Album Review: Tell Me You Love Me: Lovato’s Rollercoaster

Source: Amazon

Demi Lovato’s new album Tell Me You Love Me is one of the albums that I have been waiting for in a complete and full anticipation. The one reason is because this album is released after Lovato’s relationship with Valderrama ended. I am not surprised that Lovato will show the opposite emotions compared to Confident album. Mad, angry, feeling left, feeling used and wasted, are emotions that I was expected to hear, even before Tell Me You Love Me single and music video are released.

In Confident, we found the “excited” feeling of a lovely relationship Lovato had with Valderrama. We can listen to the excitement in Cool For The Summer; a passionate love in Wildfire; a strong bond in Lionheart (I think this one is inspired the tattoo on the back of Lovato’s hand); “the world is ours” in Stars; and “I can see the future with you” in Yes. In contrast to those emotions, though the title is Tell Me You Love Me, the album is not what exactly the words would mean. Instead, it contains the bad emotions she felt before, during and after the relationship with Valderrama.

The album itself is opened with Sorry Not Sorry which has nothing to do with her relationship. Nevertheless, there are 9 out of 17 songs in it that express Lovato’s bad emotions towards her ex. Those are like “in a bad circumstance, please” Tell Me You Love Me, a dissapointment in You Don’t Do It For Me Anymore, “don’t be surprised, you know me” in Daddy Issue, never ending waiting in Only Forever, the aftermath of breaking up in Lonely (feat. Lil Wayne), ‘thank you for hurting me’ in Cry Baby, love is a game in Games, wondering blurred things in Smoke and Mirrors, and about the time is not appropriate in Ready For Ya. The last two songs are available in Target Exclusive album.

Source: Discogs

While she stated when asked whether the album is about her relationship with Wilmer Valderrama before breaking up, “I’m a rather private person”, in an interview with Alan Carr about a song Cool For The Summer back in 2017 she explained, “All of my songs are based on my personal experiences”. In an interview with Glamour when she watched covers of her songs in youtube she also said, “Stone Cold is a song about a relationship that I have”. Though Lovato convinces us that she is more private than she was two years ago, I would never deny that this album is indeed about her past relationship with Valderrama. For in fact, this is the first album she released after her break up with him.

Although the songs mostly are about recalling back the memory and comb back what happened, the album is less and far from sounding like a childish album. Instead, the lyrics are mature enough to sing and these are supported by Lovato’s mature and developed singing skill. The lyrics do not sound like a teenage girl in a puppy’s love and relationship. For instance, in You Don’t Do It Anymore “I’m sorry for honesty I’m well aware”. Those will not be expressed if experienced by two childish lovers who think about their own ego and afraid to admit that they are sorry. The maturity also lies in the melodies. Though considered as pop, unlike her fellow such as Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift, Lovato’s music is the only one that sounds different.

I would say that this album is totally about her previous relationship with Valderrama because some lyrics that can be too spesific describing him, cannot stop popping in my head, giving me the idea that there is nobody else she is talking about but Valderrama in this album. Yet, this album still can be listened to everyone who struggles the ups and downs of a relationship. Who knows her personal experiences will fit to yours? So, I would open the opinion for you. What do you think about this album? Do you think this “mature” album is about Valderrama? Do you think Tell Me You Love Me is worth your waiting and anticipation?

P.S: My favorite songs in this album are Ready For Ya, Cry Baby, Hitchhiker and Concentrate. What's yours?

Demi Lovato’s Latest Single Sober Is A Negation To Skyscraper, Warrior and Old Ways

Demi Lovato’s latest single Sober seemed to be a signal she sent to her fans all over the world before she was found unconscious on the floor, because of drug overdose. That near-fatal overdose occurred in July 24^th, a month after the released of that single, June 21^st. Breaking up with her boyfriend, Wilmer Valderrama, was convinced became the main reason she got depressed. Came from a father who was a heavy drinker, Lovato threw herself into something intoxicating to escape from reality just like what her father did. Sober then became a negation to all of her previous “optimist” songs, Skyscraper, Warrior, and Old Ways.

 

Source: Apple Music

Sober started with a verse that tells about what has recently happened to her, break up with her boyfriend. This, I believed, led her mental illness that was long healed to reappear. She is anxious and worry caused of the break up. She needs to sleep until she is no longer feeling the anxiety.

