Latest news with #PlasticHearts
Elle
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Elle
The Biggest Takeaways From Miley Cyrus's 'Something Beautiful,' According to ELLE Editors
If anyone's long overdue for an eras tour, it's Miley Cyrus. The 32-year-old artist has gone from Disney child star to rebellious teen, to experimental oddball, to a bonafide Grammy winner. Her latest album, Something Beautiful, marks the next stage of her evolution, one with a high-fashion wardrobe, artistic visuals, and a theatrical film to boot. It's sophisticated and mature, emotional but playful—a side of Cyrus we might not have ever seen, or heard, before. But how does it stack up following her chart-topping, award-winning previous album, Endless Summer Vacation? After a recent screening of the Something Beautiful film, which brings all 13 tracks on the album to the screen, two ELLE editors broke down Cyrus's latest offering. There are '80s influences (a saxophone solo and Joan Jett and Pat Benatar vibes); collaborations with her musician boyfriend, Maxx Morando; and even a feature from the one and only Naomi Campbell. As she told fans at the event, this LP is about her finding beauty in destruction, imperfection, and even in pain. Here's how it turned out. Samuel Maude, content strategy manager: So, I'm a Bangerz and Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz apologist. And, by apologist, I mean I think that Bangerz is good music. I have some issues with the era and a lot of the things she did. However, I think it is my favorite Miley album, and after [listening to Something Beautiful], that will stay true. I do think this album is probably what Miley Cyrus has always wanted to make. Erica Gonzales, deputy editor, culture: It seems like that. I think she hinted at saying that in her Zane Lowe interview. SM: Yes. It feels like this is, to her, her best album, and I think that's great. Her albums have really all had a different sound to me. You had Bangerz, which was definitely like that era of pop. You had Dead Petz, which was just experimental. You had Younger Now, which was country, folky, and then you had Plastic Hearts, which— EG: I love Plastic Hearts. I was going to say, that's what I'm an apologist for. SM: I've actually been listening a lot to that album recently, like 'Night Crawler.' EG: I was just listening to that before! SM: And then you have Endless Summer Vacation, which I think is her biggest hit. And coming off of an album like Endless Summer Vacation, this almost feels like a sophomore album in a way, merging her entire past. There are moments of Younger Now. There are moments of Plastic Hearts. There are moments of Endless Summer Vacation. Maybe no moments of Bangerz. But if I had to distill what I think Miley Cyrus wants to sound like as an artist, it is this album, which was exciting. Is it my personal favorite Miley album? It's not. I think there were snoozy elements of it. EG: I hear you. I have never been a diehard 'Smiler.' But I did grow up alongside her. I was in middle school when she was on Hannah Montana, and she's only a year older than me, so we did kind of grow up together, even though she has no idea who I am. SM: I remember when she was in High School Musical 2. EG: And her Jonas Brothers era. We can go on and on. So I think it is interesting seeing this part of her evolution as an artist. It does feel, visually and sonically, like her most mature album. I liked it. I feel like I was more impressed with it because I didn't know what to expect, and I didn't love Endless Summer Vacation as much as everybody else did. Even 'Flowers,' though it's a big hit and a total crowd-pleaser, I feel like it could have been a little more surprising melodically, but it was very simple and approachable. But as a lover of Plastic Hearts, which did not get enough noise as it deserved, the '80s elements [on this record] resonated with me. There were some '80s funk pop vibes on it, funk guitars, and things like that that I thought were interesting. Even visually, the video for the Naomi Campbell song, 'Every Girl You Ever Loved,' kind of looked like the George Michael 'Freedom! '90' music video with the supermodels in the warehouse. I was like, Oh, I see the references here. I feel like there were some moments where the sound felt very big, and maybe that's just because we saw it in a theater. And also re-listening to the 'Prelude' just now, there's a narration; there's an overture, basically. That feels cinematic to me. There were parts that I did find interesting, even though right now, a week out from when we heard it, I don't remember every single song. But I do remember there were certain moments that surprised me, like the Brittany Howard feature. I was like, 'That's so interesting. And you guys do sound good together,' because when Miley does a rock vocal, she sounds so good. She's playing around with her voice and her sound in ways that I find amusing and surprising. SM: I find it fascinating she's marketing this as a capital 'F' film when, as she said, a lot of it