Album cover for Sheezus by Lily Allen.
The opening title track of Lily Allen's comeback album is almost a summation of the rest of the tracks in one hit.
She admits feeling unsure about her return to the world of pop, having been on something of a musical hiatus since 2010 - she's scared, but also ready
to roll with the punches, after all, it's not her first time in the ring.
And then she comes out swinging with a chorus that's a simultaneous shout-out and challenge to the women she sees as her fellow divas - Rihanna, Katy Perry, Beyonce, Lorde, Gaga. She wants to be Sheezus, so they better be bringing their best.
It's clever, there's no doubt. Allen has always been able to see the paradoxes of the world she inhabits, and has a sharp tongue to swipe at the falsity of it all. That's when she's at her best - critiquing tabloids on Insincerely Yours, satirising online haters on URL Badman, dismissing assumptions made about her privileged upbringing on Silver Spoon.
Her attack of sexism on Hard Out Here doesn't come off quite so well - there's nothing wrong with the sentiment, it just sounds like she's being ironic, or at best, a little paint-by-numbers, when it seems more likely that it's an issue she cares about.
