Raised in the Djursholm district of Danderyd, Lo is an alumna of the music school Rytmus Musikergymnasiet. She formed the rock band Tremblebee in 2006. After it disbanded, Lo pursued a career in songwriting and earned a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music in 2011. Working with producers Alexander Kronlund, Max Martin and Xenomania, she became a successful songwriter, while also recording and releasing her own compositions independently.
In 2013, Lo was signed to Universal Music, Island and Polydor. The following year, Lo rose to prominence with her debut album, Queen of the Clouds. It spawned the sleeper hit single "Habits (Stay High)", which peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100, as well as "Talking Body". Her second album, Lady Wood, was released in October 2016 and debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200. Its lead single, "Cool Girl", became an international hit. Her follow-up records, Blue Lips (2017) and Sunshine Kitty (2019), also performed well, the latter spawning the song "Glad He's Gone", which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video.
In addition to her solo work, Lo has co-written songs for other artists, including: Lorde's "Homemade Dynamite" (2017) and Ellie Goulding's "Love Me Like You Do" (2015), a song that garnered her Grammy Award and Golden Globe nominations. She has collaborated with many artists, such as Charli XCX, Flume, SG Lewis, Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue and Coldplay, among others.
Habit
Tove Lo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I eat my dinner in my bathtub
Then I go to sex clubs
Watching freaky people getting it on
It doesn't make me nervous
If anything I'm restless
Yeah I've been around and I've seen it all
Binge on all my Twinkies
Throw up in the tub, then I go to sleep
And I drank up all my money
Dazed and kinda lonely
You're gone and I gotta stay high
All the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
High all the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
Spend my days locked in a haze
Trying to forget you babe, I fall back down
Gotta stay high all my life to forget I'm missing you, woo ooh, woo ooh
Pick up daddies at the playground
How I spend my daytime
Loosen up the frown, make them feel alive
I make it fast and greasy
I'm numb and way too easy
You're gone and I gotta stay high
All the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
High all the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
Spend my days locked in a haze
Tryin' to forget you babe, I fall back down
Gotta stay high all my life to forget I'm missing you, woo ooh, woo ooh
Staying in my play pretend
Where the fun ain't got no end, oh
Can't go home alone again
Need someone to numb the pain, oh
Staying in my play pretend
Where the fun ain't got no end, oh-oh
Can't go home alone again
Need someone to numb the pain
You're gone and I gotta stay high
All the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
High all the time to keep you off my mind, woo ooh, woo ooh
Spend my days locked in a haze
Tryin' to forget you babe, I fall back down
Gotta stay high all my life to forget I'm missing you, woo ooh, woo ooh
Uh-uh
The lyrics of Tove Lo's "Habit" describe the singer's use of drugs and other vices to numb the pain of a break-up. She reveals that she eats her dinner in the bathtub, goes to sex clubs, and watches other people's sexual activities without feeling nervous. Instead, she is restless, having experienced everything there is to see. She returns home and consumes junk food, causing her to vomit in the tub, where she then falls asleep. Tove Lo mentions that she feels dazed and lonely, admitting that she has to stay high constantly to keep her ex-partner off her mind.
The chorus of the song then reiterates her dependence on drugs to forget her heartbreak. She spends her days in a blur, attempting to forget about her ex. Her search for distraction and relief leads her to pick up men at playgrounds, making them feel alive, and often in exchange for quick and easy sex. She then repeats the chorus, acknowledging that she must stay high to escape her emotional pain, revealing that she is living in a fantasy world.
The message conveyed through "Habit" is the damage that heartbreak can inflict and how we may lean on temporary relief mechanisms to dull the pain. Tove Lo's lyrics expose the dangerousness of these coping mechanisms, highlighting the importance of healthier ways of healing.
Line by Line Meaning
I eat my dinner in my bathtub
I'm engaging in extreme self-care to feel good about myself, even if it means unconventional behavior
Then I go to sex clubs
I seek out extreme experiences to feel something, even if the experience is unsettling
Watching freaky people getting it on
I enjoy watching other people having sex as it is a form of excitement
It doesn't make me nervous
I'm not afraid of these experiences and find them exhilarating
If anything I'm restless
I'm always seeking out new experiences, and never feeling fully satisfied with what I have
Yeah I've been around and I've seen it all
I've been through a lot and done a lot, but I still haven't found what I'm looking for
I get home, I got the munchies
After my wild experiences, I come home feeling hungry for something else, like food or comfort
Binge on all my Twinkies
I indulge in comfort eating as a way to cope with my unfulfilled desires
Throw up in the tub, then I go to sleep
I feel physically sick from my binging and purging, but the cycle repeats itself as a way to deal with my dissatisfaction
And I drank up all my money
I use alcohol as a way to further numb myself and my emotions
Daze and kinda lonely
Despite all of my attempts to feel happy, I still feel empty and alone
You're gone and I gotta stay high
All the time to keep you off my mind, ooh ooh
High all the time to keep you off my mind, ooh ooh
Spend my days locked in a haze
Trying to forget you babe, I fall back down
Gotta stay high all my life to forget I'm missing you, ooh ooh
I'm using drugs as a way to cope with the pain of missing you and to distract myself from my unfulfilling life
Pick up daddies at the playground
I engage in sexual behavior to feel power over men and to fulfill my desires without emotional attachment
How I spend my daytime
I spend my days seeking out new sexual experiences and engaging in risky behavior
Loosen up the frown, make them feel alive
I use sex as a way to alleviate my boredom and to make myself and others feel something
I make it fast and greasy
I'm numb and way too easy
My sexual experiences lack emotional connection and are focused solely on physical pleasure
Staying in my play pretend
Where the fun ain't got no end, oh
Can't go home alone again
Need someone to numb the pain, oh
Staying in my play pretend
Where the fun ain't got no end, oh-oh
Can't go home alone again
Need someone to numb the pain
I'm constantly pretending and seeking out distractions to numb my emotional pain and sense of loneliness
Gotta stay high all my life to forget I'm missing you, ooh ooh
I'm stuck in this cycle of using drugs and risky behavior as a way to cope with my feelings of loss and unfulfillment
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Daniel Ledinsky, Jakob Jerlstrom, Ludvig Soderberg, Tove Lo
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Mr_OrkyDay
Someone in 2024 ?
@plexistellar
Me!
@Sofocante122
Me, ando high xd
@itsriiah3927
Meeeee🎉
@adelavega7324
Mee
@madisonbyler6815
🍃
@trevdizzle1456
The song lyrics weren't this depressing when we were younger now I clearly understand it
@iam.7509
it sounds the same same to me tbh.
@catalinflorescu8324
Yes is verry nice song 7 years
@lazzyshineng9917
same-