"Your Type" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen for her third studio album, Emotion (2015). She co-wrote the track with Wayne Hector, Tavish Crowe, and its producers Rami Yacoub and Carl Falk. "Your Type" is a 1980s-inspired synth-pop song about unrequited love. Initially released to digital retailers August 14, 2015 as the fourth and final promotional single leading up to the album's release, it was re-issued as the third official single on November 9, 2015.[1][2] An official remix package debuted December 11, 2015.[3] An accompanying music video was released on November 3, 2015. The song received mostly positive feedback from the critics, but was not a chart success.
Composition
"Your Type" is a midtempo synth-pop and electropop love song influenced by 1980s music.[4][5][6] The ballad finds Jepsen expressing her interest in pursuing a romantic relationship with someone despite her belief that she is not their "type" and explores the concept of unrequited love.[6][7] During live performances, she revealed that the song was about a guy whom she fell for who she later finds out was gay, similar to what her single "Call Me Maybe"'s video was about.[8]
Critical reception
"Your Type" received generally positive reviews.
Critics have compared the song's depiction of heartbreak and yearning to the similarly-themed "Dancing on My Own" by Robyn.[9][10][11] Its production was further likened to that of the synthpop band Chvrches.[12][13] In October 2022, Rachel Seo of Variety ranked it as Jepsen's sixth best song.[14]
In reviewing for NPR, Ken Tucker highlighted "Your Type" as a clear example of Jepsen's "attempt to expand the notion of what disposable pop can sound like", further applauding its vulnerable narrative that transcends gender roles.[15]Autostraddle's Abeni Jones christened the song as a "Moody Trans Girl Anthem".[16]
Nolan Feeny of Time praised Jepsen's "wounded voice" for bringing emotional complexity to an otherwise "unremarkable tale".[17] In criticizing Jepsen's lack of identity, Pitchfork's Corban Goble characterized her vocal performance on "Your Type" as indistinguishable from other songs on the record despite Jepsen's attempts to sound "gritty".[18] Jessica Doyle, a writer for The Singles Jukebox, emphasized the song's lyrical missteps which "intensifies the pathos of the song—the narrator wants so badly to stand out [...] but even her desperate inner monologue is bland."[13]
Commercial performance
Upon its release as a single in late 2015, "Your Type" was not a commercial success and did not enter any music charts. In early 2016, the song stayed unranked for five weeks on the Ultratip Bubbling Under chart in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium.[19] The song generated renewed interest in Canada in the spring of 2016 and entered Canadian airplay charts dated May 14, 2016.
Music video
The video for "Your Type" was filmed in October 2015 directed by Gia Coppola and premiered November 3, 2015.[7][20] It begins with a voiceover introducing the story of Jepsen's character ("There was once a girl…") and then follows Jepsen as she gets mugged on a park bench, enters a nightclub, and performs karaoke.[20][21] During her performance, the video alternates between shots of a large, excited crowd and a nearly-empty bar, suggesting the former is Jepsen's fantasy of how the scene played out.[22] The video's plot has been described as a pseudo-Cinderella story.[20][21]
Live performances
Jepsen performed "Your Type" at the Capital Pride in 2015.
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