redefine herself. "Emotion" would go on to become something of a cult hit for Jepsen, and is, without a doubt, her best album to date.

As with 'Emotion,' Jepsen took her time creating her fourth album

"Dedicated" was released earlier this year, and features Jepsen fully embracing her new synth-pop sound. "Want You In My Room," with its sweeping musical arrangements and drolly exaggerated, spoken hook, puts fellow pop artists like Lana Del Rey to shame. And in "Julien," a song about fresh heartbreak after a summer fling, a lovelorn Jepsen name-drops her ex in one of her most relatable songs about past romances.

"I did have a boyfriend named Julien back in the day," Jepsen said in an interview from May. According to the singer, she'd been trying to incorporateand passionately emotional lyrics that speak to universal experiences of love and loss, but also unadulterated joy and excitement.

Jepsen's impact extends far beyond music, as she's often celebrated as a queer icon

Critics of Jepsen have argued that most of her music seems crafted for the pure enjoyment of listening, at times lacking a story or personal narrative and the barest trace of Jepsen as an artist. But others have pointed out that the so-called anonymity of some of her lyrics actually makes her songs more relatable, especially for the queer community.

Some have even taken a deep dive into Jepsen's lyrics and music videos, and uncovered a surprising number of nods to LGBTQ people. To call Jepsen's lyrics superficial is to misunderstand the inherent relatability that characterizes pop —