Rolling Stone comes in defense of Camila Cabello: Letting the Pop Girlies Try New Things

[Fita]

Camila Cabello hasn’t had it easy with her latest album C, XOXO. Since dropping the lead single “I Luv It” in March, she’s been criticized for “trying too hard” to go against the radio pop identity that she built with her hits  “Havana” and Señorita” — two songs, by the way, that stan Twitter already hates. She was accused of copying her contemporaries, straining to be edgy, and embracing an aesthetic that seemed to contradict the picture-perfect pop star manufactured for her when she was in Fifth Harmony. But all along, this Cabello — a fried-blonde, anime and rap-referencing wild child she’s presented on C, XOXO — was always there. Many of us just hadn’t met her yet.

Cabello’s fourth album follows the “rebrand” model set by the pop stan cycle. These expectations around reinvention are placed almost exclusively on women, and demand that artists change their aesthetics and style for every single album. Take Taylor Swift going from snakes and revenge on Reputation to rainbows and Lisa Frank on Lover. Or Katy Perry, who went from frolicking among flowers on Prism to edgy Nicki Minaj collabs and an infamous pixie cut on Witness. Women in pop are asked constantly to peel a layer of themselves for the consumer and present a new “version” of their artistry, often for fans, like in Cabello’s case, to pick apart. It creates an unsustainable, never-ending loop for pop queens and sets artists up for an inevitable flop era.

But the thing is, we should be letting the pop girlies try what they want without so much scrutiny and pressure. And in this case, there’s reason to believe Cabello is actually tapping into a real side of herself, rather than just making this whole aesthetic up for commercial gains. She’s always been the weirdo she shows us on C, XOXO: During Fifth Harmony’s Reflection and 7/27 eras, she was known for putting fans onto experimental pop music such as Jon Bellion’s Human Condition and Stromae’s Racine Carrée — two albums known for their eccentric, boundary-pushing production styles. Cabello was always up to something that didn’t align with the sugary pop cuteness she’s known for, even if it wasn’t apparent to the casual listener. 

This C, XOXO Cabello, who wears ski masks onstage and samples Gucci Mane, is not that far of a cry from the one she showed us on the often-forgotten, and truly underrated, “Love Incredible,” the Cashmere Cat collaboration co-produced by… checks notes… the incomparable Sophie. On “Love Incredible,” Cabello’s voice-filtered high-notes danced over hip-hop drum beats that had C, XOXO’s experimental heart written all over it. Cabello simply may not have been given the chance to show this side before, given label pressures and her girl group past. As she told The Line of Best Fit, this album finally sees her “carrying out what my intentions have actually been from the beginning of my career: to make pop music that feels left-of-center. To be on the inside, while still being a little bit on the outside.” 

Artists are always digging deeper to find more to their artistry, and it’s often met with backlash. See, for example, Becky G, who allowed herself to go from teenage rap star to reggeaeton reina to música mexicana singer in the span of three albums. Though some fans accused her of pandering to Latin trends, she ultimately found the space to embrace all sides of her Latinidad on Esquemas and Esquinas. Or take Rosalía, who transitioned from the avant-garde, flamenco-focused Mal Querer to the helmet-wearing, reggaeton-infused Motomami — and faced immediate pushback. Paired with a stunning live show, the Motomami era proved to become a fan-favorite and earned her four Latin Grammys, including Album of the Year. It takes courage to try something left-field — eventually, the recognition follows suit. (C, XOXO and Motomami share production mastermind El Guincho in common.)

Aside from the rebrand, Cabello’s rollout has been plagued by a series of unfortunate events outside of her control. Charli XCX arrived with the generation-defining album Brat, which many tried comparing C, XOXO to; seemingly every other pop girl — Dua, Billie, Ariana, Normani, Tyla — dropped seminal albums around the same time. City Girls’ JT and Yung Miami beefed online as it was announced they’d join her on a Dade County ode and Drake, who’s featured prominently on an interlude and album standout “Hot Uptown,” suddenly became rap’s most-hated villain; and to top things off, The-Dream, whom Cabello samples (and originally featured) on standout “Dream-Girls,” faced a r*** accusation a week before Cabello announced her LP’s tracklist. All of this pulled attention from and clouded the kooky experimentation Cabello embraced on the album. Unfortunately for Cabello, her music simply doesn’t exist in a vacuum. 

