'Don't Tell 'Em,' But Lorde Covered Chicago R&B Singer Jeremih's Latest Hit

By Jon Graef in Arts & Entertainment on Nov 15, 2014 5:30PM

Lorde, in addition to being one of the world's biggest pop stars, is a fabulous reinterpreter of other people's songs. Exhibit A: Her sparse, lovely cover of The Replacements's classic Tim track "Swinging Party." Though she's covered plenty of songs since then, exhibit B of her interpretive skills has to be her take on Chicago R&B singer Jeremih's hit, "Don't Tell 'Em." Lorde brings a minimalist, downtempo, electronic vibe to the track, which she covered during an appearance on the BBC.

Lorde opts to skip YG's rap entirely, which means you don't get to hear her brag about "Twitter pussy" she "met on the internet" [as opposed to at the library?]. You do, however, get to hear her say "fu fu" which is something else entirely for Chicagoans up on their local slang. Watch Lorde's take at the top, then stream the original for comparison's sake below:

Jeremih's working on a new album, the release of which has been subject to delay.

[h/t P4K]