Lily Allen On URL Badmen & Building A Better Pop World: Idolator Interview

Carl Williott | May 16, 2014 8:44 am

Lily Allen seems to exist in a state of constant friction, where nothing is ever easy — her lead single “Hard Out Here” makes that abundantly clear, as did the video’s fallout — and that’s exactly how she likes it. And that’s exactly how we pop watchers like it, as these past three albums have resulted in one of the genre’s most delightful high-wire acts.

Lily knows how to feed the beast and keep listeners on their toes because she is an avid consumer of pop culture herself. In fact, when the charming singer stopped by our New York City studio earlier this week, she told us much of Sheezus was conceived while she was at home pregnant and observing the music landscape (stars, they’re just like us! and whatnot), which explains why the album is both a cheeky tribute to her exceedingly regular family life and a biting critique of the state of pop affairs. Of course, any singer who aims to elicit a visceral reaction will face a tougher slog, but as Allen told us, in the end it can help broaden the scope of pop music. Basically, she’s singing about periods and bitchy bloggers now so other pop queens can sing about something else later.

For more on that, her thoughts on the Great Lily Allen Thinkpiece Glut Of 2014 and her upcoming tour, watch our interview up top.

Get an eyeful of even more pop music coverage, from artist interviews to exclusive performances, on Idolator’s YouTube channel.

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