“I’m Your Empress Of” by Empress Of

By Tosin Faseemo

Empress Of, born Lorely Rodriguez, has returned with her third studio album, “I’m Your Empress Of.” The 33-minute album is brief, but full of depth, expressing the conflicting emotions associated with heartbreak.

The album begins with the title track, a twinkly song that echoes with the phrase “I’m your Empress Of.” The song transitions smoothly into “Bit Of Rain,” a fun song with a bouncy beat. 

The tone of the album shifts with “Void,” an understated track about the complicated process of losing feelings for someone after a break-up. Despite the subject matter, the song manages to be more empowering than sad. This is reinforced by some advice given by Rodriguez’s mother in the middle of the song: “You want to make yourself the woman that nobody is gonna mistreat.” 

Fourth on the tracklist is “Love Is a Drug,” a bumping pop tune in which Rodriguez expresses a cynical attitude toward romantic relationships that contradicts her desire for affection. The next two songs, “U Give It Up” and “Should’ve,” feel bare, as though they weren’t completely finished. “Give Me Another Chance” is similar in its minimalistic lyrics, but the result is intoxicating. A combination of a hypnotic beat and pleading vocals make the track feel more like a love spell than a song. 

The end of the album signals another change in tone, combining pessimism with yearning. On “Not The One,” Rodriguez sings sensually to a rebound, “You’re not the one, but it helps.” Finally, the album ends with “Awful,” a somber track that plainly states what a break-up feels like: awful.