We love it when things do what they say on the tin. For example, Charli XCX’s new music video for “Boys” — which may be the song title, but is the perfect description of the video. Boys. Lots of boys. Fat boys, skinny boys, boys that climb on rocks. (Okay, none of those last ones.)
The video, co-directed by Charli herself and Sarah McColgan, is as adorably charming as the song itself. The lyric features Charli apologizing for not paying attention and missing a party because “I was busy thinkin’ ’bout boys.” We’re pretty sure this is a feeling most of our readers can relate to.
And well, if these are the boys she was busy thinking about — we understand it. The full list is at the bottom of this article, but some of our favorites include Riz Ahmed, Tinie Tempah, Joe Jonas, Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend and Oli Sykes from the metal band Bring Me the Horizon. (That said, we could have done without noted joke thief The Fat Jew.)
One of the things we love most about the video — aside, of course, from the boys — is the fact that many different boy shapes are represented. It’s not just all the standard white muscleman we often see in the media.
But more to the point, we love that the video is fun. There’s a lot of great shots — including the shots with lots of puppies or the flaming flower. This video must have been a blast to make, and it shows. And, hey, you can’t ever go wrong with millennial pink!
It’s also worth noting that this is not Charli XCX’s directorial debut. She also directed a documentary for BBC 3 called The F Word and Me about gender equality. (The “F Word” in question is “feminism,” of course.)
And well, whether or not you enjoy her music — to paraphrase a song she co-wrote — we don’t care. We love it.
