30 Review
On October 9th, fans flooded to Instagram to join Adele’s first-ever Instagram Live, where she shared brief snippets of her new song, “Easy on Me,” and responded to questions in the chat. Besides her favorite quarantine hobbies and whether or not she was going to collab with Peppa pig, many were wondering about her upcoming album: What was it going to be about?
“Divorce babe, divorce,” said Adele.
After a 6 year hiatus, the record-breaking English singer released her long-awaited fourth studio album, 30, on November 19th. Fans across the world cleared 58 minutes and 18 seconds from their schedules and prepared their tissues.
True to her word, 30 is indeed about divorce, but it’s also about healing and finding self love. Some criticize the album for being not “Adele-like” enough, but I’d argue that’s a welcome reflection of how she's grown in the past 6 years. The 12 tracks vary widely from classic to more experimental styles, and combine to form an album that is just as powerful, lyrically and vocally, as any of Adele’s other hit-albums.
Released October 15th, “Easy on Me,” the album’s lead single and 2nd track, broke the world record for most streamed song 24 in hours. As of today, the song has accumulated over 340 million streams on Spotify, and for understandable reasons. Adele, who separated from ex-husband Simon Konecki in 2019, pours raw emotion and trademark, incredible vocals into this song which seems to act as an explanation of the divorce to her 9-year old son, Angelo.
“Go easy on me, baby,” repeats Adele in the chorus, expressing guilt for putting Angelo through a difficult situation and asking him to understand her feelings. We dive deeper into Adele’s relationships with her son in “My Little Love,” the third and arguably most experimental track on the album. Between verses, we hear pieces of their conversations, recorded and meshed into the song.
“Do you like me?” asks Angelo in one recording.
“You know mummy doesn't like anyone else like I like you, right?”
“My Little Love,” like many other songs in the album, feels deeply personal– a sentiment that Adele shared herself in an interview with Vogue Magazine:
“I always say that 21 doesn’t belong to me anymore. Everyone else took it into their hearts so much. I’m not letting go of this one. This is my album. I want to share myself with everyone, but I don’t think I’ll ever let this one go.”
The tracklist seems to be ordered strategically, with each song being a new step or feeling in Adele’s life. In “Cry Your Heart Out” and “Oh My God,” tracks 4 and 5, Adele finds ways to cope and pull herself out of a depressive episode. “All Night Parking Interlude,” track 8, describes her first romantic relationship after the divorce. Track 9, “Woman Like Me,” expresses anger towards Konecki. As a person who likes to make myself cry, my personal favorites are “I Drink Wine” and “To Be Loved.”
After listening to 30, on repeat since its release, it’s clear to me that Adele has been through a lot since the release of 25. It makes me admire her resilience and how she was able to channel her experiences to create something beautiful and genuine.
BY VIVIAN WANG