Prom Queen (Beach Bunny song)
"Prom Queen" is a song recorded by American rock band Beach Bunny. The song was released on August 10, 2018.
"Prom Queen" | ||||
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Single by Beach Bunny | ||||
from the album Prom Queen | ||||
Released | August 10, 2018 | |||
Studio | Lubeck Studios (Mount Prospect, Illinois) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 2:17 | |||
Label | Self-released | |||
Songwriter(s) | Lili Trifilio | |||
Beach Bunny singles chronology | ||||
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Background
Trifilio wrote the track for a friend that was struggling with body issues.[1] The song has been called "a protest of Euro-centric beauty standards."[2] Trifilio was nervous to release the song, with it lacking a romantic theme that was commonplace for many of her songs:[3] "I was scared it would be listened to in the wrong way, like I was encouraging eating disorders. In general, I think there’s a void (in pop music) in discussing social issues, and I hope to write more songs like that."[1] The song is the namesake of the band's fourth extended play, first issued in August 2018.
"Prom Queen" is one of many songs that went viral on the Chinese video-sharing service TikTok, with hundreds of thousands of user-generated videos featuring the song as its soundtrack. Abby Jones at Pitchfork described many of these clips as featuring "a girl posing in front of a phone camera to illustrate Trifilio's opening lines: 'Shut up, count your calories/I never looked good in mom jeans.'"[2] The song first went viral in April 2019, months after its release.[3]
Reception
Greg Kot from the Chicago Tribune said the track "distills tween anxiety and self-doubt with a rare directness. It’s a survivor’s manual dressed up in dark wit and a sharp, guitar-driven melody."[1] Jones from Pitchfork called it indicative of the band's formula: "sentimental and wistful, with a plainspokenness that prompts immediate sympathy."[2] Paper's Eli Enis said the song "radiates a sense of emotional victory, as if Trifilio has expelled the unpleasant subject matter and is now singing from a place of resilience."[3]
Personnel
Credits adapted from the group's Bandcamp.[4]
- Beach Bunny
- Lili Trifilio - vocals, guitar, songwriting
- Jonathan Alvarado - drums
- Matt Henkels - lead guitar
- Aidan Cada – bass guitar
- Production
- Ray Riot – recording engineer
- Nick Reuille – assistant recording engineer
- Aaron Cada – mixing, mastering
References
- Kot, Greg (February 5, 2020). "Meet Chicago's newest rising band Beach Bunny". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
- Jones, Abby (February 13, 2020). "Beach Bunny: Honeymoon". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
- Enis, Eli (February 24, 2020). "Don't Call Beach Bunny a TikTok Band". Paper. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
- "Prom Queen – Beach Bunny". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 6, 2020.