber and McKayla Maroney showing off their abilities, performers from Cirque du Soleil, and an assorted array of individuals.

"[45] Writing for MTV, Tamar Anitai found the video "highly conceptual" and noted that beyond the "hypnagogic imagery" and "expensive gallery pieces", the underlying meaning of the short film seems to be "finding the beauty in the bizarre" and the "tension of power dynamics".

She felt that Leto created a "surreal visual fantasia" and interpreted the colored chalk fight near the end of the video as a "call to make art, not war".

He felt that when combined, the singular images form a "powerfully cohesive unit", explaining that "they tell a story, convey emotions (lust, loss, sadness, desire, anger, etc) without speaking a word".

RJ Cubarrubia from Rolling Stone commented that Leto tapped into his cinematic spirit creating a series of "striking visuals" connected by the "extravagant" track.

[53] Tamar Anitai from MTV was impressed with the video and praised the visual experience, calling it a "living, breathing, spectacular art installation".

[56] Writing for MTV, James Montgomery commented that the video "speeds along on striking visuals — bright colors, sinewy bodies, vast expanses, prowling beasts — and Leto's deft directorial choices".

[57] Joseph Atilano from the Philippine Daily Inquirer commended its concept "full of images that represent deep emotions and various states of mind — all of which would get our brains working".

[66] The song was later moved to the beginning of the setlist as a set opener along with "O Fortuna", a movement from Carl Orff's scenic cantata Carmina Burana.