"Lush Life" is a song by Swedish singer and songwriter Zara Larsson. It was released as the lead single from her second studio album So Good (2017) on 5 June 2015 in Sweden, and internationally on 9 June 2015, through TEN Music Group and Epic Records. "Lush Life" is an electropop song, and has been described as a "summer jam", which lyrically explores living in the moment and enjoying yourself. The song received praise from critics, many of whom noted its summery sound and catchiness. "Lush Life" was nominated for a Swedish Grammis Award in 2016 for Song of the Year, and won a GAFFA Award for Best Swedish Song in 2017.
"Lush Life" received commercial success, peaking at number one in Sweden, and within the top five in 17 other countries, including Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom. It became one of the best-selling songs of the 2010s in the United Kingdom, and one of the best-selling songs of all time in Sweden. It has received certifications in 21 countries, 18 of which are Platinum or higher, including a Diamond certification in France and Poland, respectively.
A remix featuring British rapper Tinie Tempah was released on 26 February 2016. Larsson has included "Lush Life" in the set lists of all of her concert tours, starting with her first major concert tour, the So Good World Tour, in 2017, and most recently the Midnight Sun Tour in 2025.
Background and composition
"Lush Life" was written by Emanuel Abrahamsson, Marcus Sepehrmanesh, Linnea Södahl, Fridolin Walcher, Christoph Bauss, and Iman Conta Hultén, during a writing camp in Stockholm, and was personally chosen by Larsson to record after the track "really stood out" to her.[2] The track's production was handled by Freedo and Shuko. The song has been described as a "summer jam",[3] and features electropop production, written in the key of G minor with a tempo of 98 beats per minute.[4] Larsson explained the lyrical content of the song in an interview with Genius in 2017, describing the first part of the chorus: "I live my day as if it was the last / live my day as if there was no past / Doin' it all night, all summer / Doin' it the way I wanna", as being about "just [living] in the moment and [trying] to enjoy it as much as possible" and "[living] the lush life all summer".[2]
On 27 August 2021, in celebration of the song surpassing 1 billion streams on Spotify, Larsson revealed that the released version of "Lush Life" was a remix, and she later released the original version of the song under the name "Retro Version".[5]
Critical reception
"Lush Life" was compared to the earlier works of Barbadian singer Rihanna
Many critics noted that "Lush Life" had similarities to the music of Barbadian singer Rihanna. Nolan Feeney of Time described the song as a potential "song of the summer" for 2015, and praised the track's "island-pop" sound, comparing it to earlier works by Rihanna.[6] Writing for The Guardian, Tim Jonze described "Lush Life" as a "brilliant Rihanna-sounding single",[7] while Rick Pearson of The Standard described the track as incorporating the "dancehall-inspired grooves of Rihanna".[8] Following the release of the song's parent album So Good (2017), multiple reviewers of the album offered further praise to the track. Harriet Gibsone of The Guardian described "Lush Life" as having a "rubbery bounce" and being "naggingly catchy".[9] Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic commended the track as being an "effective dose of tropical pop" that has a "playful whistle and undeniable bounce".[10] Writing for Rolling Stone Australia in 2025, Cyclone Wehner described "Lush Life" as a "trop-house banger" that became a "streaming smash" and "[augured] [Larsson's] blockbuster international debut with So Good".[11]
Music videos
Three music videos were released for "Lush Life". The first was released in Sweden and was directed by Måns Nyman, who had previously directed the video for Larsson's song "Bad Boys". The music video shows Larsson dancing in front of a white background, along with scenes of her reclining while wearing sunglasses and dialing a telephone. The second version is a recut version of the first with coloring and visual effects added, which was released to international markets and was directed by Mary Clerté. The international version of the video reached 100 million views on YouTube in March 2016,[12] and has since amassed over 875 million views on the service as of December 2025.[13]
The third version was made for the US release of "Lush Life" and was released on 5 July 2016. It was also directed by Mary Clerté.[14] The video shows Larsson dancing in pastel-hued sets. Some scenes from the video feature backup dancers and a love interest played by 2018Love Island contestant Eyal Booker. This version is listed as an "Alternate Version" on YouTube.
