Pop

23 Aug 2023

Why Aren’t More Pop Stars Being Born?

Why have so few major new pop stars emerged lately? The music-buying public has thoughts.

For the Aug. 2 Billboard story, “Pop Stars Aren’t Popping Like They Used To — Do Labels Have a Plan?”, reporter Elias Leight spoke with label executives and managers to try to understand the dearth of new superstars, with Olivia Rodrigo and Ice Spice cited as rare examples of new artists to have broken through over the past couple of years. Reasons given for the decline ranged from the practice of signing more artists at labels, to the lessening marketing power of radio, to increased competition for time and attention from video games and social media — with some sources concluding that expectations for mass market appeal should be lowered in today’s more fragmented media landscape.

Due in part to an Aug. 8 tweet by widely-followed pop culture account Pop Base, however, online chatter around the story exploded, with users on X (formerly known as Twitter) and Reddit offering their own opinions on the relative absence of new stars with the mass appeal of Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Harry Styles and Lady Gaga. Here are a few of the most prominent and interesting takes.

It’s All TikTok’s Fault

The most common reason given for the scarcity of new pop stars was TikTok, which was blamed for all but killing traditional artist development.

“They need to stop signing people based off of a couple viral tiktok videos, churning out fast food music and work with real artists with longevity,” wrote @internetmaeve on X. “like Olivia didn’t blow up overnight she was a disney kid?? s– takes time.”

The ephemeral nature of the short-form video platform — a significant change from a radio-dominated business, when songs in rotation on Top 40 stations were inescapable — was cited as a factor by Reddit user @anneoftheisland, weighing in on the r/popheads channel where the article was shared: “TikTok isn’t set up to boost artists, it’s set up to boost individual songs…In the radio era, if a hit broke out, labels had significant sway to get that artist’s second and third songs in front of you … they couldn’t force you to like those songs, but they could force you to listen to them. But that’s a lot harder to do in the streaming/TikTok era. If you hear a song you like on TikTok, there’s a large chance you won’t hear that artist’s second/third singles unless you seek them out yourself.”

On the same Reddit thread, @Interesting-Ad9838 said that artists who break through on TikTok simply don’t have the cross-generational impact as in previous eras, thereby limiting their influence. “The general audience don’t know who these artists are anymore,” they wrote. “If my grandparents know who you are, then you definitely made it.”

Record Labels Are Too Risk-Averse

Another common theme, which ties in with concerns about TikTok, is the complaint that labels are increasingly risk-averse, preferring to sign artists with preexisting fanbases rather than putting the time, energy and money into developing them from the ground up.

“Mind you there are artists on…labels right now probably begging to have full label support and funding for their projects,” said X user @waylojan. “The problem is they’re looking elsewhere instead of bolstering the talent they have.”

“The industry wants quick and fast and isn’t giving, in my opinion, some people who could really do this the right chance,” added Reddit user @moxieroxsox on the r/popheads thread. “It took Rihanna 3 albums before she skyrocketed. Taylor Swift wasn’t taken seriously until what? Speak Now? Red? Ariana did Broadway and TV before she started music and she has the voice of a literal angel. Beyoncé spent years tailoring her sound, not to mention all the years she spent developing her abilities in Destiny’s Child.”

Record Labels Are Doing This On Purpose

Provocatively, a Reddit user (who has a rather provocative handle we won’t name here for reasons of decorum) positioned the pop star drought as something engineered by labels to avoid paying the kind of money they gave superstars like Janet Jackson and Madonna in the old days.

“When you have stars that have a lot of momentum behind their career, and they have a lot of prestige, and they have a large and solid fanbase, they get to demand more from labels,” they wrote. “If you have stars with much shorter careers…and shorter reigns in public interest, you don’t have somebody who can walk into a negotiation, and demand more on their side of the deal with the label.”

Our Attention Is Too Fragmented

Audience fragmentation, precipitated in part by the rise of social media influencers, was also a theme hit upon by several commenters.

“It’s probably hard when everyone can be famous now on TikTok,” said X user @kariwarburgon. “It’s like that one quote from The Incredibles ‘Once everyone is super no one is.’”

With so many platforms to release and consume music now, Reddit user itsyagurlb says public attention has simply become more diffuse — making it more difficult for artists to achieve stratospheric levels of fame.

