As Kesha’s journey of musical independence continues to unfurl, she’s bequeathed her Animals with another single from Period: “Boy Crazy.” As the title suggests, it’s got a very summery sound and, well, theme. That theme being, what else, horniness. Which, for Kesha, means, of all things (in a climate like this), male appreciation. Or at least appreciation of the right male body (the male mind is another thing entirely…and usually never quite right).
A text-to-speech voice opens the track with the lines, “I’m boy crazy, I’m boy crazy/Crazy boy, I’m so boy crazy.” And from that moment onward, it’s a strictly hyperpop sound (courtesy of production from Zhone [who also co-wrote with Kesha and Madison Love—and yes, he’s worked with the Queen of Hyperpop herself: Charli XCX]) as Kesha dives into an unabashed confession of her love (read: lust) for boys. Not just some boys—boys of all creeds and colors, from every part of the globe. Thus, she chirps, “Berlin to Bombay [a bit colonialist of Kesha to not call it Mumbai, but…), New York to L.A./Tokyo to Tahoe [a nice, rather unprecedented name-check there], boys are my cocaine/Bikers and the dumb bros, daddies and the gym hoes/Prowling like a kitty cat, I want to get you all alone/Want to get you all alone/Motherfucker, check your phone.”
In addition to the expression of her voracious appetite for men (or boys) harkening back to 2010’s “Cannibal” (on which she sings, “I eat boys up, breakfast and lunch”), there’s an undeniable Sabrina (a.k.a. Sabrina Salerno) quality to the rapaciousness of Kesha’s ode to boys in the summertime. That is to say, what Kesha has effectively done is create a version of Sabrina’s “Boys (Summertime Love)” for the 2020s. And it’s not just the boy-loving, boy-obsessing lyrics of the single that help to draw the comparison, but also the ultra 80s-sounding backbeat (especially compared to the other songs Zhone has worked on for Kesha thus far for this album: “Joy Ride” and “Delusional”).
Kesha’s determination to have her tits out this summer becomes increasingly apparent as she informs her listeners, “I’ve been a good girl/Now I’m a connoisseur/Many men are on the menu/Eat ‘em up like amuse-bouche/Boys better beware, I’m on a man tear/Driving ninety, they’ve been tryna get me in my underwear/Get me in my underwear/Motherfucker, pull my hair/Boys better beware, boys better beware, boys better beware.”
At other times, Kesha is even more direct with her desires in declaring, “Gimme gimme gimme all the boys.” This, too, reminding one of the Sabrina sound as the word “boys” is imbued with a male-sounding voice the same way that the opening repetition of “boys” is in “Boys (Summertime Love),” and also in the third verse and bridge (as the male voice in these instances belongs to Malcolm Charlton). As Kesha continues to detail the extent of her hunger for boys from all over the world (with the L.A./Tokyo callout reminding one of that time Charli said, “I’m in the fast lane/From L.A. to Tokyo”), it’s easy to hear Sabrina’s voice complementing the sentiments with the simple refrain, “Boys, boys, boys/I’m lookin’ for a good time/Boys, boys, boys, get ready for my love” (though, naturally, some will be quicker to reference and compare it to Lady Gaga’s 2008 song, “Boys Boys Boys”—itself also another riff on the OG Sabrina single). Elsewhere, she urges, “Stay around, the sun goes down/Babe, I’m feelin’ right/Take a chance, a love romance/Have some fun tonight.”
While Sabrina’s tone might not be quite as sped up as Kesha’s (after all, in the eighties, the whole “sped up” trend wasn’t even a thought in any singer’s mind), it has the same sprightly energy. Almost as though they’ve both already just been fucked by some boy (and actually got an orgasm out of it). Kesha’s newfound sense of horn dog vigor might still come as a surprise to those who half-expected her to keep making emotional “coping” ballads in the style of “Praying,” what with all the trauma she endured as a result of her personal and professional entwinement with Dr. Luke. But it’s clearer than ever that Kesha is looking forward, doing everything to empower her future in a way that she couldn’t with her past. And, in order to do that, she obviously feels that there’s no sense in “dwelling” anymore. Instead adhering to what Madonna often talks about when mentioning Kabbalah (as she’s done since 1998 in some form or another): that the hardest (but best) thing to do is not only to forgive someone who’s fucked you over, but to actually wish them well. Perhaps the latter piece of that philosophy is a little too much, even for a self-proclaimed hippie like Kesha. So she’ll have to take the easier revenge (posing as forgiveness) route by simply living her best life.
And that means exploring many, many different types of penises. With that in mind, Kesha explains to any potential prudes, “I just need a little love tonight/I can’t help it, baby, I’m on fire [or, as Lana Del Rey once said, “Honey, I’m on fire, I feel it everywhere”]. Or, perhaps more accurately, she’s in heat. As many women are during the summer months, try as they might to hold fast to an unspoken “Lysistrata movement” going on. But how can any girl be expected to stay true to that with Kesha “whispering” in their ear, “I’m obsessive, I’m fixating/I want all the boys lately/Fly me out and entertain me/Oh, oh, I’m boy crazy/I’m obsessive, my heart’s racing/I want all the boys lately/You’re my fix and you’re my craving/Oh, oh, I’m boy crazy.”
Well, at least it’s better than being money crazy. That usually makes for a much less fun person…or “gal pal,” if you must. Though, if Samantha Jones’ (Kim Cattrall) brief acquaintanceship with Claire Anne (Jane Summerhays) in the “Frenemies” episode of Sex and the City is an indication, there is such a thing as a girl being too boy crazy. To the point of, if not reckless endangerment, then at least reckless embarrassment. Oh well, that’s no matter to Kesha. She’s beyond it all at this stage, and after everything she’s been through. Only to come out the other side still having a miraculous fondness for men. So don’t ever try to tell somebody that sexual orientation is a “choice.”
