Emotion (stylized as E•MO•TION) is the third studio album by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen, released on June 24, 2015.
E•MO•TION is a departure from Jepsen's previous two albums, which were primarily Teen Pop, as she stepped in to take more creative control. In making the album, Jepsen drew inspiration from 1980s music and alternative styles, and the album's Synth-Pop and New Wave sound reflects this influence.
Upon release, the album underperformed commercially but received general critical praise (especially for its second single "Run Away with Me"), although its lyrical content was somewhat divisive. However, it became something of a Sleeper Hit throughout the rest of the year, and once it started making "best of" lists towards the end of the year, many people began to rediscover the album, and the consensus on it began warming considerably.
E•MO•TION has since been deemed a Cult Classic, and its delayed success an integral chapter in Jepsen's career. Following her global ubiquity from the success of her Breakthrough Hit "Call Me Maybe", it was on this album that many considered her to have finally found her sound. The sustained fan support of the album additionally contributed to Jepsen's status as an "indie darling" and a "cult idol", through positive word-of-mouth as well as a noted enthusiastic response from the LGBT community.
The album was supplemented with an EP that was released in 2016, E•MO•TION: Side B, made up of companion songs and songs that were cut from the initial release.
A track-by-track cover album of E•MO•TION titled EMO-TION
was released in 2018 containing performances from 15 bands and artists, many of them in or around the emo genre (hence the name). Proceeds from the album went to the nonprofit organization Immigration Equality.
Tracklist (Standard Edition)
- "Run Away with Me" (4:11)
- "Emotion" (3:17)
- "I Really Like You" (3:24)
- "Gimmie Love" (3:22)
- "All That" (4:38)
- "Boy Problems" (3:42)
- "Making the Most of the Night" (3:58)
- "Your Type" (3:19)
- "Let's Get Lost" (3:13)
- "LA Hallucinations" (3:04)
- "Warm Blood" (4:13)
- "When I Needed You" (3:41)
Tracks from Deluxe Editions
- "Black Heart" (2:56)
- "I Didn't Just Come Here to Dance" (3:39)
- "Favourite Colour" (3:29)
- "Never Get to Hold You" (4:13)
- "Love Again" (3:35)
Trope Away With Me!
- Actor Allusion: In the "Your Type" video, the narrator refers to the plot as a Cinderella story, a reference to her role as Cinderella on Broadway.
- Better Partner Assertion: "Your Type" where Carly Rae asserts that she would be a better partner than the girl her ex-boyfriend is currently dating.
- Break-Up Song: "E•MO•TION", "When I Needed You", "Your Type", and "Fever" from Side B. Downplayed with "Gimmie Love", she's wistfully thinking about an ex-boyfriend and craving his affection.
- Broken Record: "I Really Like You" has the lyric "I really, really, really, really, really like you"
- Central Theme: Emotion, natch. Passions, getting lost in feelings, etc.
- Commitment Issues: "Let's Get Lost" is about the subject deciding to clamp down on their urge to run away from love and get lost in a relationship.
- Friendship Song: "Making the Most of the Night" can be interpreted this way as the subject is trying to cheer a friend up as they're going through a rough patch.
- Going to the Store: "Store" from Side B manages to make a Break-Up Song sound bouncy and fun by saying this as a form of letting her partner down gently.
- Just Friends: A lot of Carly's songs deal with being friendzoned, but Your Type and Fever in particular.My breath was lost when you said "friends", well that could work but I'm still hot for you (from Fever)...That I'm the type of girl you call more than a friend (from Your Type)
- Lampshaded Double Entendre: "I Didn't Just Come Here to Dance" ("If you know what I mean... do you know what I mean?") off of the deluxe Emotion album.
- Lyrical Dissonance: "E•MO•TION" (in subject of possibly a bad break-up and revenge) and "When I Needed You" (in subject of unrequited, if not wasted, love).
- Meet Cute: The "Now That I Found You" video ends with her meeting a cute guy who's found her cat.
- Mood Whiplash: "Store" from E•MO•TION: Side B. Its verses are slow and melancholic but its chorus is so upbeat and hilarious, both musically and lyrically.
- Rhymes on a Dime: "Higher" has five near-rhymes back-to-back and fast-paced in the chorus (rest, second-best, mess, blessed, confess).
- Silly Love Songs: What the album is mostly comprised of.
- Wham Shot: A more comedic version for the "Now That I Found You" video, which depicts Carly addressing the camera whilst in bed, as if she's talking to her lover after a romantic night...and then it reveals that her bed partner is a cat.
- With Friends Like These...: Downplayed, but in "Boy Problems", the subject's friend is tired of hearing the subject keep talking about her issues with dating.
