Miley Cyrus’ ninth album, Something Beautiful, is set to arrive May 30, before this year’s summer music season officially kicks off.
Yet, her final advance single from the album, “More to Lose,” carries the emotional weight of a ballad better set in the icy throes of winter nights than sunburnt summer days.
“More to Lose” isn’t perfect. It’s a rough, messy, sharp track willing to bear its imperfections proudly. The track hints at an album designed in the image of its artist, who has followed a similar trajectory of stumbles and mishaps.
Music history has been kind to pop stars with a voice like Cyrus when they weave their way into genre-bending creations. Her ballads like “More to Lose” showcase what makes Cyrus such a captivating artist, but it also unearths a wounded soul still exploring her heartache, longing, and brokenness.
The song’s central reflection and realization hinges on being better off once a relationship ends. Cyrus sings, “And you say it/But I wish it wasn’t true/I knew someday that one would have to choose/I just thought we had more to lose.”
The refrain builds as Cyrus repeats the line throughout the song, solidifying her decision and its permanence (“I throw away my pride”) but also leaving the door open for exploring the what ifs that can plague broken relationships (“But I wish it wasn’t true”).
Cyrus hints that she isn’t fully done with this destructive relationship. She sings, “Stumbled down the same road again/Say I’m leaving but I’m only playing liar.”
There are also subtle but troubling references to ecstasy as she says, “I stay when the ecstasy is far away/And I pray that it’s coming ‘round again.”
Cyrus invokes God’s name a couple times with a casual-but-dismissive tone as she describes her frustration with the relationship’s conclusion.
The psychedelic experience of a relationship gone wrong is heightened in the music video, which features Cyrus swirling through revealing costume changes. Each of her outfits mirrors different stages of the relationship’s life cycle. She starts in a wedding dress and ends in mock funeral attire. These decisions accentuate the heavy themes of loss and love within the track.
As she’s listed inspirations for the upcoming album, it’s clear Cyrus is drawing from deep and dark emotional spaces. Sometimes, musical journeys into the depths of pain can reveal beauty residing in the most broken of places. While it remains to be seen if her forthcoming album will discover this sort of beauty, “More to Lose” portrays a Cyrus bound by tragedy instead of resting in redemption.
Jackson Greer is a High School English Teacher in the suburbs of Texas. He lives in Coppell, Texas with his wife, Clara. They love debating whether or not to get another cat and reading poetry together. Also, he is a former employee of Focus on the Family’s Parenting Department.
