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Mother Jones illustration; Getty; Motomami SL\/Zuma<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The staff of\u00a0<\/em>Mother Jones\u00a0is,\u00a0once again<\/a>, rounding up the heroes and monsters of\u00a0the past year<\/a>. This is a non-exhaustive and totally subjective list, giving our reporters a chance to write about something that brought joy, discontent, or curiosity. Happy holidays.<\/em><\/p>\n Whether it\u2019s<\/span> AI-generated music artists debuting on the Billboard charts<\/a>, music labels courting<\/a> TikTok virality, Grammy-nominated artists using AI to help write lyrics<\/a>, or streaming services making it increasingly difficult to listen to full albums<\/a>, watching the music industry slowly deteriorate has made me feel pessimistic about its future.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n So in November, when Rosal\u00eda dropped her new song \u201cBerghain\u201d\u2014a lush, operatic pop single sung in German, English, and Spanish and accompanied by a full symphony orchestra and choir\u2014my interest was piqued. I became really invested watching an interview between the Spanish pop star and Zane Lowe<\/a> about her fourth studio album, Lux<\/em>.<\/a> Rosal\u00eda told Lowe that the album was an excuse to do what she was craving most at the time: reading and studying about \u201cspirituality and broadening my horizons of what spirituality is.\u201d As she continued to speak with Lowe, it became clear just how much research went into making this album. And since Lux<\/em>\u2019s debut on Nov. 7, I haven\u2019t been able to stop thinking about the intricacies of her work.<\/p>\n Separated into four \u201cmovements,\u201d like a classical symphony, Lux<\/em> explores religion, femininity, celebrity, desire, forgiveness, heartbreak, and more over the course of 15 dynamic tracks of classically inflected pop. Throughout the project, she delivers a beautiful, at times haunting, vocal performance that paints a vivid picture even for listeners who don\u2019t understand all 13 languages she sings in (among them: Spanish, Catalan, English, Ukrainian, and Arabic). With the help of the London Symphony Orchestra and Catalan choirs, along with a host of other performers including Bjork and Yves Tumor, Rosal\u00eda blends flamenco, folk, and classical traditions with her distinct electronic production, making classical music more accessible to a general audience.<\/p>\n Lux<\/em> also has a cultural and historical specificity that extends its reach globally. In her lyrics, Rosal\u00eda blends her experiences with those of female saints and religious figures from around the world, such as Teresa de Jes\u00fas and Sun Bu\u2019er. \u201cI lost my tongue in Paris, \/ my time in LA \/ my heels in Milan, \/ my smile in the UK, \/ But my heart has never been mine \/ I always give it away,\u201d Rosal\u00eda sings on \u201cReliquia.\u201d While these lyrics could be simple metaphors for Rosal\u00eda\u2019s vulnerability in love and fame, she said they\u2019re also inspired by Saint Rose of Lima, whose relics were \u201cscattered around the world.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n With each song, the album builds layer upon layer for listeners to engage with. Rosal\u00eda has described the album as maximalist; on it, she holds nothing back for her audience, doesn\u2019t simplify, and instead invites them to explore the work on their own terms. Along with its critical acclaim, Lux<\/em> debuted at No. 1 across five Billboard charts<\/a>: Top Latin Albums, Top Latin Pop Albums, Classical Albums, Classical Crossover, and World Albums. The album also earned Rosal\u00eda her first top 10 on the Billboard 200, debuting at No. 4.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rosal\u00eda\u2019s Lux<\/em> shows that the public is hungry for something more complex from its pop music. And while we probably won\u2019t see people rushing to get music theory degrees, start researching the lives of saints, or even see more pop artists begin singing opera, I\u2019ve found that for me, the album has been a catalyst to learn about so many different pieces of music and art history. Over Thanksgiving, it started a conversation with classically trained friends about Rosal\u00eda\u2019s year-long translation process and the 12th-century mystic, poet, and composer Hildegard von Bingen. It was also how I discovered a 1976 Patti Smith interview,<\/a> sampled on the song \u201cLa Yugular,\u201d in which Smith speaks about her desire to push boundaries as an artist: \u201cIt\u2019s just like going through one door. One door isn\u2019t enough.\u00a0 A million doors aren\u2019t enough. You have to go beyond.\u201d It has also led me to explore opportunities locally to listen to orchestras and watch opera (currently, I\u2019m considering whether to purchase tickets for an upcoming performance of the Philadelphia Orchestra, or to watch the Alabama Symphony Orchestra when I head home to see my family). Whichever show I attend, I\u2019m glad that Lux <\/em>exists to spark conversations and give me at least a little hope for the future of the music industry.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n