I Disagree

Poppy began work on I Disagree shortly after the release of Am I a Girl?. In an interview with Gigwise, Poppy called the album "post-genre" and "heavy", as well as stating that the record is a follow-up to the second half of Am I a Girl?, specifically of the songs "Play Destroy" and "X".[4]

"Concrete", the lead single from the album, was released on August 22, 2019. Released alongside its music video, the single came shortly after the announcement of Poppy signing with Sumerian Records and departing with Mad Decent.[5] The album's cover, title and release date were revealed on September 30, 2019 via Poppy's social media accounts. The album art was done by Jesse Draxler.[6] "I Disagree" was released as the second single from the album on October 4, 2019, alongside its music video.[7]

"Bloodmoney" was released as the third single from the album on November 6, 2019, along with the announcement of a 2020 US tour in support of I Disagree and a music video. It was nominated for "Best Metal Performance" at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, becoming Poppy's first grammy nomination. [8][9] The track list of I Disagree was revealed on November 26, 2019 via Poppy's social media.[10] "Fill the Crown" was released as the fourth single from the album on December 11, 2019, alongside a music video.[11] The music video for "Anything Like Me" directed by Jesse Draxler and Poppy was released on the same day as the album - January 10, 2020.[12] A video for "Sit / Stay" was put out on March 20, 2020.

On an Instagram live stream on April 12, 2020, Sumerian Records announced a deluxe version of the album to be released in the summer of that year. Poppy confirmed on Twitter that the release of the deluxe edition was "right around the corner" on July 22, 2020.[13] The album's fifth and final single, "Khaos x4", was released on July 28, 2020, the same day Poppy announced said deluxe edition, titled I Disagree (More). The reissue, which included the additional tracks "Bleep Bloop", "Don't Ask", and "If It Bleeds" was released on August 14.[14]

I Disagree has been described as an avant-garde,[15] heavy metal,[16][17][18] pop,[19][17][15] pop-metal,[20] electropop,[21][15] industrial rock,[18] rock,[22] nu metal,[21][23][24] kawaii metal,[25] hard rock,[26] and industrial[26] record.

The album incorporated elements of art pop,[17] dubstep,[15] experimental pop,[17] industrial metal,[24] alternative metal,[15] progressive metal, thrash metal,[22] electronic,[15] metalcore,[15] deathcore,[15] post-grunge,[17] progressive rock,[27] pop-punk,[25] dream pop,[25][18] bubblegum pop,[17] alt-pop, acoustic pop,[15] R&B,[26] J-pop,[19][20] and K-pop.[15]

Speaking in an interview with Kerrang!, Poppy said "I've never said my music is metal, but I do listen to that music."[28]

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	6.6/10[29]
Metacritic	72/100[30]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[20]
Exclaim!	5/10[31]
Gigwise	[32]
The Guardian	[21]
MusicOMH	[33]
NME	[34]
The Observer	[35]
Pitchfork	6.5/10[36]
PopMatters	7/10[17]
Slant Magazine	[18]

I Disagree received positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 72 out of 100, which indicates "Generally favorable reviews" based on 16 reviews.[30]

AllMusic writer Neil Z. Yeung also gave the album a positive rating, writing that "As both a symbolic avatar for her life changes and a strong empowerment statement, I Disagree celebrates Poppy's rebirth as a pop-metal alchemist and unabashed rule-breaker."[20] Josh Gray of Clash opined that "Poppy remains a daring and divisive artist making daring and divisive art, and I Disagree is the perfect shot of adrenaline to kick start a new decade with."[16] Malvika Padin of Gigwise called the album "A true masterpiece in almost every way imaginable..." and "...the perfect album to start 2020 with."[32]

While talking positively about the album, Nicoletta Wylde of musicOMH stated, "with I Disagree, Poppy releases her version of Lemonade; both channelling the pain of her recent controversy, sticking two fingers up to the past and translating her performance art into music."[33] Ali Shutler of NME praised I Disagree as "her most accomplished record, full of daring theatre and snarling forward motion".[34] Tara Joshi of The Observer called it "a cartoonish record that is at once garish, sweet and over the top...enjoyable, imaginative and at times uncanny assault on the senses."[35] Colin Joyce writing for 'Pitchfork stated, "none of the situations she explores are especially specific, but it’s striking...reminder that chaos can be cleansing, that calamity is the first step to starting all over again and building something new."[36]

Elisabeth Woronzoff of PopMatters considered the album to be "a major shift from her previous endeavors...[as] she has expanded her musicality while also challenging genre conventions."[17] In discussing the sound of the album, Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine stated, "the album tosses the singer’s pop aesthetic into the shredder with heavy metal and industrial rock...the album...evokes Rammstein, Sleigh Bells, and Lady Gaga—but it’s regurgitated and repackaged in a way that manages to escape derivativeness."[18]

In June 2020, I Disagree was included in Spin's 30 best albums of 2020 so far.[37]

• List of 2020 albums