Lunch (song)

Speculation around Eilish's sexual orientation began when she released the music video for the single "Lost Cause" in 2021. The video features Eilish at a slumber party with several women, doing various activities such as twerking, playing Twister, and spraying silly string. Many fans and media outlets saw the video as homoerotic, while others accused her of queerbaiting. In response, Eilish posted behind-the-scenes pictures from the video on Instagram with the caption "I love girls". In November 2023, Eilish appeared for a Variety cover story, in which she discussed her relationship to sexuality and womanhood, as well as her frustration with people speculating on her sexual orientation. She said that she had always felt an emotional attraction to women alongside physical attraction, admitting that she can be overawed with women she found beautiful. A month later, during a red carpet for the magazine's "Hitmakers" event, a reporter asked Eilish if her comments during her interview were meant as a coming out statement, to which she said that it was not the intention and that she thought her sexual orientation was already obvious. When the event concluded, she took to Instagram to criticize the reporter for their question, accusing them of outing her and confirming she liked both men and women. == Music and lyrics ==

During a 2024 Rolling Stone interview, Eilish spoke more about her sexual orientation while discussing her third studio album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, and her creative process behind one of its songs. She said that writing "Lunch" helped her explore and confirm her same-gender attraction. She created "Lunch" before her first sexual encounter with a woman and completed the song thereafter, fueled by the realization that she "wanted [her] face in a vagina". The song has been described as electro, synth-rock, synth-pop, Set over a heavy bassline, the song discusses Eilish's strong sexual desire for a woman and compares sex with her to eating lunch. In the chorus, she describes how the woman tastes as she "dances on [Eilish's] tongue" and calls the experience irresistible. Allison Hope of CNN called the songwriting bold, comparing the provocative nature to activist Marsha P. Johnson's involvement at the 1969 Stonewall Inn riots in New York City. == Release and reception ==

Eilish debuted "Lunch" alongside two other songs from Hit Me Hard and Soft during a secret DJ set and party at Coachella 2024, called "Do Labs". "Lunch" is the second track on the album and was released concurrently as its lead single on May 17, 2024. The song was released to contemporary hit, hot adult contemporary, and alternative radio in the United States, while Universal Music Group promoted it on radio airplay in Italy. Some music critics opined that "Lunch" is one of the best songs on the album. Kitty Empire from The Observer wrote that the song was "a Sapphic synth-pop banger in which Eilish smacks her lips, wanting to devour someone tasty. Even better, towards the end of the song, the Eilish siblings pull out some of their most dancefloor-facing music to date. It ends too soon, on some panting." Tom Taylor of Far Out described it as "bass-driven lust", adding that the "rhythmic meta" vocal usage recalled "vintage Eilish" and evoked "a sexy sensation", as she sounds more groovy than before. ==Music video==

An accompanying music video for "Lunch", self-directed by Eilish, was released on May 17, 2024, alongside Hit Me Hard and Soft. The '90s-inspired video features Eilish dancing around in oversized athletic attire while lip-syncing along to the lyrics directly into the camera in front of multi-colored backgrounds. The video also features Eilish using various props, like shuffling playing cards, rolling dice, eating cherries, and laying on a sofa. Eilish wears basketball jerseys, oversized polo shirts, and graphic T-shirts, fitted flat-rimmed caps, and baggy jeans and jean shorts while sporting large neck, teeth, and hand jewelry, reminiscent of the fashion of rappers and hip-hop artists of the 1990s. Eilish expressed that "[The video is] an ode to 90's music videos and all the videos I grew up loving. I've always loved the simplicity of performance takes and I didn't want a lot going on in this video." She also said that the video was inspired by Green Day, Tupac Shakur, and the Spice Girls. ==Accolades==

Weekly charts Monthly charts Year-end charts == Certifications ==