Anyone who has followed Miley Cyrus’s evolution as an artist knows she has long outgrown the image of Hannah Montana. She’s also moved past the provocative phase that initially helped her shed that Disney persona. Today, Miley Cyrus stands as a fully realized pop artist, distinct and unapologetically authentic. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she no longer defines her success by chart positions or commercial milestones. In fact, she sometimes appears to actively avoid the spotlight of mainstream acclaim—like in 2015, when she unexpectedly dropped a psychedelic album, Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz, on SoundCloud. Created in collaboration with The Flaming Lips, the project was bold and experimental—far from a chart-topper, and likely never intended to be one.
That doesn’t mean Cyrus lacks the ability to produce mainstream hits. Her Grammy-winning single Flowers, which soared to the top of global charts in 2023, is proof of her songwriting prowess and mass appeal. But what truly sets her apart is her fearless approach to music-making. Over the past decade, she has consistently prioritized artistic exploration over trends, navigating through genres with a restlessness that some might call chaotic—but which ultimately underscores her versatility and creative depth.
If Bangerz (2013) marked Miley Cyrus’s bold turn toward edgy pop with heavy Hip-Hop and R&B influences, then Younger Now (2017) saw her reconnect with her Country roots. A few years later, Plastic Hearts (2020) pushed her into glam rock and new wave territory, featuring legends like Billy Idol and Joan Jett. These may seem like subtle shifts, but each era reflects a deliberate reinvention. Her 2023 release, Endless Summer Vacation, particularly with the smash hit “Flowers”, felt like a culmination of every version of Miley we’ve seen so far—a retrospective in album form. That eclectic past made it difficult to anticipate the direction of her latest release, Something Beautiful, which dropped just last Friday.
Fueled by bold declarations and artistic ambition, Something Beautiful is more than just an album—it’s a multimedia experience. Accompanying the music is a visually rich film, which only a select few have previewed ahead of its official debut at the Tribeca Film Festival on Friday, June 6. A global cinema release will follow, including a premiere in Italy on June 27. In many ways, the project mirrors the ambition of Taylor Swift’s cinematic Eras Tour, but with a distinct twist: no live performances. Cyrus remains elusive when it comes to returning to the stage. For now, fans will have to immerse themselves in the dual offering of the album and its companion film—an experience already full of layers and meaning.
In the lead-up to the album’s release, Miley Cyrus made no effort to downplay her vision—in fact, she leaned into it with confidence. She described the album as “an effort to heal a broken culture through music” and characterized the accompanying film as “a pop odyssey driven by fantasy.” During an interview with Harper’s Bazaar last fall, she revealed that her original concept was to “reimagine Pink Floyd’s The Wall, but with a more glamorous, pop-culture-infused wardrobe.” While the comparison to Pink Floyd might raise eyebrows, the emphasis on fashion feels entirely on-brand. Cyrus has a background in fashion studies, and that influence is immediately clear—from the album’s cover artwork, which draws inspiration from a vintage Thierry Mugler collection, to the visual aesthetics throughout the project.
In a revealing interview on Zane Lowe’s show, Miley Cyrus made it clear that she doesn’t see Something Beautiful as part of today’s pop landscape alongside her contemporary peers. Instead, she aligns the project with icons like Prince and David Bowie—two artists celebrated for their fearless reinvention and musical diversity. Of the two, it’s Prince whose influence echoes most strongly throughout the album. The sound blends elements of rock, dance, and soulful ballads into a bold and experimental form of pop-soul, reminiscent of Prince’s genre-blurring legacy.
The homage isn’t just stylistic. Prince is directly referenced in the lyrics of Something Beautiful, where Cyrus name-drops “When Doves Cry”, the iconic track from his legendary Purple Rain album and film. That nod serves as an early clue to the album’s thematic undercurrent: an exploration of endings—personal, cultural, even apocalyptic—but through a vibrant, almost celebratory lens. In this way, Something Beautiful becomes a kind of radiant farewell to the world as we know it.
The lead single, “End Of The World”, captures this mood perfectly. With shimmering, ABBA-like synths and an unconventional chorus that skips words entirely, the track invites listeners to dance through the chaos. It calls back to Prince’s 1982 album 1999, which famously turned Cold War anxieties into a euphoric, end-times dance party. Like Prince, Cyrus doesn’t frame the apocalypse as a political statement but rather as a visceral, emotional response—one where joy and sorrow blur, and dancing becomes a form of defiance.
