Demeanor (song)
"Demeanor" is a song by American rapper Pop Smoke, featuring English and Albanian singer Dua Lipa, from the former's posthumous second studio album, Faith (2021).
The song was written by the two artists alongside Daniel Mlzrahi, Michael Gomes, Dru Decaro, Sarah Hudson, and Coffee, while the production was handled by Mantra.
A disco-pop and electropop track, it features a rhythm guitar, bassline, drums, funky groove, and bounce, alongside rhythmic verses.
The video features Pop Smoke as a ghost and being seen on a painting that comes to life and depicts different versions of him, as well as showing white doves flying around.
Lipa wears a vintage corset-style lace-trimmed ballgown from Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring 1998 couture collection, which was inspired by Marie Antoinette and the Age of Enlightenment, as she does different activities and dances throughout.
On July 9, 2021, Dua Lipa teased a collaboration with Pop Smoke by posting a video on social media of the rapper listening to her 2018 single "One Kiss".
The lyrics and composition were written by Pop Smoke and Lipa alongside Dru Decaro, Sarah Hudson, and Coffee with Daniel Mlzrahi and Michael Gomes also credited as composers.
The song was mixed by Jess Jackson, who also handled the mastering with Ciel Eckard-Lee and David Bone; both duties were done at London Town Studios in Los Angeles.
[10] The track features a rhythm guitar,[11] bassline,[12] drums,[13] funky groove, and bounce, accompanied by "woozy" vibes, and rhythmic verses.
[18] David Crone of AllMusic said even though Lipa is "ostensibly at home on the slick grooves of 'Demeanor'", she "stumbles out" during the couplet: "You can't say Pop without Smoke/So fill up your lungs, my diamonds will make you choke", and described it as "excruciating".
[22] Robin Murray from Clash stated the song "shows the potential Pop [Smoke] had to cross over", but called it one of the weaker tracks on the album.
[23] For Exclaim!, Antoine-Samuel Mauffette Alavo viewed "Demeanor" as an "improbable duet" and thought Pop Smoke's fans will "undoubtedly be frustrated".
He mentioned the song has "a short Pop [Smoke] verse and rough hook [that] are laid over the type of bubbly production that could backdrop an episode of Gossip Girl".
[49] Being inspired by Marie Antoinette and the Age of Enlightenment,[51][52] Lipa wears a vintage corset-style lace-trimmed ballgown with a metallic bodice and ivory full skirt from Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring 1998 couture collection,[51][53] with drop earrings, emerald pendant necklace, and a Vram ring.
[57] People wear powdered wigs, Rococo and Baroque petticoats, and ruffled sleeves and collars, with them being seen dancing, drinking, and feeding each other grapes.
[61] Pop Smoke is later seen as a bright blue ghost sitting in an ornate chair at the top of a table, rapping his verse as a white dove is seen next to him.
[56] Both Kelsey Stiegman of Seventeen and Rebecca Cope of Tatler noted Lipa was paying homage to the American television series Bridgerton.
