In June 2022, world-famous, Texas-raised singer-rapper Post Malone released his fourth studio album Twelve Carat Toothache. Peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, the LP included multiple bops that saw Post work with some marquee names, much like all of his prior projects. One of the most notable hits, though, came in the form of “I Like You (A Happier Song)” with Doja Cat, placed fifth on the track list right before the Gunna-assisted “I Cannot Be (A Sadder Song).”
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Post first previewed “I Like You (A Happier Song)” in April 2022, a handful of months before it was eventually included on the album. Playing it during an Instagram live session that also saw him reveal more Twelve Carat Toothache songs like “Cooped Up” with Roddy Ricch and “Wasting Angels” with The Kid LAROI, Post spoke about how significant it was to finally connect with Doja for their first ever collaboration.
“(The song is) featuring the most incredible, and beautiful, and most talented, Doja Cat,” he told his Instagram live viewers. “She’s so incredible and I’m so blessed and so honored to be able to have worked with her.”
Ooh, girl, I like you, I do
I wanna be your friend, go shoppin’ in a Benz
I like you, I do
I’ll hit you when I land, can you fit me in your plans?
I like you, I do
We went to bed in France, then we woke up in Japan
I like you, I do, mm, I do
When the LP finally came out, “I Like You (A Happier Song)” was surely the most well-received of any of the cuts on Twelve Carat Toothache. Quickly, the song skyrocketed to its peak at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was higher than every other song on the album, including its smash hit lead single “One Right Now” with The Weeknd.
A few weeks later, Post dropped the visuals for the song, which saw him paint a colorful portrait of Doja, his presumed muse, as well as frolic in a field of flowers with the songstress. The music video aided the success of “I Like You (A Happier Song)” even more, helping it become Post’s most successful hit since “Circles,” the 2019 promotional single for his third album Hollywood’s Bleeding.
Also in the weeks following his album’s release, Malone performed at Something In The Water Fest, where showered praises upon Doja in a backstage interview.
“She’s so fucking epic, and she’s so sweet,” he said. “She has really taught me to come out of my shell and not to be scared of who you are and to share it with the world because you’re beautiful.”
Photo by Wagner Meier/Getty Images
