Guess (song)

The original version of "Guess" was released on 10 June 2024 through Atlantic Records as the seventeenth track of the deluxe version of her sixth studio album, Brat.^[1] It was produced by the Dare and co-written with Dylan Brady of 100 gecs, with the chorus interpolating the loop from French electronic duo Daft Punk’s 2005 song “Technologic”^[2] "Guess" makes references to guessing the colour of her underwear and cunnilingus.^[3] Upon release, the song was described as "extremely horny" by Kaelen Bell of Exclaim!^[4]

In May 2024, Eilish stated in an interview with Zane Lowe that she had been in a studio for the first time in several years and had recorded a collaboration with an artist she was a huge fan of. She also mentioned that she had previously resisted such collaborations due to nervousness.^[5] XCX had previously expressed an interest in collaborating with Eilish as early as 2017, though the pair were unable to find an appropriate song.^[6]

On 31 July 2024, Charli XCX shared a post with the artwork of the remix, asking followers to guess based on the cover showing just the lower profiles of both artists.^[7] The singer is seen wearing white mini-skirt while the collaborator wears baggy jeans and several rings on their hand. Based on the details, fans quickly figured out the featured artist to be Billie Eilish.^[8] That same day, fans shared pictures of flyers asking people to call a phone number that plays a snippet of the remix.^[9]

On 31 July, Charli XCX confirmed the remix with Eilish and announced the release for the following day.^[10] It is the fourth remix of a Brat track, following "Girl, So Confusing" with Lorde, "360" with Yung Lean and Robyn, and "Von Dutch" with Addison Rae.^[11] Eilish's verse features a little extra bass, which Anna Gaca of Pitchfork interpreted as representing Eilish "spott[ing] the girl she likes and her heart’s pounding".^[12] An accompanying music video directed by Aidan Zamiri was released alongside the remix.^[13] According to Zamiri, the video was filmed on 28 July 2024, only four days ahead of its release.^[14] The video starts in a house party hosted by Charli XCX, where Eilish appears driving a skiploader through the wall. The two then walk on a street where panties are falling from the sky before climbing a pile of them.^[15]

The video ends with a message revealing that the unworn undergarments used in the video would be donated to I Support the Girls, an American charity which distributes underwear and period products to women suffering domestic violence, homelessness, and hardship. The charity later stated that it had received 10,000 pairs, much of which was "sexy", and its founder Dana Marlowe stated that they welcomed such a donation on the grounds that it was important to them to encourage choice.^[16]

The song was received positively. Marcus Wratten of PinkNews described the song as "super-sapphic",^[6] while Talecia Vescio of Junkee Media wrote that the song served "cunt".^[17] Robin Murray of Clash wrote that the song's "seismic, system shaking, Earth shuddering electronics [revel] in Millennial tropes – French touch and electroclash – while also pirouetting to the future [and] remaining loyal to her hyper pop fantasies".^[18] In addition, Anna Gaca of Pitchfork described the "Pop/R&B" track as "a cheeky, bikini, high-rise, hipster remix" of the original,^[12] and the track's release elicited reactions from Amelia Dimoldenberg, Julia Fox, Adam Lambert, Suki Waterhouse, Addison Rae, Daisy Edgar-Jones, and Rita Ora.^[19]

One fan described Eilish's lyrics "Charli likes boys but she knows I'd hit it" as "predatory" and accused her of queerbaiting, prompting an angry response from Eilish's brother Finneas O'Connell.^[20] Many fans interpreted a whispered lyric at the end of the track, "You wanna guess what me and Billie have been textin' about? (You've been disrespectful)/ Still tryin' to guess the password to my Google Drive (Are you obsessed with me?)/ You wanna guess the address of the party we're at (You really are not invited)", to be a jab at Taylor Swift, because her album The Tortured Poets Department had obstructed both XCX's Brat and Eilish's Hit Me Hard and Soft from the top of the UK Albums Chart and Billboard 200, respectively.^[21]