Beautiful Trauma
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'' Beautiful Trauma'' is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
. It was released on October 13, 2017, by
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. Following '' The Truth About Love'', Pink took a career hiatus to focus on her personal life and become reinspired. ''Beautiful Trauma'' developed over a three-year period starting in 2015. The singer collaborated with a variety of producers, enlisting help from collaborators such as
Greg Kurstin Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
,
Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com
known profess ...
,
Jack Antonoff Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
, and Shellback. Pink and her manager, Roger Davies, served as the album's
executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
s. Primarily a pop record, it also incorporates influences from
EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...
and
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...
music. The lyrical content reflects primarily on themes of love, heartbreak, and the duality of life, as well as expressing societal and global issues. ''Beautiful Trauma'' received mixed reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
, many of whom praised its overall production and Pink's vocals. However, some thought it was too calculated and formulaic, questioning its originality. The album debuted at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 408,000
album-equivalent unit The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, is a measurement unit in music industry to define the consumption of music that equals the purchase of one album copy. This consumption includes streaming and song downloads in addition to traditi ...
s becoming Pink's highest first-week sales to date. It was later certified
platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) for sales of 1,000,000 certified units. The album also reached the summit in over 10 other countries including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, and top 10 positions in major music markets. According to the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...
(IFPI), it was among the best-selling albums globally in 2017 and 2018, and has sold over 3,000,000 copies worldwide. "
What About Us What About Us may refer to: * ''What About Us'' (Livin Out Loud album), or the title song * ''What About Us?'' (Ruth-Ann Boyle album), or the title song * "What About Us?" (Brandy song), 2002 * "What About Us" (Jodeci song), 1994 * "What About ...
" was released on August 10, 2017, as the
lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...
from ''Beautiful Trauma''. It was a commercial success, topping the national charts of eight countries and peaking within the top 10 in 12 others, while reaching number 13 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The second
single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
, the title track, was moderately successful and attained top 40 positions on the charts of over 10 countries, while " Whatever You Want" and "
Secrets Secrecy is the practice of hiding information from certain individuals or groups who do not have the "need to know", perhaps while sharing it with other individuals. That which is kept hidden is known as the secret. Secrecy is often controvers ...
" had limited releases in June and August 2018, respectively. The album was promoted by the
Beautiful Trauma World Tour The Beautiful Trauma World Tour was the seventh concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate ...
which ran from March 2018 to November 2019 and grossed over $390,000,000, becoming one of the highest-grossing tours of all time. ''Beautiful Trauma'' received a
Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
nomination for
Best Pop Vocal Album The Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality vocal pop music albums. Awards in several ...
at the 61st awards ceremony, while "What About Us" was nominated for
Best Pop Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guides, the Best Pop So ...
at the
60th Grammy Awards The 60th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 28, 2018. The CBS network broadcast the show live from Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show was moved to January to avoid coinciding with the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongch ...
.


Background

In September 2012, Pink released her sixth studio album '' The Truth About Love''. The
electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...
and
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
-influenced pop album received critical acclaim and became an international commercial success, having sold approximately 7,000,000 copies worldwide. The album's associated world tour ran from February 2013 to January 2014. In March 2014, it was reported that Pink had signed a new multi-album record deal with
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. In October 2014, she released a collaborative album titled '' rose ave.'', with Canadian singer-songwriter Dallas Green, under the name
You+Me In Modern English, ''you'' is the second-person pronoun. It is grammatically plural, and was historically used only for the dative case, but in most modern dialects is used for all cases and numbers. History ''You'' comes from the Proto- ...
. Pink subsequently took a hiatus from her career. However, she released some songs during this period, including " Today's the Day", used as a
theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...
for the 13th season of ''
The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...
'', and " Just like Fire" featured on the soundtrack of the 2016 film ''
Alice Through the Looking Glass ''Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There'' (also known as ''Alice Through the Looking-Glass'' or simply ''Through the Looking-Glass'') is a novel published on 27 December 1871 (though indicated as 1872) by Lewis Carroll and the ...
''. In April 2016, Pink confirmed that she was going through the writing process for her upcoming album via a post on her
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
account, prompting media speculation about a potential Pink release during the second half of that year. The album's creation and release were ultimately pushed back to 2017 after Pink gave birth to her second child, a son named Jameson Moon Hart, on December 26, 2016. The singer announced in July 2017 that she was filming a
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for an upcoming single. Pink later shared a recording from the set of the video on her
social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...
page, captioned: "Video #new #fyeah #itsallhappening".


