ROSÉ’s “new trick” Turns Heartbreak Into a Victory Lap

The first thing that hit me listening to “new trick” was just how American pop-rock it feels.

Honestly, my immediate thought was Taylor Swift.

Not because I think ROSÉ is trying to imitate her, but there’s something about the production, the lyrics and the overall attitude of the song that sits in that same world. It has that big Western pop-star energy to it — except instead of sitting in the heartbreak, “new trick” feels like the moment where you finally decide you’re done letting it control you.

This isn’t really a sad song.

It’s the come-up after the sadness.

You’ve done the moping, you’ve sat with the feelings, and now you’re getting back up and remembering that there’s still a whole life waiting for you. That’s probably the part of the song I respect the most. It isn’t pretending the heartbreak never happened; it just refuses to stay trapped there.

The music video pushed that feeling even further for me. If I had to describe the whole thing in a few words, it’s American rock girl meets pop star. Everything about it feels like breaking down doors, refusing to be tied down and choosing yourself instead of carrying somebody else’s emotions around with you.

It feels more like a triumph song than a love song.

At the same time, I do think “new trick” loses a little bit of what normally makes a ROSÉ song feel distinctly like ROSÉ.

Her vocals are obviously still there, and she puts her own personality into the performance, but compared with some of her other songs about love and heartbreak, this one feels noticeably more Westernized. Those other tracks tend to have an emotional quality that immediately feels like her. Here, some of that gets traded for a much bigger, more familiar pop-rock sound.

That isn’t necessarily a bad thing — it just makes the song feel a little less personal to me.

And that’s probably why I’m in an interesting place with it. I think it’s a good song. I respect what it’s saying, I like the energy, and the message absolutely works.

But am I going to have “new trick” on repeat all week?

Probably not.

Sometimes appreciating a song and wanting to constantly listen to it aren’t the same thing. “new trick” may not be a go-to track for me personally, but I can absolutely appreciate the feeling ROSÉ is putting forward.

You don’t have to stay down in the dumps forever. There’s still plenty of fun waiting for you when you get back up.