Multiple tours with sold out shows all over Europe and many well loved songs: For the past years, Cloudy June has been on a mission to take over the music scene. Now finally, the young pop artist from Berlin has released her debut album on November 1st, 2024. Crazy Woman is a collection of twelve songs that represent her as an artist but also allow a deep insight into her feelings.
The album starts with two songs that were released as singles prior to the album release. ‘Crazy Woman’ as the title track sets the message for the rest of the album: confidence and female empowerment are the base for this record. ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ follows the same vibe. Instead of sucking sadness and anger up, the song encourages its audience to be brave and speak up for their own rights. “Put on a pretty dress before they make you wanna die,” embracing femininity is not about seeking male approval, it’s about power and courage.
‘CREEPY!’ is a song about parasocial relationships between fans and their favourite artists. However, Cloudy June decided to switch it up as this song is written from the perspective of the fan rather than the artist. While touching on an incredibly serious and important subject, the song is an upbeat, fast-paced song with a few slower and quieter lines sprinkled in between. Therefore the song fits in with the preceding songs despite switching topics.
‘Retail Therapy’ was released as a single in December, 2023. The beginning of the song is a little quieter, yet the overall vibe is once again fun, catchy, uplifting.
‘Kiss N Tell’ is one of the first songs that allow a peek into the private life fans usually do not see. The song deals with dating a person while not being able to make the relationship public. Instead of a sad love song this track is very upbeat and plays with the idea of causing a scandal and the scandalous vibe continues afterwards as well. ‘Hoe Anthem’ is about breaking with all expectations that women deal with in their everyday life. It finds empowerment in rejecting stereotypes and ignoring haters, making it another anthem (literally) for female empowerment. Cloudy June has been very open about her bisexuality, so naturally her debut album also touches on the topic of being queer.
With ‘Alexandra’, the lyrics are walking on a thin line between admiration and attraction, a feeling that many queer people can relate to greatly. ‘Girls Like You’ shows another aspect of queer love. “You do something to me that only girls like you do,” sounds almost like a diary entry after just discovering one’s sexuality. While realising you are queer can be a tough topic at first, ‘Girls Like You’ is a fun and positive song, breaking with the stereotype of a hard and scary coming out process.
‘Red Flag’ was the opener for a new era of Cloudy June’s music as it was released as the first single of this album in September 2023. Thematically the song returns to the mildly scandalous vibe from earlier, talking about attraction despite knowing that a person is not good for you. Without a doubt it is impossible to catch the essence of an entire album in just one song but it certainly makes sense that ‘Red Flag’ was the first single. The song is catchy, the lyrics are clever yet easy to remember and the baseline is once again very clear: confidence.
After nine catchy, upbeat pop songs there is a switch in vibes. With ‘Loving You (Is A Dangerous Game)’ Cloudy June has added a slow love song about overcoming fears to be with a person. The sound of the song might remind fans of her song ‘Documentary’ yet there has been obvious growth in the production and overall sound. While sticking to a slow and sexy vibe, her sound has become more mature with an impressive attention for small details.
After ten tracks it could be easy to assume Cloudy June is only here to deliver one party anthem after another but once again, she is breaking with exactly that expectation. Almost all songs have been teased prior to the album release, whether it be in Instagram live streams or TikToks.
However, ‘Dying Without You’ has remained a secret until the very end and it very quickly becomes obvious why: this song is meant to be listened to in full with the best sound quality possible, cutting out a snippet or two could never do this track justice. The lyrics take us on a journey of fear, sadness and struggling in relationships. The beat is more simple than most instrumentals on the album, letting the lyrics speak for themselves. But, Crazy Woman does not leave us behind in sadness and negativity. ‘Sad Girl Era’, which had been released as the last single before the album drop, shows a journey of personal growth and overcoming struggles. Cloudy June is making peace with things in the past and looks forward to a bright future, closing the album on a positive note.
It took a few years for Cloudy June to release her debut album, but it certainly was worth the wait. She has experimented with sound and lyrics, perfecting her style before dropping this album. Crazy Woman takes the listeners on a unique journey of ups and downs. The topics and themes will be relatable for a great audience, yet Cloudy June adds a very personal note to the songs, making them an ideal representation for herself. Fans of her music will certainly love this record but also people yet to discover her music will greatly enjoy this one. If you enjoy catchy pop songs, personal lyrics and an overall good time, give Crazy Woman a listen and remember: This album is just the beginning because surely there is more where these songs came from.
Written by: Janine Vivien Stein
Edited by: Ilse Muis
