Lil Peep's "Star Shopping" Is Perfect
Much like "crybaby," "Star Shopping" is a perfect Lil Peep song.
On Music…
Earlier this year, set off by the streaming release of Lil Peep’s 2016 mixtape, crybaby, I wrote a piece explaining why the titular track was a perfect Lil Peep song. In that piece, I cited “Star Shopping,” Lil Peep’s 2015 smash, which partly propelled him to be the international superstar we understand him to be today—even in death—as another perfect Lil Peep song. As the days get colder, and the mornings become unforgivingly dark, I’ve been returning to “Star Shopping” endlessly to temper my moods. So, to celebrate my attachment to yet another emo rap song, I’ve decided to break down why, exactly, “Star Shopping” is positively perfect.
I’ll lead with a quote from Peep’s mom, Liza: “Gus actually composed the lyrics to ‘Star Shopping’ on his phone, in his notes app, on August 16, 2015—right after his trip to Cambridge for his grandfather’s birthday… That was Gus’ big song, as he got many views and likes on it right away… He was very excited about that.”
If we’ve learned anything from the Hellboy piece I keep citing, it’s that Lil Peep worked incredibly fast. He made “OMFG” in the loft in California in the middle of a crowd of people. He made Hellboy between July 31 and September 19, 2016. He was incredibly skilled in the art of feeling something and letting it out immediately. Gus’ aversion to steeping himself too deeply in one track led to some of the most visceral and giving music in his canon. “Star Shopping” is no different.
We begin with almost sloppy strumming on the guitar, an urgency to the playing, as if we can’t waste time getting to the next note. In comes Lil Peep, singing “We’re right here,” instantly establishing setting. Though the song is meant for a girl, from the listener’s perspective, the opening of “Star Shopping” feels like an ode to the fan. It feels as if Lil Peep made this song to become the creature comfort it has established itself to be in the five years since its release.
Too, there’s a breathless quality to “Star Shopping.” Lil Peep’s earlier work is marked by a languid gentleness, true, but “Star Shopping” also features Lil Peep getting worked up over his emotions and delivering some delicate lines with a rushed vocal pace. “Right now, I know that I’m not really worth it, if you give me time, I could work on it,” he says in a single breath, pausing to end the sentence and to let the proposition sink in.
The way Gus plays with space on this track gives it an emotional punch. Every pause is quietly wrenching. We’re not gasping for air on “Star Shopping,” but rather, following along with Lil Peep and figuring out our own feelings in the spaces he leaves for us to ruminate. It’s like making coffee, in a way, how the entire track is about percolation. Meanwhile, “Star Shopping” sounds robust without being too grand in terms of production. Instead, Lil Peep tricks our ear with his tripping-over-my-feet delivery and unending need to produce the most bare music of the moment.
Based on the live footage, Gus knew the magic of “Star Shopping.” Just look at the way he lets the music drop out and focuses on hitting every last word in a vulnerable space with strangers-turned-family. The crowd’s echoing his lyrics like surf breaking on the shore reminds us Lil Peep’s music touched lives in the most honest way. “Star Shopping” is a classic Peep track. Just look at the way the people react to Gus’ solo reprise. They’re not even star-struck and distant, they’re all the way invested and one with Gus’ performance.
“If I find a way, would you walk it with me?” Peep asks to finish up the verse of “Star Shopping.” The answer, of course, is “Yes.” People gravitated to Lil Peep because of his incredible candor and the attractive emotional nature of his music. He was a comfort for his fans. He was a beacon of light in a scene he helped pioneer. It’s always going to be Lil Peep forever, but not because of his tragedy. Instead, because the sheer quality and depth of his work will carry on his shine for all-time.