Taken from this week’s Future Pop mailer. Click here to subscribe. All my Songs of the Week are featured on my Top of the Poptastic playlist, along with the rest of my faves from 2017.
Anyone concerned by the musical direction of Taylor Swift’s new album may like to pretend she’s returned to her country-pop roots and listen to Unapologetically by Kelsea Ballerini. The second album from the 24-year-old Tennessee singer takes inspiration from throughout Taylor’s career, from the Fearless era on High School to the 1989 era on Roses. The latter sounds distinctly similar to Style, but that’s no criticism – it was, after all, one of the best tracks on 1989 (the best was actually Out of the Woods, fyi). The familiarity makes the song instantly catchy and it’s just as uplifting and wistfully nostalgic as Style. I’ve had the chance to see Kelsea live twice in London this year, and I hope to catch her again at next March’s C2C festival.