“As someone else here has mentioned, we no longer have ‘smash’ hits from major pop stars that are inescapable, and so even with the rise of streaming, it’s much easier for people to tune out of today’s ‘hit’ song,” they wrote. “We consume music differently now which also impacts how pervasive a song can be because of how individualized our streaming choices can be. Even in the age of iTunes, hits were more impactful because if you wanted to hear the hot new song, you might pay for it. Now? I can listen to a minute of the song on spotify without any real investment and move on if I dont vibe with it, and there’s been no ‘sale.’”

Added Reddit user @BronzeErupt, citing one of the most powerful promotional vehicles of the late ’90s and early ’00s: “There’s no modern equivalent of TRL where a song can be deliberately played and suddenly everyone knows about it.”

Music Is Boring/Bad Now

Predictably, some social media users slammed the state of modern popular music. “I want to blame TikTok for this, but truthfully I think the root of the problem is how boring, dull and unoriginal modern-pop music sounds like,” said Reddit user TuffyTenToes. “They aren’t popping off because there is nothing to be popping off for. Perhaps I’m doomposting but it truly feels like pop music is in an all time low, creatively speaking.”

“Too many people mistake tik tok earworms for musical talent,” added @LSX3399 on Reddit. “No albums anymore, no concepts, no risks. Over-saturation of mid.”

It’s Taylor Swift’s Fault

Is the real problem…Taylor Swift? According to Reddit user @LifeOfAWimpyKid, the uber-popstar of the 21st century is simply taking up too much space in the conversation for other artists to break through.

“I feel like Taylor Swift has singlehandedly saturated the pop market to the point where the entire industry has become boring as s— and not fun for other artists to participate in,” they wrote. “Taylor is not without merit, but now it’s just Taylor, Taylor, Taylor all the time. Her fans are very vocal and active too and dominate the conversation, and all the other opinions just get drowned out. This was hardly the case a decade ago, when you had multiple acts coexisting at the top, such as Rihanna, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Ke$ha, Lady Gaga, David Guetta, Britney Spears, Justin Bieber, Calvin Harris, and Eminem.”

This Is Actually a Good Thing

Breaking from the pack, X user @fromage_enjoyer couched the struggle to mint new pop stars as a positive development, marking a shift from the days when radio and MTV determined what people listened to: “The current generation is winning. We aren’t stuck with whatever big labels want to shove down our throats thanks to the internet. That has them scared since they lose profits, but for the artists and consumers it’s great,” they said, before hastening to add: “Streaming pay outs need to be talked about however.”

23 Aug 2023

RM Takes Fans Behind the Scenes of Colde’s ‘Don’t Ever Say Love Me’ Live Clip: Watch

BTS‘ RM took ARMY behind the scenes of his filming of the live clip for Colde’s “Don’t Ever Say Love Me,” on which he features, in a new video shared to BTS’ YouTube channel on Wednesday (Aug. 23).

Before launching into the days work, RM speaks to the camera and shares the agenda for the day, as well as how he feels about meeting up with Colde for the video. “I’m here to meet Colde today. To tell you how I feel right now … I really want to see him,” he says. “Make sure to listen to ‘Don’t ever say love me (featuring RM of BTS).’”

The pair linked up on a sparse set with nothing but black chairs and a gray background, and joked around, with Colde doing a mock interview with RM before preparing for the visual. RM later revealed that one of the scenes was shot in one take. After filming concluded, RM explains that the live video was made in place of a his cameo for the song’s official music video.

“I couldn’t make it for the MV of ‘Don’t ever say love me (featuring RM of BTS)’ because of a variety of reasons, so we said, ‘Let’s do a video of us singing live.’ But I didn’t know it’d be such a big project,” RM shares. “The scale has gotten a lot bigger — this video is in between a MV and a video of us singing live. I’m happy to be with my friend.”

Despite such an arduous day on set, the BTS star shared that he was thankful for the experience. “It’s been a while since I’ve worked, so I’m happy and it feels so new. It was fun to grab a mic and sing live for the first time in a while. I think it’ll be a good influence on my work as well,” he concludes.

Colde’s “Don’t Ever Say Love Me” was released as a track on his fourth EP, Love Part 2, which arrived on May 4. In the song, RM and Colde reflect on infidelity, and the fall out that ensues after it comes to light.

Watch the behind the scenes video of “Don’t Ever Say Love Me” live clip in the video above.

