. by Kesha
55
ChoruScore
2 reviews
Early read
Jul 4, 2025
Release Date
Kesha Records
Label
Early read Split critical consensus

Early read based on 2 professional reviews. Kesha's . opens like a manifesto of reclamation, a record where bruised candor and party-ready bravado collide. Across two professional reviews, critics frame . as an album of striking highs and uneasy juxtapositions: personal salvage and celebratory elf-rebellion sit side by side rather than fully merging. The critica

Reviews
2 reviews
Last Updated
Feb 21, 2026
Confidence
85%
Scale
0-100 critics
Primary Praise

The best song, "DELUSIONAL.", is the emotional centre that asserts Kesha’s reclaimed voice.

Primary Criticism

as a daring but uneven statement: its best songs - notably “JOYRIDE.” , “FREEDOM.&rdquo.

Who It Fits

Best for listeners looking for freedom and reclamation, starting with DELUSIONAL. and YIPPEE-KI-YAY..

Standout Tracks
DELUSIONAL. YIPPEE-KI-YAY. JOYRIDE.

Full consensus notes

Kesha's . opens like a manifesto of reclamation, a record where bruised candor and party-ready bravado collide. Across two professional reviews, critics frame . as an album of striking highs and uneasy juxtapositions: personal salvage and celebratory elf-rebellion sit side by side rather than fully merging.

The critical consensus is split, reflected in a 55/100 consensus score across 2 professional reviews. Reviewers consistently note the album's duality of personas and its restless dancefloor exploration, with critics praising specific moments where styles cohere. Hot Press highlights “JOYRIDE.” as a carnivalesque, polka-tinged party heart and celebrates “DELUSIONAL.”. as a heart-rending anthem of reclaimed voice. The Arts Desk singles out “FREEDOM.”. and “JOYRIDE.&rdquo. as the tracks that best negotiate the record's pop versus folk tensions, while also warning that the collision of EDM, hyperpop and pastoral elements often feels awkward rather than seamless.

Taken together, professional reviews position . as a daring but uneven statement: its best songs - notably “JOYRIDE.” , “FREEDOM.&rdquo. and “DELUSIONAL.”. - emerge as vivid proofs of Kesha's renewed creative latitude, even as the album's stylistic contrasts leave parts of the collection feeling provisional. For readers scanning reviews or deciding whether the record is worth a listen, the consensus suggests rewarding moments amid an intentionally fractured artistic experiment.

Critics' Top Tracks

The standout songs that made critics take notice

1

DELUSIONAL.

1 mention

"the heart-rending ballad ‘Delusional"
Hot Press
2

YIPPEE-KI-YAY.

1 mention

"On ‘Yippie-Ki-Yay’, the star blends country-pop stylings with a hip-hop flow"
Hot Press
3

JOYRIDE.

2 mentions

"The carnivalesque ‘Joyride’ ... is a feisty polka number"
Hot Press
the heart-rending ballad ‘Delusional
H
Hot Press
about "DELUSIONAL."
Read full review
1 mention
95% sentiment

Track Ratings

How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.

View:
1

FREEDOM.

2 mentions
10
06:24
2

JOYRIDE.

2 mentions
15
02:30
3

YIPPEE-KI-YAY.

1 mention
40
02:37
4

DELUSIONAL.

1 mention
100
03:34
5

RED FLAG.

0 mentions
03:34
6

LOVE FOREVER.

0 mentions
03:44
7

THE ONE.

0 mentions
03:24
8

BOY CRAZY.

0 mentions
02:28
9

GLOW.

0 mentions
03:31
10

TOO HARD.

0 mentions
02:41
11

CATHEDRAL.

0 mentions
03:55

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What Critics Are Saying

Deep insights from 4 critics who reviewed this album

Ho

Hot Press

Unknown
Jul 4, 2025
80

Critic's Take

Kesha’s . feels like a liberation manifesto, equal parts bruised and celebratory, and the best tracks show that range. The carnivalesque “JOYRIDE.” is a feisty polka blast that stakes out the album’s party-hearts, while “DELUSIONAL.” is the heart-rending ballad that crystallises her reclaimed voice. From the Björk-tinged opening of “FREEDOM.” to the country-pop flirt of “YIPPEE-KI-YAY.&rdquo., the best songs on . map Kesha’s new creative latitude with flair and feeling.

Key Points

  • The best song, "DELUSIONAL.", is the emotional centre that asserts Kesha’s reclaimed voice.
  • The album’s core strengths are its genre-blending production and its sense of liberated self-expression.

Themes

freedom reclamation EDM and hyperpop fusion dancefloor exploration

Critic's Take

In his clipped, often wry tone Thomas H. Green finds that Kesha's sixth LP . is built on a collision between two selves, and it is that clash that yields the best moments. He points to the album's flirtation with both pop-star sparkle and "naked hippy" pastoralism as where the best tracks - notably “FREEDOM.” and “JOYRIDE.” - briefly cohere into something vital. Yet he also stresses the awkwardness of that mix, so the best songs are those that lean into one persona without apologising for the other. Overall, the review frames the best tracks as fleeting victories within an uneven record.

Key Points

  • The best song succeeds by embracing one of Kesha's personas fully rather than oscillating between them.
  • The album's core strength is moments where pop gloss and folk frankness meet, producing fleeting vitality.

Themes

duality of personas contrast between pop and folk awkward collision of styles