Camila Cabello released “Liar” on Sept. 4. This is the first solo work from Cabello since her 2018 debut album “Camila,” which featured “Havana,” the song that firmly established her as a rising superstar on the pop scene. 

“Havana” rose to the top of the charts because of its catchiness, and “Liar” will be no different. Although written and performed in different styles, the songs are equally catchy; however, “Liar‘s” merit does not end there. In “Liar,” Cabello features jazz instruments throughout, with the intro alone featuring both trombone and trumpet instrumentals. Similarly, the bridge features an impressive saxophone solo. Whether these instrumentals are courtesy of real musicians, or more likely, a sound machine, is unclear. But either way, this element really adds to the overall value of the song because it opens Cabello’s work up to a whole new world: music that makes you want to get up and dance.

“Liar” explores how being in a relationship can alter your personality. In this case, Cabello examines how it can turn you into a liar. The chorus is about her transformation into a liar, and the verses unfold the various stages in the process. The last verse marks her full transformation into a state in which she no longer believes in herself. She sings, “I don’t believe myself when I say it/So, don’t believe me.”

On Oct. 4, exactly one month after “Liar‘s” release, Cabello dropped “Cry For Me.” “Cry For Me” is another single that picks up exactly where “Liar” left off. 

Cabello closes “Liar” on a note of sadness and self-disdain. She has let her boyfriend manipulate her, and she is mad about it. Over the course of her last song, she was turned into a liar, and now, in “Cry For Me,” she is singing to get revenge.

In “Cry For Me,” Cabello wants to make her ex feel the same pain she felt in “Liar.” She sings “Baby lie for me, lie for me/’Cause you haunt me when I’m dreamin’/And it’s time you know the feeling.”

On Sept. 4, Cabello was a liar. On Oct. 4, Cabello was haunted by her lies. On Nov. 15, Cabello learned to forgive and forget. The “fool me once shame on me, fool me twice shame on you” mindset of her last two singles is forgotten and replaced in her brand new song: “Living Proof.”

Cabello excitedly launches into her chorus on a high note (that’s to say, she is singing in a higher octave than she usually does). She references her last few songs with the lyrics: “Show your demons/and I might show you mine.” Cabello leaves her “demons” (her lying streak) behind and becomes living proof that someone can improve and change their lives.

It is only all too fitting that since “Liar” led directly into “Cry For Me,” “Cry For Me” would lead into “Living Proof.” In contrast to the first two, Cabello sings about love and change in “Living Proof,” ultimately providing a happy final chapter to Cabello’s three-pronged story.

Rating: 9/10

Opinion articles written by staff members represent their personal views. The opinions expressed do not necessarily represent WSPN as a publication.