23 Aug 2023

Ex-MTV Boss Says Christina Aguilera’s Team Asked Him to Re-Edit Her Into Madonna-Britney Spears VMA Triple-Kiss

It’s the most famous triple same-sex kiss in MTV Video Music Awards history. But chances are you only remember two-thirds of it, despite reported efforts from Christina Aguilera‘s team to re-re-write the narrative to correct what they saw as the most egregious cut-away in pop history.

In a new Rolling Stone story looking back at the 2003 MTV VMAs that opened with a surprise appearance from OG MTV star Madonna, former MTV president Van Toffler broke down his decision to kick off the broadcast with a call-back to the “Like a Virgin” singer’s legendary 1984 performance on the first VMAs.

“I don’t have to encourage Madonna to go over-the-top,” Toffler told the magazine on the 20th anniversary of the kiss-heard-’round-the-world. “That’s in her DNA. We were just saying, ‘We’re gonna give you a lot of real estate. It’s a big moment.’ We talked about guest performers.”

And, as usual, Madonna delivered by kissing her pop progeny, Britney Spears and Aguilera, on the mouth in a bit that whipped up a media frenzy at a time before such awards show provocations became commonplace.

But what most people remember is the Britney and Madonna part, and then the camera cutting away to Britney’s ex, Justin Timberlake, who seemed unsettled by the provocative performance piece.

According to RS, behind the scenes, Aguilera’s team was upset with the cutaway, with Toffler saying it “caused a little bit of grief coming my way… It didn’t make life easier that night, but you have to make choices in a live show. Sometimes you’re wrong and sometimes you’re right, but I think the beauty of the VMAs was the combustibility. You wanted to make it fun and semi-chaotic. That’s what we did.”

Former MTV executive vice president Tom Calderone told RS that Aguilera’s team asked MTV to re-edit the performance for future re-broadcasts to include the Aguilera lip lock, a request the network did not comply with. A spokesperson for Aguilera had no comment on the report and RS said the singer declined to respond to their story.

Aguilera — who is no longer represented by anyone from her team at the time of the kiss — said the cut-away was “weird” in a 2018 interview with Andy Cohen. “You know, why they cut away for it… to get Justin’s reaction,” she said, noting that Brit and Justin were exes at the time and calling the edit a “cheap shot.” When Cohen noted that some people might not have realized Xtina was a part of the kiss, she said she definitely saw headlines the next day and her reaction was, “‘Oh well, I guess I got left out of that.’” The RS story does not touch on whether Aguilera was aware at the time that her team had made the re-cut request.

(You can see a rehearsal of the performance, without the Timberlake edit, here.)

The piece also noted that before the broadcast, Toffler and his team originally heard that Madonna had recruited Spears and Missy Elliott — who extended the performance with a run through her song “Work It” — as well as Jennifer Lopez, who was riding high at the time thanks to her hits “Jenny From the Block” and “All I Have.” Lopez, however, had to drop out because she’d committed to shoot the movie Shall We Dance? that summer.

According to the story, Madonna chose Spears and Lopez because of their dancing ability, but subbing in Aguilera added the extra layer of intrigue the VMAs have become notorious for thanks to her media-whipped teen pop rivalry with fellow ex All-New Mickey Mouse Club alum Spears.

Always a cunning narrative mastermind, RS reported that Madonna wanted as few people as possible to know her plans for the performance that would open with “Like a Virgin” and feature Spears and Aguilera standing astride a giant hydraulic wedding cake from which Madonna would later emerge. The plan was to switch to Madge’s then-new single, “Hollywood,” then throw to Elliott and end with a reprise of “Hollywood.”

The limited view of rehearsals that MTV execs got seemed mostly like the global superstar putting her charges through their paces, until two weeks before air when VMAs director Beth McCarthy-Miller called Toffler to let him know what to expect. “’You’re not going to be able to tell anyone, but I think this is going to make you happy,’” Toffler remembered her saying. “‘Madonna kisses Britney and Christina.’” 

Embracing the kind of viral moment that MTV relished long before there was a name for it, the MTV team reportedly broke out in triumphant high-fives at what they knew would be a one-of-a-kind TV segment. With Aguilera and Spears dressed as veiled brides singing “Like a Virgin” and rolling on the ground, Madonna emerged in shiny black coattails and top hat as their “groom,” with producers sprinkling in quick looks at audience members in real time.

