The two decided to collaborate after MØ mentioned in an interview that she wanted to work with Major Lazer, and fans implored Diplo on Twitter to accept her request.

A dark pop and electropop song, "XXX 88" was first premiered on BBC Radio 1 on August 29, 2013, and was officially released as the first single of her debut extended play Bikini Daze on October 20.

[3] This caused fans to message Major Lazer member Diplo on Twitter to "please make this happen", leading to MØ's manager pursuing the collaboration; the two artists subsequently met up in Amsterdam and worked together.

[11] Dan Carson of The Line of Best Fit stylistically compared "XXX 88" to songs by the Canadian singer-songwriter Grimes,[13] while Robin Murray of Clash noted that MØ's vocal performance was reminiscent of R&B singers like Brandy and Aaliyah.

[14] "XXX 88" was later re-released on March 7, 2014 as part of MØ's debut studio album No Mythologies to Follow, alongside other songs first released on Bikini Daze.

[20] The video, recorded in Los Angeles over the course of two days, stars MØ as a teenager who, as described by Stereogum's Tom Breihan, "imagines herself as some sort of world-traveling glam-pop superhero".

Jamie Milton of DIY commented that the combination of Diplo's electronic sound and MØ's "signature old-school synths" rendered the song a "bonafide triumph".