"Butterfly" is a song by Welsh singer and songwriter Marina from her upcoming sixth studio album, Princess of Power (2025). It was independently released as the lead single, alongside an accompanying music video on 21 February 2025. This marked her first self-released song since both of her extended plays Mermaid vs Sailor (2007) and Froot Acoustic (2015).
Her first single release in nearly four years, Marina wrote and recorded the alt-pop and chamber pop song, and co-produced the record with American songwriter CJ Baran. Music critics highlighted the lyricism for "Butterfly" representing the insect of the same name through its life cycle, personal growth of an individual, and spiritual rebirth. The music video was directed by Aerin Moreno, where it depicts Marina dancing and singing through several liminal spaces.
Commercially, the song did not make an impact but appeared on the top 50 in the United Kingdom for downloads and sales, and the top 20 in New Zealand for its fast streams and airplay.
Development
During the press release of her debut poetry book titled Eat the World: A Collection of Poems (2024), Welsh singer-songwriter Marina disclosed in an interview on 2 April 2024 with Rolling Stone that she was working on her upcoming sixth studio album, stating she had "been writing for six months", but was still not far along in the process. After supporting Australian singer Kylie Minogue for a one-off show, she soon confirmed to Attitude in 15 July, that the album is currently set to be released the upcoming year.
Promotion and release
It was later reported the singer began to distribute gift bags for her fans in January 2025, containing living caterpillars with care instructions on how to nurture them. This "immersive campaign" received several mixed reactions such as environmental issues and its ethics but reached an "unprecedented level of prominence." Marina eventually posted a twenty-second teaser of her lip-syncing the song on various social media platforms on 7 February. Shortly, she revealed the song to be titled "Butterfly", which would be released the next two weeks and made it available for pre-save via her website and different streaming services.
Marina independently released "Butterfly" on 21 February 2025, worldwide digitally for music download and streaming, with a music video premiering the same day. This marked four years after the release of "Venus Fly Trap" (2021) and her first self-released song since the acoustic extended play Froot (2015). This reason was due to Marina ending her fourteen-year long contract with Atlantic Records, and now leads her independent label record.
Composition and lyrics
"Butterfly" is approximately a four-minute song written in the key of A minor, with a common time of 121 beats per minute (BPM). Various music journalists identified it as a house-infused chamber pop, and alt-pop anthem. The lyricism of the song mainly represented the insect of the same name, especially its life cycle showcasing the biological process of metamorphosis, which references spiritual rebirth and personal growth.
Music video
An accompanying music video for "Butterfly" was released through video sharing platform YouTube, and was directed by Aerin Moreno. It subsequently premiered through various digital channels owned by MTV Entertainment Group, and showcased at the Paramount Times Square billboard.
The music video opens with a darkened bedroom featuring Marina, wearing a black girdle and red high heels, laying over a plastic-covered bed, with her makeup reflecting the ambience around her. She later begins to dance around through multiple vintage-styled liminal spaces, while wearing an ensemble of colorful garments. Marina choreographing resembles a butterfly, whom she wore a black bedazzled outfit featuring the insect.
Credits and personnel
The song credits and personnel adapted from music streaming service Tidal.
- Marina Diamandis – keyboards, producer, songwriting, synthesizer, vocals
- Christopher John Baran – drums, engineering, mellotron, producer, programming, synthesizer
- Nathan Dantzler – engineering
- Mitch McCarthy – engineering
Chart performances
Release history
Footnotes
References
