Beautiful Trauma is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Pink. It was released on October 13, 2017, by RCA Records. Following her previous album The Truth About Love, Pink took a career hiatus to focus on her personal life and become reinspired. Beautiful Trauma developed over a three-year period starting in 2015. She collaborated with a variety of producers, enlisting help from collaborators such as Greg Kurstin, Max Martin, Jack Antonoff, and Shellback. Pink and her manager, Roger Davies, served as the album's executive producers. Primarily a pop record, it incorporates influences from EDM and folk. The lyrical content reflects primarily on themes of love, heartbreak, and the duality of life, as well as expressing societal and global issues.
Beautiful Trauma received mixed reviews from music critics, many of whom praised its overall production and Pink's vocals. However, some thought it was too calculated and formulaic, questioning its originality. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 408,000 album-equivalent units becoming Pink's highest first-week sales to date. It was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of 1,000,000 certified units. The album also reached the summit in over 10 other countries including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, and top 10 positions in major music markets. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), it was among the best-selling albums globally in 2017 and 2018, and has sold over 3,000,000 copies worldwide.
"What About Us" was released as the lead single from Beautiful Trauma. It was a commercial success, topping the national charts of eight countries and peaking within the top 10 in 12 others, while reaching number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The second single is the title track, which was moderately successful and attained top 40 positions on the charts of over 10 countries, while "Whatever You Want" and "Secrets" had limited releases in June and August 2018, respectively. The album was promoted by the Beautiful Trauma World Tour which ran from March 2018 to November 2019 and grossed over $390,000,000, at the time the second highest-grossing tour by a female artist. Beautiful Trauma received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 61st awards ceremony, while "What About Us" was nominated for Best Pop Solo Performance at the 60th Grammy Awards.
Background
In September 2012, Pink released her sixth studio album The Truth About Love. The electropop and rock-influenced pop album received critical acclaim and became an international commercial success, having sold approximately 7,000,000 copies worldwide. The album's associated world tour ran from February 2013 to January 2014. In March 2014, it was reported that Pink had signed a new multi-album record deal with RCA Records. In October 2014, she released a collaborative album titled rose ave., with Canadian singer-songwriter Dallas Green, under the name You+Me. Pink subsequently took a hiatus from her career. However, she released some songs during this period, including "Today's the Day", used as a theme song for the 13th season of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and "Just Like Fire" featured on the soundtrack of the 2016 film Alice Through the Looking Glass. In April 2016, Pink confirmed that she was going through the writing process for her upcoming album via a post on her Instagram account, prompting media speculation about a potential Pink release during the second half of that year. The album's creation and release were ultimately pushed back to 2017 after Pink gave birth to her second child, a son named Jameson Moon Hart, on December 26, 2016. The singer announced in July 2017 that she was filming a music video for an upcoming single. Pink later shared a recording from the set of the video on her social media page, captioned: "Video #new #fyeah #itsallhappening".
Writing and inspiration
The development process for Beautiful Trauma took place over three years, the longest that Pink has ever worked on an album. Early writing sessions for the album were unsuccessful; Pink recalled that she spent a year writing slow and sad songs. The singer added, "for a while, I didn't have anything to say, except for dumb sad stuff". However, Pink considered her career hiatus beneficial, citing it as helping her to become reinspired and "find [her] voice again". During the hiatus, she concentrated on her family and living "a normal life", which influenced her music. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Pink said that Beautiful Trauma reflects her life at that time, and her focus was "to be as honest as I could". She drew inspiration for her songwriting from several events, including a miscarriage, the 2016 United States presidential election and her dad being diagnosed with cancer.
Pink collaborated with a handful of producers and songwriters for Beautiful Trauma enlisting the assistance of longtime collaborators, such as Billy Mann, Greg Kurstin, Max Martin, and Shellback, and new project partners like Johnny McDaid, Julia Michaels, and Jack Antonoff. 50 songs were composed over the course of the album's development, including "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken". Initially composed for the 2015 historical period drama film Suffragette, the song was inspired by the early 20th-century movement of the same name. "You Get My Love" was written and produced by Pink and Tobias Jesso Jr., at the Earthstar Creation Center in Venice. The track was recorded in 2016, while Pink was pregnant, an experience she deemed as "very sober". Pink described the track as "the best vocal performance I've ever done in my life", and credited American singer Nina Simone as the major influence behind her vocal interpretation.
