Well Demi Lovato’s “Cool For The Summer” Music Video is Just Full of Girl-on-Girl Feelings

Did you know you have a crush on Demi Lovato? I didn’t know until yesterday, when she dropped the music video for her single “Cool For The Summer” in which she dresses like a high femme power dyke and talks about how much she wants to bang her gal pal.

“Cool For The Summer” is very clearly about wanting to get all up on her BFF’s lady body. She sings “got a taste for the cherry, I just need to take a bite.” Demi is claiming the hell out of her bicuriosity — “Even if they judge, fuck it I’ll do the time. I just want to have some fun with you.” Disney stars, amirite? Demi has been on the not-straight watch list since 2013, when she played a bisexual character on Glee and also Ruby Rose revealed the two had been involved in some kind of romantic and/or sexual situation. But y’all, this video!!

This is a very homosexy video. As Stef notes with utmost relevance, this is basically an updated t.A.T.u. video. While there are definitely overtones of “experimentation,” which is often exasperating when leveraged upon queer girls in real life, Demi’s lyrics take the initiative when it comes to girl-girl attraction, and also don’t backtrack or invoke relationships with men as a reason why this isn’t serious (a lá Katy Perry’s “I Kissed A Girl”), nor do they talk about backing away from the other girl’s reciprocated feelings (a lá Rihanna’s “Te Amo”). It’s not a one-music-video revolution, but it doesn’t make some of the frustrating mistakes that we’re used to seeing when a music artist does a song about first forays into girl-on-girl experiences.

Here’s a fun little I Spy list of the homosexiest moments. Are you ready to watch it six times in a row like I did?

  1. Demi gyrating on a bed alone
  2. Four other women on beds
  3. Demi and her squad having a fun time in a bounce house
  4. Demi in a leather onesie and fishnets, alone in an alley, beckoning to you with her finger.
  5. Girl kiss 1
  6. Girl kiss 2
  7. Demi pulling you close in a charming fashion as if to whisper, “Klub Deer has just gotten so crowded, ya know?”
  8. Demi gyrating on a bed while people have an explosive pillow fight around her
  9. Cool shoes
  10. Demi pulling on her own lip (x2)

We’ve got to assume that somewhere in the alternate takes is a clip of her trimming her nails in the bathroom of that house party.

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Adrian

Adrian is a writer, a Texan and a Presbyterian pastor. They write about bisexuality, gender, religion, politics, music and a whole lot of feelings at Autostraddle and wherever fine words are sold. They have a dog named after Alison Bechdel. Follow Adrian on Twitter @adrianwhitetx.

Adrian has written 153 articles for us.

67 Comments

  1. Was she bisexual on Glee? I feel like I remember her throwing some shade at Brittany for being bisexual and telling Santana that she needed a “full-fledged Sapphic goddess” or something similar…

    • Yeah, I remember being so bummed because I really wanted to love Santana’s new love interest, but the casual biphobia really bugged me.

    • I have to agree, specially with the title, and her repeatedly singing cool for the summer.

    • Nothing super wrong with bein’ gay for a minute, y’all! That kinda language can erase us bi* ladies. I thought Audrey did a pretty perfect job of illustrated how Demi is a lady-loving lady. Whether for a minute, a summer, a couple years, or a lifetime, it’s all worth celebrating!

  3. I pointed out in my music vid discussion round table that Demi could also carefully utilize nitrile gloves, because we can be sexy and safe at the same time!

    • And if she wants to keep her nails long like that, cotton balls in the fingertips of nitrile gloves work wonders!

  4. Can we talk about the part where she puts her arms around the girl with the gay hat and the shane hair? Easily the gayest part of this whole video, ladykisses included.

  5. I’m pretty sure Demi has been on the not-straight watch list since 2009 when she co-starred with rumored gal pal Selena Gomez in the Disney Channel Original Movie Princess Protection Program

  6. this is my first time hearing this song…i almost wish this video was equally gay but less grown-up; “don’t tell your mother/die for each other” is soooo high-school-bff real

  7. Well this is just so much better than the spring-break-insanity-live version that i found when I searched the internets a few days ago. Thanks, Audrey!

