Morrissey’s 14th album Make-Up Is a Lie finds him wearing all his favorite guises: eternal romantic, tireless crank, fragile old soul, free speech martyr, rock-nostalgia torchbearer, heavenly miserablist. He claims his years of controversial political utterances have made it hard for him to find a label to release the record, his first in five years. He ended up on Sire, which put out the Smiths and his early solo work. “I want to move away from those who stare at screens all day/I want to speak up and to not be trapped by censorship,” he sings against the Eighties-alt-rock guitar sparkle of “You’re Right, It’s Time,” more than one example here where clunky self-absorption gets in the way of a pretty good song.
The nadir is the sallow disco shitpost “Notre Dame,” in which he floats the xenophobic conspiracy theory that the 2019 fire that destroyed Notre Dame cathedral was the result of an uninvestigated terrorist attack. (He made the lyrics here a little more vague compared to the version he performed live but the intent still seems pretty obvious.) Mostly, though, he avoids dicey subject matter for solid autobiographical songwriting. “Zoom Zoom the Little Boy” sets two classic Moz themes – passionate animal rights advocacy and deep misanthropy — to a fun Swinging Sixties tune. A number of songs return to his deepest childhood musical loves. “Lester Bangs” is a tribute to the 1970s rock critic whose reviews of the New York Dolls and Roxy Music changed his life when he was a sad teenager — “this nerd hangs on your word.” “The Night Pop Dropped” returns to the shock of David Bowie’s death to honor his greatness, and Morriseey lovingly knocks out a zesty cover of the Roxy Music deep cut “Amazona.”
Those reflections on youthful passion contrast sharply with the Mozzer’s current state of self-pity. On “Boulevard” the only thing he can empathize with is a lonely street trod upon and senselessly abused. “Birds shit/Schoolboy’s spit/Right at you,” he moans. He recently had to cancel some tour dates due to health issues, and on “Headache” he offers an assessment of mortality that’s pretty morose even for him: “Man born of woman has a short time to live/And it’s still too long,” the 66 year-old artist intones. For many people, even longtime fans, dealing with Morrissey has become a headache. This album isn’t going to do much to change his strange place in the world, but his pain is real too.
Aaron Idelson
North West with her mom at a Lakers game in 2024
North West Was Born To Be a Star
As the celebrity children of the 2010s come of age and follow in their parents’ footsteps, we’ve arrived at the next generation of nepo babies. There’s no better example right now than North West, scion of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s celebrity empire, who, at 12 years old, seems poised to become a fixture in the future of not only music but also fashion. Take her recent single, “Piercing on My Hand,” which arrived on DSPs on Feb. 6, and was reported as a soul-sampled track produced by Ye and Will Frenchman. The single was reportedly released via Gamma., the independent music company co-founded by former Apple exec Larry Jackson in 2023 — the same company Ye recently partnered with for the release of his upcoming album, Bully. She also joined her dad onstage in Mexico City to debut “Piercing on My Hand” live. It’s a position that’s by now familiar for North, who previously appeared on Ye and Ty Dolla $ign’s Vultures single “Talking/Once Again,” which reached Number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 and also charted in the U.K.
Perhaps this all represents a maximalist approach to the challenge of raising kids in the public eye. While it’s common to see celebrities attempt, with varying levels of success, to shield their children from the limelight, North has been slowly learning how to navigate being born into fame. This week, People reported that her mom, Kim Kardashian, filed applications in January to trademark the company name “NOR11” for use in the sale of clothing and accessories, including dresses, footwear, loungewear, hats, watches, jewelry, handbags, and cosmetics cases. North has already gained attention for her sense of style, raising eyebrows after revealing piercings on her middle finger last September, prompting online criticism because of her age. Her debut single is partly inspired by the controversy.
In addition to “Piercing on My Hand,” North has since racked up a handful of production credits for the underground rap staple Babyxsosa, including “Tokyo” and “Viral,” released as loosies on social platforms last month. The latter samples Chief Keef’s “Love Sosa” with a kind of dense, atmospheric texture that also recalls “Hold My Liquor,” the Chief Keef-assisted cut from Kanye’s 2013 opus Yeezus. North West’s producer tag, an anime voice squeaking “North-Chan” in Japanese with the sweetness of a kids’ video game, is already on its way to becoming iconic. In January, she landed a notable early placement as a producer on “Justswagup,” a single by Mag!c and Lil Novi — Lil Wayne’s son, who is 16 years old, putting him, like North, squarely in the “next-gen rap royalty” conversation.
Last month, North went on Instagram Live and answered questions from her followers about her journey learning how to make music, sharing snippets of in-progress beats, and describing more about her inspirations. That she’s so far leaned into the sound of her generational cohort, a frenetic, almost hyperpop-infused take on hip-hop, is more evidence of the genre’s changing sound. For their part, both of North’s parents are offering their support. On Monday, Kim Kardashian shared a clip on her Instagram of her listening to North’s song in the car, despite what would appear to be ongoing acrimony between Ye and Kim.
North is less a carbon copy of her parents than a Gen Alpha translation. At 12 years old, she was raised in the feed, is fluent in online culture, and is learning early that identity is something you can iterate in public. The nepo-baby conversation, which typically ascribes unearned privilege and access to the children of celebs, falls short of describing what’s actually interesting about North West. She represents how childhood, branding, and art are collapsing into a single timeline, and she is already moving through it like it’s her native language.