Writing and inspiration

The development process for ''Beautiful Trauma'' took place over three years, the longest that Pink has ever worked on an album. Early writing sessions for the album were unsuccessful; Pink recalled that she spent a year writing slow and sad songs. The singer added, "for a while, I didn't have anything to say, except for dumb sad stuff". However, Pink considered her career hiatus beneficial, citing it as helping her to become reinspired and "find ervoice again". During the hiatus, she concentrated on her family and living "a normal life", which influenced her music. In an interview with ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'', Pink said that ''Beautiful Trauma'' reflects her life at that time, and her focus was "to be as honest as I could". She drew inspiration for her songwriting from several events, including a
miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion and pregnancy loss, is the death of an embryo or fetus before it is able to survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks of gestation is defined by ESHRE as biochemical lo ...
, the
2016 United States presidential election The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
and her dad being diagnosed with cancer. Pink collaborated with a handful of producers and songwriters for ''Beautiful Trauma'' enlisting the assistance of longtime collaborators, such as
Billy Mann William H. Mann (born William Isaiah Erlichman; December 20, 1968) is a Grammy-nominated American songwriter, record producer and founder of independent music publishing company Green & Bloom/Topline, as well as chairman of management firm Man ...
,
Greg Kurstin Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
,
Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com
known profess ...
, and Shellback, and new project partners like
Johnny McDaid John McDaid (born 24 July 1976) is a singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Northern Ireland. He is a member of the band Snow Patrol and has written songs with other artists including Ed Sheeran, P!nk, and Robbie Williams. Early ...
,
Julia Michaels Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio and Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Julia'' had been in use throughout Late Antiquity (e.g ...
, and
Jack Antonoff Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
. 50 songs were composed over the course of the album's development, including "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken". Initially composed for the 2015 historical period drama film ''
Suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...
'', the song was inspired by the early 20th-century movement of the same name. "You Get My Love" was written and produced by Pink and Tobias Jesso Jr., at the Earthstar Creation Center in
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400  ...
. The track was recorded in 2016, while Pink was pregnant, an experience she deemed as "very sober". Pink described the track as "the best vocal performance I've ever done in my life", and credited American singer
Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, ...
as the major influence behind her vocal interpretation. In 2016, Pink co-wrote "I Am Here" with Billy Mann and Christian Medice in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. The following year, Pink contacted Mann in July after she had decided to record the song with a local
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
choir. The pair traveled to
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
and booked a recording session at Houser Audio, with a 30-piece choir. Mann and Bill Jolly arranged the voices; Jolly also conducted the choir. "
Revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." Pr ...
" was written by Pink, Max Martin, and Shellback. After she wrote rap verses, Pink felt that the song was suitable for
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
. Eventually, she sent him an
e-mail Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" meant ...
, confessing her love and admiration for the rapper, and asking for a collaboration. While he was in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Eminem responded positively to her request. Four days later, he sent back an e-mail to Pink with his recorded verse. Speaking of Eminem, she commented: "I think he's a lyrical genius, I think he's one of the best that ever did it."


Music and lyrical interpretation


Overview

''Beautiful Trauma'' is primarily a pop record that incorporates elements of
EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...
and
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...
music. Lyrically, the album has an emotional theme, addressing insecurities and imperfect relationships, as well as the singer's concerns about societal and global issues. Josh Hurst of ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
'' characterized ''Beautiful Trauma'' as a pop album "about bent-and-broken people", while ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' staff wrote that most of the songs analyze "married life, motherhood and the state of the world". Pink explained that the album marks a change in her vocal style. As a result of her pregnancy, her voice became clearer. Most critics noted that ''Beautiful Trauma'' includes predominantly
ballads A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
with "dramatic" choruses; Pink's manager Roger Davies called it "just a continuation of the previous records".


Songs analysis

The opening and titular track, "
Beautiful Trauma '' Beautiful Trauma'' is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Pink (singer), Pink. It was released on October 13, 2017, by RCA Records. Following ''The Truth About Love (Pink album), The Truth About Love'', Pink took a career ...
", is a
power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...
and
pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...
song produced by Jack Antonoff. Its composition consists of "hammered" piano chords backed by
synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...
s and an
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...
, while the lyrics delve into a long-term troubled relationship and compare it to
drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use of ...
. Described by Pink as a "funny record", "Revenge" is a "bad-romance duet" with Eminem. Alternating between rap and sung sections, the track is centered on the subjects of betrayal, cheating, and unfaithfulness. " Whatever You Want", the third song, is a "confessional" pop rock track produced by Max Martin and Shellback and inspired by the difficulties Pink faced in her relationship with husband
Carey Hart Carey Jason Phillip Hart (born July 17, 1975) is an American off-road truck racer, former professional freestyle motocross competitor, and former motorcycle racer. He is known for being the first motorcyclist to perform a back flip on ...
. Both Jamie Otsa from ''
Drowned in Sound ''Drowned in Sound'', sometimes abbreviated to ''DiS'', is a UK-based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway. Founded by editor Sean Adams, the site features reviews, news, interviews, and discussion forums. History ''D ...
'' and Evan Sawdey of ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
'' noted similarities between the track and
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
's 1995 song, "
High and Dry "High and Dry" and "Planet Telex" are songs by the English rock band Radiohead. They were released as a double-A side single from their second studio album, '' The Bends'' (1995), on 5 March 1995. "High and Dry" was recorded as a demo durin ...
", referring to "more than a few chord changes". The
lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...
from ''Beautiful Trauma'', "
What About Us What About Us may refer to: * ''What About Us'' (Livin Out Loud album), or the title song * ''What About Us?'' (Ruth-Ann Boyle album), or the title song * "What About Us?" (Brandy song), 2002 * "What About Us" (Jodeci song), 1994 * "What About ...
", was written by Pink, McDaid, and Steve McCutcheon; production was handled by McCutcheon. An EDM song with influences of
four on the floor ''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is c ...
, "What About Us" starts as a ballad and appears to be about a relationship at first glance. The
political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
lyrics depict a "peaceful message" of tolerance and unity for the people who feel ignored and abandoned. "But We Lost It" is a piano ballad, deemed as an "affecting damaged" love song, while "Barbies" contains folk elements and lyrics about the pressure of growing up while longing for a simpler time. The seventh song, "Where We Go", details a damaged relationship over a "
Robin Schulz Robin Alexander Schulz (; born 28 April 1987) is a German musician, DJ and record producer. On 4 February 2014, he released the first single from his debut album, a remix of "Waves" by Dutch hip hop artist Mr. Probz. This remix later received ...
-like loping"
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
melody, according to Andrew Unterberger from ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. "For Now" is an
adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
power ballad, whereas "
Secrets Secrecy is the practice of hiding information from certain individuals or groups who do not have the "need to know", perhaps while sharing it with other individuals. That which is kept hidden is known as the secret. Secrecy is often controvers ...
" blends pop and
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
music, with elements of
deep house Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard ( ...
and
electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...
music. "Better Life" is an R&B-flavored
doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...
track that incorporates gospel tones. The song finds Pink comparing herself to people on social media, with lyrics such as "I found myself up late feeling kinda jealous/ Looking at the bullshit, other people's wellness". "I Am Here" appears next, and it is an empowering song which includes a gospel choir and lyrics about Pink's "journey as a person". The twelfth and penultimate track, "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken", was written by Pink and Michael Busbee as a "
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
chant" that depicts women fighting for equal rights and respect. ''Beautiful Trauma'' concludes with "You Get My Love", a piano ballad described as "raw" and "emotional". Pink's vocal runs were compared to those of
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...
,
Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...
, and
Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
.


