Shy Boy is the fifth track on Carly Rae Jepsen's sixth studio album The Loveliest Time (2023). It was released on June 23rd 2023 through 604, School Boy, and Interscope Records.
The song serves as the album's official lead single. It received an official YouTube visualiser upon its release, which has garnered over 420,000 views as of May 2024. [1]
Lyrics[]
Verse 1
You're pretty, we're drinking
So I say what I'm thinking
"How come everybody's dancing but you?"
A deep conversation
A last minute invitation
Yeah, I'm gonna make this easy for you
Pre-Chorus
But it’s like this, I put you on the list
So come downtown, if you're around
I hope you do, baby, I insist
I don’t care what they say about you
So sick of everybody telling me what to do
When all I need is your eyes across the room
Yeah, those eyes across the room
Chorus
Shy boy, stir me up
I get a little something from your morning cup
Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, woah-oh-oh
Shy boy, stir me up
You didn’t even know you got the Midas touch
Touch, touch, touch, touch, woah-oh-oh
Come pick me up
Post-Chorus
Shy boy, boy, boy, woah
Shy boy, boy, boy, woah
Verse 2
You show up, you show late
The room spins, the earth quakes
I admit that I was waiting for you
My friends want to meet 'ya
But they're only gonna tease 'ya
'Cause we made a bet you wouldn't come through
Pre-Chorus
But it’s like this, I put you on the list
So come downtown, if you're around
I hope you do, baby, I insist
I don’t care what they say about you
So sick of everybody telling me what to do
When all I need is your eyes across the room
Yeah, those eyes across the room
Chorus
Shy boy, stir me up
I get a little something from your morning cup
Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, woah-oh-oh
Shy boy, stir me up
You didn’t even know you got the Midas touch
Touch, touch, touch, touch, woah-oh-oh
Come pick me up
Post-Chorus
Shy boy, boy, boy, woah
Shy boy, boy, boy, woah
Bridge
He's got the Midas touch
Everything he touch turns to gold
Oh, sugar
He's got the Midas touch
Everything he touch turns to gold
Oh, sugar
Chorus
Shy boy, stir me up
I get a little something from your morning cup
Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, woah-oh-oh
Shy boy, stir me up
You didn’t even know you got the Midas touch
Touch, touch, touch, touch, woah-oh-oh
Come pick me up
Outro
Touch, touch (Stir me up)
You can touch my body
Touch, touch
You can touch my body
He's got the Midas touch (Stir me up)
Everything he touch turns to gold
Song credits[]
Writing and production[]
- Written by: Carly Rae Jepsen • Kyle Shearer • Nate Campany • Ethan Gruska • Ben Romans • Bo Watson ⊺ • June Watson ⊺
- Produced by: James Ford
Instrumentation[]
- Bass: James Ford
- Drums: James Ford
- Keyboards: James Ford
- Guitar: James Ford
- Strings: Rob Moose
- Synthesizer: James Ford
Technical credits[]
- Engineering: James Ford
- Mastering: Ruairi O'Flaherty
- Mixing: Anthony Dolhai
Sample info[]
- Samples: Midnight Star - Midas Touch (1986)
- Written by: Bo Watson • June Watson
Background[]
Shy Boy was premiered by Jepsen at WeHo Pride 2023 on June 5th 2023 at Rocco's WeHo, in West Hollywood, California. Jepsen's backing vocalist Rachel Clark shared a preview of the song from the event via Instagram. Later that day, Jepsen confirmed Shy Boy to be an upcoming single. [2]
Writing and development[]
Shy Boy is a song that was developed across multiple years, prior to its final iteration that would see its inclusion on The Loveliest Time. Carly discussed the development of the song via Instagram, describing how the process had taken "many cold, long years" - she stated she had "chased this idea down and recycled and re-written it" and "brought it back around." [3]
Rework from past songs[]
Jepsen states that Shy Boy is a song she's had for "a very long time" in "different forms." Most notably, the song contains reworked elements from Depends On You and It's Like This in it's pre-chorus, "It's like this, I put you on the list (...)", which was a hook idea written before even Call Me Maybe. Carly wrote the original idea around 2010 in Vancouver, about a guy whom she wanted to come to her pub shows. [4][5] Elements of the song shared with It's Like This were previously known to have dated back to at least October 2010. [6]
Development for Dedicated[]
Shy Boy, in one of its original forms, was written by Jepsen alongside Kyle Shearer, Nate Campany, and Nate Cyphert (who isn't credited on the final track), in October 2016, during the development of Dedicated. [7][8] Since then, Campany states the song had taken "about 100 twists and turns" and how "each change in version made it better." [7]
