Haley's Take:
"What's wrong with being confident?" is the question Demi Lovato poses in her latest single "Confident," straight from her fifth studio album, released earlier this month. Here's your answer, Demi: with an album like yours, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with being confident. Nothing at all. If you haven't heard Confident yet, SPOILER ALERT: it's amazing. If you aren't a Lovatic already, I guarantee you will be by the time you are done listening. Demi Lovato has been recognized over the years for her inspirational story, as well as her teen idol background; but this is Demi Lovato like you have never heard or seen before. She is breaking away from cookie-cutter pop music, and, in doing so, is finally getting the recognition she truly deserves as an incredible gifted musician and vocalist. She's edgy, soulful, and a force to be reckoned with.
In Confident, Demi showcases her vocal range, her vulnerability, and her soulful style unlike ever before. Lovato herself has stated that this is a new era for her both as an individual and a musician. She is breaking free from her past, and using the strength she has gained to show the music industry, and the world, what she is made of. Which is a lot.
There's a song on the Confident album for everyone. From the empowering lead single "Confident," to the poolside jam "Cool for the Summer," to the R&B/Soul style ballad "Stone Cold," Demi displays her versatility and fearlessness in being herself and speaking her mind. My personal favorite songs off of the album are "For You," "Lionheart," and "Waitin for You," each of which shows a different side to Demi.
I cannot recommend this album highly enough, and can't wait to see how Demi is going to further push the artistic envelope in the future. Take my word for it: Demi Lovato is going places.
David's Take: On October 16, 2015, Demi Lovato released her fifth album, Confident. With this album, Demi has pushed her boundaries working with high-profile producers for the first time such as Max Martin and his team as well as Stargate and making music that goes back to her musical roots. The album's name may seem simple, but it symbolizes so much, as Demi is finally confident with her body for the first time, after having been pressured with being too skinny and subsequently teased for her weight gain after she dealt with her eating disorder in rehab. Demi this era started embracing her figure, no longer covering herself from head to toe. She doesn't care what others think anymore; she is her own person and a grown woman. The album itself blends various themes and sounds quite well, attaining the right balance of cohesion and versatility, as opposed to one of her previous albums, Unbroken, for instance, which despite its amazing tracks is a bit too all over the place as an album. Demi's previous album DEMI was a learning experience for her because it let her realize that she would rather create quality authentic material, whether it be upbeat pop or ballads, than generic, faceless, watered-down pop to get a quick hit. Her talent allows her to do more than that. DEMI's highlights were its fine ballads, and Demi took it to the next level on Confident. The must-listens on Confident, in my opinion, include the following: lead single Cool for the Summer, produced by Max Martin; Stone Cold and Yes, produced by Laleh Pourkarim; and Wildfire, produced by Stargate. Demi helped write the former three songs, as well as six other songs on the thirteen track album. Demi took a huge risk with the pop smash Cool for the Summer, and it paid off. Implementing cheeky lyrics revolving around bi-curiosity such as "got a taste for the cherry, I just need to take a bite", Cool for the Summer and its impeccable production demonstrate Demi's versatility in sounds and vocals, starting out with a piano intro and light, breathy, sensual verses juxtaposed with powerfully belted choruses paired with an electric guitar breakdown. Wildfire is simply R&B perfection. The vocal production on it is unbelievable, as is Demi's two Eb7 whistle notes near the end. My favorite lyric on the entire album is Wildfire's "Play me like your first guitar where every single note's too hard", a subtle plea to her lover. The low notes with Demi's smooth, sensual tone in the verses is complemented by Demi's light, breathy vocals in the choruses, until the last chorus, which features powerful belts. Demi is a powerful belter, and she always loves big finishes and implements dynamics into her music. Speaking of which, Demi wrote the song Father as closure for her late father. She sings yearnfully about their rocky relationship and how she hopes that heaven has given him a second chance. Near the end of the song, Demi unveils her incredible and emotional belts backed by a full gospel choir. The perfect closer to the standard album. Piano ballad Stone Cold is a very important song to Demi. She wants it to be her career-defining song. She sings about heartbreak through mature lyrics: "If happy is her, I'm happy for you", "You see me standing, but I'm dying on the floor", and "I was your amber, but now she's your shade of gold". The song ends with a G#5 extended belt reminiscent to that of Patti Labelle. Demi is ahead of her years as a musician and is superior to her peers not only vocally as a powerful four-octave vocalist, but as an emoter. Even some of the best of singers are mediocre emoters, but all of Demi's hardships and emotional toil she's encountered throughout her life have made her emoting ability natural and effortless. The album as a whole is very consistent in terms of quality and has considerable replay value. Lionheart is a meaningful empowerment song about her late dog Buddy, and his soul living on; together with Demi, they are lionhearts. The song explodes with the climactic chorus and is among Demi's best midtempos. Yes is a soulful R&B song with a pop chorus; the song blends these genres well, culminating at the chorus after the bridge. Demi has written Yes about her boyfriend of six years, Wilmer Valderrama, who has helped Demi emerge from the darkness and depression. The song's primary motif is eternal unity between lovers: "here's my body that I'm giving to US, here's my arms that'll hold US up". The song's title Yes alludes to marriage: "here's my tears when you tell me those words" refers to the momentous occasion of Demi responding "Yes" to "Will you marry me?" Old Ways expresses Demi as a changed person who has left behind her old ways, despite other people thinking she would crack and resort back to them: "If somebody tells me I'll go back to my old ways, I'm gonna say no way". I commend Demi's artistic interpretation of this song as a pop song with swag and confidence rather than a telling ballad. The electronic breakdown is excellent as well. The title track, although a tad cliche and dated, opens the album by conveying Demi's confidence. She acknowledges the fact that she's underrated compared to her peers, which include Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber, and states that there is nothing wrong with beingconfident. She also will no longer be held back: she's "letting go" and making her "own choice". The urban-vibed Waitin' for You featuring Sirah is a song Demi dedicated to her bullies from grade school that led to her becoming homeschooled. Demi has her "knuckles out" and "won't back down" signifying that her bullies are no match for her now, and that she has transcended them in a different league. About a similar matter, deluxe song Mr. Hughes is dedicated to a boy who Demi liked who "missed his chance to be with a star". Demi no longer wants him because she has a new man who's "ten times the man". The song itself has pop-fused jazz elements, inspired by Christina Aguilera, particularly in the Back to Basics era. Kingdom Come featuring Iggy Azalea is a "pop-hop" song carried by a trap beat reminiscent to that of Dark Horse and Black Widow and an autotuned chorus for aesthetic purposes. This song isn't truly Demi's sound nor the most original, but she makes it work, and it is an example of successful musical experimentation. For You is Demi's most vocally demanding song as a whole, and her favorite to perform live. It easily allows her to display her live vocal agility and her Kelly Clarkson-esque belts as a full lyric Soprano. The song itself is merely okay, a bit faceless, but gets an A+ for vocals. Lastly, Stars is a deluxe edition track that honestly sounds right from her previous selftitled album. It neither demonstrates growth nor explores a new sound that Demi has never done before. The lyrics are generic and could be sung by anybody. The industrial breakdown beat is anything but polished, paling in comparison to those of Kingdom Come and Old Ways. As a whole, this album is a stellar piece of work, and ranks as her second best album for me, after the pop-R&B perfection #1 album Here We Go Again. What Confident has, however, that the latter doesn't is versatility: the album really keeps you on your toes and may leave you surprised. This is Demi. This is the confident Demi who can no longer hide, and she has delivered a fantastic album.
Video: Demi Lovato performs "Stone Cold" on Saturday Night Live.