Track Review: Dove Cameron, "Boyfriend"

Dove Cameron is looking to be the next pop star to successfully crossover from the clutches of Disney. Despite appearing on a slew of soundtracks and releasing some covers and original songs of her own, "Boyfriend" is the kind of intensely focused single that is used to launch a musical career. "In writing ‘Boyfriend,’ I feel like I finally found my sound, my perspective, and myself in a way I wasn’t sure I ever would," Dove said.

Written and produced by Dove herself, Skyler Stonestreet, Delacey, and Evan Blair, "Boyfriend" is a sly challenge to a currently taken love interest. The question Dove poses is one that centers her own queerness: What if the girl she's interested in needs a girlfriend instead of a boyfriend? "I could be a better boyfriend than him / I could do the shit that he never did," she croons with hypnotizing bombast. Dove's vocal approach has roots in jazz traditions, but she quickly drenches it in elements of indie pop voice and a touch of rasp and vowel-breaking. It's an unsuspectingly layered vocal that speaks to her talents as an actress as she cruises across the dramatic James Bond-esque production with the allure of a femme fatale. Dove flexes her acting prowess through both her vocal performance as well as the song's lyrics. In fact, her swaggering confidence is so convincing that "thinking I'm gonna steal you from him" feels like a recitation of fate instead of a playful taunt. Initially, the song feels a bit jarring because Dove's voice sounds especially delicate when juxtaposed against the roaring production, but the contrast ultimately works in the song's favor.

After gaining traction on TikTok and turning that into streaming success, it's looking like "Boyfriend" could really elevate Dove to the next level of her musical career.

Score: 65