Larsson's first live performance of the song was at Gröna Lundamusement park in Stockholm in May 2015, where she performed the original version of the song (later released in 2021 as the "Retro Version").[15] In June 2016, Larsson performed the song during the Capital Summertime Ball 2016 at Wembley Stadium in London.[16] At the 2016 MTV Europe Music Awards, Larsson performed "Lush Life" during the ceremony, where she also won the awards for Best New Act and Best Swedish Act.[17] At the 2016 BBC Music Awards, she performed the song as a medley with "I Would Like".[18] In December 2017, Larsson performed "Lush Life" at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert.[19] Larsson has performed the song on all her major concert tours, starting with the So Good World Tour in 2017, and most recently the Midnight Sun Tour in 2025.
United States
In the United States, Larsson performed the song on the Today Show in November 2016.[20] At the 2017 MTV Movie & TV Awards, Larsson performed "Lush Life" during the pre-show festival.[21] In August 2017, she performed the song at her US festival debut, at Lollapalooza 2017.[22] Larsson performed "Lush Life" during her debut concert shows in the US, on her Don't Worry Bout Me Tour in 2019, and most recently on the North American leg of her Venus Tour in 2024.
Commercial performance
In Sweden, "Lush Life" topped the Sverigetopplistan chart for five weeks,[23] becoming Larsson's second number–one single in her native country, and spent 102 weeks overall on the chart.[24] It later became the 51st best-selling single of all time in the country,[25] and was certified ten times platinum.[24] In the United States, "Lush Life" debuted at number 97 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 2016, after spending 27 weeks on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, eventually peaking at number 75 during the chart week ending 20 August 2016.[26] Additionally, the track entered the top forty on US Pop Radio, peaking at number 39 during the chart week ending 13 August 2016.[27] "Lush Life" has since been certified triple platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, denoting sales of three million units in the country.[28] In the United Kingdom, "Lush Life" debuted at number 88 on the UK Singles Chart in January 2016.[29] It eventually peaked at number three during the chart week ending 24 March 2016, and became the sixth biggest song of 2016 in the country, moving 1.16 million combined units that year.[30] "Lush Life" has spent 63 weeks overall on the UK Singles Chart,[29] and was the 63rd biggest song of the 2010's decade in the United Kingdom.[31] It has been certified quintuple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry, denoting sales of three million units in the country.[32] Additionally, "Lush Life" topped the charts in Mexico[33] and Poland.[34] It also peaked at number two in Denmark, Ireland (where it spent 17 consecutive weeks in the top ten), and Norway, number three in the Netherlands and Switzerland, number four in Germany, Austria, and Australia, and number six in Finland. On the music streaming service Spotify, "Lush Life" has been streamed over 1.8 billion times as of 2025.[35][36]
In November 2025, "Lush Life" began to experience a resurgence on the charts, following a viral video of a fan who performed the song's choreography on stage with Larsson during her Midnight Sun Tour concert in Amsterdam.[37] Shortly thereafter, in Sweden the song re-entered the Sverigetopplistan chart at number ten, while Larsson's 2025 single "Midnight Sun" placed at number seven, for the chart week dated 29 November 2025.[38] The song later peaked at number four on the chart in January 2026.[39] In the Netherlands, the track re-entered the top ten on both the Single Top 100 chart,[40] and the Dutch Top 40.[41] "Lush Life" also re-entered the charts in numerous other European countries, ultimately reaching the top ten on the charts in Austria,[42] the Czech Republic,[43] Ireland,[44] Germany,[45] Norway,[46] Switzerland,[47] and the United Kingdom,[48] in January 2026. In Canada, the track reached a new peak position on the Canadian Hot 100, entering the top forty for the first time at number 20.[49] Additionally, "Lush Life" appeared on the Billboard Global 200 for the first time, reaching number 14.[50] On Spotify’s Global Daily Chart, the track earned its highest daily streams of 3,910,749 on 10 January 2026, placing at number 7 on the chart, then reached an all-time high position at number 6 the following day.[51] In the United States, "Lush Life" re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 70 for the chart week dated 17 January 2026, becoming Larsson's highest charting solo song on the chart and second highest entry overall, behind "Never Forget You" (2015) with MNEK.[52]
↑"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 20161 into search. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
↑"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 20163 into search. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
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