Charli XCX is turning heads with her new music video for her recently released single, ‘Boys’. Background completely pink and famous boys in every frame, Charli wanted to “flip the male gaze on its head.”
Featuring a long list of celebrity names—giving the video a bit more buzz—Charli focuses on each individual male, doing things typically a girl would do in a music video like pillows fights, cuddling puppies and even lying in rose petals.
Directed by Charli XCX herself, she delivers a different take on a potential crush anthem of the summer. Instead of centering on a stereotypical romance between a girl and a boy, Charli gives us a little bit of everything—Ezra Koenig brushing his teeth, Mark Ronson combing his hair, Mac DeMarco licking a guitar and the Fat Jew dancing in a kiddie pool.
‘Boys’ is a fun, bubbly, feel-good song for the summer that doesn’t focus on the dreaded heartbreak we all encounter. It’s the first single off Charli’s upcoming third album, a follow-up to her previous LP ‘Sucker’ in 2014 and her mixtape ‘Number 1 Angel’ from this past year.
The video also includes other celebrities such as Riz Ahmed, Conor Franta, Charlie Puth, Diplo, Joey Bada$$, Oli Sykes, Cameron Dallas, Sage the Gemini, Chromeo, Brendon Urie, Caspar Lee, G-Eazy, Stormzy, Aminé, Dan Smith, Flume, Wiz Khalifa, Ty Dolla $ign, Tinie Tempah, Will.I.AM., Tom Daley, Jack Antonoff, Joe Jonas, Khalid and many more.
It’s no surprise that the video has sparked a lot of talk—watching Joe Jonas pouring syrup on a stack of pancakes can send the internet into a downward spiral. It’s unique, lighthearted and gives us that fuzzy warmth that the song is meant to—that butterflies in your stomach feeling when you think about your crush.
Featured image source