Kesha burst from her rainbow-coated cocoon in 2017. Her comeback was an important moment for not only pop music but our culture, which is still held hostage by abusers and their conspirators. On Rainbow, the beleaguered pop star reclaimed her identity with vigor, as well as confronted her trauma and redefined her style in the process. We, ever the pop voyeurs, applaud and cheered, as we too took a stand through #MeToo, #TimesUp and #FreeKesha movements.
Now, she seeks to officially cut the shackles from the past with her sax-fused, organ-bent new hymnal called “Raising Hell.” Featuring Big Freedia, the song literally takes the listener to church, and the visual is beautifully-filmed (thanks to director Luke Gilford, known for work with Troye Sivan and Blood Orange) in capturing personal turmoil and the rise into redemption and sexual freedom. “I don’t wanna go to heaven without raising hell,” she snarls her lips in classic Kesha fashion.
“Raising Hell,” co-written with Wrabel, STINT and Sean Douglas, also utilizes glitzy televangelism to filter the deep aching to let loose. A good heart doesn’t mean you have to be completely devoid of some saucy rebellion on occasion. “We can always find the trouble, we don’t need no help,” she sings.
“Raising Hell” anchors Kesha’s new album, High Road, expected January 10, 2010.
Listen below.