"You Can Be the Boss" is an unreleased song by Lana Del Rey. It was recorded in 2010 and co-written and produced by Joe Henson and Alexis Smith of The Flight. It is registered to ASCAP and ISWC.[1][2]
Background[]
Del Rey uploaded the song to her now-defunct SoundCloud profile on March 22, 2010, alongside other songs "On Our Way", "Hundred Dollar Bill", "Velvet Crowbar", "Us Against the World", and "Kinda Outta Luck".[3]
The song received positive reviews amid her rise alongside "Video Games" during the summer of 2011[citation needed] and was the first of Del Rey's unreleased songs to leak. Three vocal stems are available: one from the chorus and two from the song's intro. The studio a cappella leaked on January 29, 2017.
Live performances[]
Del Rey performed the song live several times during her concerts in 2011. On May 7, 2015, Del Rey also performed the song on the opening day of the Endless Summer Tour in The Woodlands, Texas, alongside other unreleased songs, "Serial Killer" and "Us Against the World".[4]
Music video[]
| Music video | Information | |
|---|---|---|
|
Released | April 5, 2010 |
| Length | 3:12 | |
| Director | Lana Del Rey | |
| Producer | ||
| Filmed | 2010 | |
| Location | Unknown | |
| Vevo views | N/A | |
Background and description[]
Del Rey created her own homemade music video for the song in 2010 and posted it to her "UhaulJoe" YouTube channel on April 5, 2010. Like most of her earlier music videos, it features clips of Del Rey singing along to the song and clips she gathered from miscellaneous films and videos. Footage of Del Rey in this video is mostly in black and white or muted colors.
Cross-references[]
- The phrase "I like you a lot" is also used in "Music to Watch Boys To", "Breaking My Heart", and "White Mustang", and is similar to "I like you quite a lot" from "Lolita" and "I like you lots" from "Wild At Heart".
- Del Rey mentions a white Corvette in "All Smiles" and "Hawaiian Tropic".
- Cigarettes are also mentioned in "The Next Best American Record", "Girl That Got Away", "Dum Dum", "1949", and "Last Girl on Earth", among many others.
- Direct reference to "4th of July".
- Liquor is also mentioned in "Motel 6", "California", "Carmen", and "Gods & Monsters".
- References to "daddy" can be found in many of Del Rey's songs, such as "Daddy Issues", "Put Me in a Movie", "Yayo", and "Ride".
- A party is also mentioned in "Art Deco", "Motel 6", and in the poem "Violet Bent Backwards Over the Grass".
- Dogs are also mentioned in "Religion" and "24".
- Being dangerous is also a theme in "Playing Dangerous", "Dangerous Girl", and "Kinda Outta Luck", and indirectly also appears in "Off to the Races".
- Fire is also mentioned in "Off to the Races", "West Coast", and "Freak".
- The phrase "I need you" also appears in "Off to the Races" and "Fucked My Way Up to the Top".
Official versions[]
- Studio version — 3:04
- A cappella — 3:12
Lyrics[]
You taste like the 4th of July
Malt liquor on your breath, my, my
I love you but I don't know why
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Taste like a keg party, back on the sauce
Like you a lot, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Bad to the bone, sick as a dog
You know that I like, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
He had a cigarette with his number on it
He gave it over to me, "do you want it?"
I knew it was wrong but I palmed it
I saved it, I waited, I called it
The liquor on your lips, the liquor on your lips
The liquor on your lips makes you dangerous
I knew it was wrong, I'm beyond it
I tried to be strong but I lost it
You taste like the 4th of July
Malt liquor on your breath, my, my
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Taste like a keg party, back on the sauce
Like you a lot, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Bad to the bone, sick as a dog
You know that I like, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
He has a white Corvette like I wanted
A fire in his eyes, know I saw it
He's bleeding from his brain and his wallet
He's sick and he's taken but honest
The liquor on your lips, the liquor on your lips
The liquor on his lips I just can't resist
As close as I'll get to the darkness
He tells me to shut up, "I got this"
You taste like the 4th of July
Malt liquor on your breath, my, my
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Taste like a keg party, back on the sauce
Like you a lot, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Bad to the bone, sick as a dog
You know that I like, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
I need you, I need you, babe
Like I never needed anyone
You're wrong but you're so much fun
You say you treat 'em mean to keep 'em keen, you're not that nice
But you taste like the 4th of July
Malt liquor on your breath, my, my
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Taste like a keg party, back on the sauce
Like you a lot, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
You can be the boss, daddy, you can be the boss
Bad to the bone, sick as a dog
You know that I like, like you a lot, don’t let it stop
Don't let it stop
References[]
- ↑ ASCAP IPI: 883322452
- ↑ ISWC Code: T-906.907.446-0
- ↑ "Lanadelrey". SoundCloud. May 22, 2010. Archived from the original on May 30, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100530082249/http://soundcloud.com/lanadelrey.
- ↑ Ldr Fansite (June 10, 2017). "Lana Del Rey rehearsing "You Can Be The Boss" for the Endless Summer Tour". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfjokADvuis. Retrieved February 9, 2024.