Heart Beats: The Summer of Kylie Minogue and “Padam Padam"
Although the official unofficial start to summer begins during the Memorial Day weekend in the latter part of May, Kylie Minogue’s summer to remember began on May 18, 2023, with the release of “Padam Padam,” the first single from her 16th studio album, Tension, out September 22. Snippets of the song teased before its release hinted at a more mysterious sound, with its electro-altered vocal and an ominous guitar riff. No one could have predicted, even Kylie and her production team, that this dark, menacing intro would kick off, what many would later consider to be, the “song of the summer,” a coveted title often associated with a lighter, more upbeat pop sound, reflective of that school’s-out, sun’s-out sense of carefree abandon. It’s the track’s (heart)beat-thumping chorus that would allow it to set itself apart from other pseudo contenders.
Just ten days later, Kylie celebrated her 55th birthday, and took to her social media to thank her followers for the messages, “the ‘Padam’ reaction and the love; it’s been an incredible week,” Kylie said. Incredible indeed, the song went viral on Instagram, and on Tik Tok, #padampadam would eventually garner 10 million hits in early June. This is the first of two significant moments, for it confirmed the speedy reach, and the immense impact, of “Padam Padam” in a relatively short amount of time.
The second moment also occurred in early June, when Kylie surprised the crowd of 80,000, who attended Capital’s Summertime Ball music festival at Wembley Stadium. The radio group posted the two-song set to its YouTube channel, which at the start of the performance featured a pre-filmed compilation of Kylie clips and some career stats. The cameras down on the stadium floor captured the reaction of some of the audience members (many presumably in their twenties) as they began to realize that the Aussie superstar was on the bill. It’s one of the most important moments in Kylie’s career: Here, a pop-music icon, some 36 years into her career, is connecting with many who weren’t even born when “The Loco-Motion” or “I Should Be So Lucky,” or perhaps even “Spinning Around” or Kylie’s signature, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” were released.
The video montage, designed to heighten the hype, met its goal; when Kylie’s name was announced and she ascended on the stage-lift, the audience erupted in excitement, easily heard in the following video:
Kylie then went from stadium to studios, appearing on NBC’s “TODAY” show, and Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live” with Andy Cohen, where Cohen asked her point blank if she had any plans for a U.S. tour or a Vegas residency, to which she coyly replied: “Very possibly.” The “very possibly” turned into “very definitely” in late July when she officially announced a Las Vegas residency at the Venetian’s newly renovated, 1,000-seat venue, Voltaire. She and casino executives were riding a “Vegas High” along with fans worldwide, but fast forward to August 9 when many of those fans went from a high to a letdown, due to a chaotic ticket-purchasing experience, and a crash of Voltaire’s site. Regardless, the first set of shows for November and December 2023 and January 2024 quickly sold out, as well as a second set of shows for the early part of 2024 that were later added.
Kylie also appeared on few radio programs in the U.S., such as the “Zach Sang Show,” and on 102.7 KIISFM, to talk “Padam Padam,” the new album, the residency, and much more. Around this time in August, the single had cracked the top 40 on Billboard’s U.S. Adult Top 40 and U.S. Mainstream Top 40 charts. Also, it climbed to number 1 on the U.S. Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart.
For those not entirely familiar with Kylie, easily one of the most successful singers of the last 40 years, “Padam Padam” hopefully serves as the gateway single to discovering her previous, now-legendary, work in pop (the essential-to-own Light Years and Fever albums), dance (the dazzling 2020 album, Disco, which helped sustain many through a dark pandemic), indie-pop (1997’s experimental Impossible Princess), even torch/jazz (“Stay This Way”; “If You Don’t Love Me”; “Try Your Wings”; 2012’s The Abbey Road Sessions album), and that’s just scratching the surface as a recording artist. As a live-concert performer, they don’t call her “the Showgirl” for nothing (two tours entitled, Showgirl [2005, 2006]; XTour2008; Aphrodite Les Folies [2011] are vital viewing). Fittingly, her Vegas residency will solidify her as the consummate showgirl once again.
As summer 2023 comes to a close, it was one full of bright, sunny moments for Kylie Minogue, with “Padam Padam” representing the start to yet another era in her phenomenal career, one that shows no signs of going dim or, to keep with the heart theme, flatlining. The track also signifies a renewed faith in the power of music to bring people together for a very catchy common good. (Note: As this article is being finalized, Kylie has announced the second single, “Tension” will be released on August 31, 2023.)