On October 13, 2023, Troye Sivan released his album “Something to Give Each Other.” The Album contains ten songs, with “One of Your Girls” being the most popular, gaining 42 million streams on Spotify in only a month. The music video features Sivan in drag, wearing a blonde wig, feminine makeup, and a short and lacy white dress. Sivan is seen lip-syncing with actor and musician Ross Lynch posing as his lap dance partner. As soon as the video hit YouTube, clips broke the internet and many were sharing their reactions. Many express their appreciation for Sivan, proclaiming they found him attractive both in drag and his usual masculine presenting self. However, many were much more focused on the music video than the actual song.
Sivan went on the Zach Sang show shortly after the album’s release. He told Sang that he had written the song after a guy he was texting had told him that sometimes when it’s late at night and he had been partying, he occasionally wants to hook-up with a guy. Sivan replied saying, “Well, let me know if you’re feeling gay on Saturday night at any point,” half jokingly. He came up with the chorus of “One of Your Girls” that morning in the shower: “Give me a call if you ever get lonely, I’ll be like one of your girls or your homies. Say what you want, and I’ll keep it a secret. You get the key to my heart, and I need it. Give me a call if you ever get desperate, I’ll be like one of your girls.” Sivan talked about how he consistently is reached out to by straight men who are interested in him, and how he always found it “sort of hot”. Telling Sang about how he started to think more deeply about why, questioning if he was responding to the fact that this person probably would have scared him in high school and now he’s getting a chance or if it was some sort of internalized homophobia. He then went on saying that when he did follow through with it, he was left with an empty feeling due to the fact that there was a limit on what it could be. These men weren’t ready or willing to start a relationship with Sivan, let alone any man.
With the song’s upbeat tone, it’s easy to miss the mildly heartbreaking lyrics. It’s as if Sivan deliberately distracts the viewers from the meaning of the song, especially with the playful and scandalous tone of the music video. However he leaves the audience a hint to the sad meaning with the last clip of the video being Sivan staring into the camera holding back tears. While any song can be interpreted however the listener wants, the real meaning of this song is very important to the queer community and not bringing attention to it could potentially be damaging. The queer community, especially people who identify as gay or lesbian, are often used by straight people or people who are experimenting or questioning. This isn’t talked about very often and while some might be ok with it, it leaves a very sour taste in many people’s mouths when it happens, whether the queer person knows that that person is straight/questioning or not.
The song is definitely worth a listen, no matter what mood you might be in or who you are. Its beat is very uplifting and motivating. The production is great, being produced by Oscar Görres who has produced and co-written for many popular artists including but not limited to: Katy Perry, Sam Smith, and Taylor Swift. Despite its deeper meaning, it’s fun and light-hearted.
