5 Comeback Albums That Revived Careers & 5 That ENDED Them

MsMojo

From triumphant returns to disappointing comebacks, we're exploring the most notable album releases after extended breaks from music. Some artists reinvented themselves spectacularly, while others probably should have stayed away. Which musical comeback resonated with you the most?

Transcript

00:00welcome to ms mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the album's

00:10artists released after a few years away and let's just say some were more successful than others

00:16number five terrible this is me now jennifer lopez timing wasn't kind to jlo's 2024 comeback

00:39her first album in a decade flopped with critics and listeners released alongside a documentary

00:45and visual album this is me now was supposed to show a more mature wizened version of jenny from

00:52the block i know what they say about me about hopeless romantics that we're weak

01:03and i'm not weak reviews were quick to point out that the album didn't necessarily reflect that

01:08maturity the song seemed stuck between the dance anthem she's known for and something a bit more

01:14high-minded and poetic it didn't help that the inspiration for the album her marriage to ben

01:19affleck was over less than six months after its release i don't think he's very comfortable with

01:25me doing all of this but he loves me he knows i'm an artist and he's gonna support me in every way he

01:30can number five great rainbow kesha i knew i had to change and learn to take care of and love myself

01:38rainbow was the beginning not only was this a major departure from her party girl persona but kesha's

01:482017 comeback album had a meta narrative that was evident in its heavy and poignant themes this was

01:55her first record outside the purview of dr luke the producer whom she was suing for years of abuse

02:02rainbow is a battle cry of empowerment and freedom she dabbles in several different genres and sounds

02:14without it ever coming across as messy or unfocused from its incredible lead single praying to its

02:21eclectic styles kesha completely reinvented herself and we were so happy to have her back

02:33number four terrible britney jean britney spears things weren't looking good for this album from the

02:39beginning oh i hate myself and i feel crazy such a classic tale britney jean was given all the rollout

02:48of a soundcloud mixtape this new era was meant to be a more personal one for britney spears you know

02:54it can be really difficult to juggle all of these things at the same time finishing a record we need

02:59to go to london and we have to juggle you know all of this with her being a mom which is you know a

03:03full-time job within itself despite its name britney spears's 2013 album her second comeback in five years

03:10was deemed generic and completely outdated the producers are more visible than the artist herself

03:18with themes about the loneliness of fame this wasn't exactly new territory for spears and most

03:28of what it was trying to do had already been done on her track lucky years before number four great

03:35circus britney spears it's safe to say the mid-2000s were not kind to britney spears naysayers and

03:42rubberneckers were certain her career was over before circus blessed our ears

03:55yes it was classic britney and that was more than enough but with up-tempo dance hits like womanizer

04:01circus and the hilariously controversial if you see hey me she stomped back into the mainstream with a

04:07vengeance the best thing about it is that after all the terrible things she'd endured spears's music

04:21had a tongue-in-cheek humor about it all its commentary and self-parody dipped in an electronic beat heavy

04:28dance pop coating

04:39number three terrible in my defense iggy azalea although the australian rapper was dogged by negative

04:46criticism and accusations of cultural appropriation iggy azalea had one of the biggest hits of 2014

04:58there was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide when fancy came out but her star faded and she wouldn't

05:04release another album until 2019. in my defense was released independently and a label is not the only

05:11thing it's missing despite being full of lyrics that suggests she's developed a hard edge few were

05:25buying it critics immediately pointed out that the songs didn't feel authentic to azalea's voice as an

05:30artist i got my coins but still gonna look for him to pay it news broke the net i hate to be the one

05:36to say number three great american idiot green day

05:45in 2004 punk rock had a lot to rebel against born out of this uncertainty and resentment american idiot is

05:53green day's magnum opus don't want to be an american idiot

06:02despite being in the game for more than 15 years the band still found a way to give an authentically

06:08forceful voice to youthful disillusionment and anti-establishment sentiment overtly political and

06:15dripping with ironic anger the album tells a larger allegorical story about the united states

06:22corporatism and the spiritual damage done by war

06:34rambunctious and explosive at some points and mournful at others it's a well-balanced meal of music and

06:42defiant spirit number two terrible 143 katy perry the pop star turned american idol judge's new era

06:50started with a thud and just got worse from there open your eyes just look around and you'll discover

07:02lead single woman's world inspired little more than confusion and vitriol unfortunately most

07:08reviewers didn't find anything else to like on 143

07:21the phrase car crash was even used in one review apart from the low quality perry's decision to work

07:27with dr luke even after multiple allegations against him didn't make anyone want to see the best in it

07:33the truth is i wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis

07:40and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that one of the writers one of the producers in

07:45the end the album just feels like a retread of ideas the artist already covered and the world seems to

07:51have moved on from number two great the emancipation of mimi mariah carey

08:05when her first starring role in a film turned out to be anything but glittering mariah carey was

08:10essentially putting her career on pause while she licked her wounds she came back with an album that

08:16shattered records and reintroduced the elusive chanteuse to her public the emancipation of mimi

08:22is hit after hit marrying her pop and r b sound with dance and hip-hop it's an album that perfectly

08:34captures that mid-2000s moment emancipation showcases her iconic whistle notes and her underrated lyrics

08:42topping lists of the year's best releases and even made rolling stone's 500 greatest albums list in 2020

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09:08your phone make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications number one terrible hard to

09:16swallow vanilla ice few people have ever seen as many accusations of fakery and inauthenticity in rap

09:23music like vanilla ice as sudden as the stardom hit vanilla ice's fall was quicker and harder he was

09:29accused of lying about his background claiming he grew up in the miami ghetto when he's actually raised in

09:34the dallas suburbs as a result the ice ice baby rapper tried to reinvent himself in the late 90s with

09:40hard to swallow he titled more towards the rap metal hybrid genre that was quickly dominating the charts

09:46his angrier more hardcore sound just reveals his weakness as a performer

09:53tightly ice's takedowns of the critics who doubted him was unsurprisingly met with even more skepticism

10:05and hostility by music critics this time around with a title like hard to swallow the jokes write

10:11themselves

10:20number one great private dancer tina turner

10:31in the aftermath of her divorce from the abusive ike turner the proud mary singer was relegated to the

10:37status of a novelty act then she was signed by capital records and the second half of her legendary

10:43career took off

10:54private dancer is wall-to-wall bangers including the seductive title song the second us single what's

11:01love got to do with it instantly became her signature song

11:14taking her distinctive rasp from rhythm and blues to an 80s rock sound the album was the starting gun

11:21for one of the greatest comeback stories in popular music what's your favorite pop music comeback let us

11:27know in the comments

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