Listen to Kesha’s playful first single as an independent artist: ‘JOYRIDE’

nme.com:

Kesha has shared the energetic ‘Joy Ride’ – her first release as an independent artist since parting ways with Dr. Luke.The song was released today, which is Independence Day in the US (July 4). ‘Joy Ride’ is a departure from the more experimental nature of ‘Gag Order’ – her fifth album that veered closer to arthouse.

However, Kesha’s latest single is a callback to her earlier synth-pop sound found on her hits ‘Tik ToK’ and ‘We R Who We R’.‘JOYRIDE’ is a feisty anthem where Kesha embraces their inner “bitch“, and unapologetically demands a thrilling night with sass and attitude.

The Zhone-produced song is laced with quotable lyrics such as “You want kids? Well I am mother” and “Get in, loser, for the joyride” – the last being a reference to the 2004 cult classic Mean Girls.Last weekend, the ‘TiK ToK’ singer posted a brief video to Instagram posing in different red ensembles.

At first, she modelled on a car and rode in a convertible while showing a middle finger to the camera, before she donned a red cowboy hat and held up a handwritten cardboard sign emblazoned with “Joy Ride”.The pop star also shared the cover art for the single, which features her sitting on the hood of a car in red mesh leggings and glossy boots.,A post shared by Kesha (@kesha)A post shared by Kesha (@kesha)The single will be her first release after departing from RCA and Kemosabe Records last December.The news came after Kesha and Dr Luke – the founder of Kemosabe Records – settled their defamation lawsuit a month before the case was set to go to trial in June 2023.