She never wants to dance anymore. That’s what Pink promises herself and her fans in the pre-single “Never Not Gonna Dance Again” for her album “Trustfall”. Now the complete work appears. On it, however, the singer not only shows herself as a party beast, she also presents her melancholic side.
If only life were like a Whitney Houston song! That’s what Pink wants in a song from her ninth album “Trustfall”. The rousing and very danceable feel-good single “Never Not Gonna Dance Again” is a plea for not missing out on the beautiful things in life. “I’m not someone who regrets things,” says the US singer in a good mood in an interview. “But I think too much about everything.”
It may seem that Pink hasn’t missed a thing in her career of more than 20 years, but in her personal life things are sometimes different. It’s the supposedly normal things that don’t always go as hoped for the pop superstar. On “Trustfall” Pink, whose real name is Alicia Moore, talks about the ups and downs of her life offstage – and as usual gives very private and intimate insights.
A trip to the beach with her children, where she was followed by paparazzi, inspired her to write the song “Never Not Gonna Dance Again”. “I didn’t want them to take a picture of me in my bathing suit because I felt unsafe,” says the 43-year-old. “So I didn’t play with my kids. And that annoyed me so much. I was annoyed with myself for wasting the time and we missed out on a nice memory together because of something so stupid. So I decided: like this what will never happen again.”
On their new album, atmospheric pop songs alternate with melancholic ballads. A conscious decision. “The order on this album was very important to me,” stresses Pink. A division into a “dance party” and a depressing second half was out of the question, because: “For me, life is up and down. And I wanted the album to be a complete emotional journey.”
With the piano ballad “When I Get There” the beginning is already very melancholic. “Like: Hi, I’m Alicia. Sit down, I have something to tell you and here are some tissues.” The song is about the hope of seeing loved ones again who are no longer with us.
“We’ve all experienced loss and grief, and that’s hard,” says the singer, who lost her father to cancer a year and a half ago – and shortly afterwards her children’s nanny. “My father died, and then about eight months later one of my dearest friends. And I ask myself: Where are you? Where did you go? Where did your soul go? I miss you!” Does she believe in life after death? “Yes I think so.”
In contrast, there is dynamic pop like the encouraging title song with fat synthesizers and EDM beats. Incidentally, “trust fall” is the English word for deliberately letting yourself fall in the assumption that others will catch you – as is known from team building measures, for example.
Let it go, dare to trust – that’s how she describes her current phase of life, according to her own statement. “I have the feeling that as a person you need a lot of trust at the moment,” says Pink. “In relationships, as parents, as a child, when you drop your child off at school, when you vote, even when you have your own opinion – or a vagina. Everything needs trust.”
The surprise of the album is “Runaway”, a rousing, modern synth pop song. Pink follows the 1980s-based retro wave trend with which The Weeknd (“Blinding Lights”) and the up-and-coming US band The Midnight (“Days Of Thunder”) have recently had great success. “The ’80s were so much fun, it’s as simple as that,” she says. “Everything was so serious in the world right now. I just wanted to have some fun and just dance.”
On the other hand, in “Hate Me” and “Lost Cause” she sings – sometimes with very clear words – about the bitter end of a relationship. Where does the mother of two – who has been in a relationship with her children’s father, ex-motorcycle pro Carey Hart – for over 20 years get her inspiration? “Oh no, these songs are about Carey,” she clarifies with a laugh. “I’ve been married for 17 years now. Sometimes I want to kick this guy! But I can’t imagine what it must be like to be married to me.”
Appropriately, the new LP ends with “Just Say I’m Sorry”, a duet with Chris Stapleton, which is a kind of forgiving conclusion to the “emotional journey” she describes. Other guests on the album include The Lumineers and Swedish duo First Aid Kit.
More than 20 years after her debut “Can’t Take Me Home”, Pink shows again with “Trustfall” why she is one of the biggest stars in pop music. Radio-ready pop hits and poignant ballads are their specialty. The three-time Grammy winner will definitely not run out of material for authentic texts in the future either.
In the summer she will sing her new songs and previous hits live again. As part of her “Summer Carnival” tour, Pink gives around 20 concerts in European stadiums and open-air squares. In Germany, performances in Hanover, Cologne, Berlin and Munich are planned for June and July. What their fans can expect: “Pure chaos,” says Pink. “It’s going to be great fun. I’m really looking forward to it.”