is just her posing in Mugler, which, slay. All for it. But is there a story in the film? No. EG: I agree. I don't really know if it counts as a film narratively, but the wardrobe— SM: Ate. EG: Wardrobe department ate, makeup department ate, hair ate, but also had interesting choices. The high ponytail. SM: The high ponytail was really shocking to me. EG: And the three pointy spikes. That was very fun. SM: I've been thinking about how I have friends who are Swifties, Little Monsters, members of Rihanna's Navy, but I don't have friends who are Smilers. Maybe that's on me, but they seem harder to identify. In that case, I don't see this as an album that welcomes new fans in. I don't know if there's a hit that does that. Maybe it's the Naomi Campbell song or 'Walk of Fame,' but I don't think she has a 'Flowers' here. Her 2024 Grammys performance felt so celebratory, and I don't know if this will continue the hype. SM: I'm going to say something bold: I think we need to start recognizing Miley Cyrus as one of the best vocalists of our generation. I think she is often overlooked, but her vocals are so unmatched. She has this growl that is incredible. The notes she hits are insane. I actually don't know if I've ever heard her off-pitch. I think she is a phenomenal vocalist with such an incredible range and ability to do a variety of genres. When we're talking about the great vocalists, we often forget about her. And I think this album showcased her voice in a really great way. EG: There were parts of 'More to Lose' or one of the other ballads where you could really feel the emotion. I love hearing her on a rock or folky sound. I will always remember her backyard session cover of 'Jolene.' It's so good. It was 12 years ago, and I remember at that time thinking, 'Oh my gosh, this is the direction she's going to go in and it will fit so well. She's going to be a folky singer-songwriter-y artist.' But she really kept me on my toes because she went on to do Bangerz, Younger Now, Plastic Hearts, Endless Summer Vacation, and now this. It just says that there's so much in her, and she has so much to explore. SM: That's a really good track. It's wild to me that, before the album came out, she was releasing songs in order [of the track list]. She did not pick the singles correctly. EG: Right. And something we've discussed a lot is to not release your best song as your first single, but like, release it as one of them. SM: It shouldn't be the first single, but the second, sure. EG: Like 'Abracadabra.' SM: I literally wrote, 'Very '80s Joan Jett, Billy Idol.' EG: And those are two features on Plastic Hearts! EG: I did like 'Easy Lover.' SM: I said it was 'jazz country.' EG: It had an upbeat vibe, but it was also kind of rustic at the same time. Her voice was raspy there, and that was really cool. I also wrote, 'She's making a ponytail comeback.' SM: I did not enjoy, unfortunately, 'Golden Burning Sun.' And I do think a lot of the songs melded together, and that was one where I was like, 'Let's go, let's go, let's go [move it along].' Unfortunately, this album reminds me a bit of Radical Optimism. I think there are pure bangers on that album. I loved 'Falling Forever.' I was listening to 'Training Season' this morning. I love 'Houdini.' But then the rest of it, I'm like, 'Okay.' I felt very similarly about Something Beautiful too, where I love certain ones, but I was like, 'This album's falling a little flat for me.' I'm curious if it's going to have a similar treatment where it's like, you have this hit album—for Miley, Endless Summer Vacation, for Dua, Future Nostalgia—then you release a follow-up that doesn't hit the zeitgeist as much. SM: 'Every Girl You've Ever Loved' with Naomi is incredible. That is going to become a 'Sam in his underwear at 1 A.M. with a glass of whiskey, dancing with my microphone' song. EG: The living room concert series. I need to know how she got Naomi Campbell not just in the video, but as a feature on the song. SM: The crowd gasped when she showed up. EG: And then was fully screaming when they strutted together. SM: I mean, it was iconic. I have had this experience with Normani on 'Take My Time,' Dua Lipa with 'Falling Forever,' when you're not 100-percent vibing with an album, and then a song comes, and you're just like, 'We're back.' I was like, 'Pose.' EG: Obviously the Madonna inspiration seems so present there. Again, another '80s influence. SM: And ballroom, which, she said this is her gayest album. EG: It was interesting that not only was he in the videos, but he was also credited with writing a lot of the songs. They're really in it. SM: I mean, that's such a trend right now: Fall in love and write music with your person, like Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky. SM: I think she's a really cool celebrity. She seems down-to-earth. Seeing her in person, she really seems to care about her fans. I just think she has a great persona. Hit me up, Miley. Let's be friends. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Elle