In “End Of The World,” Miley Cyrus weaves in a playful nod to Paul McCartney—not so much in meaning, but as a clever sound-alike pun that adds a light touch to the track’s layered themes. Yet amid the playful tone, she slips in a direct lyrical reference to The Beatles’ classic “With a Little Help from My Friends.” While it may seem like a passing mention, it subtly underscores a deeper reality behind the album’s creation: the critical role her collaborators played in shaping its sonic landscape.
Cyrus has always surrounded herself with a range of creative partners, but on Something Beautiful, the collaborative scale reaches new heights. As Pitchfork noted in a detailed track-by-track breakdown, the roster of contributors is extensive and impressive. Spearheaded by producer Shawn Everett—known for his work with Adele, Beck, and Perfume Genius—the project draws together a wide array of talents from the indie and alternative rock scenes. Many of the names may not be mainstream, but they are widely respected within their niches: Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Molly Rankin and Alec O’Hanley of Alvvays, Cole Haden of Model/Actriz, Brian D’Addario from The Lemon Twigs, Adam Granduciel of The War on Drugs, and Danielle Haim, among others.
Together, they helped construct the textured, genre-defying sound of the album—a sort of behind-the-scenes “party” of creativity and musical chemistry. And Cyrus, ever the curator of chaos and emotion, makes that collaboration feel both intimate and grand.
Out of the many standout moments on Something Beautiful, two contributions in particular leave a lasting impression. The first comes from Jonathan Rado of Foxygen, who completely reimagines the title track. What begins as a straightforward soul ballad is blown wide open by Rado’s sprawling, prog-inspired arrangement—an explosion of layered instrumentation that turns the song into one of the album’s most daring pop experiments. It’s a sonic detour rivaled only by the album’s intro, “Prelude,” a composition of shimmering arpeggios and spoken-word poetry, and two bold instrumental interludes designed to impress even the most skeptical of listeners.
The second key collaboration features Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes, whose fingerprints are all over two of the album’s most striking tracks. On “Easy Lover,” she lays down country-tinged guitar lines that support Cyrus as she revisits the theme of “dancing on the ashes”—a recurring metaphor for joy found amid collapse. But it’s on “Walk of Fame” where Howard truly shines. The track is a dazzling centerpiece, compressing three decades of musical history into just six minutes. It moves fluidly from the sensual disco of Donna Summer and Giorgio Moroder, through the brooding synths of New Order, to the euphoric pulse of Underworld’s Born Slippy. The result is a track that doesn’t just nod to the past—it reinvents it, all while sounding unmistakably like Miley Cyrus.
The rest of Something Beautiful plays like a grand fusion of Miley Cyrus’s many musical identities—an expansive megamix that effortlessly moves between styles. On one end, there are tracks that channel the warm, emotional vibe of ‘70s soft rock, reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac, as heard in the reflective “Easy Lover.” On the other, Cyrus dives into more dance-driven territory. A standout in this category is the vibrant “Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved,” a track that wears its Madonna “Vogue” influence proudly while featuring a surprise cameo from longtime friend and supermodel Naomi Campbell, who once again proves she’s no stranger to music.
Threaded through every song is Cyrus’s unmistakable voice—raw, raspy, and packed with emotion. That distinctive tone isn’t just stylistic; it’s shaped by Reinke’s edema, a rare vocal condition she’s spoken openly about. Further affected by a polyp on her vocal cords, her voice has evolved into something deeper and more textured. Though she once considered surgery in 2019, she ultimately decided against it, embracing the vulnerability and expressive weight that came with her altered vocal tone.
In many ways, Something Beautiful is exactly what its name suggests—a work of art born from imperfection. Critics may argue it lacks radio-ready hits, but that misses the point. These aren’t songs chasing the charts; they’re dystopian disco anthems—emotional, urgent, and defiant. They rise, quite literally, from a lump in the throat, reaching for light in a dark and chaotic world. And in a cultural landscape that often feels like a low-budget episode of Black Mirror, this album feels like our own personal San Junipero—a shimmering escape where the end of everything still sounds like hope.
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