Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco – I Said I Love You First (LP Bone White, Alt. Cover)
After a few years focusing on acting and other pursuits, Selena Gomez returned to the studio with producer Benny Blanco to craft her 2025 album I Said I Love You First. Not only was Blanco the producer and co-star, he was also her fiancée, and the album functions on many levels as the story of their relationship -- with a few detours into Gomez's life story as well. As on her best albums, I Said is the most satisfying when she hovers just outside of mainstream tropes and sings songs that have more personality than most modern pop.
It's here where her intimate vocals, which are as always strong but never overpowering, operate most effectively, and Blanco takes pains to help make this the least-produced, least-fussy album she's made yet. Short, snappy pop songs like "Call Me When You Break Up" join slinky Latin dance tracks ("I Can't Get Enough"), sexy club bangers ("Bluest Flame"), and ballads both sweet and laid-back ("Ojos Tristes") and murkily melancholy ("You Said You Were Sorry"). The result is a diverse and entertaining record. It certainly shows that Gomez fits like a glove no matter what genre she tries, especially with Blanco and a team of co-songwriters doing their best to make it seem effortless.
Songs like "Don't Wanna Cry," an aching, emotionally bare midtempo track that's sparse and intense, and "Cowboy," a trappy ballad that feels like it was recorded at 5 a.m. under blue lights, show off Gomez's range and growing artistry. Nowhere is that more apparent than on "Younger and Hotter Than Me," one of the songs that detour away from relationship biz and loop back to show biz as she looks back on her early acting career and comes to grip with growing a little older. Her unadorned vocals drip with sarcasm and pain, and she fully inhabits the sonic landscape that Blanco meticulously crafts for her.
That she can scale those kinds of dramatic heights while also sounding at home on a hushed, acoustic ballad like "Don't Take It Personally" or on a goofy pop song like "Sunset Blvd" is impressive and helps make this her most fully realized album yet and a highlight in a career dotted with really good pop records.
Label: Smg Music, Llc. – 00602475754473
Country: Europe
Media Condition: Mint (M)
Sleeve Condition: Mint (M)
Colour checked