Release and promotion


Live performances

Pink embarked on a promotional tour across Europe and North America to promote the release of ''Beautiful Trauma''. The singer performed "What About Us" live for the first time at
Waldbühne The Waldbühne (''Woodland Stage'' or ''Forest Stage'') is a theatre at Olympiapark Berlin in Berlin, Germany. It was designed by German architect Werner March in emulation of a Greek theatre and built between 1934 and 1936 as the Dietrich-Eckar ...
in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, Germany, on August 11, 2017. During Pink's headline set at the V Festival that year she performed the song along with older material. At the
2017 MTV Video Music Awards The 2017 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 27, 2017 at The Forum in Inglewood, California, honoring music videos released between June 25, 2016 and June 23, 2017. It was hosted by Katy Perry. The 34th annual award show aired live from th ...
, Pink was presented with the
Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award The Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, also known as the Video Vanguard Award or the Lifetime Achievement Award, is a merit given to recording artists and music video directors at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs), a ceremony that was establis ...
and sang the song as part of a greatest hits medley. On September 6, 2017, the singer held a special concert at The Theater in the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, premiering tracks from the album to a room of specially invited fans. She also appeared on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' the same day and performed "What About Us". On September 8, 2017, Pink performed the song for
BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
's
Live Lounge The Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio stations BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. It was originally hosted by Simon Mayo, and later by Jo Whiley on her weekday mid-morning, and later weekend lunchtime radio shows, then by Fearne Cotton ...
, as well as "
Who Knew "Who Knew" is a song by American singer Pink from her fourth studio album, ''I'm Not Dead'' (2006). Written by Pink, Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, the song was originally released on May 8, 2006, by the LaFace label to radio as the ...
", "
Try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...
", and a cover of " Stay with Me" by
Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...
. She was a main headliner at the 2017 Kaaboo Del Mar Festival where her setlist included a performance of "What About Us" and other
singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...
from her catalogue. On September 22 of that year, Pink performed a medley of "
Raise Your Glass "Raise Your Glass" is a song by American singer Pink (singer), Pink from her first greatest hits album, greatest hits compilation ''Greatest Hits... So Far!!! (Pink album), Greatest Hits... So Far!!!'' (2010). The song was written by Pink, Max Ma ...
", "What About Us", "
Funhouse A funhouse or fun house is an amusement facility found on amusement park and funfair midways and is where patrons encounter and interact with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, and amuse them. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, f ...
", "Just Like Fire", and "
So What So What may refer to: Law *Demurrer, colloquially called a "So what?" pleading Music Albums * ''So What'' (Anti-Nowhere League album) or the 1981 title song (see below), 2000 * '' So What?: Early Demos and Live Abuse'', by Anti-Nowhere League, ...
" at the
iHeartRadio Music Festival The iHeartRadio Music Festival is a two-day music concert festival held every year in September since 2011 by iHeartRadio along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. From 2011 to 2015, the festival was held at the MGM Gran ...
. Concurrently with the release of ''Beautiful Trauma'' on October 13, 2017, Pink partnered with
Apple Music Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Apple M ...
and released ''On The Record: P!nk - Beautiful Trauma'', a short documentary that includes scenes from the album's recording sessions. The following day, Pink appeared on ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' and performed "What About Us", as well as "Beautiful Trauma" for the first time. Two days later, the singer was interviewed on ''
Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...
'' and also performed the two tracks. On October 22, 2017, Pink performed during
CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...
's We Can Survive benefit concert at the
Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
for
breast cancer awareness Breast cancer awareness is an effort to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of breast cancer through education on symptoms and treatment. Supporters hope that greater knowledge will lead to earlier detection of breast cancer, which is associ ...
. Her setlist included "Barbies", "What About Us", and "Beautiful Trauma" from the album. On November 1, 2017, Pink appeared on ''
Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, Los ...
'' and sang "What About Us". She performed "Barbies" at the 51st Annual Country Music Association Awards on November 8 of that year, accompanied by a
string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...
and two backing vocalists. Chris Parton of ''Rolling Stone'' called the performance "stunning and thoughtful". On November 15, 2017, Pink appeared on ''
The Late Late Show with James Corden ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'' (also known as ''Late Late'') is an American late-night talk show on CBS. It is the fourth and current iteration of '' The Late Late Show''. Airing in the U.S. from Monday to Friday nights at 12:37:28am ...
'' in the
Carpool Karaoke Carpool Karaoke is a recurring segment on ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'', in which host James Corden invites famous musical guests to sing along to their songs with him whilst traveling in a car driven by Corden on a planned route usual ...
segment, singing her previous singles as well as "What About Us" and "Beautiful Trauma". At the 2017 American Music Awards, Pink performed the title track while hanging by a high wire in the air and walking on the side of the JW Marriott Hotel, Los Angeles. The singer collaborated with the
aerial dance Aerial modern dance is a subgenre of modern dance first recognized in the United States in the 1970s. The choreography incorporates an apparatus that is often attached to the ceiling, allowing performers to explore space in three dimensions. ...
group Bandaloop for a heavily choreographed performance, which included backward flips, "stunning extensions", and other acrobatic moves. The performance was met with positive reviews from critics. ''Billboard'' listed it as the best performance of the night, with the staff adding that "what makes Pink such a special performance is that no matter the setting, it's still about the vocals first". In the United Kingdom, Pink promoted the album by performing "What About Us" on ''
The Graham Norton Show ''The Graham Norton Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton s ...
'' on December 1, 2017. She also performed the song live on the finale of the 14th series of ''The X Factor'' UK two days later, along with "Beautiful Trauma". On December 5, 2017, Pink traveled to France and performed a concert at the Élysée Montmartre in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
as part of the NRJ Music Tour. Her setlist included "What About Us" and "Beautiful Trauma". The singer later appeared on French television show ''
Quotidien ''Quotidien'' () is a French television show, first broadcast 12 September 2016 on the channel TMC. It is presented by Yann Barthès. History On 9 May 2016, Yann Barthès announced that he was leaving Canal+'s '' Le Petit Journal'', a progra ...
'', where she was interviewed and performed "What About Us". On December 10, 2017, Pink performed the song again on ''
The Voice of Germany ''The Voice of Germany'' is a German reality talent show created by John de Mol, based on the concept ''The Voice of Holland'' and its international series. It began airing on ProSieben and Sat.1 on 24 November 2011. There are five differen ...
''. In 2018, she attended the
60th Annual Grammy Awards The 60th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 28, 2018. The CBS network broadcast the show live from Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show was moved to January to avoid coinciding with the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongc ...
and performed "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken", accompanied on stage by an ASL interpreter. Writing for ''
People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...
'', Stephanie Petit called the performance "emotional", while Katie Atkinson of ''Billboard'' felt that Pink "nailed the impossibly high notes at the song's emotional climax". Following the performance, she released a music video for the song. Shot in
black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
and directed by Sasha Samsonova, the accompanying music video sees Pink singing while sitting alone in a barren room, wearing a white tank top and distressed jeans. Taylor Seely of ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'' called the visual "stunning", while Desiree Murphy of ''
Entertainment Tonight ''Entertainment Tonight'' (or simply ''ET'') is an American Broadcast syndication, first-run syndicated news broadcasting news magazine, newsmagazine program that is distributed by CBS Media Ventures throughout the United States and owned by Para ...
'' opined that "it's one of her most powerful music videos yet".


Singles

"What About Us" was released as the lead single from ''Beautiful Trauma'' on August 10, 2017. It received positive reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
, who praised the lyrical content and production, as well as Pink's vocals. The song was a commercial success, topping the national charts of eight countries and peaking within the top 10 in 12 others.Chart history for Pink:






In the US, "What About Us" peaked at number 13 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, topped the
Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
and
Adult Pop Songs The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen B ...
charts, and was certified
platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA), signifying sales of 1,000,000 certified units. An accompanying music video, directed by Georgia Hudson, and choreographed by Nick Florez and RJ Durell, known collectively as the GoldenBoyz, was released on August 16, 2017. The video's main theme was a lost generation of abandoned and unheard people uniting through the power of dance, symbolizing love. "Revenge" had been slated for release as the second single from ''Beautiful Trauma'' but was cancelled in favor of the title track. "Beautiful Trauma" was made available as a
promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
on September 28, 2017, and was released to US
contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...
stations on November 21 of that year as the second single. For further promotion, "Beautiful Trauma" was accompanied by a music video directed by the GoldenBoyz. The video portrays a married couple—Pink as a 1950s
housewife A housewife (also known as a homemaker or a stay-at-home mother/mom/mum) is a woman whose role is running or managing her family's home—housekeeping, which includes caring for her children; cleaning and maintaining the home; making, buying an ...
and her husband, played by actor
Channing Tatum Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor. Tatum made his film debut in the drama ''Coach Carter'' (2005), and had his breakthrough role in the 2006 dance film ''Step Up (film), Step Up''. He gained wider attention for ...
—going through daily routines, and dancing in a series of bright-colored sets. The couple open up to each other during their "experimental phase", which includes scenes of
cross-dressing Cross-dressing is the act of wearing clothes usually worn by a different gender. From as early as pre-modern history, cross-dressing has been practiced in order to disguise, comfort, entertain, and self-express oneself. Cross-dressing has play ...
and S&M. Commercially, the song performed moderately on record charts, reaching top 40 positions in over 10 countries, including Australia, Belgium (Flanders), and the UK. One week before the album's release, "Whatever You Want" was issued as a promotional single on October 5, 2017. An accompanying music video was released on March 1, 2018, showing scenes of Pink preparing for the
Beautiful Trauma World Tour The Beautiful Trauma World Tour was the seventh concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate ...
, interspersed with clips from both her performance at
Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...
, her appearance at the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards, and scenes from ''On The Record: P!nk - Beautiful Trauma''. The song was sent to US
hot adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...
radio stations on June 4, 2018, as the album's third single. It peaked at number 11 on the US
Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...
and number 22 on the Adult Contemporary chart. "Secrets" was released as the fourth and final single from ''Beautiful Trauma'' in Europe, along with a four-track remix EP. The song's music video was co-directed with Larn Poland and shot in Northbridge,
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. Released on July 24, 2018, it shows Pink with her dancers in a graffiti-tagged warehouse, dancing and singing. "Secrets" topped the US
Dance Club Songs Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...
chart, becoming the third song from ''Beautiful Trauma'' to do so, following on from "What About Us" and the title track.


Tour

To further promote the album, Pink announced on October 5, 2017, that she would embark on her seventh concert tour, the Beautiful Trauma World Tour, visiting venues in North America. The initial itinerary included 17 shows in Oceania, but because of overwhelming demand, additional dates were added. On May 3, 2018, Pink announced the second North American leg of the tour, starting in 2019, including rescheduled shows for
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
and
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. In October of the same year, the Beautiful Trauma World Tour was extended further into 2019 with a European leg. Overall, it comprised 159 show dates, 89 in North America, 42 in Oceania, 27 in Europe, and one in South America. The tour generated positive critical reviews. Many critics praised the setlist, production, and Pink's vocals and her aerial acrobatics. The tour was a massive commercial success, becoming the eleventh highest-grossing tour of all time, and the second highest-grossing tour of all time by a female solo artist, earning $397,300,000 from over 3,000,000 tickets sold.


Artwork and title

The artwork for ''Beautiful Trauma'' was unveiled when the album was announced on August 9, 2017. Shot by Kurt Iswarienko, the cover art shows Pink standing in front of a rundown gas station in a desert. She is wearing a bejeweled bustier and a white gown under an enormous silver jacket, and reflective sunglasses and
hoop earrings An earring is a piece of jewelry attached to the ear via a piercing in the earlobe or another external part of the ear (except in the case of clip earrings, which clip onto the lobe). Earrings have been worn by people in different civilizations an ...
. Pink said that the album title refers to the atrocities happening around the world and her willingness to see the world's good side. In an interview for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', she explained, "I named the album ''Beautiful Trauma'' because life is fucking traumatic. There's natural disasters at every turn". She continued, "but there's beautiful people in the world that are having a blast and being good to each other and helping others. Because I can be dark, I try to constantly remind myself that there's more good than bad".