Regardless of the perception of her fourth album at this point in time, C, XOXO will be an exciting album to revisit once we’re far away from the pop oversaturation that’s been 2024. The album captured Cabello departing from the single-focused album era that defined her in the past and sees her instead embracing a new aesthetic and musical energy that pushed her out of her comfort zone. C, XOXO was made to subvert expectations, to stretch her songwriting muscles, and will, perhaps, be more of a cult classic than a generally embraced record. And that’s OK. As Rolling Stone’s review described, Cabello presented a “feisty, hungry album that feels fearless even as it grapples with the unknown.” She’s a better artist for giving it a stab.

 

In Defense of Camila Cabello — and Letting the Pop Girlies Try New Things

WWW.ROLLINGSTONE.COM

---

The pop cycle pushes women artists to rebrand with every album. On C, XOXO, Camila Cabello embraced a part of her identity we simply hadn't met yet.

 

[AndyFoster]

Completely agree with this.

Sales wise she’s doing better than her Familia era with this new album (on track to do over 30k first week) without a single hit from the album.

Kudos to queen Camila.

[rocXtar]

Trying new things or just coming for the Hyperpop direction that Charli XCX & SOPHIE paved..

new things hahahah those higher ups are trying so hard to feed us Miss Racist Cabello singer ? Nope thanks 

 

BRAT for the win!

[YellowPaperSun]

6 minutes ago, rocXtar said:

Trying new things or just coming for the Hyperpop direction that Charli XCX & SOPHIE paved..

new things hahahah those higher ups are trying so hard to feed us Miss Racist Cabello singer ? Nope thanks 

 

BRAT for the win!

The album sounds nothing like Brat except for I Luv It, it has more of an urban feel to it, and you've known if you took some time to listen other tracks on it before harshly judging it. 

Also something about you, an obviously grown man expressing yourself like an edgy pre-teen feels discordant, there's better ways to express yourself if you intend to be taken seriously 

[YellowPaperSun]

28 minutes ago, Fita said:

Camila Cabello hasn’t had it easy with her latest album C, XOXO. Since dropping the lead single “I Luv It” in March, she’s been criticized for “trying too hard” to go against the radio pop identity that she built with her hits  “Havana” and Señorita” — two songs, by the way, that stan Twitter already hates. She was accused of copying her contemporaries, straining to be edgy, and embracing an aesthetic that seemed to contradict the picture-perfect pop star manufactured for her when she was in Fifth Harmony. But all along, this Cabello — a fried-blonde, anime and rap-referencing wild child she’s presented on C, XOXO — was always there. Many of us just hadn’t met her yet.

Cabello’s fourth album follows the “rebrand” model set by the pop stan cycle. These expectations around reinvention are placed almost exclusively on women, and demand that artists change their aesthetics and style for every single album. Take Taylor Swift going from snakes and revenge on Reputation to rainbows and Lisa Frank on Lover. Or Katy Perry, who went from frolicking among flowers on Prism to edgy Nicki Minaj collabs and an infamous pixie cut on Witness. Women in pop are asked constantly to peel a layer of themselves for the consumer and present a new “version” of their artistry, often for fans, like in Cabello’s case, to pick apart. It creates an unsustainable, never-ending loop for pop queens and sets artists up for an inevitable flop era.

But the thing is, we should be letting the pop girlies try what they want without so much scrutiny and pressure. And in this case, there’s reason to believe Cabello is actually tapping into a real side of herself, rather than just making this whole aesthetic up for commercial gains. She’s always been the weirdo she shows us on C, XOXO: During Fifth Harmony’s Reflection and 7/27 eras, she was known for putting fans onto experimental pop music such as Jon Bellion’s Human Condition and Stromae’s Racine Carrée — two albums known for their eccentric, boundary-pushing production styles. Cabello was always up to something that didn’t align with the sugary pop cuteness she’s known for, even if it wasn’t apparent to the casual listener. 