I got no excuses

For all of these goodbyes

Call me when it’s over

‘Cause I’m dying inside

Wake me when the shakes are gone

And the cold sweats disappear

Call me when it’s over

And myself has reappeared

In 2010, Lovato underwent rehabilitation due to self-harm, addiction, Eating Disorder and also Bipolar Disorder. After finishing her treatment, she then came back with Unbroken album and made a song called Skyscraper as a single. On the second verse, she shows her sorry to her former lover and her fans that she relapses like before. She struggles to be someone everyone can get inspired. Sadly, it is not an easy thing to do, so she gives up because she is only human.

I’m sorry to my future love

For the man I left my bed

For making love the way I saved for you

Inside my head

And I’m sorry for the fans I lost

Who watch me fall again

I wanna be your role model

But I’m only human

There are repetitions in some sentences in the bridge or pre-chorus. I am really sure, she does it to emphasise that she does not understand her condition and how to overcome.

I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know why

I do it every, every, every time

It’s only when I’m lonely

Sometimes I just wanna cave and I don’t wanna fight

I try and I try and I try and I try and I try

Just hold me, I’m lonely

In the chorus, she describes what she really feels to her mother and everyone who always support her, including her fans. She also asks for forgiveness to her father, recalling she ever spilled his drink when she was a kid, the only thing her father cared about.

Momma, I’m so sorry I’m not sober anymore

Daddy, please forgive me for the drink spilled on the floor

To the ones who never left me, we’ve been down this road before

I’m so sorry, I’m not sober anymore

She could have used the word “again”, but she preferred “anymore”. She tries to tell everyone that she will not ever be the same in the future. In other words, she implies that she loses her sobriety not for a short period of time.

The chorus above, is a statement also a negation at the same time to her previous songs from her previous albums, Skyscraper, Warrior, and Old Ways. These three songs talked about getting up from the ground, being stronger than before and move to a better place. That has written in the Chorus in each song. As in Skyscraper “You can take everything I have, you can break everything I am. Like I’m made of glass, like I’m made of paper. Go on and try to tear me down, I will be rising from the ground. Like a skyscraper”. In the Warrior, she convinced herself that “I’m a warrior, I’ve got thicker skin. I’m a warrior, I’m stronger than I’ve ever been. And my armour is made of steel, you can’t get in. I’m a warrior, and you can never hurt me again.”. In the Old Ways, she got tempted to back to the place she had been, but she kicked all those haunting voices by saying “I’ll just keep changing these colours, I’m not in the same place like I was. But if somebody told me, I’ll go back to my old ways, I’m gonna say no way, I’m out the doorway, I’m hearing them all say, I’ll go back to my old ways, not going back to my old ways.” With all that being said, she breaks her determinations, all at once, with Sober.

In the Outro, she states that she will get help. She closes the song lamentably with regret and -once again- saying sorry, but this time, she dedicates it for herself.

I’m sorry that I’m here again

I promise I’ll get help

It wasn’t my intention

I’m sorry to myself

Demi Lovato is known for her specialty singing using the head voice technique. She has the vocal range from C3 to Eb7. Looking back to her previous albums, most of her songs usually have one octave higher on the Chorus. She used such a technique in many of her songs in the album: Unbroken: Fix A Heart and Skyscraper; DEMI: Nightingale and Shouldn’t Come Back; in Confident: Stone Cold and Star; the single Body Say; and in Tell Me You Love Me: Cry Baby and Ready For Ya. She seemed to let go of that habit in order to express a deep emotion in Sober. She rather made the song to be sung effortlessly, to show that she is tired of everything. In this song, we will not hear her strong head voice technique. There is no significant effort like she used to do.

Although Sober might be considered as pop song, but I would like to say that this song is more likely ballads. With a tempo around 80 bpm, categorised as Adagio, I believe she wants the listeners to focus on every inch of the lyrics, rather than focusing on her singing skill. Maybe she wants everyone to notice that she indeed has lost her sobriety, exhausted and has no more strength to sing in such a powerful technique.

Final thoughts, I think Sober is a signal that Demi Lovato wants everyone to catch and look over her condition and how her relationship status affects her mental health. I would consider this song as a suicide letter, more like a saying goodbye before committing suicide. This song could be a clue to everyone that she is going not to be alright again and she is about to back to the place she has been before. She wants to do something to cure the pain in a wrong way. She cannot stand on the right path anymore after six years of being sober, thus she says sorry a lot through this song.

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Submitted for Argumentative Writing Class, English Language and Culture Department.