Rosalía has said “there’s a need of much more culture of forgiveness” to combat cancel culture.
- READ MORE: Rosalía – ‘Lux’ review: an arresting album of astonishing scope and ambition
On the heels of sharing her latest album, ‘LUX’ – which has already become the most-streamed LP in a day on Spotify by a Spanish-speaking female artist – the singer sat down with The Guardian to discuss her philosophy going into the record.
“The beauty of art is putting things on the table and proposing questions, and probably finding more questions than answers – but playfulness is important in order to create,” she said.
The conversation then moved to the backlash she’d faced in the lead-up to sharing ‘LUX’, particularly after she told Le Monde that locking away her phone to focus on creating the album meant she wasn’t “more present and more vocal” about the ongoing conflict in Palestine.
As a result, fashion designer Miguel Adrover took to social media in July to share that he had turned down an offer to design a custom-made dress for her, with his team explaining that the designer “doesn’t work with any artist who doesn’t publicly support Palestine.”
On November 7, Rosalía’s ‘LUX’ became the most-streamed album in a single day in Spotify history by a Spanish-speaking female artist. pic.twitter.com/h4G7QIZ5kV
— Spotify (@Spotify) November 9, 2025
She later responded to the comments and said that the pressure for change should be pointed “upwards”, to those in government who have the power to make concrete change.
Reflecting on the experience, she said: “I see a lot of this cancel culture happening in general, in internet, for everyone. That is always strange to me. I think there’s a need of much more culture of forgiveness. I wouldn’t cancel a friend because we think different.
“And definitely, I always feel like I have so much to learn and I always try to do things better. But at the same time, I like a lot something that Barthes said [about] the ‘anti-hero … who can bear contradiction without shame’. We all have contradictions. It’s impossible not to in a world as imperfect and contradictory as the one we live in. So I try to stay connected with what my mission is, which is to make music from the most loving place possible.”
The album was given a glowing five-star review by NME, and praised for the singer’s ability to sing in 13 different languages, and push her sound into adventurous new horizons.
“Lux’ contains not just whole worlds, but astral planes, bridging the gap between Earth and whatever you believe heaven to be,” the review read. “[It] is an album that asks a lot of you, particularly spanning 18 tracks and one hour in length. But give it what it demands, and it will reward you many times over.
“It is an astonishing record – one that continuously stops you dead in your tracks, encourages curiosity, and builds a new world for you to dive into, while connecting to the sounds of all of Rosalía’s previous releases.”
‘LUX’ was announced last month, and previewed by the lead single ‘Berghain’, which saw Rosalía join forces with Björk and Yves Tumor. The Spanish singer-songwriter had previously worked with Björk in 2023 for the duet ‘Oral’.
