Something Beautiful

Miley Cyrus’s Something Beautiful marks a new era of artistic autonomy, fusing archival fashion, cinematic soundscapes, and emotional contrast into a genre-defiant body of work shaped by visual culture and sonic experimentation.

Miley Cyrus unveils the cover of her ninth studio album Something Beautiful, wearing archival Thierry Mugler Couture from Fall 1997. Captured by Glen Luchford, the image fuses celestial glamour with raw intimacy — a fitting emblem for the album’s expansive sonic palette. Available via IG @mileycyrus © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended

When Miley Cyrus released End of the World as the lead single from her new project, many expected a nostalgic, accessible pop record in line with her massive hit Flowers. But Something Beautiful, her much-anticipated visual album, defies those expectations. It is a bold, layered, and experiential work—crafted not to please the masses or chase chart-topping success, but to explore new artistic ground. With this project, Miley abandons commercial compromises and embraces creative freedom, pushing her sound and image into uncharted territory.

From the first listen, it’s evident that this isn’t a conventional pop album. We hear the Miley of Endless Summer Vacation, yet in a more mature form, liberated from market pressures. She refuses to tread the beaten path; rather, she continues to unveil and rediscover herself in ever more ambitious incarnations. There are no easy hooks or instant hits. Instead, the record unfolds slowly, like a film developing in the dark, revealing its gems track by track. It’s experimental, stylish, and filled with unexpected turns—a project that demands attention and rewards patience.

While End of the World hinted at the album’s retro-tinged atmosphere, its radio-friendly chorus feels almost like a red herring when placed beside the rest of the record’s sophisticated textures. Something Beautiful doesn’t just dip into nostalgia; it reshapes it. Drawing from a wide spectrum of influences—from Giorgio Moroder to ABBA, Fleetwood Mac, Madonna’s Vogue, and even Pink Floyd’s The Wall (which inspired an upcoming documentary tied to the album)—Cyrus retools the past to reflect a more personal and futuristic vision. It isn’t just another retro-nostalgia trip mimicking ’70s and ’80s grooves, as has become fashionable. Its brand of pop eschews the straightforwardness of its predecessor, venturing into psychedelic electronics and soft-rock that feels far more unconventional than anything we’ve heard from Miley before. Sure, Miley’s flirted with experimentation—Plastic Hearts was glam-rock, Younger Now a deep dive into country—but this time, she’s pushed even beyond her comfort zone to emerge as her most authentic self. 

That vision is as visual as it is musical. Something Beautiful is a visual album, with every element—from the cover to the music videos—contributing to a fully realized aesthetic universe. On the album cover, shot by legendary fashion photographer Glen Luchford, Miley appears in a vintage Thierry Mugler ’97 piece, channeling a digital-era Cher: sleek, shapeshifting, and ageless. The videos are filled with high fashion references—archival Bob Mackie, runway-ready Alaïa and Saint Laurent—curated as carefully as the soundscapes. Even her street-style appearances leading up to the release have echoed this thematic cohesion.

Fashion wasn’t just a post-production afterthought—it was part of the recording process. Producer Shawn Everett noted that Cyrus often referenced specific runway shows when shaping a song’s direction: “She’ll want it to feel like this specific runway show or something,” he said. “I love when she talks like that. For me, it opens up a whole world.” And that world is undeniably glamorous. As Cyrus herself put it: “My idea was making The Wall, but with a better wardrobe and more glamorous and filled with pop culture.”

But beneath the glamour is emotional depth. The album plays with contrasts: destruction and beauty, despair and elegance, light and shadow. “The visual component of this is driving the sound,” Cyrus explained. “It was important for me that every song has these healing sound properties. The songs, whether they’re about destruction or heartbreak or death, they’re presented in a way that is beautiful, because the nastiest times of our life do have a point of beauty. They are the shadow, they are the charcoal, they are the shading. You can’t have a painting without highlights and contrast.”

Musically, Something Beautiful feels like a journey—both cinematic and sonic. It opens with the grand orchestral sweep of Prelude, setting the tone for the album’s theatrical ambitions. Tracks like More to Lose, laced with sax and layered harmonies, offer moments of smooth, soulful reflection, while Easy Lover taps into muscular blues and Golden Burning Sun shines with acoustic warmth. Both feel like spiritual successors to Plastic Hearts and Younger Now, respectively, but are imbued with a new emotional clarity.

The album's two Interludes, placed mid-record, inject a sharp electronic edge that hints at the restless innovation behind the project. On Walk of Fame, Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes lends her voice to a synthetic ride that blends the melancholy of Bronski Beat’s Smalltown Boy with the pulse of Underworld’s techno anthems. The result? Surprisingly cohesive.

Then comes Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved, one of the album’s standout tracks. It opens with a saxophone straight out of an ’80s nightscape, only to shift into a sparkling disco beat and synth-drenched chorus. The final minute and a half is pure cinematic release, featuring spoken word by supermodel Naomi Campbell in full ballroom MC mode—otherworldly and iconic.

Toward the album’s close, the experimentation ramps up, often at the expense of traditional pop structure. Pretend That You’re God strips away rhythm in favor of heavy basslines and aching vocal delivery, ending in a rock crescendo that offers one of Cyrus’s most powerful vocal performances to date. Then comes Reborn, a soaring orchestral dance track filtered through Gregorian chants and Pet Shop Boys-esque synths. These are not songs made for the algorithm—they’re compositions designed to provoke and challenge.

That challenge extends to the album’s format: long tracks, extended arrangements, and sprawling soundscapes. In a 2025 pop world obsessed with brevity and virality, Something Beautiful dares to slow down. Many songs stretch to five or six minutes, giving each idea room to breathe and evolve. There are no chart-chasing producers in the credits. Instead, Cyrus has turned to outsiders from the electronic, indie, and post-punk scenes in both the U.S. and U.K., creating a sound that’s rich, unpredictable, and decidedly left of center.

Something Beautiful, she says, “is the project of my dreams come to life. Fashion, film, and original music coexisting in harmony. Everyone who worked with me is a genius in their own right—from sound masters Shawn Everett and Alan Meyerson to one of the most original filmmakers around, Panos Cosmatos, who came on board as producer. Every collaborator brought their expertise to this vision, transforming fantasy into reality.”

With this album, Miley Cyrus has reached a level of artistic freedom that allows her to create works that are more elaborate and less tied to commercial expectations. Thematically, Something Beautiful doesn’t stray far from her past—this is still a deeply American songwriter, once again romantic and heartbroken—but its sonic palette shifts dramatically, embracing a previously unheard electro-acoustic richness. This is a Miley who embraces her country roots, traces every artistic influence, and—through her love of the past—reconnects to the future. Something Beautiful may not dominate the charts in the same way Flowers did, but it cements Cyrus’s evolution into a more mature, self-aware, and uncompromising artist. Once again, she demonstrates complete control over her narrative, presenting a brand-new incarnation that almost makes us forget even the personas we thought she’d never shrug off.