Kylie Minogue: ‘Maybe Kiss Me Once wasn’t good enough’
Kylie Minogue has addressed the relative failure of her most recent album, Kiss Me Once, saying perhaps the material wasn’t up to scratch.
In a new interview with Australian media, the pop princess was asked about the album’s underperformance – while it debuted high in British and Australia, it quickly tumbled down the charts. It’s also the only Kylie Minogue studio album outside of 1998’s misunderstood Impossible Princess not to birth a UK top 10 single (Into The Blue hit number 12).
“Maybe it didn’t do as well because it wasn’t good enough or it didn’t deserve more, who knows?,” Minogue said.
“Even in retrospect it’s hard to say why something works or it doesn’t. It’s dependent on what else is out there, the way it’s promoted … The tour has been the most successful part of that album campaign for me. The album did give me some freedom.”
Minogue also gave her opinions on one of pop’s other great survivors, Madonna.
“I absolutely felt for her,” she said of Queen of Pop’s infamous BRITs fall. “With big performances like that, so much thought and time and attention to detail goes into everything. And then basically shit happens. But she had a marvellous recovery. I think it’s actually a good reminder that Madonna’s human. It’s good for us to know that.”
At 46 years old – and with one of her most recent music videos featuring her gyrating on a fit ball in a leotard – Minogue is also well placed to discuss the issue of ageism in pop.
“There’s common ground for myself and Madonna there,” Minogue says.
“I’ll be the first one to joke ‘Oh come on, I’m not in my undies again am I?’ I did a lingerie shoot the other day, it’s kind of astounding, but it’s happening and I’m not forcing it. I’m just going with the flow.
“I don’t think people want to see Madonna in an old Greek lady’s house dress on the stoop do they? They want glamour, they want fantasy. Maybe it doesn’t make sense in every day life, whatever normal is, I don’t even know any more. But it’s definitely something I struggle to even talk about. You just want to get past it, basically. For me it’s just about taste. There’s a certain way to do things. I hope I get it right more often than I get it wrong.”
Kylie Minogue plays alongside Chic ft. Nile Rodgers and Grace Jones at Barclaycard Presents British Summer Time Hyde Park , June 21. Tickets on sale now.