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- “Sunflower” by Post Malone, featuring Swae Lee, hit the top of the Billboard charts last year and is nominated for two 2020 Grammys this year.
- Malone and Lee, with the help of a few others, wrote the song for the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack.
- The song is up for Record of the Year against Lizzo, H.E.R., Billie Eilish, Lil Nas X, and others; as well as for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
From the opening credits of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, your spidey senses prickle in attention, knowing something truly amazing is about to unfold. Not only because of the optics—though, proudly asserting a half-Black, half-Puerto Rican kid as the epicenter of a Spidey film needs to be applauded—but for the sound.
Behind the dazzling mix of shifting visuals that push the craft of animation into several other dimensions, and beyond the adrenaline-pounding action required of such an enduring franchise, there’s a refreshing hip-hop-leaning soundtrack that stays faithful to its hero and culturally relevant to the time in which we’re hearing it.
Released in December of 2018, the soundtrack features artists like Jaden Smith, Lil Wayne, Blackway & Black Caviar, and Post Malone. And it’s the latter Texas transplant, who with Rae Sremmurd rapper Swae Lee, delivers one of the most memorable—and dreamy—tracks from the entire lineup.
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“Sunflower” is the first song to play in the film, and it’s also the first from the soundtrack to hit number one on the Billboard charts. But that’s obviously not the only good news the track has received lately. The Grammys announced back in December 2019 that it was nominated for two Gramophones: one for Record of the Year (it will be battling versus Billie Eilish, H.E.R., Lil Nas X, and others for that honor), and another for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (where the Jonas Brothers, Ariana Grande, and more will vie for that title). So, do we have a budding winner on our hands with Malone and Lee’s hit? Maybe. We’ll have to wait for Sunday to find out. Until then, let’s dissect the meaning of “Sunflower.”
The lyrics, while brief, are tricky. And to even begin to understand Malone and Lee’s cryptic flow, we may need to first work on nurturing a bit of a green thumb. According to this gardening website, sunflowers are coarse plants with delicate petals. The site informs us that this complex genus of plant needs ample sunlight and fertile soil to grow, but will also tolerate drier conditions. If you apply that metaphor to “Sunflower,” you have what sounds akin to a relationship that falls into the “it’s complicated” status, yeah?
Okay, so back to the lyrics. “Then you’re left in the dust / Unless I stuck by ya / You’re a sunflower / I think you’re love would be too much.” It’s the chorus that first Lee then Malone sings, so we can probably assume both artists are either sharing the narration for one man’s story—or both are in love with same girl. Either way, she is the sunflower: coarse, yet delicate; needs love, yet can tolerate a lack of affection.
Lee takes the first verse, lightly rapping, “Needless to say, I keep her in check / She was all bad-bad, nevertheless (yeah) / Callin’ it quits now, baby, I’m a wreck (wreck) / Crash at my place, baby, you’re a wreck (wreck).” Variety chatted with the 26-year-old artist about his time working with Malone, and he divulged a little about how the song came together.
“The melody came first, then the hook and my verse. I just wrote in my head and then I ended up putting words to it just like five minutes after. … I was fully warmed up [after a full night in the studio] and the most creative energy comes out at 5 a.m. amongst us creatives … I wanted to go out with a bang that night, and I got it out of me.”
If we are to apply the lyrics of “Sunflower” to the Spider-Verse film, then Malone’s verse, which comes second, actually makes a lot of sense. “Every time I’m leavin’ on ya / You don’t make it easy, no, no / Wish I could be there for ya / Give me a reason to go,” he coolly raps. For a superhero, juggling a girlfriend and an identity crisis is perplexing stuff.
Anyone familiar with the saga that is Peter Parker and MJ knows what we’re talking about here. Though it’s not like we’d ever hear a snag of frustration in Malone’s almost evanescent tone. His lyrics seem to evaporate into a cloud of smoke the second they leave his mouth. No wonder—they were completely chill while recording the song. Check them out in this behind-the-scenes video.
Read on for the rest of the lyrics to “Sunflower,” courtesy of Genius.com.
[Intro: Swae Lee]
Ayy, ayy, ayy, ayy (Ooh)
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh (Ooh)
Ayy, ayy
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
[Verse 1: Swae Lee]
Needless to say, I keep in check
She was a bad-bad, nevertheless (Yeah)
Callin' it quits now, baby, I'm a wreck (Wreck)
Crash at my place, baby, you're a wreck (Wreck)
Needless to say, I'm keeping in check
She was a bad-bad, nevertheless
Callin' it quits now, baby, I'm a wreck
Crash at my place, baby, you're a wreck
Thinkin' in a bad way, losin' your grip
Screamin' at my face, baby, don't trip
Someone took a big L, don't know how that felt
Lookin' at you sideways, party on tilt
Ooh-ooh, some things you just can't refuse
She wanna ride me like a cruise and I'm not tryna lose
[Chorus: Swae Lee]
Then you're left in the dust, unless I stuck by ya
You're a sunflower, I think your love would be too much
Or you'll be left in the dust, unless I stuck by ya
You're the sunflower, you're the sunflower
[Verse 2: Post Malone]
Every time I'm leavin' on ya (Ooh)
You don't make it easy, no (No, no)
Wish I could be there for ya (Ooh)
Give me a reason to, oh (Oh)
Every time I'm walkin' out (Oh)
I can hear you tellin' me to turn around (Oh, oh)
Fightin' for my trust and you won't back down (No)
Even if we gotta risk it all right now, oh (Now)
I know you're scared of the unknown (Known)
You don't wanna be alone (Alone)
I know I always come and go (And go)
But it's out of my control
[Chorus: Post Malone]
And you'll be left in the dust, unless I stuck by ya
You're the sunflower, I think your love would be too much
Or you'll be left in the dust, unless I stuck by ya
You're the sunflower, you're the sunflower (Yeah)
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DeAnna Janes is a freelance writer and editor for a number of sites, including Harper’s BAZAAR, Tasting Table, Fast Company and Brit + Co, and is a passionate supporter of animal causes, copy savant, movie dork and reckless connoisseur of all holidays. A native Texan living in NYC since 2005, Janes has a degree in journalism from Texas A&M and got her start in media at US Weekly before moving on to O Magazine, and eventually becoming the entertainment editor of the once-loved, now-shuttered DailyCandy. She’s based on the Upper West Side.
