On 1 May 2020, Petras announced that the song would be released on 7 May 2020. Petras described the song as a "return to color, the feeling of being in love, and the escapism pop that I love the most". Petras also revealed that she "had cried all [her] tears [in the last single, '
Reminds Me' and mixtape,
Clarity] and moved on, so this is a reflection of how [she's] been feeling". The song was included in the expansion pack
The Sims 4: Eco Lifestyle with new vocals in
Simlish, the fictional language spoken by Sims. Battle Royale game
Fortnite also included "Malibu" in their 2021 Rainbow Royale
pride event where the song would play in their Power Play radio stations used in the games cars. The song was also featured in the June 2021 Rocket League soundtrack as both a Playlist song and as a player anthem. ==Composition==