Songfacts®:

• Here Post Malone puts his own twist on the proverbial phrase, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." He looks around at all the surrounding people with apples and tangerines for whom life is sweet. Meanwhile, Post's life is pretty sour, represented by him growing a lemon tree. Rather than sinking into a depressive state of mind, the Texan resolves to take positive action and burn down the lemon tree. Then, he will grow something better.
• When the pandemic hit, Malone got a bad case of writer's block. Eager for a change of pace, he and his team moved into a house in Malibu, where he picked up his guitar and started writing again. This striped-down song is from those sessions.
• Malone co-wrote "Lemon Tree" with his regular cohorts Billy Walsh, Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome and Brian Lee. Charlie Handsome previously contributed to three tracks on Malone's 2016 Stoney album, including "Go Flex." Korean-American producer Brian Lee also helped with the production of Twelve Carat Toothache's lead single, "One Right Now."