This C, XOXO Cabello, who wears ski masks onstage and samples Gucci Mane, is not that far of a cry from the one she showed us on the often-forgotten, and truly underrated, “Love Incredible,” the Cashmere Cat collaboration co-produced by… checks notes… the incomparable Sophie. On “Love Incredible,” Cabello’s voice-filtered high-notes danced over hip-hop drum beats that had C, XOXO’s experimental heart written all over it. Cabello simply may not have been given the chance to show this side before, given label pressures and her girl group past. As she told The Line of Best Fit, this album finally sees her “carrying out what my intentions have actually been from the beginning of my career: to make pop music that feels left-of-center. To be on the inside, while still being a little bit on the outside.” 

Artists are always digging deeper to find more to their artistry, and it’s often met with backlash. See, for example, Becky G, who allowed herself to go from teenage rap star to reggeaeton reina to música mexicana singer in the span of three albums. Though some fans accused her of pandering to Latin trends, she ultimately found the space to embrace all sides of her Latinidad on Esquemas and Esquinas. Or take Rosalía, who transitioned from the avant-garde, flamenco-focused Mal Querer to the helmet-wearing, reggaeton-infused Motomami — and faced immediate pushback. Paired with a stunning live show, the Motomami era proved to become a fan-favorite and earned her four Latin Grammys, including Album of the Year. It takes courage to try something left-field — eventually, the recognition follows suit. (C, XOXO and Motomami share production mastermind El Guincho in common.)

Aside from the rebrand, Cabello’s rollout has been plagued by a series of unfortunate events outside of her control. Charli XCX arrived with the generation-defining album Brat, which many tried comparing C, XOXO to; seemingly every other pop girl — Dua, Billie, Ariana, Normani, Tyla — dropped seminal albums around the same time. City Girls’ JT and Yung Miami beefed online as it was announced they’d join her on a Dade County ode and Drake, who’s featured prominently on an interlude and album standout “Hot Uptown,” suddenly became rap’s most-hated villain; and to top things off, The-Dream, whom Cabello samples (and originally featured) on standout “Dream-Girls,” faced a r*** accusation a week before Cabello announced her LP’s tracklist. All of this pulled attention from and clouded the kooky experimentation Cabello embraced on the album. Unfortunately for Cabello, her music simply doesn’t exist in a vacuum. 

Regardless of the perception of her fourth album at this point in time, C, XOXO will be an exciting album to revisit once we’re far away from the pop oversaturation that’s been 2024. The album captured Cabello departing from the single-focused album era that defined her in the past and sees her instead embracing a new aesthetic and musical energy that pushed her out of her comfort zone. C, XOXO was made to subvert expectations, to stretch her songwriting muscles, and will, perhaps, be more of a cult classic than a generally embraced record. And that’s OK. As Rolling Stone’s review described, Cabello presented a “feisty, hungry album that feels fearless even as it grapples with the unknown.” She’s a better artist for giving it a stab.

 

In Defense of Camila Cabello — and Letting the Pop Girlies Try New Things

WWW.ROLLINGSTONE.COM

---

The pop cycle pushes women artists to rebrand with every album. On C, XOXO, Camila Cabello embraced a part of her identity we simply hadn't met yet.

 

Came across this article days ago and I gotta give the writer much needed credit for taking time to understand what led to Camila to do this album before jumping into the current "ooh she sucks" bandwagon.

Every Popstar should try to reinvent themselves when they feel like something about their own music is getting stale or they just don't feel comfortable doing what they're doing anymore, no matter how risky it is, at the end of the day, art becomes a chore when you lose passion or have to limit your creativity to fit into a pre-established mold. Period. 

