Breakout is the second studio album by American recording artist Miley Cyrus. The album was released on July 22, 2008 by Hollywood Records and is Cyrus’ first not affiliated with the Hannah Montana franchise. This, coupled by Cyrus’ fondness for the album’s first track, influenced the title of the album. Cyrus composed many of the songs on Breakout as she traveled on the Best of Both Worlds Tour (2007–08), co-writing eight of the album’s twelve songs; two are covers, and one is a remix. Most songs feature writing credits for Antonina Armato and Tim James. Overall, Breakout is dominant on pop rock but explores a variety of other musical genres. Lyrical themes addressed in the album relate to breakups and coming of age.

Breakout was met with generally favorable reception from critics, though some believed the tracks were not a big departure from the Hannah Montana franchise. The album encountered commercial success and introduced Cyrus in new countries. The album peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 for one week, Cyrus’ third album to do so, and was eventually certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Breakout has sold 1.5 million copies in the United States. Elsewhere, Breakout topped the Canadian Albums Chart for two consecutive weeks and the Australian Albums Chart for one week. The album also charted within the top ten in Italy, Japan, and New Zealand.

Three singles were released from Breakout. “7 Things” was released as the lead single from the album; it was commercially successful, reaching the top ten on charts in Australia, Japan, Norway, and the United States. It was followed by the Rock Mafia remix of “See You Again”, which was released in countries in which the original version was not. The remix expanded on the success of “See You Again” by appearing on charts in several countries. The third single, “Fly on the Wall” was the final single, though it did not duplicate the success of previous singles, reaching its highest peak at number sixteen in the UK Singles Chart. Cyrus performed songs from Breakout at numerous venues and embarked on her first world tour, the Wonder World Tour, to promote the album in late 2009.

Breakout

Cyrus is a singer-songwriter and actress who starred as Miley Stewart, a girl with a secret double life as the popstar Hannah Montana, on the Disney Channel television series Hannah Montana. Through the television series, Cyrus developed fame as a teen idol and released music while being credited to Hannah Montana. Cyrus’ debut studio album, titled Meet Miley Cyrus, was released as the second disc of the Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus (2007) double-disc album. Breakout is Cyrus’ second studio album and her first not be affiliated with the Hannah Montana franchise, which was intended to be reflected by the title of the album. She believed it was her “breakout record”, where she was going to “show everyone what Miley Cyrus is all about.” Cyrus further explained the album was also appropriately titled because it portrayed her “stepping away from Hannah but just a little bit different.” She also decided to title the album after the song “Breakout” because it was “one of [her] favorite songs”.

Cyrus believed that compared to previous albums, Breakout was “grown-up” and “just a little more creative.” Cyrus aimed to incorporate a sound influenced by rock music, saying “the writing is definitely different…the lyrics mean more than my last couple of records”. According to Cyrus, the album documented, in depth, the events that occurred in her life in a year span. Most of the songs were written as Cyrus traveled on the Best of Both Worlds Tour from October 2007 to January 2008. She expressed that, through each song, a listener could discover something about her and about themselves. Of connecting with her fans through Breakout, she claimed she wanted “girls to feel to be able to feel empowered and just feel like they can kind of rock out”, going on to say that, “listening to this music, I hope they can feel like a reason to dance and just smile and to have fun. This CD is totally age appropriate, specially for me”.

Development

“Breakout” was written by Ted Bruner, in collaboration with Trey Vittetoe and Gina Schock of the Go-Go’s. It was first recorded by American pop singer Katy Perry, for her second album One of the Boys (2008), though it was never included for the album and was passed to Cyrus, on whose version Perry sings backing vocals. Like most songs on Breakout, Cyrus wrote “7 Things” while traveling on the Best of Both Worlds Tour, reflecting on her numerous emotions about an ex-boyfriend. She claimed her use of the word “hate” demonstrated how furious she was, at the time. Originally, “7 Things” was more “soft and nice” but Cyrus says she “went nuts” during the recording process and gave the song a harder sound. She recorded a cover version of Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” from the album She’s So Unusual (1983). Cyrus desired the cover to be completely different to discern it from other covers of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” she heard. She described the process as “almost [having] to relearn the song.” About the finished product, Cyrus said, “When you listen to the song, it’s, like, you’re not even sure what it is. It’s something completely new.”

