"Lush Life" is a song by Swedish singer and songwriter Zara Larsson from her second studio album So Good (2017). It was released in Sweden as the album's lead single on 5 June 2015 by TEN Music Group and Epic Records, and saw an international release on 9 June 2015. A remixed version of the song featuring British rapper Tinie Tempah was released on 26 February 2016.
"Lush Life" received praise from critics, and 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 decade in the United Kingdom, and is one of the best-selling songs of all time in Sweden.
The song was featured on Just Dance 2019 as part of Just Dance Unlimited.[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".[3]
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.[4] The track's production was handled by Freedo and Shuko. The song has been described as a "summer jam",[5] and features electropop production, written in the key of G minor with a tempo of 98 beats per minute.[6] 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".[4]
Critical reception
Upon the release of "Lush Life", 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.[7] Following the release of Larsson's album So Good (2017), of which "Lush Life" was the lead single to, 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".[8] Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic commended the track as being an "effective dose of tropical pop" that has a "playful whistle and undeniable bounce".[9] Writing for Rolling Stone Australia in 2025, Cyclone Wehner described "Lush Life" as a "trop-house banger", noting that it became a "streaming smash auguring [Larsson's] blockbuster international debut", and even caught the attention of musician Björk, who "dropped “Lush Life” in an epic DJ set at Vivid Sydney".[10]
Commercial performance
In Sweden, "Lush Life" topped the Sverigetopplistan chart for five weeks,[11] becoming Larsson's second number–one single in her native country, and spent 102 weeks overall on the chart.[12] It later became the 51st best-selling single of all time in the country,[13] and was certified ten times platinum.[12] 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.[14] Additionally, the track entered the top forty on US Pop Radio, peaking at number 39 during the chart week ending 13 August 2016.[15] "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.[16] In the United Kingdom, "Lush Life" debuted at number 88 on the UK Singles Chart in January 2016.[17] 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.[18] "Lush Life" has spent 60 weeks overall on the UK Singles Chart,[17] and was the 63rd biggest song of the 2010's decade in the United Kingdom.[19] It has been certified quintuple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry, denoting sales of three million units in the country.[20]
Additionally, "Lush Life" topped the charts in Mexico[21] and Poland.[22] 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.[23][24]
In November 2025, "Lush Life" saw a resurgence on the charts, following a viral video of a fan who performed the song's choreography on stage with Larsson during her the Midnight Sun Tour.[25][26] The song re-entered the top ten on Sweden's main record chart, at number 10, while Larsson's 2025 single "Midnight Sun" placed at number 7, for the chart week dated 29 November 2025. The track gained momentum on Spotify’s Global Daily Chart, reaching number 39 on 19 December 2025,[26] its highest position on the chart since 7 July 2016.[27] On the Billboard Sweden Songs chart, "Lush Life" debuted at number 20 for the chart week dated 29 November 2025, and peaked at number 11 the following week.[28] "Lush Life" also re-entered the top ten in Norway,[29] the top twenty in the Netherlands,[30] the top forty in Ireland,[31] Finland,[32] Switzerland,[33] the United Kingdom,[34] and Germany,[35] and the top fifty in Belgium.[36] Additionally, it appeared on the Billboard Global 200 (launched in 2020) for the first time, peaking at number 131.[37]
Music video
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,[38] and has since amassed over 875 million views on the service as of December 2025.[39]
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.[40] 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.
↑"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 11. týden 2016 in the date selector. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
↑"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 2. týden 2016 in the date selector. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
↑"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.
↑"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 49. týden 2025 in the date selector. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
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