There was Beyoncé smiling and clapping, Avril Lavigne and Kelly Osborne looking bored, Madonna’s then-husband director Guy Ritchie giving a standing ovation, as well as shots of Eminem and 50 Cent and the original Queer Eye For the Straight Guy cast freaking out. Most importantly, they made sure to include a shot of Timberlake, who raised a playful eyebrow at the site of the three on stage dancing sensually.

But 30 seconds later, after Madonna took off Aguilera’s garter and locked lips with Spears, associate director Stefani Cohen cut away from Aguilera’s kiss to focus on Timberlake again, who this time had a seemingly annoyed expression on his face. It was a split-second editing decision that the story says was a “no-brainer” considering that Timberlake had cast Britney look-alike in his shade-throwing “Cry Me a River” video a year earlier in the wake of their split

“It’s just quintessential Madonna,” Toffler said of the classic MTV awards show stunt. “You give Madonna the germ of an idea or just the real estate, and she’s going to take it. She had a history of pushing us and pushing culture, and that’s what was great about her and what was great about MTV. We pushed culture in provocative ways.” 

Watch the TV version of the kiss here.

23 Aug 2023

Selena Gomez Recreates ‘Sex and the City’ Scene to Promote ‘Single Soon’ & Kim Cattrall Approves

And just like that, Kim Cattrall is a Selena Gomez fan. The actress put her stamp of approval on the pop star’s simple but perfect way of promoting her upcoming single — by recreating one of Cattrall’s iconic scenes from Sex and the City.

In a Tuesday (Aug. 23) TikTok, Gomez lip-synchs along to a piece of dialogue from the NYC-set series, miming a phone call with her hand. “It’s over, I told my wife!” a man on the other end of the call says, to which the Rare Beauty founder mouths along Cattrall’s in-character response “Who is this?” before shrugging her shoulders and hanging up.

“Single Soon this Friday!” Gomez wrote in her caption, reminding fans of her Aug. 25 release.

The clip is a fan-favorite scene from Cattrall’s SATC character Samantha Jones, who unceremoniously breaks up with a married lover. Upon seeing Gomez’s recreation, Cattrall herself took to Twitter to say, “I approve this message.”

The “Lose You to Love Me” singer first announced “Single Soon” last week, sharing the cover art on Instagram and explaining that since she’s still wrapping up work on her upcoming third album, she “wanted to put out a fun little song I wrote a while back that’s perfect for the end of summer.”

Shortly afterward, “Single Soon” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Trending Songs chart, days before its release. It makes sense that fans are excited; Gomez hasn’t released a solo single since last year’s “My Mind & Me,” which accompanied the Only Murders in the Building star’s documentary of the same name. She hasn’t released an album since 2020’s sophomore effort Rare, though she dropped Spanish-language EP Revelacion in 2021.

The day before “Single Soon” arrives, the season two finale of Max’s SATC reboot And Just Like That… will air, featuring Cattrall’s first cameo in the spinoff. It’ll mark her first time playing Samantha in 13 years, as she’s remained absent from the reboot starring her three main SATC costars Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis.

See Gomez’s video and Cattrall’s response below:

23 Aug 2023

Selena Gomez Thinks The Weeknd’s ‘Starboy’ With Her AI Vocals Is ‘Scary’

Ask 100 people how they feel about AI-generated songs and you will likely get 100 different answers. But ask Selena Gomez how she feels about someone who cobbled together an AI version of The Weeknd‘s “Starboy” featuring her computer-generated vocals layered next to those of her ex and, well, her answer is swift and succinct.

“Scary.”

That’s what Gomez commented on a post featuring the reworked 2016 song, in which her face was also added to new artwork for the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single that originally featured Daft Punk. “”House so empty, need a centerpiece/ Twenty racks a table, cut from ebony/ Cut that ivory into skinny pieces/ Then she clean it with her face, man, I love my baby,” Gomez “sings” in the doctored song. The image from the fan account that posted the AI-boosted song featured a caption in Turkish that read: “How did you find Selena’s viral cover of starboy voiced with artificial intelligence?”

“Starboy” was released in November 2016, just a few months before Gomez and Tesfaye were spotted on a date in Los Angeles; the pair broke up less than a year later.

