Easy Lover

Album: Something Beautiful (2025)
Charted: 64 82
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • On "Easy Lover" Miley Cyrus explores the emotional push and pull of a passionate but turbulent relationship. One of those romances where you know it's a bad idea, but here you are again.
  • "Easy Lover" first emerged during the recording sessions for Cyrus's 2020 album Plastic Hearts but was shelved because it didn't quite match the album's glam-rock vibe. When Beyoncé tapped her to contribute to Cowboy Carter, Cyrus retrieved the song from the drawer and re-worked it into a country-flavored track. Bey ultimately selected another song, "II Most Wanted," for the album.

    Revisiting "Easy Lover" for Something Beautiful, Cyrus gave it new life with a fresh arrangement. She brought in Alabama Shakes' Brittany Howard for the guitar work, resulting in the final, genre-blending version heard on the album.
  • Tie me to horses, I still wouldn't leave you (Tell 'em B)

    When Cyrus reworked "Easy Lover" for consideration for Cowboy Carter, she ad-libbed "Tell 'em B" as a playful shoutout to Beyoncé. After Cyrus reclaimed the track for Something Beautiful she debated what to do about the "Tell 'em, B" line, but ultimately kept it as a tribute to the song's journey and its connection to Beyoncé.
  • Thematically, "Easy Lover" fits within the emotional terrain Cyrus traversed in the years after her 2019 split from Australian actor Liam Hemsworth. Songs like "WTF Do I Know?" and "Slide Away" openly reference the demise of that relationship.

    While "Easy Lover" doesn't name names, the emotional DNA is familiar: intense love, incompatibility, and the struggle to move on.
  • Cyrus wrote the song alongside Michael Pollack, Ryan Tedder, and Omer Fedi, and co-produced it with Pollack and The Killers collaborators Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado.
  • Cyrus co-directed the showbiz-themed video with Jacob Bixenman and Brendan Walter, who worked on all the album's visuals. We see Cyrus deliver a choreographed showgirl routine with backup dancers, wearing vintage fringed Mugler chaps from the designer's 1992 collection.

    The visual is an ode to resilience via rhinestones: showbiz sadness turned up to 11 and filtered through a Hollywood haze.
  • The phrase "easy lover" has had a curious little life in pop music. Phil Bailey and Phil Collins made it sound like a cautionary tale in 1984, and Ellie Goulding turned it into something aching and modern in 2023. In Miley's case, it's almost entirely ironic - her lover is anything but easy.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."

Michael Franti

Michael FrantiSongwriter Interviews

Franti tells the story behind his hit "Say Hey (I Love You)" and explains why yoga is an integral part of his lifestyle and his Soulshine tour.

Kerry Livgren of Kansas

Kerry Livgren of KansasSongwriter Interviews

In this talk from the '80s, the Kansas frontman talks turning to God and writing "Dust In The Wind."

Charlie Benante of Anthrax

Charlie Benante of AnthraxSongwriter Interviews

The drummer for Anthrax is also a key songwriter. He explains how the group puts their songs together and tells the stories behind some of their classics.

Jonathan Edwards - "Sunshine"

Jonathan Edwards - "Sunshine"They're Playing My Song

"How much does it cost? I'll buy it?" Another songwriter told Jonathan to change these lyrics. Good thing he ignored this advice.

Ramones

RamonesFact or Fiction

A band so baffling, even their names were contrived. Check your score in the Ramones version of Fact or Fiction.