POP/ROCK
Lizzo, "Special" (Atlantic)
Lizzo's pop stardom has relied only partially on pop hits. Her success also has to do with the funny, feel-good empowerment vibes she dispenses on social media and in her Emmy-nominated Prime Video reality series, "Watch Out for the Big Grrrls." Like Cardi B, Lizzo, 34, is more than anything an excellent hang.
So it's something of a pleasant surprise to discover that for "Special," the long-awaited follow-up to her 2019 major-label debut, "Cuz I Love You," Lizzo buckled down and made a bunch of tight pop bangers — and did it without sanding down the edges of her funky, freewheeling charisma.
With a dozen tracks in just more than 35 minutes, "Special" moves fast. Emotionally, Lizzo remains a sturdy source of uplift: In "If You Love Me" and "2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)," she's reminding herself that she's worthy of tenderness and devotion, while "Birthday Girl" and the title track offer reassurance to anyone brought low by the pandemic, an unfeeling partner or a crappy job.
What's different about "Special" is how sharp the arrangements are, be it the glistening Pointer Sisters homage of "2 Be Loved"; "Everybody's Gay," a throbbing club track with echoes of Michael Jackson's "Thriller"; or the swaggy soul-rock of "Break Up Twice," which interpolates Lauryn Hill's "Doo-Wop (That Thing)."
"Naked," an R&B slow jam, is probably Lizzo's most beautiful vocal performance here, with just enough grit in the verses to set up the go-for-it diva moments in the chorus. But Lizzo's special sauce as a singer is the conversational quality she brings to a song like "I Love You Bitch," in which she lays out a partner's many winning attributes, including willingness to loan her a hoodie.
"Bless your heart, it's too small," she adds with flawless comic timing — a throwaway line for a less endearing pop star, perhaps, but a typically brilliant bit of self-portraiture for Lizzo.
