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Boyfriend (Ariana Grande and Social House song)
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox song
| name = Boyfriend
| cover = Ariana Grande and Social House - Boyfriend.png
| alt = Cover art for "Boyfriend": a washed-out photo of Ariana Grande and Social House, with the song title and their names written over their faces
| artist = Ariana Grande and Social House
| type = single
| EP = Everything Changed...
| released =
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre =
*Pop
*R&B
| length = 3:06
| label = Republic
| writer =
*Ariana Grande
*Charles Anderson
*Michael Foster
*Edgar Barrera
*Anthony M. Jones
*Steven Franks
*Tommy Brown
| producer =
*Edgar Barrera
*Steven Franks
*Tommy Brown
| chronology = Ariana Grande
| prev_title = Monopoly
| prev_year = 2019
| title = Boyfriend
| year = 2019
| next_title = Don't Call Me Angel
| next_year = 2019
| misc =
}}
"'Boyfriend'" (stylized in all lowercase as "'boyfriend'") is a song by American singer Ariana Grande and American musical duo Social House. It was released by Republic Records on August 2, 2019. It is the second single from the latter's debut extended play, 'Everything Changed...' (2019). It became Grande's 14th and Social House's first top 10 on the 'Billboard' Hot 100. It also became the first song by a woman, and third overall, to top the 'Rolling Stone' Top 100 Songs chart, achieving it in its debut week. It won the MTV Video Music Award for Song of Summer, and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
Background
The song was first teased by Grande on her social media on July 24, 2019, when she posted a picture of herself on a video set. She followed up the posts with pictures from the same video set, revealing the song to be a collaboration with Social House. Grande hinted at the title of the song on July 29, 2019, with the caption "u ain't my boyfriend". The first teaser was posted a day later. The cover art was revealed by Grande on her social media on July 30, 2019, and the song was simultaneously made available for pre-save.
Composition
The song is written in the key of B minor, and it follows the chord progression of Gmaj13F7Bm11Em9F7. Grande's vocals span from a low A3 to a high F5.
Critical reception
'Billboard's Jason Lipshutz called "Boyfriend" an "elastic pop track, a lovably low-stakes ode to romantic attraction but resistance to traditional labels". Amanda Mitchell of 'O, The Oprah Magazine' opined that the song's lyrics "will hit home for anyone who's ever wanted to be coupled-up, but also enjoyed the freedom of not being in a relationship. It's the theme song for those who fear commitmentdespite wanting to be someone's girlfriend". Writing for 'Esquire', Gabrielle Bruney stated that it is "a completely undeniable bop", adding that it is "an effortlessly hooky R&B-pop hybrid" which "captures that torturous liminal phase in relationships, before boundaries and definitions have been set in stone, but when feelings are still very much on the line".
Music video
The music video was directed by Hannah Lux Davis and was released alongside the song on August 2, 2019. In the video, Grande and Foster portray a dysfunctional couple seeking counseling from Anderson as they sing the song. Intermittent scenes show Grande and Foster at a party and both seeing the other flirt with other people. They each jealously fantasize about violently attacking their partner's other love interests: Grande tackles and beats one girl and pins another girl to a door by shooting an arrow into her palm; Foster kicks a guy in the face and pulls out his still-beating heart, giving it to Grande. Another sequence involves Grande pulling open her blazer and firing lasers shaped like pink hearts out of her bra, getting Foster's attention. The video ends with the couple passionately making out in the bathroom and subsequently destroying it. Anderson finds them, seemingly giving up on the couple and leaving them to their own devices. The video has since received over 173 million views.
Accolades
Live performances
The song was first performed live by Grande and Social House at Grande's performance at Lollapalooza on August 4, 2019, with Social House. Grande later added the song to the European leg of her Sweetener World Tour.
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from Tidal.
* Ariana Grande vocals, songwriter, vocal producer, vocal arranger
* Charles Anderson vocals, songwriter
* Michael Foster vocals, songwriter
* Edgar Barrera producer, songwriter, programmer
* Anthony M. Jones - producer, songwriter, programmer
* Steven Franks producer, songwriter, programmer
* Tommy Brown producer, songwriter, programmer
* Tarron Crayton bass guitar
* Serban Ghenea mixer, studio personnel
* John Hanes mix engineer, studio personnel
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+ Release dates and formats for "Boyfriend"
! scope="col"| Region
! scope="col"| Date
! scope="col"| Format
! scope="col"| Label
! scope="col"|
|-
! scope="row"| Various
| rowspan="4"| August 2, 2019
|
| rowspan="3"| Republic
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row"| Australia
| Contemporary hit radio
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row"| Canada
|
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row"| Italy
| rowspan="2"| Contemporary hit radio
| Universal
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan="2"| United States
| rowspan="2"| August 6, 2019
| rowspan="3"| Republic
| align="center"|
|-
| Rhythmic contemporary
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row"| Various
| December 6, 2019
|
| align="center"|
|}
See also
*List of UK top-ten singles in 2019
*List of top 10 singles in 2019 (Australia)
*List of 'Billboard' Hot 100 top-ten singles in 2019
*List of 'Rolling Stone' Top 100 number-one songs of 2019
References
Category:2019 singles
Category:2019 songs
Category:Ariana Grande songs
Category:Songs written by Ariana Grande
Category:Songs written by Edgar Barrera
Category:Songs written by Charles Anderson
Category:Songs written by Tommy Brown (record producer)
Category:Song recordings produced by Tommy Brown (record producer)
Category:Music videos directed by Hannah Lux Davis
Category:Songs written by Anthony M. Jones
Category:Number-one singles in Iceland
Category:Number-one singles in Israel
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