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Elle
Miley Cyrus's ‘Easy Lover' Lyrics Include a Subtle Ode to Beyoncé
Miley Cyrus's ninth album, Something Beautiful, is officially here. Alongside the LP that dropped today, Cyrus also released a music video for her newest single 'Easy Lover.' In the '80s-tinged track, she sings about a partner who's not so easy to love, which just makes her even more obsessed: 'I love to hate ya, uh, but I can't stand it when you're gone / So I call you once every hour.' And despite that, she just can't give them up. While the song wrestles with themes of a complicated relationship in its lyrics, the backstory of how it came to be is just as fascinating. In an interview with Zane Lowe last week, Cyrus explained that she initially pitched the song to Beyoncé for her Cowboy Carter album. (That explains why it includes the adlib, 'Tell 'em, B!') 'I had written that song originally around the Plastic Hearts days and never got the production quite where I wanted it,' she explains to Lowe. But she held onto the song, and when Beyoncé was looking for tracks for her country album, she sent her this one and 'Shotgun Rider,' which was eventually renamed to the Grammy-winning 'II Most Wanted.' And though 'Easy Lover' didn't make it onto Cowboy Carter, that didn't stop Cyrus from keeping the adlib. 'I just was like, 'What am I going to do about, 'Tell 'em, B'?' she said. 'And Britney Howard's like, 'I'll play the guitar on it.' So that's her playing all that electric guitar.'' You can check out the full lyrics to the track below, courtesy of Genius.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Miley Cyrus flashes both her tummy and butt in wild Vegas showgirl outfit as new album gets rave reviews
shared new images to Instagram on Tuesday to support her ninth studio album Something Beautiful. The beauty managed to flash her chest, tummy and butt in the photos. 'Easy Lover out May 30th with Something Beautiful the album,' read the caption. The album is already getting great views, one of which is from the Associated press. 'Over the years, the Grammy winner has demonstrated that she is unequivocally a pop star. 'She´s also a dedicated student of contemporary music history and various genres, something she´s made clear through her love of performing cover songs and across her diverse discography (lest anyone forget her 2020 glam rock-inspired concept album, 'Plastic Hearts'). From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'On Something Beautiful, Cyrus proves that she is most in her element musically when firmly holding onto those myriad identities, weaving together an inventive tapestry of pop, rock, electronic, disco and even funk - like in the album's soulful, heartache anthem, Easy Lover. 'Most of Cyrus´ album comprises ABBA-channeling earworms; 'End of the World' has a piano riff that screams 'Dancing Queen.' But she balances ´70s nostalgia with belting vocals and wide-ranging instrumentation throughout. Cyrus arguably hasn't had this kind of sonic variation on a record since 2010's 'Can´t Be Tamed.' 'Something Beautiful' is accompanied by a musical film of the same name, which will premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival. The aptly named first track, 'Prelude,' is a narrated introduction, which gives the wrong impression that the album only serves as a score to the film. It stands on its own. 'That's because most of the 13 tracks reflect Cyrus's work over the past two decades. 'More To Lose,' for example, is a big-hearted ballad that sounds like it could have been featured on a 'Hannah Montana' soundtrack, though her vocals and musical sensibilities have matured. 'Walk of Fame' - her upbeat collaboration with Brittany Howard - also harks back to her early discography, reminiscent of songs like 'Liberty Walk' and 'Scars' on 'Can't Be Tamed.' 'Cyrus draws on other past eras too, like in 'Pretend You´re God,' which evokes the psychedelic sound of her 2015 album, 'Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz.' 'The album does benefit from a newfound sense of structure, perhaps from the presumed guardrails in place by the accompanying film. Where Cyrus has previously struggled to fit certain songs, especially ballads, into the context of her previous albums - the stripped-down 'Wonder Woman' felt arbitrarily tacked onto the otherwise elaborate 'Endless Summer Vacation,' for example - there is a continuity throughout 'Something Beautiful' in its eclecticism. 'There's an electronic, energetic pivot toward the second half of the album, specifically in the tracks 'Reborn' and 'Every Girl You´ve Ever Loved.' 'The latter sounds strikingly like something Lady Gaga would have put on 'Born This Way.' Coincidentally, there is a narrator on the song who sounds eerily like Gaga. 'In many ways, the record is a return to form for the 32-year-old, whose pop reputation has always been in tension with her interest in other genres. But she also demonstrates, through those electronic songs in particular, how her sound has evolved and expanded over time.'
