Their debut release, 'Walking on a Dream', appeared as a single on 30 August 2008 ahead of the album of same name on 3 October. Luke Steele (of The Sleepy Jackson) and Nick Littlemore (of Pnau) formed Empire of the Sun as an electronic duo in 2007. The song was also featured in the 2012 racing video game Forza Horizon and later in the 2016 Honda Civic 'The Dreamer' commercial, which helped revive the song in the charts, with the song debuting on the US Billboard Hot 100 after more than seven years of release, peaking at number 65.

The song was made the Single of the Week on the iTunes Store for the week of 21 April 2009. In Europe, it reached number eight in both Belgium and Ireland and peaked in the top 100 on the UK Singles Chart. Although the single was originally due for release in the United Kingdom on 9 February 2009, the date was postponed until 6 July. 'Walking on a Dream' won the category for Single of the Year at the ARIA Music Awards of 2009, and, in the following year, it won Dance Work of the Year at the APRA Awards. It was listed at number four in the 2008 Triple J Hottest 100 popularity poll.

On the Australian ARIA Charts, it reached number ten, and was certified double platinum to indicate shipment of over 140,000 units.

The full Sam La More remix was made available as a free download on the band's official website. The track was co-written by band members, Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore with Jonathan 'Donnie' Sloan. ' Walking on a Dream' is a song by Australian electronic music duo Empire of the Sun, released on 30 August 2008 as the lead single from their debut studio album of the same name (2008).

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