The Wicked star has a new album that will pull on your heartstrings
BY VEE WILSON, IMAGE BY ALBUM COVER
“I want my music to feed people, to fill people,” Cynthia Erivo said about her latest album I Forgive You, and she certainly served. Fans who know Erivo for her Broadway belting in Wicked might be surprised by the softness of her latest album, which was released on Friday (6 June), but I urge you to give it a real chance and listen the whole way through.
While the gentleness of the album’s layered, heavenly vocals is starkly different from the force behind Defying Gravity, its strength lies in Erivo’s powerful storytelling. Here, she doesn’t play a character but instead lays her authentic self out before us with real openness and vulnerability. Through poetic lyrics and dreamy sounds, Erivo takes us on a journey through love, loss, forgiveness, and self-acceptance; a story that nourishes the soul like a home-cooked meal that warms from the inside and provides a deep solace.
The album begins with the instrumental introduction Why (Interlude), where Erivo’s voice is the core instrument. The track is clearly inspired by the gospel sound with a chorus of angelic backup vocals, setting the tone for a moving and introspective track list. The album continues to move through the different emotions that come with finding and losing love: having to come to terms with the past, give forgiveness, and ultimately choose your own happiness.
The songs You First and Save Me From You stand out with lyrics that deliver emotional blows that are piercing and unforgettable. Hearing the line “I was a stranger that I didn’t love anymore. You were a stranger that I didn’t know anymore” had my eyes instantly swelling with tears. These two tracks explore the ache of feeling overlooked in love, and the simmering anger that surfaces when you realise that you stayed through pain you didn’t deserve.
She Said and Play The Woman beautifully encapsulate queer longing and sensuality, bringing a soft, yearning intimacy to the album. Push And Pull, my personal favourite, picks up the pace for a moment and delves into the feelings of fear around falling in love again after being hurt.
Towards the end, I Choose Love marks another tone shift, where bright and airy sounds create an atmosphere of warmth as Erivo turns her focus to healing and moving forward. The final track, Grace, closes the album with a bittersweet reflection, capturing how moments with those we loved stay with us even after we say goodbye.
Erivo’s lyrics often feel painfully relatable, so much so that at times I felt as though she had pulled thoughts directly from my mind. It’s an album that deserves a full listen through; not one song alone can do it justice.
Love, hurt, and healing are universal experiences, and if you give the album the time it deserves, there’s a catharsis to be felt from allowing yourself to go through this emotional journey alongside Erivo. By the time you hear those final tender words, “I love you”, you won’t just be emotionally devastated but transformed and at peace.
You can listen to I Forgive You now.
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