San Francisco Chronicle
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Music Review: Miley Cyrus' 'Something Beautiful' is a return to form. 'Hannah Montana' fans, rejoice
LOS ANGELES (AP) — For longtime Miley Cyrus fans, her ninth studio album is bound to live up to its name. It truly is 'Something Beautiful.' Over the years, the Grammy winner has demonstrated that she is unequivocally a pop star. She's also a dedicated student of contemporary music history and various genres, something she's made clear through her love of performing cover songs and across her diverse discography (lest anyone forget her 2020 glam rock-inspired concept album, 'Plastic Hearts'). On 'Something Beautiful,' Cyrus proves that she is most in her element musically when firmly holding onto those myriad identities, weaving together an inventive tapestry of pop, rock, electronic, disco and even funk — like in the album's soulful, heartache anthem, 'Easy Lover.' Most of Cyrus' album comprises ABBA-channeling earworms; 'End of the World' has a piano riff that screams 'Dancing Queen.' But she balances '70s nostalgia with belting vocals and wide-ranging instrumentation throughout. Cyrus arguably hasn't had this kind of sonic variation on a record since 2010's 'Can't Be Tamed.' 'Something Beautiful' is accompanied by a musical film of the same name, which will premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival. The aptly named first track, 'Prelude,' is a narrated introduction, which gives the wrong impression that the album only serves as a score to the film. It stands on its own. That's because most of the 13 tracks reflect Cyrus's work over the past two decades. 'More To Lose,' for example, is a big-hearted ballad that sounds like it could have been featured on a 'Hannah Montana' soundtrack, though her vocals and musical sensibilities have matured. 'Walk of Fame' — her upbeat collaboration with Brittany Howard — also harks back to her early discography, reminiscent of songs like 'Liberty Walk' and 'Scars' on 'Can't Be Tamed.' Cyrus draws on other past eras too, like in 'Pretend You're God,' which evokes the psychedelic sound of her 2015 album, 'Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz.' The album does benefit from a newfound sense of structure, perhaps from the presumed guardrails in place by the accompanying film. Where Cyrus has previously struggled to fit certain songs, especially ballads, into the context of her previous albums — the stripped-down 'Wonder Woman' felt arbitrarily tacked onto the otherwise elaborate 'Endless Summer Vacation,' for example — there is a continuity throughout 'Something Beautiful' in its eclecticism. There's an electronic, energetic pivot toward the second half of the album, specifically in the tracks 'Reborn' and 'Every Girl You've Ever Loved.' The latter sounds strikingly like something Lady Gaga would have put on 'Born This Way.' Coincidentally, there is a narrator on the song who sounds eerily like Gaga. In many ways, the record is a return to form for the 32-year-old, whose pop reputation has always been in tension with her interest in other genres. But she also demonstrates, through those electronic songs in particular, how her sound has evolved and expanded over time.
Winnipeg Free Press
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Music Review: Miley Cyrus' ‘Something Beautiful' is a return to form. ‘Hannah Montana' fans, rejoice
LOS ANGELES (AP) — For longtime Miley Cyrus fans, her ninth studio album is bound to live up to its name. It truly is 'Something Beautiful.' Over the years, the Grammy winner has demonstrated that she is unequivocally a pop star. She's also a dedicated student of contemporary music history and various genres, something she's made clear through her love of performing cover songs and across her diverse discography (lest anyone forget her 2020 glam rock-inspired concept album, 'Plastic Hearts'). On 'Something Beautiful,' Cyrus proves that she is most in her element musically when firmly holding onto those myriad identities, weaving together an inventive tapestry of pop, rock, electronic, disco and even funk — like in the album's soulful, heartache anthem, 'Easy Lover.' Most of Cyrus' album comprises ABBA-channeling earworms; 'End of the World' has a piano riff that screams 'Dancing Queen.' But she balances '70s nostalgia with belting vocals and wide-ranging instrumentation throughout. Cyrus arguably hasn't had this kind of sonic variation on a record since 2010's 'Can't Be Tamed.' 'Something Beautiful' is accompanied by a musical film of the same name, which will premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival. The aptly named first track, 'Prelude,' is a narrated introduction, which gives the wrong impression that the album only serves as a score to the film. It stands on its own. That's because most of the 13 tracks reflect Cyrus's work over the past two decades. 'More To Lose,' for example, is a big-hearted ballad that sounds like it could have been featured on a 'Hannah Montana' soundtrack, though her vocals and musical sensibilities have matured. 'Walk of Fame' — her upbeat collaboration with Brittany Howard — also harks back to her early discography, reminiscent of songs like 'Liberty Walk' and 'Scars' on 'Can't Be Tamed.' Cyrus draws on other past eras too, like in 'Pretend You're God,' which evokes the psychedelic sound of her 2015 album, 'Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz.' The album does benefit from a newfound sense of structure, perhaps from the presumed guardrails in place by the accompanying film. Where Cyrus has previously struggled to fit certain songs, especially ballads, into the context of her previous albums — the stripped-down 'Wonder Woman' felt arbitrarily tacked onto the otherwise elaborate 'Endless Summer Vacation,' for example — there is a continuity throughout 'Something Beautiful' in its eclecticism. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. There's an electronic, energetic pivot toward the second half of the album, specifically in the tracks 'Reborn' and 'Every Girl You've Ever Loved.' The latter sounds strikingly like something Lady Gaga would have put on 'Born This Way.' Coincidentally, there is a narrator on the song who sounds eerily like Gaga. In many ways, the record is a return to form for the 32-year-old, whose pop reputation has always been in tension with her interest in other genres. But she also demonstrates, through those electronic songs in particular, how her sound has evolved and expanded over time.