Frankly, Gomez has her own music to think about. Her upcoming single, “Single Soon,” will debut at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Tending Songs chart, powered by X, dated Aug. 26. “Single Soon” is due out on Friday (Aug. 25) and was announced by the singer on the service formerly known as Twitter on Aug. 17 with the tease, “Since I’m not quite done with SG3 [Gomez’s upcoming album], I wanted to put out a fun little song I wrote a while back that’s perfect for the end of summer.”

“Single Soon” will be the first new music from the Only Murders in the Building star since her March 2021 Spanish-language EP Revelacion.

23 Aug 2023

Taylor Swift Premieres ‘Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)’ in ‘Wilderness’ Trailer: Watch

Taylor Swift may be in full 1989 (Taylor’s Version) mode, but Reputation fans just got a big taste of the 2017 album’s lead single.

The 33-year-old pop star debuted a huge chunk of “Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)” in Prime Video’s new trailer for Wilderness, a psychological thriller arriving on the streaming platform Sept. 15. Starring The Sandman‘s Jenna Coleman and The Haunting of Hill House‘s Oliver Jackson-Cohen, the project explores a woman’s quest for revenge — ahem, a major theme on Reputation — after discovering her husband is having an affair.

“Liv becomes the actress starring in Will’s bad dreams after she learns about his betrayal, and her heartbreak is swiftly followed by another emotion: fury,” reads a description of the show full of Swiftian references. “The couple embark on an American road trip Liv’s fantasized about since she was little, from the Grand Canyon on through Yosemite, before ending up with a hedonistic weekend in Las Vegas.”

“For Will, it’s a chance to make amends; for Liv, it’s a very different prospect — a landscape where accidents happen all the time,” it continues. “The perfect place to get revenge. Look what he made her do…“

“Look What You Made Me Do” is featured heavily throughout the Wilderness trailer, showcasing Swift’s fresh take on the career-shifting track’s chorus and iconic tagline: “The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now. Why? Oh! ‘Cause she’s dead!”

This isn’t the first glimpse Swifties have gotten of the “Anti-Hero” singer’s imminent Reputation re-record, which hasn’t even been announced yet. During Swift’s preparations to drop 1989 (Taylor’s Version) this October, which will mark the fourth of her six expected “Versions,” she also shared a piece of “Delicate (Taylor’s Version)” in an episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty season two, also a Prime Video project.

Watch the Wilderness trailer, featuring “Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version),” above.

23 Aug 2023

It’s a Cruel Summer For Security Guard Who Went Viral For Singing at Taylor Swift Eras Show: ‘I Was Fired For It’

The security guard who went viral earlier this summer for singing along to “Cruel Summer” at a Taylor Swift Eras Tour show in Minneapolis in June says the spontaneous moment got him fired from his job. In the clip, Calvin Denker gleefully joined in on the 2019 song, revealing in a TikTok video that the sing-along — and his passing notes to Swifties asking them to take pictures of him at work with Swift in the background — got him booted from the gig.

“Long story short: I was fired for it,” he says in the video. “My former security company said they had a rule about taking photos with any of their performers and the main issue they had was with my follow-up video where I said I handed out pieces of paper to the people in front of me to ask to be sent any photos that I made my way into.”

Billboard reached out to BEST Crowd Management for comment on Denker’s reported firing, but had not heard back at press time.

Denker said the HR rep from BEST did not give him any other information on why he was fired “beyond asking for photos, which is what happens at any other concert, with the only exception being that I made sure I got any I was included in.” He said every photo of him from that night was from behind the safety barricade, like any other fan photo, with Denker stressing that he never took his own phone out.

“And above all else, I made sure that Taylor Swift was safe and all the fans had a good time,” he added. Denker also said he asked the HR rep what would happen if he deleted the pics, but did not get an answer as the person he contacted went on vacation and had not responded by the time he got booked to work an Ed Sheeran show on Aug. 12 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

After getting his uniform on and speaking to his bosses — who checked in to make sure he wouldn’t be taking any videos — Denker said he was assigned to roughly the same spot he had for the Swift show near the stage for the Sheeran gig. But shortly before Sheeran took the stage, Denker said a manager moved him to a different spot. After completing his seven-hour shift, Denker said the HR person who had not responded to him about the Swift incident was upset with him for working more shifts before he was let go for good.

Denker ended the clip imploring Swifties not to lash out at BEST and said he still got to work two great shows and holds no grudges.

