Last week I mentioned that we were expecting a remix of The Kid LAROI’s song “Without You” with Miley Cyrus. It dropped earlier this morning with big bestie vibes:  

 

 

I didn’t know about Laroi until “Without You” blew up on TikTok so it was impressive to find out he’s only 17 and given the opportunity to have Miley on the track. This is kinda like how Miley’s dad Billy Ray Cyrus did a remix with Lil Nas X for “Old Town Road” after that song blew up on TikTok too.

Laroi and Miley surprised me in a good way. I thought it might’ve just been a quick thing that Miley hopped on for fun since the song was a meme that everyone thought was funny. But after watching the music video, it’s obvious that they’ve got some awesome creative chemistry. I have been obsessed with the rockstar Miley era, and I think that she complimented Laroi’s edgy vibe well. I also love how they made the music video on a random day of the week without a big production crew. This stripped back music video style showed up a little more the past year or so (probably because of the pandemic) and I kind of hope it sticks around. Miley directed the video too, so I’m into how it might feel to hang with her on a moment’s notice. 

 

“Without You” is well-suited to be a duet. Since it’s about a sucky breakup and attachment issues, giving the song two sides brings the split to life. Their voices also sound really good together and I think it might be that they both have that raspy tone. You know a remix works when it’s catchier than the original and with their combined popularity on social media, especially TikTok, this may be the perfect recipe for replacing the original on the charts. 

 

But even though they might have followed the formula for a big hit, I don't think that was their main intention. Miley posted a video on Twitter where she spoke to Laroi about her experience with losing her focus in the music industry.

Mentorship is such an integral part of a young celebrity finding success and peace at the same time. She pointed out how easy it is to forget your vision as a songwriter when there’s so much pressure to make the next banger, and it’s encouraging to see that there’s someone as influential as Miley guiding Laroi through. 

Attached - Miley leaving a salon yesterday in LA.