In a masterful concoction of synthetic hooks and vocal layering, Addison Rae’s debut album, Addison, positions her in a niche that threads generational definitions of high-quality pop, but leaves room for growth into her own unique sound.

While many lost track of Rae after her TikTok dancing days, she shifted focus to other industries, experimenting with podcasting, acting, cosmetics and music. Addison responds to Rae’s underproduced and disjointed 2023 debut EP, AR, with sonic cohesion and atmospheric control. While the collection of originally leaked songs received positive reactions from some critics and showed potential with catchy melodies like “I got it bad,” AR proved it takes more than a vision and a name to produce an album that plays as fluidly as her new 12-track release. 

In the time between her two releases, Rae signed with Columbia Records, collaborated with genre-defining artists like Charli XCX and Brat producer A.G. Cook and built momentum through a string of hit singles that make up half of the 33-minute record. 

The first track, “New York,” opens with a line that points in two directions: “Take a bite of the big apple,” a New York reference with biblical undertones, setting up Addison as a creation story. This song, alongside the third track, “Money is Everything,” exhibit the most stylistic influence from her synthwave collaborations.

Tunes she first released as singles, like “High Fashion” and the 24-year-old’s first Billboard Hot 100 hit “Diet Pepsi,” each had music videos showcasing choreography that nods to her roots, framing dance as part of the album’s framework instead of an afterthought. With a talented creative team, Rae revived the nostalgia of well-produced music videos, further complemented by Europop and dance elements scattered across songs like “Aquamarine” and “In the Rain.”

The record’s first half leans into the bright pinks and oranges of its album cover, while the second half progressively uncovers moodier undertones seen in Rae’s striking gaze, making the album art reminiscent of early Britney Spears. “Times Like These” stands as her most lyrically vulnerable track, but still maintains a vagueness that keeps attention on the music. The beat spins like vertigo around Rae’s voice as she sings, “Should I jump in the unknown / Or is it better to know how it unfolds? / Am I too young to be this mad? / Am I too old to blame my dad?”

Rae closes with the single “Headphones On,” using lyrics about moving forward to brush off any weight the previous tracks introduced: “You can’t fix what has already been broken / You just have to surrender to the moment.” 

Co-written and produced alongside Elvira Anderfjärd and Luka Kloser, Rae’s Addison invites listeners to escape irony and return to the unapologetic pleasures of pop. It proves that constant reinvention is not always necessary. When done this well, reviving the best parts of a genre makes a sound that plays entirely new.  

4 ½ Diet Pepsis out of 5