Those out of the pop culture loop may be surprised to see the name Addison Rae in our music section, given her rise to fame as an influencer on the social media platform TikTok. Her presence dominated the online world during the Covid-19 pandemic, amassing over 5.2 billion likes and 88 million followers on the social media platform in her time as a star.
Addison Rae always stood out amongst the crowd of dancers and models that were her peers on the platform, becoming known for her unique personality and outlandish fashion choices. Her musical debut came swiftly in 2021 with ‘Obsessed’, a track which, while successful, Rae has since stated she didn’t truly ‘connect’ with.
The birth of the pop star she is today came about in 2022, when a number of leaked demos from Rae’s conceptional debut album surfaced online. Fans drew to the tracks like a moth to a flame, with masses of people praising their catchy, pure pop vibe and stellar lyrics. Tracks like ‘I Got It Bad’ and her rendition of scrapped Lady Gaga track ‘Nothing On (But The Radio)’ received unprecedented praise, with the leaks catching the attention of none other than Charli xcx.
Addison Rae recently revealed in an interview with The New York Times that Charli’s request to add a verse to ‘2 die 4’ was the turning point for her career. No longer did she consider the tracks done and dusted, but, rather, she decided to publish them officially in her debut EP AR in 2023 – a move that went on to be wholly career-defining.
The EP propelled Rae into the music world, where she has remained ever since. She linked up again with Charli on the remix of Brat‘s lead single ‘Von Dutch’, which had a viral moment on Rae’s once-defining platform, TikTok.
It was after the release of the ‘Von Dutch’ remix that fans began to wonder: what was next? Rae’s debut EP could have been seen as out of necessity, with Rae doing little to reveal as to whether or not she’d be sticking in the music sphere. Speculation came to an end last June, when the star released a 15-second teaser of her musical comeback: her new single ‘Aquamarine’.
Fast-forward to August, and the world was introduced to the Addison lead single, ‘Diet Pepsi’. The track proved to be a slow-burn hit, amassing over 400 million streams on Spotify alone to date. It was also Addison Rae’s first chart success, charting as a UK Top 10 and appearing on the Billboard Hot 100 at #54. In culture, the track made waves for being what many called ‘a perfect pop song’, praised for its euphoria melodies and ear-infesting chorus.
Since then, Rae has released four further singles in anticipation of the album’s release. Each one had it’s own huge moment, with ‘Headphones On’ and ‘Fame is a Gun’ also being able to break the charts – something not easily accomplished even by the biggest names in the music industry. Each droplet soothed her fanbase’s roaring appetite for the album, but did little to tame it. After months of waiting, Addison was published via Columbia Records on 6 June 2025.
The opening track, ‘New York’, does more than set the pace for the album; it sets the tone of our perception of Addison Rae. From the outset, it’s obvious that we’re being spoken to by a person so wildly in touch with their creativity that inspiration flows right through them; Addison Rae lives life to the full. She manages to bottle up every aspect of driving through the streets of NYC late at night and morph it into the sound waves of the track; it’s sheer euphoria.
The track blends swimmingly into ‘Diet Pepsi’, which soothes the listener after the boundless energy provided by the prior tune. Still, almost a year after release, the track sounds fresh, providing the same relief as a cold can of soda would on a hot summer’s day. We’re propelled right back into Rae’s mind with following track, ‘Money is Everything’, in which the star breaks down the beauty of her life and addresses fan concerns that her new image is in any way manufactured or fabricated.
“And the girl I used to be is still the girl inside of me.”
I think it’s easy to realise that this is always who Rae was destined to be once you realise that her initial appearance and presence was, in fact, the manufactured version of herself; I see her as someone who saw an opportunity to get what she wanted, and took it.
The album melts away into the night through following track ‘Aquamarine’ and interlude ‘Lost & Found’, right into what I consider to be the album highlight: ‘High Fashion’. In my short time on this planet, no opening lyric has ever hit me quite as hard as “Have you ever dreamt of being seen?”. Rae puts into song emotions that are, for most of us, simply too hard to even fathom. I find myself resonating with every element of the track, from favouring bettering my image to party drugs, to uncontrollably spiralling into a lover. It’s the depth in the line “Wanting something more than just a hit” that really brings it home; it encapsulates that eternal longing for a place or person to belong to that isn’t short-lived. In life, we’re always chasing our next high – but what if it was a given rather than a desire? I daren’t even begin to discuss how uniquely stellar the production is here, for fear of not being able to stop.
Following tracks ‘Summer Forever’ and ‘In The Rain’ are not exactly stand out tracks, but they’re still perfect tens. They do exactly what they’re meant to do; keep you floating along this river of pure joy that Addison Rae has created through the sound of her album. They keep the high going, with abrasive lyrics like “Don’t wanna be sad, God, it feels like a waste of time” keeping you alert and tuned into what she’s saying.
The remaining tracks, for me, blend into one large piece in the sense that they flowed as effortlessly as a stream. Wrapping up with ‘Headphones On’, Rae leaves us desperate for another hit. At just 38 minutes long, Addison feels as though it could go on for hours, and I’d have been delighted to have seen this be a 20-track long project. I’ve no doubt it’s not beyond her to make a project of this length, and I’m desperately eager to hear any tracks remaining in the vault.
For me, this album is for the lovers without a lover. Perhaps, even, for the lovers whose lover is themself. Rae showcases a level of personal fulfilment and self-introspection that is simply astounding for a 24-year-old, let alone someone once known for solely their dance routines on social media. To provide her audience with digestible emotions at this level at her age is something I can only really parallel to the likes of Madonna with Bedtime Stories, Fiona Apple with Tidal, and Lorde with Pure Heroine. They are all highly respected albums for their ability to condense the complexity of human emotion down into a 3-minute audio file, as is showcased by Rae on this debut.
Promotional material for this project dubbed it as the ‘first and last album’ by Addison Rae – I can only hope this isn’t true. Addison could be the start of a very lengthy and profound career, and the making of a true modern day pop star.
Listen to the album here
You can catch Addison Rae live when The Addison Tour stops at Manchester Academy in August.
