Stateside (Bieber Show Daily Cover)

The original Stateside is a song about a British girl who can't stop thinking about an American guy — tracking his flight, willing to book a transatlantic ticket on a feeling, half-laughing at herself the whole time. PinkPantheress described writing it in "a cheeky mood in a very longing" state, missing someone she probably shouldn't be going that far for. 1 When Zara Larsson joined for the remix, she added a second layer: the Swedish singer-on-tour flying Stockholm to LA, leaving her feelings on the plane because the stage won't wait. 2 Two different women, one shared geography problem — the kind of longing that only gets louder at 35,000 feet.

This cover flips the lens. The singer is the American guy — and he's just found out she was tracking his flight. The reinterpretation leans into the groove the original always hinted at: dembow-inflected rhythm, a tropical-house synth arp that pulses under the verses like a phone buzzing at 2am, and a chorus that turns the "ha, ha, ha, ha" hook into something bright and almost disbelieving. The verses stay warm and grounded; the chorus lets the falsetto go airy and wide. Clash Music called the original's production "a Britpop glaze with knowing optimism in its bounce" 3 — this version keeps that optimism and pushes the tempo into full dancehall territory.

Pitchfork noted that PinkPantheress "put a sexy spin on the special relationship" with the original 4, and Stereogum heard Basement Jaxx and Crystal Method in the drum programming. 5 The cover borrows that UK dance DNA and runs it through the same kind of groove that made "Sorry" impossible not to move to — where the emotional confession and the rhythm work so well together that you don't quite notice you're dancing through a vulnerable moment. The "ha, ha, ha, ha" hook carries the same energy here: part question, part declaration, all momentum.

Zara Larsson said the whole remix came together in about four days — she DMed PinkPantheress "Queen," got the call two days later, wrote her verse on the road during tour, and it was out. 6 There's something in that speed — that readiness to just go — that fits Stateside perfectly. The song was always about someone willing to reroute their whole plan for a person. This cover is that, from the other side of the Atlantic.

[Verse 1] Saw your message come through at two Said you'd land on Sunday, said you wanted to I've been counting hours like I'm running out of time Said it's nothing but I know that you're on my mind

You tracked my timeline, girl, I saw your likes You're five thousand miles but you're keeping me up nights I don't do this, nah, I don't fall this fast But something 'bout you makes me wanna make it last

[Pre-Chorus] It sounds a little crazy, I know You booked the flight just to see me though What am I supposed to do with that, with that?

[Chorus] You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha What can I say? What can I do? I wanna be the boy that you're flying to And maybe you can be my London girl, ha, ha, hey You can be my London girl, ha, ha, hey Why can't I say that I want it too? You're flying intercontinental for me, for you

[Verse 2] You said Stockholm, then LA, now you're headed my way I keep your picture on the screen, just to get through the day We talk at midnight and it's noon where you are Close enough to feel it, still so damn far

I'm not usually the one who'd say stay But I'd reroute my whole world to be in your way And when you land I swear I'll be right there First face you see, yeah, I'll be right there

[Pre-Chorus] It sounds a little crazy, I know But I'd catch the next flight just to see you though What are you supposed to do with that, with that?

[Chorus] You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha What can I say? What can I do? I wanna be the boy that you're flying to And maybe you can be my London girl, ha, ha, hey You can be my London girl, ha, ha, hey Why can't I say that I want it too? You're flying intercontinental for me, for you

[Bridge] All those miles between us don't mean nothing now I'll meet you halfway, I don't care somehow 'Cause I don't need the whole world, just need where you are Close doesn't have to mean close, when you're already my star

[Outro / Final Chorus] You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha You can be my London girl, ha, ha, ha, ha (Ha, ha, you can be my — ha, ha, ha, ha) What can I say? What can I do? I wanna be the boy that you're flying to You can be my London girl, ha, ha, hey You can be my London girl — intercontinental with you