Most of us 2000s kids will recognize Hayley Kiyoko from Lemonade Mouth which, at least for me, always seemed to be playing on Disney Channel during my middle school summers. Although this movie was good enough to hold my attention on boring mid-July days, I like her recent work much better. Her newest project I’m Too Sensitive for This Shit is expected to drop soon and will contain her latest singles “I Wish,” “demons,” and her most recent, “L.O.V.E. Me.”

“L.O.V.E. Me” is the kind of catchy pop song that makes you want to dance around in your bedroom. With strong, romantic lyrics like, “You got me begging pretty please / I will throw away all of my revenue / If you swear you’d never leave,” Kiyoko is at her most vulnerable.  

This track draws elements from the 1990s with a bubbly pop sound, radiating positive energy. Although the production of “L.O.V.E. Me” lifts your spirits up, the lyrics will send you back to reality. Despite the upbeat and joyous sound, Kiyoko addresses the struggles of relationships, that many of us can probably relate to. She describes the hardships of what it’s like when someone tells you how they feel in private, but won’t express that publicly.  

Known to her fans as “Lesbian Jesus,” Kiyoko has been open about her sexuality to the public since 2015 when she released her single “Girls Like Girls.” “I didn’t want a label at all, but once I released my music, there was this out-pour of support for the fact that I did like girls,” Kiyoko explained. “I learned that by embracing my label as a lesbian, I was helping normalise that for so many other people.” “L.O.V.E. Me” continues to do just that.

Feature image by Amanda Charchian; retrieved from Advocate.