[On_Mah_Raydah]

Wow the writer really took his time with this article. Very factual; I agree 100% percent.

One thing that always triggers me is that Brat and C,XOXO sound completely different imo, I don't get the comparison in every review.

Edited Wednesday at 03:39 PM by On_Mah_Raydah

[icybaby]

Spoiler

But the thing is, we should be letting the pop girlies try what they want without so much scrutiny and pressure.

it comes with the job lol.

Honestly i am all for experimenting with music and image etc. But also quality music and authenticity is needed. She looks like she is trying to  be Billie Eilish kind of. I didn't listen her album and i don't really want to. Idk why.

Edited Wednesday at 04:56 PM by icybaby

[brymo]

I love the new music, so I'm unbothered.

[Wendy Williams]

2 hours ago, Fita said:

Camila Cabello hasn’t had it easy with her latest album C, XOXO. Since dropping the lead single “I Luv It” in March, she’s been criticized for “trying too hard” to go against the radio pop identity that she built with her hits  “Havana” and Señorita” — two songs, by the way, that stan Twitter already hates. She was accused of copying her contemporaries, straining to be edgy, and embracing an aesthetic that seemed to contradict the picture-perfect pop star manufactured for her when she was in Fifth Harmony. But all along, this Cabello — a fried-blonde, anime and rap-referencing wild child she’s presented on C, XOXO — was always there. Many of us just hadn’t met her yet.

Cabello’s fourth album follows the “rebrand” model set by the pop stan cycle. These expectations around reinvention are placed almost exclusively on women, and demand that artists change their aesthetics and style for every single album. Take Taylor Swift going from snakes and revenge on Reputation to rainbows and Lisa Frank on Lover. Or Katy Perry, who went from frolicking among flowers on Prism to edgy Nicki Minaj collabs and an infamous pixie cut on Witness. Women in pop are asked constantly to peel a layer of themselves for the consumer and present a new “version” of their artistry, often for fans, like in Cabello’s case, to pick apart. It creates an unsustainable, never-ending loop for pop queens and sets artists up for an inevitable flop era.

But the thing is, we should be letting the pop girlies try what they want without so much scrutiny and pressure. And in this case, there’s reason to believe Cabello is actually tapping into a real side of herself, rather than just making this whole aesthetic up for commercial gains. She’s always been the weirdo she shows us on C, XOXO: During Fifth Harmony’s Reflection and 7/27 eras, she was known for putting fans onto experimental pop music such as Jon Bellion’s Human Condition and Stromae’s Racine Carrée — two albums known for their eccentric, boundary-pushing production styles. Cabello was always up to something that didn’t align with the sugary pop cuteness she’s known for, even if it wasn’t apparent to the casual listener. 

This C, XOXO Cabello, who wears ski masks onstage and samples Gucci Mane, is not that far of a cry from the one she showed us on the often-forgotten, and truly underrated, “Love Incredible,” the Cashmere Cat collaboration co-produced by… checks notes… the incomparable Sophie. On “Love Incredible,” Cabello’s voice-filtered high-notes danced over hip-hop drum beats that had C, XOXO’s experimental heart written all over it. Cabello simply may not have been given the chance to show this side before, given label pressures and her girl group past. As she told The Line of Best Fit, this album finally sees her “carrying out what my intentions have actually been from the beginning of my career: to make pop music that feels left-of-center. To be on the inside, while still being a little bit on the outside.” 

Artists are always digging deeper to find more to their artistry, and it’s often met with backlash. See, for example, Becky G, who allowed herself to go from teenage rap star to reggeaeton reina to música mexicana singer in the span of three albums. Though some fans accused her of pandering to Latin trends, she ultimately found the space to embrace all sides of her Latinidad on Esquemas and Esquinas. Or take Rosalía, who transitioned from the avant-garde, flamenco-focused Mal Querer to the helmet-wearing, reggaeton-infused Motomami — and faced immediate pushback. Paired with a stunning live show, the Motomami era proved to become a fan-favorite and earned her four Latin Grammys, including Album of the Year. It takes courage to try something left-field — eventually, the recognition follows suit. (C, XOXO and Motomami share production mastermind El Guincho in common.)

