About.com Rating

The Bottom Line

Ashlee Simpson aggressively deals with an unnamed female adversary while asserting her own independence. It's all backed up by surging rock guitar. Unfortunately, the production by Grammy Award winner John Shanks lacks in the distinctiveness needed for this tune to linger long in your memory.

Pros

• Lyrics asserting Ashlee's independence
• Chunky rock guitar

Cons

• Lacking in distinctiveness

Description

• Retort to an unnamed female accusing Ashlee Simpson of boyfriend theft
• Guitar-based pop-rock context
• Tight, professional production

Guide Review - Boyfriend - Ashlee Simpson (Geffen)

Listen to "Boyfriend"

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The publicity out of Ashlee Simpson's camp insists this song is NOT about Lindsay Lohan. That assertion was underlined when the pair publicly expressed affection backstage at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards. However, it is about some unnamed female adversary, or, perhaps, female adversaries in general. The response to the unnamed is reasonably effective, but the best lyric line is about Simpson in general as she states "Hollywood sucks you in, but it won't spit me out."

The guitar-based pop-rock production courtesy 2005's Grammy Award winning producer of the year John Shanks goes down easy. Unfortunately, Shanks hasn't made the track distinctive enough to fully separate it from the Kellys and Avrils on the radio. Ashlee's performance is appealing enough, however, to make me look forward to the upcoming album, I Am Me, due out in October 2005.