K. Michelle has released her fourth studio album, Kimberly: The People I Used to Know, on Atlantic Records. The 21-track project features guest appearances from R&B hitmakers Chris Brown and Jeremih.
The Memphis native shared a handful of songs leading up to the album’s release including “Make This Song Cry,” “Birthday,” “Either Way” and “Kim K.” On the latter track, some people assumed K. Michelle was throwing shots at Kim Kardashian. However, she explained the song is about cultural appropriation.
I see some blogs trying to make My song "Kim K"messy, lord if u only knew how fly I think she is! People are me would tell u. The statement behind the song is black Women are rarely given credit for our cultural trends and flyness.
— K. Michelle (@kmichelle) December 4, 2017
“I see some blogs trying to make My song ‘Kim K’ messy, lord if u only knew how fly I think she is,” K. Michelle tweeted. “People are me would tell u. The statement behind the song is black Women are rarely given credit for our cultural trends and flyness.”
She continued, “Truths can be spoken without a shade tree behind them. For ages Black women have been taught by society that our image isn’t good enough for mainstream or that we need to make changes. I believed them and made those SOME of those changes, only 2 regret it.”
On The People I Used to Know, Michelle takes listeners on a journey through her mind. “The album shows me and all my bipolar-ness so it really shows that and I hit on every single emotion of being a woman and being a growing woman,” she once told Billboard. “So it has, even for a man, a lot of things you can relate to you, a lot of life issues this time not just heartbreak but life in general.”
The People I Used to Know is the follow-up to K. Michelle’s 2016 album, More Issues Than Vogue, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
Stream Kimberly: The People I Used to Know below.