| "Male Fantasy" | ||||
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.jpg) "Official Live Performance" cover | ||||
| Single by Billie Eilish | ||||
| from the album Happier Than Ever | ||||
| Released | December 6, 2021 | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 3:14 | |||
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| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) | Finneas | |||
| Billie Eilish singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Male Fantasy" on YouTube | ||||
"Male Fantasy" is a song by American singer-songwriter Billie Eilish, included as the closing track on her second studio album Happier Than Ever (2021). A country-tinged, folk ballad about a break-up, it was written by Eilish and its producer, her brother Finneas O'Connell. In the verses, the narrator attempts to watch pornography to distract herself from her problems, and she criticizes how its standards around beauty and sexuality negatively affect people. She fantasizes about her past lover in the chorus, admitting that she can never hate them no matter how hard she forces herself to do so.
"Male Fantasy" was one of the last songs written for Happier Than Ever, and Eilish wanted to make it the album's final track because she considered the song reminiscent of closing credits. It was released as the seventh single from the album on December 6, 2021. The song received praise from music critics, who complimented it for the simplistic arrangement and inventive lyrics, and became a fan favorite. "Male Fantasy" was Happier Than Ever's least commercially successful single, with low peaks on national charts in Australia (59), Canada (62), and Portugal (80). In the United States, the song failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, only entering the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart at second place.
Eilish directed and edited the music video for "Male Fantasy", which premiered the same day as its release. The video features several jump cuts and a predominantly light blue color scheme; in it, Eilish wanders around a claustrophobic house alone. She performed the song as part of a Vevo Live video series on YouTube, singing it while on a golden bed in an Old Hollywood-esque hotel, and a mashup for Saturday Night Live alongside Happier Than Ever's title track. Eilish included the song in the set lists of a 2021 concert film and a 2022–2023 world tour in support of the album.