LM5 (album)
LM5 is the fifth studio album by British girl group Little Mix, released on 16 November 2018. The album's title, artwork and release date were revealed on 15 October 2018 through the group's social media. The album was lyrically focused around female empowerment, body confidence, self love while talking about social issues women faced including the girls own experiences. The album is available in standard, deluxe and super deluxe editions—the deluxe edition contains four bonus tracks, while the super deluxe edition contains the bonus tracks along with a hardback book including handwritten notes from the group. The group stated that they were inspired to name the album LM5 because they "love what named each of our eras over the years". This is based on the common practice by fans of an act of promoting a forthcoming unnamed album on social media with a hashtag stating the act's initials and album number. The vinyl version was released on 7 December 2018. It is a hip hop, pop and R&B and tropical influenced album.
The album's lead single, "Woman Like Me" featuring Trinidadian-born American rapper Nicki Minaj, was released on 12 October 2018. Three further promotional singles were released ahead of the album, and videos for two more of the album's tracks were released on the same day as the album. In September 2019, Little Mix embarked on a concert tour, named, to promote the record.
LM5 received generally favourable reviews from music critics, with many praising the band's exploration of other genres and lyrics focusing on female empowerment, but others criticising the record's lack of cohesiveness. The album charted at number three in the UK, number two in Ireland and Scotland and reached the top thirty in thirteen other countries. The album is the group's last to be released under Syco Music, following the group's split with the label several days prior to the album's release. Future albums are to be released under RCA UK and Columbia Records; both labels are owned by Sony Music.
Background
In early February 2018, Leigh-Anne Pinnock announced that the album would be released later in the year, and would be supported by a tour to come in 2019. On 10 March, Jade Thirlwall revealed on her Instagram that the first song on the album had been recorded, which was later revealed to be "Monster in Me". They then released a snippet of the song "Joan of Arc" on August 16. On 15 October 2018, the group announced that the album would be released on 16 November 2018; the announcement also revealed the album name, in addition to the three editions of the album. Two days later, the tracklist for the album was revealed on social media.Promotion and singles
"Woman Like Me" was released on 12 October 2018, as the album's lead single. The song debuted at number five on the UK Singles Chart. It was performed at BBC Radio 1's Teen Awards 2018 on the 21 October 2018, although this performance was not aired. The music video for the song was released on 25 October 2018. The first proper televised performance was on The X Factor on the 28 October 2018. On 2 November 2018, the song peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Little Mix and Nicki Minaj performed the song at the MTV European Music Awards on 4 November 2018.On 21 January 2019, it was announced that "Think About Us", newly remixed to feature Ty Dolla Sign, would be released as the album's second single. One day later, the group announced the single would be released to streaming services on 25 January, with the music video due for debut on 2 February.
"Joan of Arc" was released as the first promotional single on 2 November 2018. "Told You So" was released as the second promotional single on 9 November 2018. On 13 November 2018, "The Cure" was released as the third and final promotional single. Videos for two further tracks from the album, "More Than Words" and "Strip", were released on 16 November 2018.
A lyric video for "Wasabi" was released on 26 July 2019. On 12 March 2020, the official video for "Wasabi" was released.
Tour
On 18 October 2018, Little Mix announced that in 2019, they would embark on their sixth concert tour,, in support of the album. Dates for the tour of the UK and Ireland went on sale on 26 October. European and Australian shows were later added to the tour.Critical reception
Kate Solomon from Metro pointed out that the album "hangs together better than last year's Glory Days but still ricochets wildly between styles. Some elements are pure Little Mix. Their lush harmonies permeate even the minimal half-rapped anthem 'Strip'." She further commented: "LM5 has a handful of songs destined to be hits and feels like a group of best friends welcoming you into their fold". Joe Passmore from Attitude started by saying, "Sounding 'more mature' is a common buzz-phrase for pop artists on the promotional circuit for a new album, but LM5 does make genuine effort to step away from the always infectious but often Disney-fied pop that we have come to expect from them", and added that the sound of this record "is more cohesive, polished and confident than their past two records in particular". Mike Nied from Idolator found the album "filled with creative risks", and stated that "Low on filler and high on quality pop that bridges a variety of sounds, LM5 is easily one of Little Mix's best releases to date", also considering it "perhaps their most ambitious". Michael Love Michael of Paper noted that the "resulting collection is arguably their most uplifting batch of songs yet".Amy McMahon of Hot Press magazine gave LM5 nine out of a possible ten, appreciating the song "The National Manthem" by saying that it "showcases the girls' true talent. Stripped back, no catchy beat just beautiful harmonies. It also opens the album with a pledge to girlhood, setting the tone for the loud and proud feminist album that it is." She finally deemed the album as "made by empowered women to empower women". Hannah Mylrea of NME opined that the album was somewhat lacking in tunes but that "there are moments of pop sparkle" and that "lyrically the most mature they've ever been", concluding that the record "is the culmination of the band's growth over the past seven years. Yes it may sometimes musically miss the mark; but with its strong and relevant message it's something of a milestone for the band".
Alexis Petridis of The Guardian stated that the album "ticks most of modern pop's boxes" but felt that it was aimed at the US market and that "the group often sing not so much in an American accent but in a full-blown imitation of a deep south mumble rapper". According to Petridis, however, "LM5s flaws aren't really down to its US-focused slant... They're the classic flaws of today's pop albums: it's too long, its highlights appearing amid boilerplate filler... but the strike rate is high enough for LM5 to prolong Little Mix's career even further, at least in Britain." In The Guardians sister paper, The Observer, Alim Kheraj also had mixed feelings, saying, "Little Mix albums have always struggled to find their own identity, and LM5 still owes too much to Beyoncé's flirtation with hip-hop and top-40 trend chasing. It's frustrating, because songs like 'Love a Girl Right', the trip-hop of 'American Boy' and 'Strip's stomps of stilettos are weird wonders that prove Little Mix can be a formidable pop force." Alexandra Pollard of The Independent said that the album "hopscotches between genres with whiplash-inducing speed" and that "at points, the whole thing starts to feel a little derivative", concluding that "ultimately, despite a few high points, LM5 is so scattershot, both thematically and musically, that it's hard to find much to grab onto".
Track listing
Credits adapted from the iTunes Store.Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
| Chart | Position |
| Belgian Albums | 143 |
| UK Albums | 57 |