Critical reception

''Beautiful Trauma'' was met with generally mixed reviews from music critics. At
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an
average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...
score of 62, based on 9 reviews. Aggregator
AnyDecentMusic? AnyDecentMusic? is a website that collates album reviews from magazines, websites, and newspapers. Primarily focused on popular music – covering rock, pop, electronic, dance, folk, country, roots, hip-hop, R&B, and rap – albums are adjudg ...
gave it 5.7 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus. Patrick Ryan of ''USA Today'' praised the "stripped-back arrangements" for emphasizing Pink's abilities as a singer-songwriter, and observed the album's theme gravitates towards "her tumultuous relationship with Hart" and "achingly relatable anecdotes" about marriage, family, and maturing. Mike Nied of
Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...
called it an album of "striding anthems" with strong pop productions and relatable lyrics. Louise Bruton of ''
The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...
'' shared a similar sentiment, pointing out Pink's consistent release of "relatable pop songs" throughout her career. Chuck Arnold of ''Entertainment Weekly'' commended the album's "fresh and familiar" sound and compared the theme of "brutal truths about love" with ''The Truth About Love''. Writing for
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
, Allan Raible deemed ''Beautiful Trauma'' as excellent and noticed that "much of this record finds her working in ballad mode", which he considered a calculated move that highlights Pink's "significant power as a singer". ''Drowned in Sound''s Otsa praised the album's production and wide array of influences, feeling that the singer "proves that she's both still relevant, and a vital, confident female voice". Chris Willman of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' characterized ''Beautiful Trauma'' as "confessional pop songwriting" with "garrulous emotion", citing "Revenge" and "Whatever You Want" as highlights. Unterberger believed the album is "unmistakably heavy", referring to the "far too vivid" tracks about relationship insecurities. Andy Gill of ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' said that the producers' choice left "little room for originality". Likewise, Hurst found ''Beautiful Trauma'' calculated, calling it "a little too clean, too tidy, too easily resolved". However, Hurst noted the album "demonstrates its humanity" through "sharp lyrics and deeply felt vocals", praising the raw and "soul-baring" nature of "Barbies" and "But We Lost It". According to
Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...
of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, the production of ''Beautiful Trauma'' is "undergirded with genuine feeling that Pink conveys with her measured performances", but the album sounds "too controlled", resulting in a "tamer record". Sawdey was ambivalent toward the album's forgettable "sad serenades", ultimately calling it a "creatively dried out" breakup record. ''The Guardian''s Michael Cragg gave the album a somewhat mixed review, criticizing the familiar and "nagging" sound and concluding by saying it "does the job, nothing more".


Accolades

For its year-end tabulation, ''People'' listed ''Beautiful Trauma'' at number eight on their list of Top-Ten Albums of 2017, with Jeff Nelson describing it as "unfiltered, unleashed" and "cathartic". In its year-end review of the best 20 pop albums released in 2017, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the album at number 20, noting that " tsuccessfully avoids mimicking trends". ''Billboard'' listed the album as the 13th best of 2017, with reviewer Patrick Crowley pointing out the singer's "tenacious warrior" mature attitude and her "sick sense of humor
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
is still in tact ''
sic The Latin adverb ''sic'' (; "thus", "just as"; in full: , "thus was it written") inserted after a quoted word or passage indicates that the quoted matter has been transcribed or translated exactly as found in the source text, complete with any e ...
''". ''Beautiful Trauma'' received nominations for
Best Pop Vocal Album The Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality vocal pop music albums. Awards in several ...
at the
61st Grammy Awards The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Singer-songwriter Alicia Keys hosted. During her opening monologue, Keys brought out Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and fo ...
, and
Best Pop Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guides, the Best Pop So ...
for "What About Us" at the 60th ceremony. At the 2018 ''Billboard'' Music Awards, the album was nominated for the Top Selling Album award.


Commercial performance

''Beautiful Trauma'' debuted atop the US ''Billboard'' 200, with sales of 408,000
album-equivalent unit The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, is a measurement unit in music industry to define the consumption of music that equals the purchase of one album copy. This consumption includes streaming and song downloads in addition to traditi ...
s, of which 384,000 were pure sales, according to
Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...
. It became Pink's second consecutive number one album on the chart. Sales were aided by her tour audience, with the cost of the album being bundled into the purchase price of a tour ticket for US and Canadian shows. Only when a purchaser redeemed ''Beautiful Trauma'' did it count towards the album's sales. Around 225,000 copies of the first-week sales reportedly came from the album-ticket bundling. ''Beautiful Trauma'' achieved the most first-week sales for an album by a woman in the US since
