Trending:
- Kesha is opening up about her upcoming sixth album
- The Grammy-nominated pop star just announced her upcoming single, “Yippee-Ki-Yay” with T-Pain
- She tells PEOPLE about what fans can expect from the album and goes deep on her love of Lady Gaga’s Mayhem
For the first time, Kesha is fully in charge of her career.
Fresh off the announcement of her new single “Yippee-Ki-Yay” with T-Pain, out March 27, the Grammy-nominated pop star, 38, is teasing her upcoming sixth album — and tells PEOPLE the project marks a new era where nobody else is calling the shots.
Following more than a decade of being signed to a major label, plus a decade-long legal battle that’s since been settled, Kesha is now an independent artist and the CEO of Kesha Records, which runs in partnership with Crush Music and ADA.
“Yippee-Ki-Yay” comes after her recent singles “Joyride” and “Delusional,” while the forthcoming full-length body of work will be her first since 2023’s critically acclaimed Gag Order.
Shortly after partnering with Feeld for the dating app’s Fighting Loneliness in Our Digital World panel at South by Southwest in Austin, Kesha sat down with PEOPLE to tease her upcoming album and go deep on her fandom over Lady Gaga’s Mayhem.
PEOPLE: It’s been eight months since you released “Joyride” as the first single on Kesha Records, of which you’re the CEO. How has it felt being the captain of your ship?
KESHA: God, it feels f—ing incredible. I’m so fiercely protective of my freedom now. There’s been a lot of healing in watching “Joyride” explode, and making “Holiday Road” in a couple of hours and watching that explode around the holidays. For a long time, I was convinced it must have been everybody else around me, which is why I was successful, and the past year has proven that it f—ing has not been.
I have been taking the power back into my own hands with my team. It’s f—ing amazing, really empowering, and I’m really inspired to help empower other artists too, because artists hold the power. We have the magic.
PEOPLE: You’ve put out two songs so far, “Joyride” and “Delusional,” which are quite different from one another. How do these two songs serve as a preview of what’s to come on your album?
KESHA: This record really is the first time that I have no one’s claws in my back. It’s an album showcasing all the different sides of me, from psychosis sex demon to really vulnerable, confessional songs. I think the throughline, although the songs are all showcasing different sides of me, is empowered and free, liberated phonically and liberated creatively. I’m liberated sexually, and I’m just really f—ing devouring life right now, and it feels so good to be able to do that as a free woman, for the first time in my life. It really feels like my first record.
PEOPLE: Over the last year or so, as you have been in this era of freedom, I’ve really loved seeing you collaborate and perform with other women like Charli xcx and Reneé Rapp. What’s it been like to be able to support one another as women in the pop music game?
KESHA: Oh my God. When I first came out, it was an interesting time in music where there were a lot of comparisons, and it felt like you had to pick a side. It felt like there were a lot more people trying to make women compete with one another. What’s really beautiful about the past year is not only can I collaborate with these f—ing incredible women because I want to, but it also has felt like we’re all in this together. These are my peers. These are people I listen to when I’m getting ready to go out. These are people I admire. These are people that inspire me. It’s just been really incredible to also see these women supporting me in my process of rebuilding.
PEOPLE: I’ve been loving seeing your online fandom over Lady Gaga’s Mayhem. How have you been enjoying the album, and what are your favorite songs?
KESHA: I’m such a Little Monster. I’ve realized that my Animals look to me in a way that is how I look at Lady Gaga. I was counting down until the record came out. I’m obsessed with “Abracadabra.” I also love “Blade of Grass.” It’s so good. “How Bad Do U Want Me” is f—ing amazing. “The Beast,” sexy. It’s literally the last thing I was just listening to before this phone call. “Killah” is amazing too, and her performance on SNL was incredible. She’s kind of like a one-in-a-million artist, and I’m lucky to be able to see this in real time.
PEOPLE: I love how big of a fan you are considering you both came up in the same class of pop stars.
KESHA: Her first song came out not that long before mine, but I’ve always looked up to her. She’s such an incredible performer, vocalist and writer. She’s really inspiring. It’s crazy because at the beginning of my career, people would compare us, and I was like, “Please don’t compare me to my girl,” aghast, “There is no comparison.” People like to compare artists to each other, but what they don’t understand is that the only competition in art is with oneself.
I think it’s really important for artists to just know we are obsessed with each other. I consume her art and Charli’s art and Reneé’s art. They do so much for me.
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