Given the longevity of her prolific career, it’s easy to forget that popstar-cum-media personality Ricki-Lee got her start within the Australian Idol space and that she didn’t win; Casey Donovan would ultimately be crowned the winner of said season.
In the 20 years (!!!) since the commanding singer won us all over during her tenure on the show (her flawless rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Have Nothing” solidified her legitimacy as a pop powerhouse), Ricki-Lee has successfully navigated a career as both a chart staple (“Can’t Touch It“, anyone?) and a warming, relatable media personality, with her presence on Nova’s winning radio team (“Ricki-Lee, Tim & Joel”) elevated by her lack of vanity and effortless relatability.
But with that voice and a keen pop sensibility, it’s only fitting that, as much as she’s suited to radio gigs and television hosting (oh, did we not mention Australia’s Got Talent and the revamped Australian Idol are on her resume too?), her music comes first. And, quite fittingly, not only is she reclaiming the dance-floor ready, euphoric pop space she dominated with her previous albums from a sound point-of-view, but personally she’s expressing ownership, with her latest venture fully funded by the popstar herself and released through her own label.
Proving to be more than just a power anthem lyrically, On My Own, as both the album title and lead single, speaks to the singer’s resilience and determination in navigating an industry that so often submits to a fickle temperament; “It’s me against the world, but it’s all I’ve ever known. It’s just a state of mind, but I learn how to survive” opens the mid-tempo arrangement that, production wise, eases the listener into the explosion of joyous pop that the majority of the record adheres to.
Bookended by the album’s more insightful, vulnerable moments – closing track “What Do You Want From Me?” asserts open lyrics (“I’m naked, I give it all and you take it, I give you my heart and you break it, so what do you want from me?”) over a similarly controlled tempo – On My Own predominantly aims for a feel-good, glitter-on-the-floor, dare I say, queer-aimed state of mind that rarely lets up; only the single cut “Ghost” comes close to further letting us in on the singer’s emotional state, but the absolute ear-worm building of the song’s chorus often clouds its lyrical seriousness.
Owning her wheelhouse and taking advantage of both her penchant for melodic lyricism and that of album collaborators DNA (the Sydney producers who have such hits as “Wings” by Delta Goodrem, “In My Blood” by The Veronicas, and “What You’ve Done To Me” by Samantha Jade under their belt), On My Own is an effortless soar of sonic superbness. “Magic”, with its bassline and guitar strums, feels like a companion to album cuts for Kylie Minogue’s Disco or Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia; the funk-lite “More Than Love” blends an 80s synth-inspired guitar riff with a 2000s-approved pop chorus; and “I Was Made For Loving You” stops short of being a total cover of Kiss’s rock/disco hybrid, instead interpolating the lyrics and melody for a largely enraptured number that seems destined for extensive dancefloor coverage.
An album booming with positivity (“Real Love”), self-empowerment (“Talkin'”, which comes completes with Will-Smith-Oscar-slap-inspired lyrics) and shameless abandon (“Dance Like Nobody’s Watching”, which may take the album’s spot for catchiest post-chorus breakdown), On My Own, despite sticking to a formula, deserves to be celebrated, for not only being a cohesive album that defies the notion that pop is a “dirty word”, but for what it represents for the tenacious singer, savvy businesswoman, and accessible personality behind it. Ricki-Lee may have forged ahead on her own, but the joy she provides listeners will hopefully be enough for her to know she has plenty of followers along for the journey.
FOUR STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
On My Own will be available from March 8th, 2024.
