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Above photo from Miley Cyrus’ website 

Miley Cyrus is an anomaly in the industry. She’s a former Disney kid who managed to successfully hold onto her fame following her time as Hannah Montana, reinvented herself with every album that she’s released since, and maintained her spot as a household name all before she turned 33 years old. 

With the release of Something Beautiful (Columbia Records, 2025), Cyrus has reinvented herself once again, but in a way that shows us a bit of who she’s really been all along. 

The album is more mature than we’ve seen her, yet still playful. Emotional, but also fun. Something Beautiful pulls from a variety of influences to create a diverse sound – from Pat Benatar-esque 80s influences to contributions from a variety of indie artists – all while keeping a handle on the tried and true pop sound that has made Cyrus (and many others before her) a star. 

In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar in November of 2024, the Grammy winner shared some of the inspiration behind the album and the film of the same name. “It was inspired by Pink Floyd’s The Wall,” and her idea was “making The Wall, but with a better wardrobe and more glamorous and filled with pop culture.” 

“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,” she told Harper’s Bazaar. “They are the shadow, they are the charcoal, they are the shading. You can’t have a painting without highlights and contrast.” 

Breaking down the album 

Something Beautiful is Cyrus’ ninth studio album, released on May 30, 2025 through Columbia Records. The album consists of thirteen songs and is categorized as a progressive pop album. Cyrus executive produced the album alongside Shawn Everett (Alabama Shakes, Kacey Musgraves, The War on Drugs, The Killers, Julian Casablancas), and also worked with various indie musicians including Daniella Haim of HAIM, Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Adam Granduciel of The War on Drugs. Supermodel Naomi Campbell and Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes appear as guest artists on the album. 

The lead single, “End of the World” was written for her mom, Tish. In an interview with The New York Times, Cyrus revealed that the song had been inspired by her mom going on vacation in Italy for a week without her, and given how close they are, she said it “felt like the end of the world for both of us.” 

The album was further supported by promotional singles, “Prelude,” “Something Beautiful,” and “More to Lose.” The album’s overarching themes center around healing from trauma, beauty, heartbreak, and death. 

Something Beautiful begins with “Prelude,” a spoken word intro that sees Cyrus exploring existential thoughts and the duality of beauty. “Something Beautiful,” the album’s title track, has elements of soul, jazz, and experimental rock. “End of the World” has a disco-pop sound, with a catchy “oh-oh-oh” hook. “More to Lose” is Cyrus at her ballad best (think: “The Climb” and “Angels Like You”), lamenting in a devastating song about the end of a relationship. “I knew someday that one would have to choose / Oh, I knew someday you’d do what I couldn’t do / I just thought we had more to lose,” she sings in the chorus. 

“Easy Lover,” my personal favorite off of the album, is bookended by “Interlude 1” and “Interlude 2,” both of which serve to move the album along from the slower, sadder beginning, to the big and boisterous second half. “Golden Burning Sun,” seems to be Cyrus in conversation with herself. “You’re the only one under the golden burning sun / Can I have you if I never let you down? / Surrender, surrender, surrender / And I’ll never let you down,” she sings. 

“Walk of Fame,” featuring Brittany Howard (of Alabama Shakes), is a synth-y, disco track that sees Cyrus walking away from things that no longer serve her. “Every time I walk, it’s a walk of fame,” she sings. On “Pretend You’re God,” we see the Pink Floyd influence at full force. The track is a psychedelic exploration of the truth, and whether or not it’s best to leave some things unsaid. 

“Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved,” has an unexpected feature from supermodel Naomi Campbell, and features a similar sound to the Plastic Hearts album. “Reborn” is a continuation of the previous track that places her ego in the spotlight. This track also features Cyrus’ musician boyfriend Maxx Morando as a producer. The interlude sees Cyrus singing, “Let’s be reborn / Give me all your love / You’re so beautiful,” seemingly looking at and talking to the new version of herself. 

“Give Me Love,” ends the album on a lighter, freer note on the other side of “Reborn.” In a ranking of the album’s songs, Billboard states, “At the halfway point of the song, Miley’s own vocals harmonize to form what can best be described as a choir of angels, encompassing the listener in the very thing she’s asking for: love. And while Miley said at her listening event earlier in the week that what is considered beautiful is personal, this closing track underscores the one thing that can be universally agreed on as such: a continuous exchange and flow of love.” 

While it’s not my favorite Miley Cyrus album – I really loved her 2023 release Endless Summer Vacation, and I’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for her 2008 release Breakout, her 2019 EP SHE IS COMING, and her 2020 foray into rock with Plastic Hearts – I do think that Something Beautiful is the album that Cyrus has always wanted to make. What I mean by that is that the album and the corresponding theatrical film really caters to nobody but Cyrus herself.