Master of None (song)

"Master of None"
The promotional single cover for "Master of None", which shows a backdrop of gold jewelry and pearls, with the Beach House logo appearing at the top-right corner and bolded text read as "Master of None" located at the bottom.
Promotional single by Beach House
from the album Beach House
ReleasedSeptember 17, 2007 (2007-09-17)
GenreDream pop
Length3:19
Label
SongwriterVictoria Legrand
Music video
"Master of None" on YouTube

"Master of None" is a song by American dream pop duo Beach House from their debut studio album, Beach House (2006), which was released through Carpark Records. It was released as a promotional single on September 17, 2007, through Bella Union. Written by lead vocalist and keyboardist Victoria Legrand, the song is arranged in a funk-leaning rhythm with supporting instruments including a synthesizer and a guitar.

To promote "Master of None" and its accompanying album, Beach House released two music videos for the song in January and July 2007. The song has been received well by critics, who complimented its sound atmosphere and considered it a highlight from Beach House. Since its release, the song was sampled by Canadian singer The Weeknd and has also been featured on media such as The Future (2011) and the Netflix-original series of the same name (2015). It has later received certifications in New Zealand and in the United Kingdom.

Background and composition

In 2004, lead vocalist Victoria Legrand moved from her birthplace of Paris to Baltimore after being dissatisfied with theater school,[1] and she later met guitarist Alex Scally in the city,[2] and both would also be in a band at the time: Daggerhearts, which would later disband in 2005 due to "dysfunctionality".[3] In spite of this, both members still decided to create music together, and Scally often invited Legrand to his house to hang out or to write music.[4]

They began recording their self-titled debut album over a two-day period in 2005 in Scally's basement,[5] which reportedly cost about $1,000.[6] They wrote several songs beforehand during the summer of that year, with the high temperatures at the time making this process "go slower".[7] In August 2006, their song "Apple Orchard" was featured as the 34th entry on Pitchfork's Infinite Mixtape series,[8] which would help them earn international recognition.[9] "Master of None", the fourth track from the band's debut album, has a "slightly funkier rhythm" supported by "radiant" synthesizers and "dreamy" guitars.[10] Legrand's "most soulful" voice in the song "temporarily breaks the album's strangely ritualistic spell",[11] with the overall track relying on reverb.[12]

Promotion and release

Beach House's self-titled debut studio album was released on October 3, 2006, with "Master of None" appearing as its fourth track.[7] Three days later, on October 6, Beach House announced on their website that a music video for "Master of None" was being filmed, stating that it would feature people from their hometown, Baltimore.[‡ 1] In January 2007, the band released said music video for "Master of None", which was directed by Justin Durel.[13] They released another video for the track in July 2007, which was directed by Dan Sully and coincided with the official release of their self-titled album in the United Kingdom.[14] The song was later released as a promotional single on September 17, 2007, by Bella Union.[15]

Reception and legacy

Vicky Eacott from Gigwise named "Master of None" as a highlight track from Beach House's self-titled album, additionally calling it "similarly beautiful and atmospheric" as its preceding track "Apple Orchard".[16] In 2013, John Everhart of Stereogum named "Master of None" as the second best Beach House song, stating that "[Victoria's] magnificent lyrics often get lost in the rather beguiling amalgamation of slide guitars and vintage synthesizers, but dig deeper and they're enigmatic yet engaging".[17] Max Savage Levenson from Paste named it the third best Beach House song in 2015, complimenting "its insanely catchy melody".[18]

"Master of None" was sampled by Canadian singer The Weeknd for his song "The Party & The After Party", which is from his debut mixtape House of Balloons (2011).[19][20] It was also featured on Miranda July's 2011 drama film The Future.[17] The song was later used in the Netflix show of the same name.[21] On July 24, 2025, "Master of None" received a gold certification in New Zealand.[22] On April 3, 2026, the song received a silver certification by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), denoting a total of 200,000 units sold in the United Kingdom based on sales and streaming figures.[23]

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Beach House.[24]

