Kesha’s First Independent Solo Album, Period, Celebrates Freedom in a Stifling Summer

With its bawdy chutzpah, “Tik Tok” — the August 2007 breakout single from Kesha — won me over pretty much immediately. I became a fan of the musician’s intentional auto-tuned style, a refreshing millennial pop turn-of-phrase that made Animal, her 2010 album, so addictive.

I’ve also grown to love the vulnerable side of Kesha. I appreciate musician’s ability to mine songs from her traumatic, misogynistic experiences with certain producers. And I’m still shocked that the emotional piano-pop ballad “Praying” didn’t snag a Grammy in 2018.  

So I was thrilled when I heard that Kesha, finally unshackled from her former record label, planned to release her first solo album as an independent artist on Independence Day, July 4. Aptly called (Period.), Kesha’s latest body of work is a wild, fun, and unexpected joyride that borrows from the artist’s OG 2008 style, while flexing newfound freedoms. “Boy Crazy” evokes Peaches’ “Two Guys For Every Girl,” celebrating desire unapologetically, while the peppy “Joyride” and “Yipee-Ki-Yay” offer fresh material for club DJ’s in big cities. The techno-boosted “Attention” — featuring fellow pop musicians and upcoming tour mates Slayyyter and Rose Gray — keeps the party going strong.

My favorite single from the album, so far, is “THE ONE” — perhaps because it’s the most vulnerable. The way Kesha sings, “you had a diamond you had a one one one of a kind ..” before the music breaks into a searing chorus feels cinematic. I can see myself in the song as the main character, pushing for my own triumph amid heartache.

““I’m in this interesting part of my life where I’m healing from something that I went through in front of the whole world,” Kesha told Vogue.

Yet it’s not lost on me or others that the timing of this record is a bit ironic. The summer of 2025 feels more stifling and less optimistic than the Brat Summer of 2024, when the rise of badass, independent musicians like Charli XCX and Chappell Roan — coupled with the U.S. presidential candidacy of Kamala Harris — made women like me feel like anything was possible. Today, true freedom feels less tenable, as attacks against women and LGBTQ individuals have become more relentless.

But still, the effort to create free-spirited music that overflows with gratitude and joy is a noble one. While I still miss the summer of “Red Wine Supernova,” I appreciate Kesha’s efforts at pop escapism and can’t wait to see her kill it on tour this summer.

[SEE RELATED: Chappell Roan’s Album is the Summer Escape I Didn’t Know I Needed]