On Nov. 27 Miley Cyrus released her debut rock album called “Plastic Hearts”, which has been No.1 on the U.S. rock charts since its release. Many young adults have watched Miley grow from being the teenie pop star “Hannah Montana” into her less juvenile self today. This transition into rock would be fantastic- if only it was a real rock album. 

Miley’s effort to be taken seriously in the world of rock, punk, and grunge was highlighted when she released live cover sessions before the debut of her album. Within these sessions, she successfully conveyed her talent by hitting every note with immaculate execution. As compared to her past, she was now singing from the pit of her stomach- belting out the most righteous hardcore sounding performance. Not only were her vocals on point, but so were her entertainment skills on stage. Genuinely, she performed like a rockstar- which is hard to come by in modern-day performances. She covered songs such as The Cranberries’ “Zombie” and Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters”, which alluded to what many thought was going to be an album full of raw vocals, real instruments and headbanging. Instead, Cyrus released an over-processed, pop-punk repetitive record with overtones of the old Hannah Montana. 

Others feel differently, such as Sonoma State senior Sophia Emad, “I like Mileys’ album because it’s different from her previous stage of music, and sounds less like a pop album. Also, I think it was really catchy and appealed to everyone instead of just one group of listeners.” 

During her interview with Alexandra Cooper on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, she shared her rock knowledge by mentioning Nirvana leading into her statement “..throughout my career I’ve felt like I’ve been able to introduce my fans to music they may not know..” By this and her covers, we know that Cyrus is well aware of rock’s roots- though, it was not executed in the making of “Plastic Hearts.” 

She was joined on the album with several music legends Joan Jett, Stevie Nicks, and Billy Idol. Her first song released before the rest of the album was “Midnight Sky”, which is a tribute to Stevie Nicks’ “Edge of Seventeen”. This track includes a fast pace beat, an 80’s synth vibe and an empowering message tying to her divorce from her former husband, Liam Hemsworth. After the release of “Midnight Sky”, she included a separate song called “Edge of Midnight” featuring Stevie Nicks. Some critics say that this track is a “tribute” and others call it a “rip-off.” The same inquiries have been made about Cyrus’ “Prisoner” featuring Dua Lipa, as it sounds astonishingly similar to Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical.”

Cyrus seemed to have also dipped into the world of punk with the help of featured artist, Billy Idol. Some people’s unease with this track may stem from hearing Idol’s voice being incredibly auto-tuned for the first time. Their song “Night Crawling” seemed to have motivated a majority of her album art, considering the theme captured 80’s punk with leather outfits, shags, and chains. 

Coming from a day one fan of hers- it’s hard to say that for what it is, Miley Cyrus released a great pop album, but a sub-par rock album. “Plastic Hearts’ may not have been what rock-connoisseurs were hoping for, but many have faith in the future of her rock music career. Maybe gen z just isn’t ready and would deny a purely classified rock album, ultimately damaging Miley Cyrus’ career.