Lizzo was originally set to release her third major-label album this summer, titled Love In Real Life. However, that release has either been delayed or possibly scrapped altogether in favor of a new mixtape dropping this Friday. The mixtape is titled 'My Face Hurts From Smiling' and features collaborations with Doja Cat and SZA. This shift most likely stems from the underwhelming performance of the lead single, "Love In Real Life" and second single "Still Bad," which both failed to chart.

 

So my question: Do you think this is a smart strategy? Where the label senses an inevitable flop early on and pivots at the last minute, pushing the artist back into the studio to create a brand new  project marketed as a "mixtape" within the span of weeks instead of just dropping the proper album (that is already finished but will likely bomb).

 

On paper it's maybe a strategic move but it can also be risky, as the release of a new mixtape isn't guaranteed for success and the album could've gotten more traction post-release.

Edited June 24, 20251 yr by KatyPrismSpirit

Sounds good - they know no one wanted that album, so at least she can start rebuilding her fanbase with this random mixtape with 2 hot popstars!

the singles sounded bad and it was gonna flop so yes it was a good idea

And how is it supposed to work? It's going to be a flop anyway, just like all of her albums except "Cuz I Love You" (local album). 

 

She's cushioning the flop by calling it a mixtape 

Her core fan base at her peak were millennial white woman who want to feel edgy by quoting her (I just took a dna test found I'm that ***** etc) those white women got older, married etc and simply moved on. 

No. I saw the announcement and my first thought was "Wasn't she supposed to release an album soon?" 

i think its necessary for her to try this sound with the gp as tho she's done it before blowing up, it's not what she's known for so i'm kind of here for it... wishing her the best

it just shows the difference between artists who are creating a product versus an artist who has an artistic vision they believe in.

 

a true artist stands behind their art, because its an expression of themselves and what they have to say.

 

it just shows she didn't really care about or believe in the songs she was writing. and it came through in her singles tbh, they felt hollow.

 

maybe if she took the time to do some soul searching about this entire thing that has happened to her in the past several years she could create an actual body of work.

I thought she already dropped the album bc I heard her talking about it on The Breakfast Club?

Just now, KKW said:

I thought she already dropped the album bc I heard her talking about it on The Breakfast Club?

she dropped the singles Still Bad and Love In Real Life. the album would follow in the coming months but it didnt happen. 

It makes sense to me

If the mixtape is successful in getting people interested in Lizzo again, it'd essentially act as a soft reset for her momentum. It creates buzz, and then, when the actual album campaign begins there's already a re-engaged or expanded audience paying attention. 

Even if the mixtape flops, it's still a low-risk way to test what's connecting with listeners rn, which will be useful for the label to know

With the way eras are now, albums basically end once the album comes out. So I can kinda see this mixtape working to give the era more life

Edited June 24, 20251 yr by Bhabylon

13 minutes ago, yonsé said:

it just shows the difference between artists who are creating a product versus an artist who has an artistic vision they believe in.

 

a true artist stands behind their art, because its an expression of themselves and what they have to say.

 

it just shows she didn't really care about or believe in the songs she was writing. and it came through in her singles tbh, they felt hollow.

 

maybe if she took the time to do some soul searching about this entire thing that has happened to her in the past several years she could create an actual body of work.

I don't think she's the most visionary artist and authentic and **** but she is also is signed to a label and it's ******* Atlantic Records so I assume it was not her idea at all. 

 

Anyway she seems excited and happy about this project so at least she has some excitement despite getting her album scrapped while being trapped three days in the studio to work on this mixtape. You can tell she doesn't want to flop at all 

I feel this should have came out BEFORE the album singles. She could have released two albums in one year but this feels desperate. 
 

The timing is confusing but let's see what happens.

Good idea—no one wanted the album, no shade.

25 minutes ago, Supernatural94 said:

Her core fan base at her peak were millennial white woman who want to feel edgy by quoting her (I just took a dna test found I'm that ***** etc) those white women got older, married etc and simply moved on. 

This! It's sad but true. The driving force behind her push to stardom is no longer a thing for her. She needs to lean into her weight loss journey and do more to shine a light on that by doing endorsements and etc.

If the music is good, I guess people will tune it in...

I think it's a smart move. Nobody wanted the singles or the album, so there was no point in releasing it. 

 

This gives her an opportunity to change genres and rebrand. Her self-empowerment brand kind of collapsed after all the allegations and backlash surrounding her dancers. 

She needed to build a core (black) fanbase so this makes sense. 
 

Lizzo crossed over to the GP which is gr8 but music isn't that deep for them & they tend to be kinda fickle. Black audiences are super loyal tho.

 

Gays are similar, we ride hard for our girls.  

IMO, she's a singles artist whose longterm success will largely require getting lucky with the right song at the right time, so just pushing out a mixtape while she has a tiktok sound and hoping something resonates makes sense.

 

She's revolutionizing the concept of a buzz album so yes. Soon pop girls will all be doing buzz mixtapes in anticipation of a flop era 

since her singles flopped, I guess she did the right thing.

I didn't listen to neither.

nothing else was going right so why not 

18 minutes ago, Julia Fox said:

I don't think she's the most visionary artist and authentic and **** but she is also is signed to a label and it's ******* Atlantic Records so I assume it was not her idea at all. 

 

Anyway she seems excited and happy about this project so at least she has some excitement despite getting her album scrapped while being trapped three days in the studio to work on this mixtape. You can tell she doesn't want to flop at all 

What mainstream artist does 

 

I don't think any pop star goes into the studio making an album they hope won't make them a ROI 

It's giving Mabel