by: Alana Brown-Davis
Miley Cyrus continues to dazzle fans with a visual album to accompany her new project. Cyrus’s “Something Beautiful” is released in theaters on June 12. In “Something Beautiful”, we get to see Cyrus take a creative leap in a 13-track concept album and film that hits theaters Friday. Said to be inspired by British progressive rock band Pink Floyd’s titanic piece “The Wall”, Cyrus explores themes of healing. Fans see her drifting away from the pop sounds that have made up much of her discography.
By releasing snippets from the film and album, Cyrus marketed her visual album quite well. The first trailer for the film was released in March. Throughout the spring, Cyrus released several music videos to promote the album. In the beginning of May, Cyrus collaborated with Spotify for “An Evening with Miley Cyrus”. At this event, there was a VIP film screening and album listening party. Last week, “Something Beautiful” was shown at the Tribeca Festival.
The Release of “Something Beautiful”
Choosing to make a visual component to her project is a remarkable creative choice forcing Cyrus’s fans to study what’s being shown to them. In an era of 15-second Tik Tok bites and short attention spans, using sustainable art in this way is crucial.
In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Cyrus discussed the intimacy that she wanted the film to have. “I wanted to have that experience [bringing community back to music] for my fans, so that’s why I really wanted to have something where you don’t just, like, lay in your bed and say, ‘We’re gonna put that Miley thing on, I’m gonna kind of pay attention.’ I do just want them to walk into that theater and something to change, to go, ‘I’m here now, I’m invested and this is my focus.’”
After gaining some creative input from cinematic icon Harrison Ford, Cyrus found direction for the film. Initially, Cyrus wanted a small concert series. When she showed Ford her outline for the film which contained a lot of nature elements, he emphasized the costs that would go into that. Another factor in this, is a vocal condition Cyrus has called Reinke’s edema. This causes her signature rasp, but also requires her to be cautious with her voice. As an artist who refuses to lip sync, finding other paths of connection with her audience led her to film. Once Cyrus spoke with her team, the ideas for “Something Beautiful” began to flesh out.
“Something Beautiful” is directed by Cyrus, Jacob Bixenman, and Brendan Walter and produced by Cyrus, Panos Cosmatos (Mandy, Beyond The Black Rainbow) and XYZ Films’ Nate Bolotin, Aram Tertzakian and Nick Spicer.