Melanie Martinez is an alternative pop star with over 14 million fans. Her debut started when she went on The Voice, where she performed “Toxic” by Brittney Spears, among other songs. Every judge but one wanted to help her. There is speculation that the judge was biased due to being in a disagreement with Brittney at the time. Melanie did not win The Voice, but that didn’t stop her from making music and changing millions of people’s lives. Her first songs produced were “Dead To Me” and “Bittersweet Tragedy.” Crybaby was the first major album she created and it was a hit. Songs like “Dollhouse,” “Mrs. Potato Head,” “Mad Hatter,” and “Alphabet Boy” inspired many people when they were released and are still inspiring people today.
Melanie portrays her work through a character named Crybaby. The songs from the Crybaby album may seem lighthearted when just the vocals or melody are listened to but the words hold a much deeper meaning: broken homes, wanting to change everything about yourself to fit in, feeling crazy, feeling used by someone you love, and much more. Each song has a different meaning which are serious issues that people face now. The album had a second life, with the song “Playdate” rising due to a TikTok trend.
The K-12 album is about Crybaby experiencing school from kindergarten all the way to 12th grade. Songs like “Lunchbox Friends” and “Show and Tell” rose to the top due to more TikTok trends. These songs may on the outside seem like they are about school and balancing life but they are also bringing awareness to the music industry and how toxic it can be, like getting your picture taken when you’ve told them no, getting doxxed, and eating disorders. She had even turned the album into a movie/musical that showcases Crybaby and their experiences in the school.
Portals is all about rebirth. After Crybaby dies at the end of the K-12 movie, she enters a portal. After the 4 year break that Melanie normally takes between albums, we see the birth of a new creature, a nymph. This character has pink skin and four eyes. Songs from the Portals album talk again about being a singer and the challenges many singers face and other things as well. “Powder” talks about overdose and drug awareness, “Leeches” talks about feeling used, and “Light Shower” talks about finally feeling loved and finding the right person. This album has received lots of hate because of people not liking the style of music or the creature she portrays. Many say that the nymph is creepy and demonic. The style changed pretty drastically, from being pink and pastel to green and earthy. Along with losing some fans because of this album, she also was receiving backlash from people due to fan behavior towards another artist. Many fans were claiming that songs from the album were about another artist and because of this, the other artist received hate even after Melanie told people that the songs were just a general awareness and not about specific people. She also received hate during the Portals tour because the meet and greets were just pre-recorded videos of her standing next to fans.
Melanie started the tour in Denver, Colorado, and ended in Montreal, Canada. Fans were happy to see the diversity of places she was singing at. The concert consisted of all of Portals’ songs. This was slightly surprising because of the length of the album and songs. During the tour, she expressed how exhausted she was due to constantly traveling and singing. Many people had asked if she was going to be singing the Crybaby songs again because it was the end of an era and she had moved on. In response, Melanie created the Trilogy tour where she will be singing songs from each album. Fans are upset because this will be the end of the entire era as a whole. She will continue making music after Portals but there will most likely be a new character.
The Portals tour is a start for a new character and while many people might not like the character, there are more fans that will support her in everything she does. All artists will change throughout their career and it is up to the fans to either accept it or turn to someone else.