Beach House

Production

  • Rob Girardi – recording, mixing
  • Adam Cooke – recording
  • Rusty Santos – mastering

Certifications

Certifications for "Master of None"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[22] Gold 15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[23] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ↑ Hockley-Smith, Sam (June 14, 2012). "Beach House: Tidal Pull". The Fader. Retrieved April 13, 2026. Scally grew up in Baltimore, but Legrand, who grew up in Philadelphia, moved there after becoming disenchanted with theater school in Paris.
  2. ↑ Diehl, Matt (February 26, 2010). "Hot Band: Beach House". Spin. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  3. ↑ Sisson, Patrick (February 24, 2008). "Beach House: Ether and Lace". XLR8R. Archived from the original on June 26, 2025. Retrieved April 13, 2026. Originally members of a larger group, Daggerhearts, Legrand and Scally split off in 2005 when the band started to get a bit dysfunctional.
  4. ↑ Rolland, David (May 22, 2017). "Alex Scally Says Beach House Has Unfinished Business in South Florida". Miami New Times. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  5. ↑ Joe Colly (February 15, 2010). "Beach House". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  6. ↑ Lipshutz, Jason (April 20, 2012). "Beach House: The Story Behind 'Bloom' and Indie's Most Reliable Duo". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 6, 2022. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  7. 1 2 Newmark 2007.
  8. ↑ Schreiber, Ryan (August 22, 2006). "Infinite Mixtape No. 34: Beach House: 'Apple Orchard'". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 7, 2008. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  9. ↑ missnae (April 4, 2008). "Beach House interview by Renae Mason". Cyclic Defrost. Archived from the original on May 18, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2026. 'Apple Orchard' was an important song for Beach House. Its loveliness seduced listeners all over the world, when it made it onto Pitchfork's Infinite Mixtape #34, and when it was rated as the website's eighth best song for 2006.
  10. ↑ "Beach House - Beach House". Almost Cool. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  11. ↑ Pytlik, Mark (October 11, 2006). "Beach House: Beach House Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 18, 2009. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
  12. ↑ Colville, Liz (November 14, 2006). "Beach House - Beach House - Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on November 28, 2007. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  13. ↑ Solarski, Matthew (January 11, 2007). "Pitchfork: Video Premiere: Beach House: 'Master of None'". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 7, 2008. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  14. ↑ Richardson, Mark (August 9, 2007). "Pitchfork Forkcast: Video: Beach House: 'Master of None' (new clip for UK release)". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  15. ↑ Master of None (CD liner notes). Beach House. Bella Union. 2007. BELLACD152P.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. ↑ Eacott, Vicky (August 15, 2007). "Beach House - 'Beach House' (Bella Union) Released 30/07/07". Gigwise. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  17. 1 2 Everhart, John (July 10, 2013). "The 10 Best Beach House Songs". Stereogum. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  18. ↑ Savage Levenson, Max (November 20, 2015). "The 10 Best Beach House Songs". Paste. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  19. ↑ "The Weeknd: House of Balloons". PopMatters. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  20. ↑ Conteh, Mankaprr (March 22, 2021). "The Weeknd's 'The Party & the After Party' Paved the Way for our Genre-less Future". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 9, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  21. ↑ Gordon, Jeremy (November 9, 2015). "Aziz Ansari on the Music of 'Master of None': Father John Misty, Aphex Twin, Arthur Russell, and More". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
  22. 1 2 "New Zealand single certifications – Beach House – Master of None". Radioscope. Retrieved April 13, 2026. Type Master of None in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  23. 1 2 "British single certifications – Beach House – Master of None". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 13, 2026. Select singles in the Formats field. Type Master of None Beach House in the "Search:" field.
  24. ↑ Beach House (LP liner notes). Beach House. HeartBreakBeat. 2007. HBB05.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)

Primary sources

In the text these references are preceded by a double dagger (‡):

  1. ↑ "News: 10/06". Beach House. October 6, 2006. Archived from the original on October 9, 2006. Retrieved April 13, 2026.

Works cited

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