Demi Lovato is one of the few pop stars who actually loves metal. The former Disney icon has been open about getting into hardcore and extreme-metal in her teens, listening to everything from Lamb of God and deathcore-era Bring Me the Horizon to Norwegian black-metal extremists Dimmu Borgir. Now, she's actually making music that feels, at least spiritually, closer to her dark and intense roots.
Her new album, Holy Fvck, is filled with moody, pissed-off pop-punk rippers that aren't far in tone from what Halsey did on her Nine Inch Nails-produced album, If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power, or what other artists like Willow and even Machine Gun Kelly have been doing in recent years. Most of it isn't actually that heavy, but opener "Freak" — featuring U.K. alt-punk sensation, YUNGBLUD — does feature some pretty extreme elements for a pop song of its caliber.
The main riff is chuggy and groovy as hell, Lovato's energy throughout is fuming with anger, and after YUNGBLUD delivers a verse that verges on punk yells, Lovato lets some truly scorching screams out during the stomping breakdown. Obviously her personal metal taste goes a lot harder than this, but considering this track was released by a major artist on a major label, it's pretty cool to hear how heavy Lovato is allowing herself to go.
Listen above via YouTube.
