Hayley Kiyoko returns today with her sophomore album, PANORAMA, the follow-up to 2018’s Expectations. The LP was executive-produced by Nate “Danja” Hills, a frequent Timbaland collaborator who’s worked with the likes of Britney Spears, Usher, and Nelly Furtado. Danja actually came on the scene after the songs were written and recorded, but Kiyoko credits him with “muting things and refining,” a process that made the material stronger.
Kiyoko recorded the album during a difficult time in her life. The pop singer-songwriter turned 30 and worked hard to improve her physical and mental health. The title PANORAMA refers to the importance of looking around and taking stock of how far you’ve come.
“When you go on a hike, you’re hiking to get to the top of the mountain to take in the view,” she told NME. “But as you go up, there’s a view at every point. And so I had this realization [as I was] going through my mental and physical health struggles, that there are highs and lows at every point in our journey.”
PANORAMA was preceded by the singles “found my friends,” “chance,” and “for the girls.” The last of those yielded a memorable music video inspired by the reality series The Bachelorette.
