Adele has finally decided to end the six-year drought of new music with the release of her new song Easy on Me, thank God.
First, the number “30” appeared on billboards in cities around the world. Adele fans instantly connected this to a possible new album due to her previous albums being named after her age.
Via Twitter, Adele announced her new album on October 13th, saying that she has “never felt more peaceful in her life”. The album is inspired by her divorce from Simon Konecki, with whom she has a 9-year old son called Angelo. She states that the album is also about taking accountability for her own actions in her previous relationships.
The announcement of her new single release on October 15th also led to one of the funniest Instagram lives this year. I think that Adele is one of few celebrities that you can easily forget is actually a celebrity. Once she figured out how to use Instagram live (does every parent lose the ability to understand technology?), she answered a bunch of fan questions. Her favourite thing to do during lockdown was drink wine (like a lot of us). Unfortunately, she doesn’t have plans to collab with Peppa Pig (they would’ve been an amazing duo).
Some questions were… interesting to say the least, with one person asking what her body count was. “What’s my body count? What does that mean?” Adele replied, sending twitter crazy. Honestly, I wouldn’t have put somebody having the audacity to ask Adele her body count on my 2021 bingo card. Other questions were more practical. A date idea from Adele: escape room (you can thank her in her Instagram comments).
I obviously started to listen to Adele non-stop in preparation for her new song. My current favourites are River Lea, I Miss You, Water Under the Bridge and I’ll be Waiting. The ballads aren’t usually my favourite Adele songs so I was wary about whether I would have an instant love for Easy on Me. Would it live up to the hype of her previous singles?
I stayed up till midnight on October 15th for her new song and I definitely wasn’t disappointed. Easy on Me is a ballad that focuses on Adele’s powerful voice, with a piano backing that gets stronger as the song goes on.
The music video is a homage to previous ones. In Rolling in the Deep, Adele is building a house, then in Hello she moves into the house, and in Easy on Me she is moving out, unashamedly, as sheet music flies out of the car. It symbolises her being able to move on from the end of her marriage. She begs for her son Angelo to understand and accept her choice with heart-wrenching lyrics like ‘I changed who I was to put you both first but now I give up’.
In a time where TikTok seems to rule the music industry and artists make songs specifically to trend on the app, Adele is not afraid to stick to her roots. Easy on Me became a UK number-one single in its first week with 217,300 chart sales, the highest sales since 2017. It broke Spotify streaming records for most streams in a single day with over 24 million global streams in less than 24 hours.
So, what are my hopes for the new album?
Whilst most are talking about how it is perfect for sad girl autumn – and I don’t doubt that some songs will be about the heartbreak of ending a relationship you thought would last forever – I believe that this album will also portray a woman sure of her decision to pursue her own happiness.
I guess we’ll all find out soon enough as 30 comes out on November 19th!
Words by: Saffron Mubika
Edited by: Katherine Robins