RS: In defense of Camila Cabello

[ThisGuyTony 27,718]

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

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, XOXOto; 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 rape 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.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/in-defense-of-camila-cabello-letting-pop-girlies-try-new-things-1235050025/

[Starmie25 11,596]

Seriously can stans stop trying to gatekeep everything when it comes to. It's getting out of control all of this "selective" hatred.

[King of the Fall 3,475]

Camila gets dragged for silly reasons sometimes but why are we suddenly acting like the entire world has some hatred of her and Rolling Stone feels compelled to rush to her defense?

Most people I know are indifferent towards Camila rather than hating her

Edited July 1 by King of the Fall

[Lucas 22,804]

Stan Twitter's hate towards Camila is so forced anyways. Most of stans on  Twitter love or hate an artist only because everyone else on Twitter does, like a trend.