22 Aug 2023

Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Bad Idea Right?’ Debuts Atop Hot Rock & Alternative Songs Chart

Olivia Rodrigo launches at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart for a second time, as “Bad Idea Right?” debuts atop the Aug. 26-dated survey.

The singer-songwriter first led with “Brutal,” which reigned in its debut week in June 2021.

“Bad Idea Right?” concurrently bows as Rodrigo’s second No. 1, again after “Brutal,” on Hot Alternative Songs. Both charts reflect streaming, sales and all-format radio audience impressions, sharing the same methodology as the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.

In the tracking week ending Aug. 17, “Bad Idea Right?,” released Aug. 11, earned 19.7 million official U.S. streams and 5.3 million radio audience impressions and sold 4,000 downloads, according to Luminate.

The streaming count is also good for the track’s No. 1 debut, Rodrigo’s second, on Alternative Streaming Songs. “Brutal” likewise led that list, for two weeks. On Alternative Digital Song Sales, “Bad Idea Right?” enters at No. 2.

Concurrently, “Bad Idea Right?” starts at No. 10 on the Hot 100, marking Rodrigo’s sixth top 10. Three have reached No. 1: “Drivers License” (for eight weeks) and “Good 4 U” (one week) in 2021 and “Vampire” (one) this July.

On the all-genre Streaming Songs tally, “Bad Idea Right?” opens at No. 3 as the top premiere of the week. On Digital Song Sales, it starts at No. 18. The song also debuts at No. 36 on Pop Airplay.

“Bad Idea Right?” is the second song released from Guts, Rodrigo’s sophomore LP, following “Vampire.” It’s due Sept. 8.

22 Aug 2023

8 Sweetest Moments Between Taylor Swift & Young Swifties on The Eras Tour

Many of Taylor Swift’s fans are kids, and many of them are adults that were kids when they first started listening to the country-turned-pop star more than a decade ago.

That means that Swift has 10 albums and six headlining tours worth of interacting with fans who’ve grown up with her, with the most recent of her treks being her international Eras Tour. And while Swifties of all ages have flooded stadiums this year to see the three-hour career-spanning production, some of the cutest faces at what is overall a family-friendly show (minus, perhaps, the “Vigilante Shit” dance routine) have been fans who weren’t even born yet when “Love Story” took the airwaves by storm in 2008.

That includes, but is not limited to, little ones belonging to other stars in the crowd — after all, celebrities and their children are Swifties, too. The “Karma” hitmaker has written personal notes, posed for pictures and given up pieces of her costumes to pint-sized relatives of Selena Gomez, David Harbour, Alicia Keys and more.

Known in the past for hosting fans at her houses to preview new albums, interacting with listeners on Tumblr and picking lucky concertgoers at her previous tours for intimate post-show meet-and-greets, Swift absolutely loves making special moments for her fans. “You’re all so cute,” she told her crowd at a Chicago Eras show. “I feel that way about a lot of you during the show. We make eye contact and you guys are, like, performing, passionately.”

“Have you noticed that too? You look around you, you wanna be best friends with everyone,” she added. “Yeah, that happens to me too.”

See the best of Taylor Swift’s interactions with young Swifties below:

22 Aug 2023

Miley Cyrus Unveils Heartfelt ‘Used to Be Young’ Lyrics, Says She Wrote It When She Felt ‘Misunderstood’

Miley Cyrus is adding a reflective layer to her “endless summer vacation.” The star is gearing up to release her new single, “Used to Be Young” on Friday (Aug. 25), and she took to Instagram to reveal the track’s introspective lyrics.

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“These lyrics were written almost 2 years ago at the beginning of my ESV. It was at a time I felt misunderstood,” Cyrus wrote in the caption, alongside a photo of the handwritten lyrics that features the chorus: “You tell me time has done changed me / That’s fine, I’ve had a good run / I know I used to be crazy / That’s ’cause I used to be young.”

The 30-year-old singer continued in the caption, “I have spent the last 18 months painting a sonic picture of my perspective to share with you. The time has arrived to release a song that I could perfect forever. Although my work is done, this song will continue to write itself everyday. The fact it remains unfinished is a part of its beauty. That is my life at this moment ….. unfinished yet complete.”

See the full post and lyrics here.

“Used To Be Young” marks Cyrus’ first piece of new music since the release of Endless Summer Vacation back in March. The album, her eighth studio effort, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and also arrived alongside its own Backyard Sessions via Disney+.