Money Buys Happiness, Kinda
PinkPantheress stars in the nostalgia-drenched video alongside Bridgerton actress Charithra Chandran, Queen Charlotte star India Amarteifio, and Black-ish lead Yara Shahidi
PinkPantheress‘ priorities couldn’t be more in order. Her commitment to the early 2000s aesthetic led her to channel the romantic comedies of that time in the music video for her latest single “Mosquito.” But instead of yearning for the affection of men with deeply hit-or-miss haircuts, she went with the more obvious win: those shopping sprees the protagonist and her friends always seemed to have endless funds for.
PinkPantheress stars in the nostalgia-drenched video alongside Bridgerton actress Charithra Chandran, Queen Charlotte star India Amarteifio, and Black-ish lead Yara Shahidi. But even as they’re waltzing down the block with shopping bags and credit card charges courtesy of Fendi, Valentino, and Gucci, the British singer is still hung up on something else.
“Cause I just had a dream I was dead/And I only cared ’cause I was taken from you,” she sings over the production from Greg Kurstin. “You’re the only thing that I own/I’d hear my bell ring, I’d only answer for you.” No material things can take this place in her heart, but she’s also uncertain about what that means: “I had prayed out loud and Lord, you answered me too early/I was too young startin’ out, now I’m too scared that you might leave me/I feel like I’m still a child because I always cross my fingers.”
PinkPantheress first teased “Mosquito” on TikTok in June 2022 the day after she finished making it. A few months later, she shared an updated version that scaled back the original’s more intense beat. “After a long wait my favourite song is coming out to the public,” she shared in a statement. “I’m so excited for you guys to hear something different from me in form of this song.”
The record follows “Boys a Liar, Pt. 2,” the 22-year-old’s viral collaboration with Ice Spice, and her Barbie soundtrack contribution “Angel.”