The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2024 - Issue 35

bitemusicceleb Mino Kylie I n an interview with Rolling Stone in 2023 about her sixteenth studio album Tension , Kylie Minogue commented on the lead single ‘Pad- am Padam’ (meaning the sound of a heartbeat) written by Norwegian singer-songwriter Ina Wroldsen and producer Lostboy. “Whenever a song is released, in an instant, it’s no longer yours. It takes on its own life,” she said. “This one grew up fast and is not slowing down.” Pride month adopted the song as its unofficial anthem for parades and celebrations worldwide. The viral summer hit, her first top ten hit since ‘All the Lovers’ in 2010, was nearly recorded by Rita Ora as Wroldsen and Lostboy didn’t think it was a suitable fit for the singer. “We wrote Padam in February 2022, and there were maybe four or five months of us sitting on it, then I sent it to their label, and someone suggested to me, ‘Kylie would kill this.’” Lostboy told The Sun . “They were unsure, and there was a moment when Rita was going to cut it, and it was worming around a few artists on that label.” Kylie’s music career surpasses three decades, and she still has vocal prowess, reinventing herself from bubblegum pop in the ‘80s to dance floor anthems today. Her subsequent single ‘Tension’, taken from the fusion of dance, house, synthpop and electro opus album, marked a vibrant return to her dance-pop roots that have defined much of her illustrious career and maintained her unique sound, enduring appeal and artistic versatility. She initially considered ‘Vegas High’, one of the tracks on the record, as the album name in anticipation of her residency in Las Vegas, which started in November 2023. However, she felt the word ‘Tension’ was more intriguing, and despite its usual negative notations, it was well received by the public. “I like the ‘Tension’ song because it has several meanings. The diamond (shown on the album cover) is a subliminal image of creating beautiful things under pressure.” In the ‘80s, Kylie played Charlene Mitchell, the feisty, quick-tempered and outspoken teenager in Neighbours who gained popularity for her relationship with Scott Robinson, played by Jason Donovan. She transitioned into music with her debut single ‘Locomotion’, which topped the Australian charts and set the stage for a series of hits that made her a household name world- wide. Subsequent songs like ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head’, ‘Spinning Around’ and ‘Love at First Sight’ cemented her pop icon status.