SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Paris Hilton has a new album out. It's her first album in nearly two decades. And music critic Rachel Brodsky says it's a pop album that really showcases Hilton's growth as a musician. It's called "Infinite Icon."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CHASIN'")
PARIS HILTON: (Singing) 'Cause I'm done chasing your love. Done, done chasing your love. Done, done chasing your love. Done, done - I'm giving up 'cause I'm done chasing your love.
DETROW: That's the song "Chasin'," featuring Meghan Trainor. On this album, Brodsky says Hilton is more surefooted than ever. She spoke about the album with Paris Hilton recently and shared a few of her favorite songs.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CHASIN'")
HILTON: (Singing) Wasn't I good to you? Don't I deserve the truth? I'm just saying. What are you so afraid of?
RACHEL BRODSKY: When I first heard "Infinite Icon," I was struck by just how much thematic ground it covered. It was clearly inspired, I think, by Paris' time as a DJ. She's been DJing professionally for years, and her interest in dance and pop music is immediately evident.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CHASIN'")
HILTON: (Singing) I know what I deserve and what I want. So if you hesitate, you ain't the one. I'm looking for affection, give me love. Your little sweet talk ain't enough.
BRODSKY: Paris, in terms of her intentions with "Infinite Icon," really wanted to show the journey that she has been on. And by that I mean, she in recent years has, I think, done a lot more hyper personal projects, like coming out and talking about her being diagnosed with adult ADHD and how that explains a lot of what she - I don't know - like quirks, I guess, to her personality that she didn't realize were part of that diagnosis. So I think that she wanted to show a new level of self-understanding.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ADHD")
HILTON: (Singing) Live with the pain, live with my scars. I'm so tired. I wish I could sleep. I'm ADHD. I'm so tired. But this is all mine. This is on me. Now I'm on fire.
BRODSKY: The lyricism within "ADHD" is both triumphant but also extremely vulnerable. And I told her this personally. I would have loved to hear a pop song about ADHD that might have made me feel more, I guess, that I wasn't an other within, like, the rest of my classmates as a child, and I think that was her intention in writing this song.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ADHD")
HILTON: (Singing) Now look at me, I'm the best I can be. I was so down, thought I'd never be free. My superpower was right inside, see? It was ADHD.
BRODSKY: We definitely bonded over growing up feeling a little bit out of step with just the rest of our peers, how there's a lot more understanding and nuance and discussion about ADHD and neurodiversity as a whole today and how we wish that that had been available earlier in our lives.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "INFINITY")
HILTON: (Singing) Your love came down like heaven on Earth. You stopped the world when you put me first. I finally get what I deserve. It's you and me to infinity.
BRODSKY: When Paris spoke about "Infinity," she really talked about meeting her now-husband. And this song, it could sound like a straightforward love song, but I think it does express the euphoria of finding someone who really wants to understand you and love you with no hesitation.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "INFINITY")
HILTON: (Singing) You're my man. I'm your moon. You came falling from the blue galaxies above. Now you're in my arms, I'm not letting you go 'cause...
BRODSKY: I was a huge fan of just how when the beat drops on "Infinity," there's this kind of strong synth line and just this thrumming beat.
(SOUNDBITE OF PARIS HILTON SONG, "INFINITY")
BRODSKY: I was kind of instantly transported to places I've only heard about and never been, like a club in Ibiza or a club in Las Vegas. You know, I - there's a transportive euphoria that "Infinity" gets across right away.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IF THE EARTH IS SPINNING")
HILTON: (Singing) Lightning strike the night you left. I don't think you meant the last thing you said behind your cigarette.
BRODSKY: I've realized that "If The Earth Is Spinning," featuring Sia, is actually my favorite song on "Infinite Icon," and there are a lot of bangers. First off, the chorus sounds very Sia-esque (ph). It has that kind of big, "Chandelier"-type, room-filling chorus.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IF THE EARTH IS SPINNING")
HILTON: (Singing) I got diamonds in my eyes. Yeah, I know that I'll survive. If the Earth is spinning, got to dance with it, got to dance with it, oh.
BRODSKY: The reason I like it is because it's slightly darker. It's a little bit more minor key, a bit mid-tempo. The buildup has this kind of moody '80s synth style. It reminded me of the French DJ Kavinsky, which I never expected to reference in a discussion of a Paris Hilton album, but there it is. And then it switches to this propulsive pop chorus that is bound to have fans singing along. It's very anthemic.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IF THE EARTH IS SPINNING")
HILTON: (Singing) I got diamonds in my eyes. Yeah, I know that I'll survive. If the Earth is spinning, got to dance with it, got to dance with it, oh.
DETROW: That was music critic Rachel Brodsky. Paris Hilton's new album, "Infinite Icon," is out now. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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