tate mcrae and what we expect from female pop artists
the star embraces her musical lane on 'so close to what' — but is it enough to solidify her place amongst the pop greats?
If you are at all online, you will probably have heard the term ‘main pop girl’ floating around in discussion threads and Stan Twitter posts. The often-debated members of this exclusive club include Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, and Olivia Rodrigo, to name a few. But quickly rising in the ranks of ‘main pop girl’-dom is Tate McRae, who released her latest album So Close To What last week.
With its use of trappy, staccato drums and a veritable sea of synths, So Close To What crowns McRae as a y2k princess. Some of the catchier hits (see ‘Miss possessive’ and ‘Sports Car’) are heavily reminiscent of the likes of Britney Spears and Nelly Furtado, which give the album a comforting nostalgia. The more upbeat notes of the record will also work to develop McRae’s iconic stage canon — even from the first listen, I could envision how they will be performed on tour, complete with McRae’s signature dance breaks.
It’s worth explaining for my less familiar readers that the soundscape of So Close To What is nowhere near new territory for Tate McRae. This is an album that ultimately sounds like a slightly more polished version of McRae’s 2023 THINK LATER. With So Close To What, she seems to have perfected her brand, solidifying her unique (if not novel) place in pop music.
This, however, leads me to wonder if McRae will aim to change her style in her next few albums. It’s hard to say whether this thought stems from an internalized musical misogyny of sorts — after all, no one asks male pop stars to switch it up — but I can’t help wondering what McRae could do with a different sound. As a fan, I would be perfectly content if she kept dropping 2000s club bangers. But as a critic and a realist, I doubt the pop sphere will take her seriously if she doesn’t explore new sounds.
Despite shining in the snappy and coy areas of the album, McRae’s more vulnerable songs tend to fall a bit flat for me. ‘Greenlight’ and ‘No I’m not in love’ feel like restated versions of each other (with neither really standing out) and the titular metaphor in ‘Revolving door’ is simply uninteresting. But here’s the thing: when I’m craving deep, moving lyrics, Tate McRae is just not the artist that I go to. The beautiful part about pop music right now is that there isn’t a problem with that — that is to say, there shouldn’t be a problem with that.
And here is where I find myself divided. On one hand, I don’t see an issue with McRae’s lyrics coming second to catchy beats and melodies. Everyone wants fun music right now, especially when it comes paired with an incredible stage presence and powerhouse dance breaks.
On the other hand, it’s hard to watch artists like Charli xcx and Sabrina Carpenter — who excel at producing both mindless bangers and intensely vulnerable, moving songs — and not compare their well-roundedness with McRae. There’s a glimmer of truly compelling emotional depth in ‘Purple lace bra,’ which (disregarding its conspicuous sonic similarity to Addison Rae’s ‘Diet Pepsi’) deftly molds a toxic relationship into a metaphor for McRae’s struggles in being sexualized and not taken seriously. Even though it’s one of the most interesting songs on the album thematically, it could have punched harder if it had the kind of lyrical specificity seen with songwriters like Gracie Abrams.
This is not to say that female artists should all write a certain way — that would be incredibly boring and a disservice to the diverse talent in mainstream pop right now. But when I listen to this album, I can’t help but feel at times like McRae hides behind walls of synthesizers to avoid putting her lyrics at the forefront. At the same time, the idea that vulnerable or ‘deep’ lyricism is inherently more valuable than 'empty calorie' pop, so to speak, comes from the misogynistic beliefs that value lyrical authenticity (connoted as masculine) over performance (connoted as feminine). There’s a reason why no one would ever critique Gracie Abrams for not having enough mindless glitter pop amid her acoustic wordiness.
Still, it’s unlikely that Tate McRae will be able to measure up to the ‘main pop girls’ of the music industry right now because of this reason. However, I won’t underestimate the value of having a unique lane, which she cruises down with classic sultry poise in So Close To What. She has a bright career ahead of her.
Now, I don’t think that giving this album some kind of grade would be effective, nor is it why I’m writing this. As far as albums go, it’s pretty good. It’s neither a crowning jewel of pop music nor the best release of 2025 so far, but I enjoy listening to it and I do love some of the songs. It accomplished what it set out to do: add bangers to the club rotation, let her fans in to her personal life, and create more dancing opportunities for tour.
But with that being said, can we call this a successful album? Commercially, sure. But will the polished and perfected version of McRae compensate for her lack of real progression? Will So Close To What be enough for critics and mainstream consumers to call McRae a ‘main pop girl’ or ensure any longevity for her career? It’s harder to say.
Ultimately, when thinking about So Close To What I am forced to think about our expectations for female artists. Is it healthy to constantly demand that they evolve stylistically? Does it push them as artists or does it actually restrict our beliefs about what a female artist ‘should’ be? Similarly, I wonder about the extent to which we should prioritize lyricism over sound in the overall value of a song or album. The double standard for female and male artists in regards to their lyrical expression is undeniable; but realistically, only the artists who excel in every aspect are the ones to rise above when all is said and done.
I believe that McRae’s stage presence is what sets her apart and what will, in the long run, define her stardom. With clips of her dance breaks on tour going increasingly viral, this album cements McRae’s lane as the Britney of Gen Z. The only question remaining is whether she will be able to grow beyond her brand to meet her peers at the top of the music industry food chain.