When Rosalía announced her album *Lux* last month, she described it as the “emotional arc of feminine mystique, transformation, and transcendence,” hinting at heady themes and high-minded production. The Spanish star more than delivered on that promise.
*Lux* is out now, showcasing operatic inspirations, collaborations with the London Symphony Orchestra, and the careful training Rosalía perfected through years of work. Rolling Stone lauded *Lux* as an instant classic, calling it “a truly timeless work of art” that “no other pop star could have made.”
It’s also a deeply personal album. Already, the lyrics in 14 languages have turned fans into forensic analysts as they try to decipher the meaning in each line. The star alludes to intimate moments in her life: She taps música mexicana’s Yahritza from Yahritza y Su Esencia for an unforgiving breakup song titled “La Perla,” and also enlists Yves Tumor and Björk for the left-of-center single “Berghain,” just to name a few features.
The music feels like an intense, experimental, dramatic journey — best played in the dark, as Rosalía has suggested.
Here are six of our takeaways from Rosalía’s stunning project.
### She embraces her classical training
Rosalía put her classical music training on full display in *Lux*. She is a trained conservatory musician who famously studied vocal flamenco performance at the Catalonia College of Music (ESMUC) in Barcelona, a prestigious program that typically accepts only one student per year.
Her mastery is evident across the LP, from tapping the London Symphony Orchestra to nodding to Vivaldi and Mozart. Rosalía extended her vocal prowess by learning more about opera — weeks before *Lux* was released, she was spotted reading the musical score from the 1900 Puccini opera *Tosca*. This proved to be an Easter egg of sorts; “I wanted to make a song that was like my version of what an aria could be,” she told *Billboard* about the track “Mio Cristo.”
### She expands her linguistic horizons
In an interview for *The New York Times’* Popcast, Rosalía revealed she sang in 14 languages on the album. Already fluent in Spanish and Catalan, she familiarized herself with 12 other languages, including English, Latin, Italian, Ukrainian, Japanese, Arabic, Sicilian, Mandarin, Hebrew, Portuguese, and French.
“It’s a lot of trying to understand how other languages work,” she said regarding the arduous writing and recording process. Rosalía turned to both Google Translate and professional translators to help with phonetics and pronunciation, but even so, songs took several takes to get right.
She clarified that this linguistic challenge was “very much human” and did not involve AI. That much is clear when listening to *Lux*, where the singer seamlessly transitions through each language like a pro.
### She savages her ex
Rosalía eviscerates a narcissistic ex on “La Perla,” featuring música mexicana singer Yahritza. The strings swell as she targets a former lover she calls “a local disappointment,” “a national heartbreaker,” and “an emotional terrorist.”
She sings about someone who “spends money he has and doesn’t have” and who lacks understanding of “loyalty and faithfulness.” The chorus goes, “He’s a pearl, no one trusts him / He’s a pearl, one to be very careful with.”
Many fans speculate the song is about her ex-fiancé Rauw Alejandro, but whether it is or not doesn’t diminish its impact. What stands out is how Rosalía finds revenge through the stunning arrangement.
### She revives an unreleased, Pharrell-produced song
For years, fans begged Rosalía to release “De Madrugá,” a Pharrell-produced track recorded during her *El Mal Querer* sessions. It didn’t see the light of day back then — until *Lux*.
This time, Rosalía tweaks the original leaked lyrics, even slipping in a line in Ukrainian that translates to “I am not looking for revenge.” She dials back the overt religious imagery from the earlier version and sings in one verse:
> “The chains weigh me down / from looking back so much / there’s no weapon, no Glock or Beretta / that can fire and bring you back.”
The new rendition also folds in lush strings, tying it to the album’s symphonic approach.
### The physical version of the album offers a different experience
While it’s common for artists to add bonus tracks to physical releases, Rosalía chose to add three songs to the vinyl and CD versions of *Lux*. Uniquely, these tracks are spread throughout the album.
On “Focu ‘Ranni,” a breakup song from the third movement, she sings in Sicilian: “I’ll never be your half, never your property / I’ll be mine, and of my freedom.”
The closing track from the album’s third movement, “Jeanne,” is an emotional French-Spanish ballad about self-destruction. Rosalía sings in Mandarin and later in Hebrew about being a robot girlfriend:
> “I dress up for God / not for you or anyone / I only dress up for my God,”
she croons, blending vulnerability and spiritual resolve.
### She has thoughts about her wedding
[Content on Rosalía’s thoughts about her wedding could be added here if available.]
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Rosalía’s *Lux* stands as a testament to her growth as an artist and her relentless pursuit of new creative territories. Whether through classical influences, multilingual storytelling, or powerful personal narratives, this album cements her place as one of pop music’s most visionary talents.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/rosalia-lux-meaning-takeaways-1235461405/
