Like a phoenix rising from the ashes Selena Gomez’s third solo album “Rare,” released Jan. 10, 2020, shines with the strength she gained after some of the most trying and painful years of her life.  

Oct. 23, 2019, Gomez gave fans a taste of what to expect off her latest album when she released the single and music video, “Lose You to Love Me”, which was a gut-wrenching ballad about her tumultuous relationship with fellow pop artist Justin Bieber. It topped the charts on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Gomez’s first number one single in the US. The next day, Gomez followed it with the release of the single and music video, “Look at Her Now”, which like many of her songs over the years, gave the message of female strength and empowerment, along with a very catchy melody. On its release, it charted in both the top 20s on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Rolling Stone Top 100. 

On the day of the album release Gomez also released the music video for the title track, “Rare,” which was a perfect middle ground between her first two singles. The self-love title track gives the album a powerful opening message that carries throughout.  

The album, though primarily comprised of pop and dance music, also experiments with other genres such as; R&B, electro, funk-pop, reggaeton, alternative pop and electronic music on various tracks.  

Though right now, the most popular songs are still “Lose You to Love Me” and “Look at Her Now”, with “Rare” following closely behind, other songs on the album could have easily been equally as popular with their powerful messages.  

The second song on the album, “Dance Again” is a type of self-establishment anthem, that mixes dance with some electronic beats. This song highlights the serious depression that Gomez recently battled, but instead of letting it take root, she took the reins and decided to let happiness rule instead, which [as the lyrics state] let her rebuild confidence in herself.  

The song “Fun” has an upbeat melody that easily gets stuck in a person’s head to where they begin to hum it long after it’s over. It’s a great break in the heavy subject matter some of the other songs address. Gomez speaks of a person that she thinks looks very attractive, but she knows that the romance will be a fleeting one which leads her to believe it will be light and ultimately fun.  

“Cut You Off” is the second to last song on the album and is raw and beautiful. Gomez talks about dealing with mental abuse from someone you love and have spent a lot of time with. She said she had to get drunk in order to face the fact that that person wasn’t healthy for her and how she had to leave that person to move on and regain a sense of self.  

Gomez has not been shy in telling multiple outlets that the album is in fact her diary over the last couple of years. She has also admitted that it is the most honest music she’s ever made, which for her fans, makes it even more special. The main themes are of love, loss and dating, which fans could pinpoint within the first few lines of the singles she released. Though the themes revolve around those very painful [at times] themes, Gomez has shown her growth over the years with the main messages that shine through, which are those about self-love, acceptance and empowerment. 

Edited by Adam White, Jason Morrison