"'Pretty Girl' is one of my favorite songs on my new EP, Citrine. It's an acknowledgement of all those beautiful women you come across and think to yourself, 'gosh, that girl is just so beautiful,' but never say anything or act on it. So often I'll think it without saying anything. With this song, I just wanted to share that appreciation."
Hayley Kiyoko, PAPER Magazine
LA-based actress, singer, and songwriter Hayley Kiyoko looks set to continue the tradition she established with "Girls Like Girls" with the release of "Pretty Girl", a track from her upcoming EP Citrine. The lyrics to the song are relatively straightforward (Kiyoko basically delivers an internal monologue about wanting to express her admiration for a same-sex crush):
'I can see you're real smartWorld class piece of artI can see you in the darkAll we have to do is start
I just wanna tell you that you're really pretty girlI just wanna know if you will let me be your worldI just know you got to taste like candy, candy girlI just wanna tell you that you're really pretty girl'
There's an honesty and vulnerability here (Feel it all despite/ The fact you don't like my type) that prevent the song from degenerating into faux-lesbian posturing primarily targeted at a straight male audience (e.g. Katty Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" or Gia's "Only a Girl"). There's also a hint of mystery and a slightly ethereal quality that helps the track stand out from other cookie-cutter electro-pop tracks. Like Troye Sivan, Tegan and Sara, and Kadie Elder, Kiyoko is helping to bring queer desires to a mainstream audience - and usher in "an inclusive pop world where ladies who love ladies get to sing, dance, and see their lives in the music and images they consume is taking its place" (Shannon Steck, Nylon).