  8. Haha, I never really knew that much about Demi Lovato but surely pictured her more innocent; really liked her outfits there though, it was a fun vid.
    And oh man, tatu.. I used to love them, I was a pre teen when they were popular and had no idea I would end up queer. I didn’t even really realize I was queer/bi/fluid until my early 20’s and now it’s so funny to look back at 11-16 years old me and be like, duh, I obviously had these major girl crushes but thought it was totally normal straight behavior,hahaha.

  9. i had no idea i had a crush on demi lovato until yesterday when audrey showed me this video.

  10. I’ve had a crush on Demi for years, so I was just a touch excited with this song and now this clip. Makes those glorious day dreams so much less of a reach.

  11. I have mixed feelings about the lyrical content, HOWEVER. This is a super homosexy video. Demi looks gorgeous and MAN is she working that outfit. I do appreciate how sexual she’s being at a house party with other women and it’s not *for* the guys that are around.

    Also she’s dripping in sexy. Did I mention that?

  12. demi all grown up!

    who wouldn’t like to drown in her swimming pool.

    by swimming pool i mean vagina.

  13. You know, not hot on the lyrics… but the song itself is pretty damned catchy as a whole. Very danceable, plus for some reason I really like the way she sings “..’Cause I’m your body-tYYYYYYYyyype”. Excuse me, I’m going to go turn the ceiling fan on.

    • Same, I think some lyrics are stupid but some are pretty cool, I liked it as a whole, and yeah the way she said type I think cause it reminds me of how some lyrics are sung in the OITNB opening song?

  14. Video’s sexy, lyrics could do with some work but I’m with Audrey, nice to have a song where nobody’s backtracking or bringing dudes into it.

    It actually reminds me of this one from 2009 (which is probs the origins of me being femme4femme): http://youtu.be/fLHfFlYZkzI

    • cheers for the video link! i’ve been looking for it since ages and couldn’t remember the artists or the name of the song!

    • this took me all the way back when you had to detect subtext in in all sorts of ambiguous contexts and project homofeelings in every little glance between two girls because these things were better left unsaid. pretty sure most non-queers would not even notice it is a song about girl-on-girl action, i know it took me a while.

  16. I would not call the experimentation theme an “undertone.” “I’m a little curious too…I can keep a secret can, you.” “Just something that we wanna try.” So basically she wants to experiment with women briefly (really briefly. she promises) without anyone knowing. Wow guys, super empowering.
    I feel like sometimes we get so desperate for pop culture representation that we celebrate whatever we can get.

    • Yeah, I am really not about the lyrics in this song. Though I’m sure she thinks she’s doing us all a great service. Lyrically, I don’t see much of a difference between the way this song talks about same-sex experimentation and Katy Perry’s song. The ONLY difference is that she doesn’t mention a boyfriend. I’m not going to bake her a cake for that.

    • I definitely see what you mean.. It’s clearly left “experimental” enough to appeal to a male audience… It’s less blatant in terms of pandering than “I kissed a Girl”, but maybe that’s just because of more slick packaging/video directors learning how to make it less outright terrible. I like the song generally, as I said, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it a step forward for queermo lady-kind.

  17. Demi Lovato has had my heart since I was but a baby gay watching Disney channel while babysitting in high school… This video could not have come at a better time.

  19. I was waiting for AS to make a post on this! I heard this song had some pretty queer lyrics but I assumed it was femslash goggles but… nope. There’s nothing else that cherry could be a euphemism for.

    A little disappointed that people seem to be so okay with Ruby Rose outing her, though – afaik Demi has never confirmed that rumour, and it’s never cool to out someone like that.

  21. I kinda dislike Demi because of how she’s handled some things in the past…also because she shares my birth date and I’m not okay with that…BUT I LOVE THIS SONG. Not really the let’s-try-being-homo-for-a-hot-second-it’s-so-fun thing, but it really is kind of addictive. And I put my own spin on it in my head, so that helps.
    It’s definitely no I Kissed a Girl…that was a spiritual experience, because it came out when I was closeted and it was literally everywhere and I used it as a cover to talk about kissing girls and liking it.

    • Right?! As a grown-up queer I can look back on I Kissed a Girl and see loads of problems, but at the time, the exact thought I had was, “If she kissed a girl and she liked it, maybe someday a girl would like kissing *me*.” I didn’t hear any of the problematic lines, I just heard that, and it was huge to me.