Aside from the rebrand, Cabello’s rollout has been plagued by a series of unfortunate events outside of her control. Charli XCX arrived with the generation-defining album Brat, which many tried comparing C, XOXO to; seemingly every other pop girl — Dua, Billie, Ariana, Normani, Tyla — dropped seminal albums around the same time. City Girls’ JT and Yung Miami beefed online as it was announced they’d join her on a Dade County ode and Drake, who’s featured prominently on an interlude and album standout “Hot Uptown,” suddenly became rap’s most-hated villain; and to top things off, The-Dream, whom Cabello samples (and originally featured) on standout “Dream-Girls,” faced a r*** accusation a week before Cabello announced her LP’s tracklist. All of this pulled attention from and clouded the kooky experimentation Cabello embraced on the album. Unfortunately for Cabello, her music simply doesn’t exist in a vacuum. 

Regardless of the perception of her fourth album at this point in time, C, XOXO will be an exciting album to revisit once we’re far away from the pop oversaturation that’s been 2024. The album captured Cabello departing from the single-focused album era that defined her in the past and sees her instead embracing a new aesthetic and musical energy that pushed her out of her comfort zone. C, XOXO was made to subvert expectations, to stretch her songwriting muscles, and will, perhaps, be more of a cult classic than a generally embraced record. And that’s OK. As Rolling Stone’s review described, Cabello presented a “feisty, hungry album that feels fearless even as it grapples with the unknown.” She’s a better artist for giving it a stab.

 

In Defense of Camila Cabello — and Letting the Pop Girlies Try New Things

WWW.ROLLINGSTONE.COM

---

The pop cycle pushes women artists to rebrand with every album. On C, XOXO, Camila Cabello embraced a part of her identity we simply hadn't met yet.

 

Señorita Cabello - who's that girl?

[rocXtar]

16 hours ago, YellowPaperSun said:

The album sounds nothing like Brat except for I Luv It, it has more of an urban feel to it, and you've known if you took some time to listen other tracks on it before harshly judging it. 

Also something about you, an obviously grown man expressing yourself like an edgy pre-teen feels discordant, there's better ways to express yourself if you intend to be taken seriously 

I have the feeling you’re comfortable with racists like Camila 

[work]

I listened to the whole album yesterday. And it's truly one of the worst, most horrendous albums I've ever heard.

She deserves to be kicked off her record label for this.

 

 

 

 

 

[ainey]

Reinvention is tired. No asked for that. Just make hits and be pretty and fierce. It’s not rocket science.

i don’t know who this girl hawk tuah’d in the industry but they’ve been relentlessly trying to make her “happen” for damn near a decade. Celebrity endorsements, movies, multiple albums, heavy payola, and now puff piece articles. GIVE IT UP.

[Aymama]

11 hours ago, work said:

I listened to the whole album yesterday. And it's truly one of the worst, most horrendous albums I've ever heard.

She deserves to be kicked off her record label for this.

 

 

 

 

 

LOL. As much as I love her voice, not even that could draw me into the vast majority of the album. Dream girls and He Knows are the only songs I’d listen to again. 

[Inherzone]

this is her bionic?

[rocXtar]

Bionic at least was somehow iconic

18 hours ago, Inherzone said:

this is her bionic?

 

[Burning_Up]

where were them when blackout came out? 

[Burning_Up]

22 hours ago, ainey said:

Reinvention is tired. No asked for that. Just make hits and be pretty and fierce. It’s not rocket science.

i don’t know who this girl hawk tuah’d in the industry but they’ve been relentlessly trying to make her “happen” for damn near a decade. Celebrity endorsements, movies, multiple albums, heavy payola, and now puff piece articles. GIVE IT UP.

Agree. She is boring and basically one-hit-wonder. They trying too hard to make her a new Britney