Format CD
digital download Length 4:50 | Recorded 2015 Label Interscope
Polydor | |
Released September 11, 2015 (2015-09-11) Writer(s) Lana Del Rey
Rick Nowels | ||
"Music to Watch Boys To" is a song by American singer Lana Del Rey from her fourth studio album Honeymoon (2015). It was written by Del Rey and Rick Nowels. It was released as the second single from Honeymoon on September 11, 2015, via digital download.
Contents
Background
Del Rey first mentioned the song as a potential title for the whole album in late June 2014. On January 2, 2015, Del Rey opened up a little more on the song, elaborating on how she wrote it in a visual, noirish way saying "the title (of the song) lends itself to a visual of shadows of men passing by, this girl's eyes, her face. I can definitely see things". Del Rey later stated that "Music to Watch Boys To is one of my favourite songs from the record, I love the 30 second a cappella beginning. Reminds me of what Les Baxter would've had as a bonus track on Jewels of the Sea." The song was originally eyed as the lead single for the album.
A snippet of the song was featured alongside excepts from "Terrence Loves You", "Freak" and "High by the Beach" in an album sampler released September 8, 2015. On September 9, 2015, Del Rey posted the official single cover on social media sites along with an announcement that the track would premier later that day on Beats 1 Radio. The song was officially released as the second single on September 11, 2015.
Music video
On June 3, 2015, model Jake Mast tweeted that the music video he had filmed with Del Rey earlier in the year was for the track and would be released in June, however, by the end of the month, no video had been released. in September 2015, Del Rey posted a behind the scenes image from the video via her Instagram profile. The official music video premiered on September 30, 2015. The video features Del Rey lounging in a lawn chair while men play basketball on an empty court, and a group of young girls in dresses swimming together underwater. Scenes of Del Rey wearing glitter and wearing a black dress are intercut in between the footage of the basketball players. The video ends with Del Rey and the young girls holding hands and jumping together in a line.