  23. Damn. Who knew I had a crush on Demi Lovato?! Those scenes in the alley–I’m such a sucker for a good hair flip.

  24. I’ve been a fan of Demi for years…less for her acting and music (though “Skyscraper” is one of my favorite ballots from this decade), but more from how she has openly and positively handled her struggles and has served as a role model for her younger fans.

    This song is catchy and fits the season. Demi actually has a good natural voice. It’s a LOT less annoying than Katy Perry’s “I Kissed A Girl.” If the world MUST have songs about bi-curious summer flings – which apparently it does – then this is as good as any.

  26. I wanted to be annoyed at the whole just-a-summer-experiment-haha thing but my crush on Demi is too strong and I just enjoyed it. Plus it’s super catchy.

  27. THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME OF THE EXISTENCE OF TATU

    gosh i can’t wait to watch this video

  28. I will take this as progress from I Kissed a Girl. Maybe not great progress for 7 years (apparently Katy’s song was in 08?!?!)

    But back in 2008 I was still experimenting with girls and hadn’t had sex with a girl yet and was making out with girls to I Kissed a Girl. Maybe if Demi’s song had been on the radio then I would have come out just a little bit sooner.

  29. 1) I am very gay
    2) I like girls like girls better. Didn’t have that experimentation thing going on. It’s a catchy song though

  30. I love Demi, I love the song. (the lyrics are actually kind of meh, “don’t be scared ’cause I’m your body type”…??) I expected more gay-ness from the music video, though :<

    • I did too! I was a tad disappointed. It was cool, but I was expecting something more..?

  31. Hot dayum!! Arg, did anyone else freak at, “‘Cause I’m your body tyyyy-ype”?!! Bless this article and vid.

  32. This video is like bicurious hard-core party version of Tegan and Sara’s Closer. I don’t hate it!

  33. Between this and Hayley Kiyoko’s queer anthem Girls Like Girls (guys can we talk about how the video has over 3 million hits and queer teenage girls have latched onto it because it is unapologetically homogay??) I feel like every Disney Channel star who has ever met Selena Gomez is super queer and I completely understand why.

  34. I don’t chalk this song up to a straight girl just trying to get attention because I honestly don’t think Demi is straight. There have been multiple allegations of same sex relationships around her for years that she has never attempted to deny, which is saying a lot because she is known to go off on twitter about rumors surrounding her personal life that aren’t true.

    Plus a couple weeks ago she said this when talking about CFTS: “love is love…I don’t believe there’s labels…love is fluid and so is attraction”.

    And maybe it’s just me, but i find that “tell me what you want, what you like, it’s okay” line and the repeated use of the word “too” as if to insinuate it’s not just about what she wants, but also what the other girl wants oddly comforting in a post IKAG world. I still cringe when i hear those, “I don’t even know your name it doesnt matter, you’re my experimental game” lyrics from I Kissed A Girl. Still so so gross and demeaning.

  36. I like this video because of reasons.

    I also like the song a hell of a lot more now. This summer’s music has been pretty decent.

  37. this song and video have taken over the last three days of my life.
    i’ve imagined meeting Demi Lovato in the real life version in my dreams of this video.

    then my straight homegirl ruined it by telling me that she’s been boo’ed up w Fez from that 70s show for years. ugh.
    obvs she could still be v v queer but her heart might be takenby FEZ Y’all. ugh ugh

  38. As anyone who’s ever looked at my last.fm knows, Demi is one of my all time favorites. I love this song and am pretty sure its her best (and most universal in terms of crossover genre). IDK why but theres just some part of me that really doesn’t want to find Demi sexually attractive. I think she’s really cute, but her sexuality scares me. idk why. I’ve been checking for Demi’s sexuality ever since that first sidecut, and I’m glad shes expressing whatever feelings she may or may not have for girls.

  39. I heard this song for the first time yesterday and I DIDN’T KNOW HOW MUCH I NEEDED THIS VID UNTIL NOW

  40. I did know I have a crush on Demi Lovato! I have since her Disney days, and I used to ship her with Selena Gomez pretty hardcore, back when they were still BFF. Embarrassingly enough, I also marathoned four seasons of Glee after insisting I would NEVER, EVER watch it, just to be caught up when she was on it. So you can imagine how this video is one of the best things to happen to me lately.

    Also, I would just like to notice that this is one of the most embarrassing comments I have ever made anywhere, but I’m sort of weirdly proud of that.

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