 Ocean titled the album as a reference to grapheme – color synesthesia , a neurological phenomenon in which an individual 's perception of numbers and letters is associated with the experience of colors . He discussed the phenomenon with Pharrell , who had also experienced it and similarly referenced it for the title of his side project N.E.R.D 's 2008 album Seeing Sounds . West also experienced it as a youth and used it as an inspiration when creating his short film Cruel Summer in 2012 . The title also alludes to the first time that Ocean fell in love , as it was summer and he perceived everything to be orange . Ocean 's mother called it " a perfect summertime album " after attending a listening session . 
