Carly Rae Jepsen Drops Her New ‘Emotion Side B’ Album

Carly Rae Jepsen is releasing the B-sides to her critically-acclaimed release, Emotion. The Canadian pop star celebrated the one-year anniversary of her third album by releasing this special eight-track Emotion Side B on Friday, August 26, according to a Billboard report.

This mini-LP contains more ’80s synth-sounding tracks much like on the previous Emotion release. However, there are also some slower tracks on the album like “Cry” and “Roses.” The one track that has Jepsen’s fans mixed up over is “Store,” in which she literally sings about going to the store.

“I’m just going to the store to the store/You might not see me anymore anymore,” she’s heard singing on the simple but fun track.

Carly Rae Jepsen has been teasing the tracks from her new Emotion Side B album all week long. Earlier on in the week, she took to social media to give her fans previews on some of the tracks. Jepsen also revealed on Instagram that this album almost didn’t happen until she met her fans.

“Emotion Side B almost never was. Well, technically all the songs existed I just didn’t think to share them until we toured. But meeting many of you face to face, getting to share in one of the most joyful touring experiences of my life, all I wanted was to give back more of the feelings you all gave me. So this is for you guys, a B sides album full of some extra tunes we made on the journey to Emotion. I hope you enjoy. And thank you for making the past year so incredible. The memes, the covers, the parties, and the shows.”

Last year, in an interview with Radio.com, Jepsen revealed that she wrote 250 songs for the album, but she cut it down to at least 22 maybes. Then, she revealed that she would cut that list down to 11 tracks, which ended up being 15 tracks. Jepsen wasn’t sure what direction to go in, so she enlisted the help of Jack Antonoff, Tegan and Sara, Ariel Rechtshaid, and Dev Hynes to help her out.

According to an MTV News report, Emotion was “arguably one of the greatest pop albums” of the year 2015, maybe in a long time. Since Jepsen’s album was so critically acclaimed, she decided to release an album of B-sides that didn’t make the original album. Jepsen has proven that she’s a strong songwriter and pop star. So, why isn’t she as popular as her contemporaries Taylor Swift and Meghan Trainor?

The report notes that Jepsen carved out her own map for success in an industry that’s filled with too many pop stars racing for the No. 1 spot. Jepsen probably waited too long (three years, to be exact) after her hit songs “Call Me Maybe” and “Good Time.” Jepsen wanted to make her fans happy by releasing the B-sides for an album that was critically acclaimed but received low sales, notes MTV News. She may have the jams that could warrant her a pop star, but maybe she wants to be a low-key indie singer.

“Maybe her destiny, instead, is to rule the world of mainstream indie: Like Florence Welch or Janelle Monáe, Jepsen may simply be honing a cult following that will eventually lead to more acting opportunities, more festival spots, and more cool collaborations.”

But, Jepsen is still making a name for herself in the pop world. While she’s working on her new album, she’s been collaborating with electronic music producers. Jepsen’s latest collaboration is with PC Music’s Danny L Harle. They released the music video for their new song “SuperNatural,” which first premiered at an event for Red Bull Music Academy’s RBMA Radio L.A. Stream, according to Pitchfork.

In the bizarre new video, Jepsen looks barely recognizable with her platinum blonde wig. Some would say she kind of looks like Swift, who has rocked the look before.

What are your thoughts on Cary Rae Jepsen’s Emotion Side B album? Do you have any favorite tracks? Sound off below.

[Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images]