and the subversive quality that so-called generic music can have, for marginalized communities especially.

Carly Rae Jepsen released her latest album in May of this year. Michael Tullberg/Getty Images

In part due to the expressions of unrequited yearning and desire that make up much of the album, and because it didn't receive the commercial success it deserved, "Emotion" helped Jepsen gain more LGBTQ fans. Her underdog status endeared her to a historically marginalized community, and her catchy yet undeniably intense songs about crushes, missed connections, and first loves were instantly relatable to anyone but were especially embraced by queer people who felt similarly unsure in their romantic lives.

Jepsen definitely recognizes her newfound status as a beloved icon in the queer community and has performed at a variety of Pride festivalsforged a path for bringing new sounds into the accepted pop sphere. And now, thanks to Jepsen, musical eclecticism is no longer out of the ordinary, and the boundaries of pop music have been opened up for exploration once more.

Jepsen's first hit, "Call Me Maybe," threatened to define her career. But as "Emotion" and "Dedicated" have shown, her true power lies in crafting experimental yet intensely personal pop music for the ages that will make anyone listening want to run away with her.

Libby Torres is a junior entertainment reporter at Insider. She covers a variety of topics, including TV, horror movies, Latinx culture, and Keanu Reeves. She's a huge Carly Rae Jepsen stan who has a lot of thoughts about "Call Me Maybe" and pop music in general.