Before releasing “Bass Persuades Miley Cyrus adopted the mononym “Miley.” Miley is no stranger to changing her image, but unfortunately, ditching “Cyrus” is the most memorable aspect of this era.

In 2023, Miley released the smash hit “Flowers,” reviving her career as a mainstay in pop music. The song debuted at No. 1 and won Miley two Grammy awards in 2024. Just when Miley seemed to be at the top of her game, she drastically switched up her style for 2025’s “Something Beautiful.” Sacrificing commercial success for the sake of art, “Something Beautiful” contained longer songs filled with live instruments. While the album prioritized style over substance and was not as critically acclaimed as intended, it was different from anything Miley has done before. This is where “Bass Persuades” fails. Miley’s latest record gives us no new insights into the popstar and sounds like a rushed companion album to “Something Beautiful.” It is immediately apparent when an artist who relies heavily on changing their image to keep interest fails to evolve.

The album’s lead single, “Bass Persuades” is a confusing choice. The song suggests Miley is making her foray into dance music. The fast paced production and catchy melodies make for an enjoyable dance pop track. Miley even asks repeatedly in the bridge, “Don’t you want to dance?”

  The remainder of the album, however, has almost nothing to do with dancing. The tracklist is filled with generic love songs that leave listeners questioning the purpose of creating this album. An example of this is “Let’s Get Married.:” The slow production along with the painfully on the nose lyrics leave much to be desired. “Let’s go get married tonight…I’m having visions of white” she sings. These bland statements giving no meaningful insight into Miley or her relationship are heard in the tracks “Orbit” and “Snow” as well. 

“REDLIGHTS” is a clear album highlight. On “REDLIGHTS,” Miley ponders her fear of death, but concludes that because of the safety she feels in her relationship, she has no reason to worry. “I only follow direction from the map across your hand,” she sings. The sentiment is simple, but paired with the soaring melodies and swelling instruments, the song easily becomes the most evocative on the album. 

One of Miley’s defining characteristics is that she is effortlessly cool. Her promotion cycles for her last few records have mainly consisted of sleek photoshoots and glamorous visuals. On “Bass Persuades”, Miley has gone a step too far. Her lack of involvement in the promotion of the album, as well as her inability to speak in depth about her work, as seen in her recent interview with Zane Lowe, have only further isolated listeners from an album that is already hard to approach. 

The static portrayal of Miley’s character and the lack of creative risks taken on “Bass Persuades” make it evident that Miley has lost touch with what parts of her music resonate the most.