Packed with bare-all balladry, grunge melodies, and darkly funny pop songs, the south Londoner’s new LP is an eclectic sprawl. 9/19/2025 Lola Young Conor Cunningham Though she may have made her mainstream crossover only in the past year, Lola Young has spent the best part of a decade dedicated to discomfort and artistic provocation. In her fiendishly addictive songs, brave candour, ruthless impulses, confrontation and the female perspective are knotted together. She’s a pop extrovert with no real filter or ‘off’ switch. She stares down and struts into uncomfortable places. And, as she previously told Billboard UK: “I choose to give realness and truth. I’ve got a bit of a belly out, I f–cking swear a bunch and I have fun.” Young made her opening gambit in 2019 with the soulful “Woman,” which was accompanied by a video that saw her dance nude in a statement of self-possession. A storming mixtape in the form of 2023’s My Mind Wanders and Sometimes Leaves Completely followed, but it was her 2024 debut full-length project, This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway, that drove its way into the heads and hearts of pop fans across the globe. Its breakout single “Messy,” hit the top of the Official U.K. Singles Chart and No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 at the start of 2025. A scuffed, vivid anthem honed around owning one’s imperfections, its swell from downcast introspection to bile-spitting theatricality made for a career-elevating statement. The song felt telling of the 24-year-old Londoner’s shrewdness as a writer that romance is not life-or-death in her world, but that losing a sense of self might be – a theme that unravels even further on her new LP, I’m Only F–king Myself. In the run-up to the album, the buzz around Young’s name has only got louder and louder. She shone at the VMAs earlier this month, has performed at Glastonbury and Coachella, and topped the nominations for the 2025 Ivor Novello awards, which recognize the best in British and Irish songwriting. She’s moving forward with genuine purpose and intent. As Young boldly strides into a new era, here’s every track from I’m Only F–king Myself ranked. “How Long Will It Take to Walk a Mile” This is the only song here where Young doesn’t appear. Instead, a pitched-up voice opens the record with a lengthy gratitude list: they are thankful for cows, life, art, green grass, clean air, family, and, most importantly, their pal Lola. “This is a bit of a blabber,” they say, before asking how long it would take to walk a mile. Their estimate of 45 minutes may be way off, but they keep talking anyway, making for an endearingly funny voice note. “Ur an Absolute C Word” Where This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway closed out with a poem from Young that reckoned with her sexuality and mental health, her new LP is bookended by two spoken-word sets. While it’s not as immediately impactful as the new album’s punchier numbers, “Ur An Absolute C Word” does provide a sense of closure. “To feel is to be open,” begins a heart-rending soliloquy from one of Young’s friends, which ends in ripples of laughter from the pair. “Why Do I Feel Better When I Hurt You” Young often illuminates details of a doomed, toxic love in sharp detail, but “Why Do I Feel Better When I Hurt You” uses imagery so sweeping as to be ambiguous. She’s exhausted from not just a verbal fight with a partner, she tells us, but from keeping her feelings locked up in her head; this mental strain is played out via lightly electronic layers that burble and sigh like soft waves. “Not Like That Anymore” A proud rebuttal to the viral ‘clean girl’ aesthetic, “Not Like Anymore” sees Young crawl out of layers of self-sabotage, choosing to “quit the snowflake” in search of balance and clarity in her wellbeing and relationships. “I’m f–king myself, but not like that anymore,” she repeatedly exclaims in the final chorus – a funny and self-referential refrain that perfectly encapsulates Young’s smart, gutsy nature. “Walk All Over You” Young’s control of her vocal tone has only continued to mature as she has grown in her career, and on “Walk All Over You,” she skillfully paints feelings of fatigue, apathy and yearning. “You love me for your ego/ And I love you, for you,” she sings in an especially cutting chorus, and the intentionality of her vocal choices deepens the sombre mood. She challenges herself to delve into the intricacies of a love that has evolved past serving either party. “Penny Out of Nothing” If social media discourse is anything to go by, Young has grown accustomed to being told to dim her light for the sake of others. Thankfully, the haters haven’t seemed to have knocked her, and this track — which has shades of The Cure in its sinister bassline — only grants her more power, via a stirring lyrical exploration of overcoming turmoil. Such a fighter’s spirit is endearing, and, to an extent, genuinely galvanizing. “Post Sex Clarity” Waking up next to a person who has started to give you the ick. There are probably countless journal entries and paragraph-long texts written about the simmering anxiety that scenario might evoke. Atop roomy atmospherics that mirror the empty space that Young is wading through here, she sings with real fire and force, her distinct accent and inflections forcing each syllable into a snap. “Can We Ignore It? :(“ Ruminating on obsession and sleepless nights, there’s tension between the brooding intensity of Young’s lyrical concerns and this track’s brightly metallic guitars. She pleads for rest, to think of anything but a past relationship. Sonic unpredictability has long been an enduring strength of Young’s, an attribute that shines vividly as she plays around with pop-punk stylings before building towards a howl. “D£aler” “The biggest smash I’ve heard in years” is how Elton John described “D£aler” when he interviewed Young on his Rocket Hour