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
's ''
Lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage. There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using le ...
'' (2016). The album had the highest first-week traditional sales since
Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...
's ''
Views A view is a sight or prospect or the ability to see or be seen from a particular place. View, views or Views may also refer to: Common meanings * View (Buddhism), a charged interpretation of experience which intensely shapes and affects thou ...
'' (2016)—Pink's best opening week's sales yet. The following week, the album descended to number three with sales dropping by 84% to 64,000 units. After selling 628,000 copies in the US throughout 2017, ''Beautiful Trauma'' finished as the seventh highest-selling album of the year. For the week ending May 17, 2018, the album rose 81 places from number 83 to number 2 on the ''Billboard'' 200, with sales of 139,000 units, including 135,000 copies. The sales increase was credited to the redemption of album-ticket bundling offered with the second US leg of Pink's tour. ''Beautiful Trauma'' was certified platinum in April 2018 by the RIAA for selling over a million equivalent units in the US. On the
Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocea ...
compiled by ''Billboard'', it opened at number one, with 64,000 album-equivalent units. According to the Canadian SoundScan, the album had the second-highest opening week of 2017 at the time, behind
Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...
's ''
Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Now ...
''. It also became Pink's second record to top the chart, after ''The Truth About Love''. In the week ending June 2, 2018, ''Beautiful Trauma'' topped the chart again, selling an additional 16,000 units courtesy of the ticket bundle campaign. It was certified double platinum by
Music Canada Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...
(MC), which denotes 160,000 units sold there. ''Beautiful Trauma'' debuted at the top of the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
, with first-week sales of 70,074 album-equivalent units. It became her second number one album in the UK, after ''
Funhouse A funhouse or fun house is an amusement facility found on amusement park and funfair midways and is where patrons encounter and interact with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, and amuse them. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, f ...
'' (2008). ''Beautiful Trauma'' had sold 372,000 copies by the end of 2017, finishing as the country's highest-selling album of the year by a non-British act and fifth highest overall. As of February 2019, the album has sold 516,087 copies in the UK and been certified platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...
(BPI) for sales over 300,000 units. Across Europe, ''Beautiful Trauma'' reached the summit of the charts in Austria, Belgium (Flanders), the Czech Republic, and Switzerland, and the top 10 in other countries. In France, the album debuted at number two on the
Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique The National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing (french: Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique; SNEP) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym ...
(SNEP) Albums Chart and was the best-selling album of the week, with sales of 14,853 copies. It became Pink's highest-charting album in the nation. The sales of ''Beautiful Trauma'' exceeded 100,000 units and certified platinum by the SNEP. The album sold 50,000 copies in Australia within three days of its availability, and debuted at the top of the
ARIA Albums Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
, with first-week sales of 78,040 copies—the second-largest opening week of the year after
Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
's '' ÷''. As a result, it became Pink's fifth album to top the chart. Total sales in Australia exceeded 100,000 copies over the second week, where the album remained at number one becoming the third album of 2017 to hold the summit for more than a week, after the ''Trolls'' soundtrack and ''÷''. Subsequently, ''Beautiful Trauma'' spent six non-consecutive weeks at number one on the chart, becoming the longest-running number one album by a female artist in the country since Adele's '' 25'' (2015). The album finished 2017 as the second-highest selling album of the year in the country and was certified quadruple platinum by the
Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...
(ARIA) for selling over 280,000 units. In New Zealand, the album also debuted at the top spot on the
Official New Zealand Music Chart The Official New Zealand Music Chart ( mi, Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa) is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Musi ...
, holding it for three weeks in a row. It received a double platinum certification from
Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...
for shipments of over 30,000 units. According to the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...
(IFPI), ''Beautiful Trauma'' was the third and eighth best-selling album of 2017 and 2018, respectively, and had sold over 3,000,000 copies worldwide by March 2019.


Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Beautiful Trauma''. Notes * – main and vocal production * – vocal production


Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Beautiful Trauma''. Studios Recording locations * Earthstar Creation Center (
Venice, California Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed b ...
) recording * Azteca Market (
Glassell Park, California Glassell is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Andrew Glassell (1827–1901), Los Angeles real estate attorney and investor * Susan Thornton Glassell (1835–1883), the wife of George Smith Patton and George H. Smith, and the sist ...
) vocals * Landmark Studio (
Nashville, TN Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
) recording Additional recording locations * Willow-Valley (
Göteborg, Sweden Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
) strings, editing Engineering locations * Earthstar Creation Center (
Venice, California Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed b ...
) engineering * The Village (
West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
) engineering * Rough Customer Studio (Brooklyn, New York) engineering * MXM (Los Angeles) engineering & (
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
) engineering * Conway (Los Angeles) engineering * Rokstone Studios (
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
) engineering * Wolf Cousins Studios (Stockholm) engineering * Turtle Sound (CT) engineering * Woodshed Recording (
Malibu, California Malibu ( ; es, Malibú; Chumash: ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate and its strip of the Malibu ...
) vocals & piano engineering *
Capitol Studios Capitol Studios are recording studios located at the landmark Capitol Records Tower in Hollywood, California. The studios, which opened in 1956, were initially the primary recording studios for the American record label Capitol Records. While t ...
(
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
) strings engineering Mixing and mastering locations * MixStar Studios (
Virginia Beach, VA Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...
) * Azteca Market (
Glassell Park, California Glassell is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Andrew Glassell (1827–1901), Los Angeles real estate attorney and investor * Susan Thornton Glassell (1835–1883), the wife of George Smith Patton and George H. Smith, and the sist ...
) mixing * Eastside Studio (
Nashville, TN Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
) mixing * The Mastering Palace (New York) *
Bernie Grundman Mastering Bernie Grundman is an American audio engineer. He is most known for his mastering work and his studio, Bernie Grundman Mastering, which he opened in 1984 in Hollywood. The studio, which includes engineers Chris Bellman, Patricia Sullivan, and Mi ...
(
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
) mastering Performers and musicians *
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
vocals, background vocals *
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
vocals *
Jack Antonoff Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
background vocals , drums, guitars, bass, synths , piano *Charlie Bisharat violins *David Bukovinszky cello *
busbee Michael James Ryan Busbee (June 18, 1976 – September 29, 2019), known professionally as Busbee, was an American songwriter, record producer, publisher, record label executive, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his work in both po ...
piano *Mattias Bylund strings *Robert Cani violins *Mario de Leon violins *Andrew Duckles viola *Matt Funes viola *Ross Golan guitars *Missi Hale background vocals *Gerardo Hilera violins *
Oscar Holter Oscar Thomas Holter (born 26 February 1986) is a Swedish record producer and songwriter based in the United States. He is best known for his work with record producer and fellow Swede Max Martin and Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd on the ...
keyboards *Mattias Johansson violin *Bill Jolly organ *Jolly Music Choir of Philadelphia choir *Armen Ksajikian cello *
Greg Kurstin Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...
piano, bass, guitar, keyboards *Timothy Landauer cello *Victor Lawrence cello *Chris Laws drums *Songa Lee violins *Natalie Leggett violins *
Steve Mac Steve McCutcheon (born 15 January 1972), known professionally as Steve Mac, is a British record producer, songwriter and musician. A multi-award-winning producer, he is one of the most prolific songwriters and record producers in modern British ...
keyboards *
Billy Mann William H. Mann (born William Isaiah Erlichman; December 20, 1968) is a Grammy-nominated American songwriter, record producer and founder of independent music publishing company Green & Bloom/Topline, as well as chairman of management firm Man ...
