Amanda Bynes Reveals Inspiration Behind New Song 'Girlfriend' as She Makes Unexpected Return to Industry After Leaving Hollywood

After years away from Hollywood, Amanda Bynes is stepping back into the spotlight.

The She's The Man star, 40, is gearing up to release her first single in four years, "Girlfriend," on April 10.

"My inspiration was a lot of EDM," Bynes told a news outlet on Tuesday, April 7, of the new song. "As well as rap."

Bynes hasn't shied away from teasing snippets of the track on social media, which she collaborated on with Los Angeles rapper Fenix Flexin.

The former child star's label, Create Music Group, whose roster includes hitmakers like Jason Derulo, Keri Hilson and Deadmau5, said her single "blends melodic rap with EDM-inspired production, creating a catchy, high-replay record with a smooth West Coast bounce.”

“Built around a strong hook and confident, flirt-heavy energy,” the label said in a statement, “it’s designed for repeat listens and wide playlist appeal.”

Bynes released her first track in 2021, releasing "Diamonds" with then-fiancé Paul Michael. The pair released "Fairfax" one year later.

"Girlfriend" drops more than a decade after Bynes last appeared on screen in 2010's Easy A.

In the modern rom-com inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel The Scarlet Letter, Bynes played a hyperreligious high school mean girl, later admitting she "couldn't stand her appearance."

"I didn't like my performance. I was absolutely convinced I needed to stop acting after seeing it," she told Paper magazine in 2018. "I was high on marijuana when I saw that but for some reason it really started to affect me. I don't know if it was a drug-induced psychosis or what, but it affected my brain in a different way than it affects other people. It absolutely changed my perception of things."

The Sydney White star explained that at the height of her career, she was dealing with severe body image issues, eventually sending her into a "deep depression." She also started experimenting with substances, including Adderall, after "reading an article in a magazine that (called Adderall) 'the new skinny pill.'"

Bynes has faced challenges with substance abuse and mental health over the years. In March 2024, she updated her followers, saying she was "doing a lot better" after a period of depression.

More recently, The Amanda Show alum shared that she began using Ozempic and was happy to report in February that she lost nearly 30 pounds that she gained during her depressive episode.