In 2016, Pink co-wrote "I Am Here" with Billy Mann and Christian Medice in Los Angeles. The following year, Pink contacted Mann in July after she had decided to record the song with a local gospel choir. The pair traveled to Philadelphia and booked a recording session at Houser Audio, with a 30-piece choir. Mann and Bill Jolly arranged the voices; Jolly also conducted the choir. "Revenge" was written by Pink, Max Martin, and Shellback. After she wrote rap verses, Pink felt that the song was suitable for Eminem. Eventually, she sent him an e-mail, confessing her love and admiration for the rapper, and asking for a collaboration. While he was in Rio de Janeiro, Eminem responded positively to her request. Four days later, he sent back an e-mail to Pink with his recorded verse. Speaking of Eminem, she commented: "I think he's a lyrical genius, I think he's one of the best that ever did it."
Music and lyrical interpretation
Overview Beautiful Trauma is primarily a pop record that incorporates elements of EDM and folk music. Lyrically, the album has an emotional theme, addressing insecurities and imperfect relationships, as well as the singer's concerns about societal and global issues. Josh Hurst of Slant Magazine characterized Beautiful Trauma as a pop album "about bent-and-broken people", while Rolling Stone staff wrote that most of the songs analyze "married life, motherhood and the state of the world". Pink explained that the album marks a change in her vocal style. As a result of her pregnancy, her voice became clearer. Most critics noted that Beautiful Trauma includes predominantly ballads with "dramatic" choruses; Pink's manager Roger Davies called it "just a continuation of the previous records".
Songs analysis
The opening and titular track, "Beautiful Trauma", is a power pop and pop rock song produced by Jack Antonoff. Its composition consists of "hammered" piano chords backed by synthesizers and an orchestra, while the lyrics delve into a long-term troubled relationship and compare it to drug addiction. Described by Pink as a "funny record", "Revenge" is a "bad-romance duet" with Eminem. Alternating between rap and sung sections, the track is centered on the subjects of betrayal, cheating, and unfaithfulness. "Whatever You Want", the third song, is a "confessional" pop rock track produced by Max Martin and Shellback and inspired by the difficulties Pink faced in her relationship with husband Carey Hart. Both Jamie Otsa from Drowned in Sound and Evan Sawdey of PopMatters noted similarities between the track and Radiohead's 1995 song, "High and Dry", referring to "more than a few chord changes". The lead single from Beautiful Trauma, "What About Us", was written by Pink, McDaid, and Steve McCutcheon; production was handled by McCutcheon. An EDM song with influences of four on the floor, "What About Us" starts as a ballad and appears to be about a relationship at first glance. The political lyrics depict a "peaceful message" of tolerance and unity for the people who feel ignored and abandoned.
"But We Lost It" is a piano ballad, deemed as an "affecting damaged" love song, while "Barbies" contains folk elements and lyrics about the pressure of growing up while longing for a simpler time. The seventh song, "Where We Go", details a damaged relationship over a "Robin Schulz-like loping" guitar melody, according to Andrew Unterberger from Billboard. "For Now" is an adult contemporary power ballad, whereas "Secrets" blends pop and funk music, with elements of deep house and electronic music. "Better Life" is an R&B-flavored doo-wop track that incorporates gospel tones. The song finds Pink comparing herself to people on social media, with lyrics such as "I found myself up late feeling kinda jealous/ Looking at the bullshit, other people's wellness". "I Am Here" appears next, and it is an empowering song which includes a gospel choir and lyrics about Pink's "journey as a person". The twelfth and penultimate track, "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken", was written by Pink and Michael Busbee as a "feminist chant" that depicts women fighting for equal rights and respect. Beautiful Trauma concludes with "You Get My Love", a piano ballad described as "raw" and "emotional". Pink's vocal runs were compared to those of Adele, Carole King, and Mariah Carey.
Release and promotion
Live performances Pink embarked on a promotional tour across Europe and North America to promote the release of Beautiful Trauma. The singer performed "What About Us" live for the first time at Waldbühne in Berlin, Germany, on August 11, 2017. During Pink's headline set at the V Festival that year she performed the song along with older material. At the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards, Pink was presented with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award and sang the song as part of a greatest hits medley. On September 6, 2017, the singer held a special concert at The Theater in the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, premiering tracks from the album to a room of specially invited fans. She also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show the same day and performed "What About Us". On September 8, 2017, Pink performed the song for BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, as well as "Who Knew", "Try", and a cover of "Stay with Me" by Sam Smith. She was a main headliner at the 2017 Kaaboo Del Mar Festival where her setlist included a performance of "What About Us" and other singles from her catalogue. On September 22 of that year, Pink performed a medley of "Raise Your Glass", "What About Us", "Funhouse", "Just Like Fire", and "So What" at the iHeartRadio Music Festival.