background vocals, acoustic guitars, piano *
Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com
known profess ...
keyboards *
Mattman & Robin Mattman & Robin is a Swedish songwriting and production duo composed of Mattias Per Larsson and Robin Lennart Fredriksson. They are published by Wolf Cousins, a publishing company administered by Warner Chappell Music. In 2016, they won a Grammy A ...
bass, keyboards, guitars, percussion, piano, drums, handclaps *Luke Maurer viola *
Johnny McDaid John McDaid (born 24 July 1976) is a singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Northern Ireland. He is a member of the band Snow Patrol and has written songs with other artists including Ed Sheeran, P!nk, and Robbie Williams. Early ...
guitars *Serena McKinney violins *Christian Medice drums *Joel Pargman violins *Alyssa Park violins *Victoria Parker violins *Sarah Parkins violins *Phillip A. Peterson celli *Michele Richards violins *Steve Richards cello * Shellback background vocals, keyboards, guitar, bass, drums *Evan Smith saxophones *Tereza Stanislav violins * David Stone bass *The Struts keyboards, bass, percussion *Michael Valerio bass *Josefina Vergara violins *Katherine Vincent viola *John Wittenberg violins *
Greg Morrow Greg Morrow is an American drummer, percussionist, session musician, mixing engineer, and vocalist. Biography Morrow was born in Ripley, Tennessee and raised in Memphis. At age 11, Morrow and his band performed on a local TV show, and he par ...
drums *Tony Lucido bass *Rob McNelly guitar *
Andy Dodd Andy Dodd (born March 28, 1977) is an American music producer and songwriter. His work spans two decades and sales of over 50 million albums worldwide. He is the co-owner of multiple production companies partnered with The Walt Disney Company. ...
keyboards, guitar Production *Jack Antonoff production, arrangement *Cory Bice engineering assistant *Gabe Burch engineering assistant *busbee production, background vocals recording, editing, mixing *Mattias Bylund string arrangement, string recording, string editing * David Campbell string arrangement, string conductor *
Steve Churchyard Steve Churchyard is an English record producer, recording engineer and mixer who began his career at Sir George Martin’s AIR Studios in London. He currently resides in the United States. He has been nominated for 15 Grammy awards. In 2008 he wo ...
string engineering *Dave Clauss editing *John Cranfield engineering * Roger Davies executive production *Matt Dyson engineering assistant *
Serban Ghenea Șerban Ghenea (born October 13, 1969) is a Grammy award-winning Romanian-Canadian audio engineer and mixer. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1969. In 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. He later attended ...
mixing *Ross Golan vocal production *John Hanes engineered for mix *Sam Holland engineering *Oscar Holter production, programming *Michael Ilbert engineering * Tobias Jesso Jr. production *Bill Jolly gospel choir director *Suzie Katayama contractor, orchestra manager *Greg Kurstin production, programming *Dave Kutch mastering *Chris Laws engineering *Jeremy Lertola engineering assistant *Steve Mac production *Billy Mann production, arrangement, engineering *Christian Medice production, arrangement, engineering, keyboard programming *Max Martin production, programming *Mattman & Robin production, programming *Salvador Ojeda engineering, piano engineering *Charlie Paakkari string engineering assistant *Pink executive production, production *Noah Passovoy engineering *Dann Pursey engineering *Shellback production, programming *Jon Sher engineering assistant *Laura Sisk engineering *The Struts production, vocal production, programming *Ryan Walsh engineering assistant *Bryan David Willis editing *Andy Dodd production, programming, mixing *John Volaitis vocal production *Patricia Sullivan mastering Design & management *Ryan Aylsworth photography *Kim Bowen wardrobe styling *Jeri Heiden art direction, design *Kathy Jeung make-up *Pamela Neal hair *Nick Steinhardt art direction, design *Sølve Sundsbø interior gatefold photo * Roger Davies management *Bill Buntain management *Shady Farshadfar management *Lisa Garrett management *Irene Taylor management *Don Passman legal representation *Gene Salomon legal representation *Nancy Chapman business management *Teresa Polyak business management


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Decade-end charts


Certifications


Release history


References

{{Authority control 2017 albums Pink (singer) albums RCA Records albums Albums produced by Steve Mac Albums produced by Jack Antonoff Albums produced by Max Martin Albums produced by Shellback (record producer) Albums produced by Greg Kurstin Albums produced by busbee Albums produced by Mattman & Robin Albums produced by Tobias Jesso Jr.