Songfacts®:

• "Island" is a sonic postcard from a soul in limbo. It's a reminder that fame and isolation can often be two sides of the same coin, and that paradise can feel like purgatory when experienced alone.
• Cyrus revealed during her live performance of "Island" on the Endless Summer Vacation (Backyard Sessions) Disney+ special that she questions whether being in the public eye is right for her. "When I came up with an idea for 'Island,' the idea was kind of everyone is still a stranger to me, but I'm a stranger to no one," she said. "For me, I've been able to create these paradises where I feel safe. But I was contemplating this life that I have for myself. Is it a paradise or is it a lonely island?"
• Country artist and songwriter Caitlyn Smith, who co-wrote the Plastic Hearts breakup track "High," co-penned this groovy, low-key banger with Jennifer Decilveo, Michael Pollack, Dani Miller and producer BJ Burton. "Miley arrived at the studio wanting to write this idea called 'Island,'" Smith told Billboard. "She talked to us about how being in the spotlight since she was a kid has put her on a bit of an island from the rest of the world and how it's beautiful but, at times, can be really lonely."
• Cyrus wrote the hook: "Am I stranded on an island or have I landed in paradise?"
  
  "I love that line, which is one she wrote, which I think sums it up," said the song's co-writer Jennifer Decilveo. "Being uber successful, uber everything - is it paradise, or are you stranded alone? Not being able to go out because you're so famous and you can't go to Trader Joe's because people won't let you walk down the aisles like a normal person."
• Mama told me, "Girl, smoke 'em if you got 'em"
  Left my lighter back at home with all my problems
  
  Miley's mom Tish came by when the writers were penning "Island" and told them about a "Smoke 'Em If Ya Got 'Em" hat she had bought. They thought it would be a great line to put in the song. Cyrus later teased the lyric on postcards that were sent to fans to promote Endless Summer Vacation.