On Friday, October 9th, Selena Gomez released her second studio album Revival through Interscope andPolydor records which is a follow-up from her debut solo release Stars Dance that was released in 2013. On this new album, Selena needed a new direction and said her new musical style was influenced heavily by the signature sound of Janet Jackson and Christina Aguilera with their iconic Pop mixed with EDM. Selena’s first single off the album “Good For You” which features rapper A.S.A.P. Rocky debuted at number 9 on the U.S. Billboard 100 and charted in the top 10 in most countries around the world.
When “Good For You” dropped Selena Gomez sat down for an interview with E!’s very own Ryan Seacrestwhere she stated that there would be hints of her publicized break-up with pop star Justin Bieber and that this album was her finding her confidence. In August, Selena dropped the second single “Same Old Love” which features uncredited vocals from songstress Charli XCX. The album Revival debuted at number 3 on Itunes and currently sits in the number 2 spot behind The Game’s rap album The Documentary 2.
I must admit this new sound of Selena’s is a better direction for her then the older stuff which was very boring and mundane, and Revival is definitely a fitting title for her new found rejuvenation. Selena enlisted a list of talented people to make this album become a chart topper. The lead single was written and produced by the highly publicized production team Dream Lab who are responsible for chart-topping hits by Nicki Minaj,Britney Spears, and Selena’s close friend Demi Lovato.
Other producers and writers that made Revival include Stargate (known for there extensive work with RnB singer Ne-Yo), Hit-Boy, Rock Mafia, and grammy award winning pop producer Max Martin who is responsible for the Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and pretty much the majority of any pop hit you’ve heard since 1996. My favourite track off the album is “Sober“, which is a personal track you can hear depicts the story of her and Bieber’s relationship, and is brilliantly written and produced by the Stargate team.
For myself the debut single “Good For You” didn’t not do this album any justice as it doesn’t depict the genius for what it actually is. The album has gotten highly credited reviews with Entertainment Weekly giving it a B+ and within its first day of release it was certified gold in Brazil exceeding sales of 20,000 copies. If you aren’t a fan of Selena Gomez as a musician please don’t let her previous work discourage you from listening to this, and I believe in the next few days it will exceed other albums and hit number 1 on the Itunes charts. Grab yourself a copy you won’t be disappointed.
Rate: 4.5 out of 5
Selena Gomez – Revival (Deluxe Edition) tracklisting and credits
- Revival (Selena Gomez/Rock Mafia/Hit-Boy)
- Kill ‘Em With Kindness (Selena Gomez/Dave Aude’/Rock Mafia/Benny Blanco)
- Hands To Myself (Max Martin)
- Same Old Love (Stargate/Benny Blanco)
- Sober (Stargate/Benny Blanco)
- Good For You (feat. ASAP Rocky) (Dream Lab/ASAP Rocky)
- Camouflage (Dream Lab)
- Me & The Rhythm (Mattman & Robin/Gomez)
- Survivors (Steve Mac/Dream Lab)
- Body Heat (Gomez/Rock Mafia/Hit-Boy)
- Rise (Rock Mafia/Hit-Boy)
- Me & My Girls (Gomez/Rock Mafia)
- Nobody (Gomez/Shane Stevens)
- Perfect (Felix Snow/Dreamlab)
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