The Loneliest Time rework[]
During the development of The Loneliest Time, Shy Boy was reworked by Ethan Gruska, likely around 2021, and the final version was reproduced by James Ford for The Loveliest Time. The song also features additional writing credits from Ben Romans. [4]
The final version of the song was produced by James Ford in a studio session in London, between 2021 and 2023. Carly recollected listening to the final version after their session and initially feeling worried that the song would feel disjointed, after how many times it had been reworked; "I listened to the final result when I was in London, we’d done some ad libs, and I remember dancing. I was so worried that with how much it had gone through that it would not feel effortless to listen to. But it feels easy. It feels simple. It feels like flirtation." [4]
Sample[]
Shy Boy interpolates the chorus of Midnight Star's 1986 song "Midas Touch", written by Bo and June Watson - "He's got the Midas touch / Everything he touch turns to gold / Oh, sugar." [9]
Announcement and release[]
Shy Boy was officially announced as Jepsen's upcoming single on June 15th 2023, alongside the reveal of its release date and single cover. [10] The song was played at multiple club and drag events prior to its release, across June 2023. [11][12]
Shy Boy was officially released on June 23rd 2023, through 604, School Boy, and Interscope Records. Upon its release, the song received an official visualiser via YouTube that same day.
Release history[]
| Region | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | June 23rd 2023 | Digital • streaming | 604 Records |
| Worldwide | School Boy • Interscope |
Gallery[]
[]
| The Loneliest Time | Surrender My Heart • Joshua Tree • Talking To Yourself • Far Away • Sideways • Beach House • Bends • Western Wind • So Nice • Bad Thing Twice • Shooting Star • Go Find Yourself or Whatever • The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright) • Anxious • No Thinking Over the Weekend • Keep Away |
|---|---|
| The Loveliest Time | Anything To Be With You • Kamikaze • After Last Night • Aeroplanes • Shy Boy • Kollage • Shadow • Psychedelic Switch • So Right • Come Over • Put It To Rest • Stadium Love • Weekend Love |
| Other releases | Move Me (with Lewis OfMan) • Hello Kitty: Super Style (Theme Song) • Shadow (George Daniel Remix) • Rare (feat. Carly Rae Jepsen) |
| Leaked | Lost in Devotion • The Man's Got Music |
|---|---|
| Unleaked | Let's Pretend This Never Happened • Waterlines • Don't Kiss the Producer • Devotion • Come Around • Wait For Me • Unconditionally • Sweater Weather |
| Electric Guest demos | Clues • Coming Soon • Summer Vibe • Cruising For Hours • Spotlight • Night Out • Why Not? • Only 1 4 Me • 97 • Come Pick Me Up • Ur Love Means 2 Me • Weekend • Next Life • OUCH • You, You, You, You • Emergency Love • Closer • Let's Pretend |
References[]
- ↑ Carly Rae Jepsen "Shy Boy (Official Visualizer)" June 23rd 2023
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen "Pictured here: My back up singers getting loose to my new single before its release day." June 5th 2023 (via Twitter)
- ↑ @carlyraewiki "@carlyrajepsen on 'Shy Boy': "It's been many years. I've chased this idea down and recycled and re-written it. Brought it back around (...)"" June 15th 2023 - via Twitter
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Spanos, Brittany "Carly Rae Jepsen Says Her New Project ‘The Loveliest Time’ Is Her Favorite — and Freest — Album Yet" Rolling Stone, July 19th 2023
- ↑ Savage, Mark "Carly Rae Jepsen on Glastonbury: I'll get lost like a child" BBC News, June 23rd 2023
- ↑ Jepsen, Carly Rae 'it's like this....I put you on the list' October 19th 2010 - via Facebook
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 @natecampany "nate cyphert, kyle, carly and i had a magical week in the jungle of nicaragua. it was a sweaty blur of songs (...)" June 23rd 2023 - via Instagram
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen "Apparently just singing isn't enough. I also like to make out w the pop filter for extra kicks." October 6th 2016 - via Twitter
- ↑ Midnight Star - Midas Touch
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen "Shy Boy drops midnight June 23rd." June 15th 2023 - via Twitter
- ↑ @carlyraeupdts "New snippet of "Shy Boy"." June 18th 2023, via Twitter
- ↑ @carlyraewiki "New extended preview of @carlyraejepsen’s “Shy Boy”!" June 16th 2023 - via Twitter