She's Leaving You
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| "She's Leaving You" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by MJ Lenderman | ||||
| from the album Manning Fireworks | ||||
| Released | June 24, 2024 | |||
| Studio | Drop of Sun Studios (Asheville, North Carolina) | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 4:38 | |||
| Label | Anti- | |||
| Songwriter | MJ Lenderman | |||
| Producers |
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| MJ Lenderman singles chronology | ||||
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"She's Leaving You" is a song recorded by the American singer-songwriter MJ Lenderman. The song was released on June 24, 2024, through Anti-, as the lead single from his fourth studio album, Manning Fireworks. The song is a tragicomic anthem of a lousy middle-aged man exposed in deceit after a bender in Vegas. The song features a rollicking guitar solo and backing vocals from his Wednesday bandmate Karly Hartzman. Lenderman co-produced the song with his partner Alex Farrar, and plays nearly all instruments on the track.
Critics widely praised the song, with many considering it a highlight of Manning Fireworks and one of Lenderman's best songs.
"She's Leaving You" depicts a hapless loser in middle-age unmasked in infidelity.[1] Lenderman opens the song: "You can put your clothes back on, she’s leaving you."[2] In each chorus, he concedes "it falls apart / we all got work to do."[3][4] In a press release, the song is described as a "half-sneering portrait of a middle-aged man cheating his way through a midlife crisis, at least until he gets caught and blasts Clapton in a rented Ferrari en route to Vegas."[5] Lenderman recorded the song at Drop of Sun Studios in his hometown of Asheville, North Carolina between touring breaks,[6] and plays nearly all instruments on the song, including guitar, drums, bass, vocals, organ, and drone. Alex Farrar, who co-produced the song, adds piano. The song also contains backing vocals from Karly Hartzman of Wednesday, who was romantically linked with Lenderman.[2][3] The song was compared to the work of Neil Young.[7]
The song's music video is set at a talent show and was directed by Clay Tatum and Whitmer Thomas.[8] In the clip, Lenderman performs alongside cheerleaders and magicians.[5] Critics interpreted the song as reminiscent of the video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and Drop Dead Gorgeous.[6]
Release and reception
Anti- released the song on June 24, 2024. The song's release was met with excitement and several viral "dudes rock" memes;[9] one asked, in the style of an op-ed, "Is the Cure to Male Loneliness MJ Lenderman?"[1]
"She's Leaving You" was widely lauded by contemporary music critics. The Fader called it the song of the summer, with Cady Siregar writing: "MJ Lenderman's 'She’s Leaving You' is the slacker anthem of the summer, a no-frills indie rock banger with shades of Built to Spill and Pavement that’s melancholy in tone, but with stadium-ready hooks."[10] Lindsay Zoladz of The New York Times remarked that it "expertly blends pathos and bleak humor [...] Lenderman somehow turns this chronicle of almost achingly banal male behavior into a bona fide anthem, complete with a fist-pumping chorus and a killer guitar solo."[2] The Guardian's Damien Morris called it "superb" and his "best song yet,"[11] while Jon Dolan from Rolling Stone called it the album's highlight.[12] Steven Hyden in Uproxx dubbed it one of Lenderman's finest songs.[13]
Year-end lists
| Publication | Accolade | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard | Staff List: The 100 Best Songs of 2024 | 72 | [14] |
| Consequence | 200 Best Songs of 2024 | 10 | [15] |
| The FADER | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 8 | [16] |
| NME | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 15 | [17] |
| Rolling Stone | The 100 Best Songs of 2024 | 24 | [18] |
| Slant Magazine | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 36 | [19] |
| Stereogum | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 7 | [20] |