If the heartbreak in Miley Cyrus‘ emotional single “Used to Be Young” just wasn’t quite enough for you, then you should definitely check out Lauv‘s even more devastating take on the song about the bad old good days.
The singer appeared on BBC 1’sRadio Lounge on Thursday (Oct. 12), and as is customary he performed a cover of his choice. That choice was Cyrus’ recent Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit ballad, which Lauv stripped all the way back to just his aching voice and a keyboard.
“Truth is bulletproof there’s no fooling you I don’t dress the same/ Me and who you said I was yesterday have gone our separate ways/ Left my livin’ fast somewhere in the past, ’cause that’ for chasin’ cars,” Lauv sang in a haunting falsetto over spare keys he tickled with nails painted with silver sparkly polish. The brooding version of Cyrus song ended with Lauv’s voice breaking as he whispered, “I know I used to be crazy/ That’s ’cause I used to be young.”
Lauv also performed an acoustic guitar version of his own “Love U Like That” during the session, which he celebrated in an Instagram Story in which he wrote, “Miley Cyrus, you are a queen. I covered ur song.”
Cyrus kicked off a TikTok series of “untold stories” from throughout her career also called “Used to Be Young” in August in which she took on everything from her Hannah Montana years to why she never released a video for “See You Again.”