With beautifully braggadocious lyrics and a sharp delivery, Iggy Azalea celebrates the good, the bad and the ugly of her twenties with her third (and possibly final) album, The End of an Era.
From growing up in Mullumbimby, NSW to relocating to sun-swept Miami, Florida when she was only sixteen, the 31-year-old rapper (born Amethyst Amelia Kelly) has a rags-to-riches story defined by ground-breaking achievements and headline-making controversies.
The past decade saw Azalea’s meteoric rise to the top of the Billboard charts with the 2014 smash hits: Fancy (feat. Charli XCX), Black Widow (feat. Rita Ora) and a feature on Ariana Grande’s Problem.
However, disputes with her label eventually caused the rapper to strike out on her own and become an independent artist.
The End of an Era looks back on all of this across its 14 tracks. When speaking with Billboard, Azalea said that the album can be “split … up into four chapters of … [her] inspirations”.
Sonically, each section draws from pivotal moments of Azalea’s career. It opens with intense electronic songs reminiscent of her early mixtapes 2011’s Ignorant Art and 2012’s TrapGold and EP Glory.
Sirens is an attention-grabbing opener where the rapper reintroduces herself to the music scene.
Between the feel-good lines and the calls to the dance floor, Azalea references her time in the spotlight with a directness that fans haven’t heard from her before.
“Left two ex’s at the bar, no Xanax / Water dump on my old flames, you can have that (Have that),” she spits, recalling her high profile relationships with former NBA star, Nick Young, and rapper, Playboi Carti.
Emo Club Anthem, an instant favourite among fans, is one of Azalea’s most unapologetic and honest songs.
Packaged with an underground EDM bass, the rapper lays herself bare as she describes the pain of being in a relationship and how destructive behaviours helped her cope with it.
“Vicious cycle of psycho / Naked pics on my iPhone / Spreading drugs on the table,” she raps. It’s one of a handful of mid-tempo songs on the album.
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With its mix of up-tempo and mid-tempo tracks, the album sits comfortably under the umbrella of ‘dance music’.
There’s never a moment where moving between the different speeds jars the listener.
It’s a testament to the skills and talent of the album’s producers: AJ Ruined My Record (Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Juice WRLD), Jay Scalez (Bobby Sessions), J. White Did It (Cardi B) amongst others.
While not everybody worked on the same songs, the soundscapes offer a seamless transition between each track that allows The End of an Era to stand as a cohesive body of work.
There are three standout tracks on the album: Iam The Stripclub, Woke Up (Diamonds) and Is That Right (feat. BIA).
These songs are spread across two chapters of Azalea’s career: the pop era (2014’s The New Classic) and the final years of Azalea’s time with her former label, Island Records (2018’s EP Survive the Summer).
Azalea has described the songs of these two chapters as having “big open hooks and more polished song construction”. Meanwhile, the songs of the second chapter focus more heavily on rapping and driving drum beats.
The three aforementioned tracks are prime examples of Azalea’s development as a rapper. Her delivery on these songs is smooth as honey and her lyricism is wonderfully cocky. Bia’s inclusion on Is That Right was a genius move.
The LA-based rapper holds her own alongside the track’s owner, her silky flow a delicious contrast to Azalea’s more aggressive tone.
All in all, the up-tempo dance beats and snappy, brassy adornments of this part of the album will have anybody imagining they’re strutting down a runway, flipping their hair and flaunting their designer outfits.
“I sold fifty million records on you bitch-ass hoes, I’m well off,” Azalea declares on XXXTRA (a track reminiscent of 2019’s In My Defense). It serves as a final send-off before the album dips into the later years of the past decade.
At this stage, Azalea is an independent artist, free to do what she wants artistically with the maturity of somebody in their late twenties who has done it all. The songs—while still beat-driven—are slower, more mellow.
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Azalea reflects on her party-girl days in Miami on Sex on the Beach (feat. Sophia Scott) before admitting that she’s ready to move on with the album’s closer, Day 3 in Miami (End of an Era) (feat. Ellise).
Both tracks capture that feeling that comes at the end of a long night out drinking, dancing and living life. The production is darker and slightly heady, but no less catchy. The sweet vocals of Nashville-based, singer-songwriter Sophia Scott and LA-based, pop singer, Ellise are like the lights at the end of the tunnel that Azalea has spent a decade looking for.
Both singers are the perfect additions to their respective songs. They’re like the high-end jewellery that Azalea flaunts throughout her verses, sparkling additions that elevate something from good to great.
While the release of the album marks the beginning of Azalea’s hiatus from music (apart from her upcoming tour with Latin hip hop king, Pitbull), the Change Your Life hitmaker doesn’t want us to be sad. She wants us to party.
The End of an Era is a club-ready farewell from one of hip hop’s most intriguing and visually creative figures. The young rapper who fought tooth and nail to be heard, is leaving behind a musical legacy that demands you to get on your feet, take a shot and dance the night away.
Listen to The End of an Era below:
