Melanie Martinez’s second studio album “K-12,” released Sept. 6, is a continuation of her previous album “Cry Baby” from 2015. Her music has been described by critics as art pop, electropop and alternative pop.
Martinez said her songs are mostly based on personal experiences. In May 2019, Martinez released a trailer of her “K-12” album and its accompanying film. While the film was only available in certain theaters worldwide, Martinez uploaded it to YouTube.
Martinez describes her music as “very dark” and “honest” with occasional hip-hop beats and creepy toy noises like music boxes in the audio of some of her songs. Martinez introduced her alter ego and main character of her discography, Cry Baby, in her debut album of the same name as a fairy–tale version of herself.
In “K-12”, the character Cry Baby starts school while the previous album tells the story of Cry Baby’s vulnerable and broken life. Each song on the second album’s track list is titled with a childhood trauma or experience, while the actual lyrics transmit to listeners adulthood problems.
With Cruella de Vil from “101 Dalmatians” as her inspiration, Martinez dyed half of her hair blonde, which is what she mostly became known for: along with her doll–inspired outfits in music videos and performances.
In 2012, Martinez auditioned for the American television show “The Voice” and was a member of the show’s “Team Adam.” She was eliminated via audience vote in the fifth week which was when she began her own musical projects. In March 2017, Martinez expressed her dream of producing a film to illustrate the story of each song in her second album.
The lyrics in K-12 describe Cry Baby’s school experience in Sleepaway School. Martinez’s album highlights important issues, like eating disorders such as bulimia, as is the case of the song “Orange Juice.” In the song’s chorus, “You turn oranges to orange juice” references the way victims of bulimia induce themselves to vomit, typically by sticking a finger down their throat. In the second album’s film, Cry Baby’s friends start a food fight to get to know one of the “Plastics,” Fleur, because she has the same superpowers as them. Kelly, the leader of The Plastics, and the rest of the clique, force Fleur to “turn oranges into orange juice” in the restroom after the food fight.
Cry Baby then tells Fleur “Want to know something I learned about our bodies? They’re temporary and don’t matter.”
Carolina Alvarez may be reached at [email protected].