“Full Circle” was co-written by Cyrus, Scott Cutler, and Anne Preven about Cyrus’ relationship with Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers. “It’s about two people. They’re always gonna come back together no matter what anyone says, the bad people that try to keep you apart”, Cyrus said of the song’s concept. “Fly on the Wall” was written by Cyrus with the aid of Armato, James, and Devrim Karaoglu. “Fly on the Wall” was intended for the media, regarding “how they think they know everything about [her], when they don’t. They want to be a fly on my wall and watch [her] 24/7.” Cyrus explained it was about attempting to avoid paparazzis but they appeared, “not going away like little annoying flies.” Cyrus, Armato, James, Aaron Dudley co-wrote “Wake Up America”, a track about environmentalism. The song was directed towards “the people in the back seat”, children of today’s generation; she said that, in the future, they would be the ones “driving [the] Earth to what it’s gonna be.” “It’s the only one you got, so you gotta take care of it. And if you don’t, there’s gonna be, maybe not for you, right then, and your generation but your kids and their kids … Every generation has a cycle that’ll carry on for the rest of eternity”, she concluded.

Cyrus recorded a cover of Cheyenne Kimball’s “Four Walls” from the album The Day Has Come (2006) for Breakout, titled “These Four Walls”. The twelfth and final track is a remixed version of the hit “See You Again”, referred to as the Rock Mafia Remix and the 2008 Remix; “See You Again” was originally released on the Meet Miley Cyrus disc of Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus.

Musical Structure and Composition

Overall, Breakout is dominant on pop rock but explores a variety of other musical genres. The opening track, “Breakout”, is a dance-pop number that begins with a fast beat, composed of chiming electric guitar and drums and later progresses to “the snares skip and the keyboards shimmer”; “ecstatic beats” pummel throughout. The song’s lyrics are “a girls-only call to fun” that anecdote on feelings about coming of age and the desire to be school-free. The uptempo refrains of “7 Things” are pop punk influenced. The song is “a three-tempo patchwork quilt”, transitioning “from sensitive breakup song in the strummy verses to punky-pop kiss-off in the double-time choruses.” “7 Things”‘ lyrics list seven traits Cyrus hates about an ex-boyfriend. “The Driveway” is a power ballad whose lyrics regard a breakup, insisting “nothing hurts like losing when you know it’s really gone.” The cover of Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” replaces the subtle reggae undercurrent in the original version with a more rock music driven sound that includes pop punk beats and string stabs. The lyrics of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” primarily discuss the “desire to let loose with one’s friends”, touching upon details of the life of an overworked child star. The song “Full Circle” is composed of a several pop rock hooks; in one of the hooks, Cyrus finishes various words with “Oh, oh, oh!”. The lyrics describe not quitting a relationship.

“Fly on the Wall” is prominently an electropop song that is also compromised of a number of hooks, which yell the song’s title, while the instrumentation relies on electric guitars. Unlike other songs on Breakout, “Fly on the Wall” has Cyrus’ voice processed to sound different. The song’s lyrics taunt “the listener for being on the outside of her inner sanctum.” The target of the message has been interpreted differently by contemporary critics — an ex-boyfriend and the media have most commonly been referred to. “Bottom of the Ocean” is a contemporary ballad that contains a sound reflecting influences from minimalist music. The backdrop for the “feel-bad” love song features ocean wave sounds. The track “Wake Up America” has a “cheeky riff-rock backdrop” as its while its lyrical content concerns environmentalism, where Cyrus mainly pleads for audiences to give the Earth “just a little attention”. In the first verse, she “admits that she doesn’t know exactly what’s up with this global warming but believes there’s something we should all do about it”. “These Four Walls” is a power ballad accented with country pop elements and twangy vocals and lyrics which speak of an interior narrative. “Simple Song” has “bile” sound and is lyrically about moments in coming of age where a person “can’t tell which way is up, which way is down” and they feel the need to alienate themselves. In “Goodbye”, Cyrus’ vocal performance is more “roosty” with a more “natural-sounding accompaniment” while, in the lyrics, she finds her remembering the “simple things … until [she cries].” “See You Again” (Rock Mafia Remix) is dance-pop number, fusing sultry vocals with techno beats. The track has Cyrus detailing previous scenes and plans to redeem herself.

Critical Reception

Breakout received generally positive reviews, earning a collective score of 66 out of 100 on Metacritic. Heather Phares of Allmusic commented that Breakout’s title expresses its “purpose nicely” though the music was not drastically different than Hannah Montana’s, adding, “only a handful of songs truly break out from the Montana mold”. Though not being impressed by “nothing [being] left to chance”, she concluded, “Even if these songs are derivative of much more established pop divas [Avril Lavigne and Britney Spears], they provide clues to the kind of company Cyrus aims to keep. And while Breakout isn’t as much of a breakthrough as it could be, it still moves Miley closer to an identity and career outside of Hannah.” Kerri Mason of Billboard wrote, “While it’s still age-appropriate for minors, Breakout is for the big kids too” and complimented Cyrus for being a “natural-born popstar.” Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe felt Cyrus mostly succeeded while “trying to please most of the people most of the time” on Breakout. She summarized, “With Breakout, Cyrus has clearly made a choice to break from the shiny, happy ‘Hannah Montana’ character, but she hasn’t scuffed her sound up so much that her fans won’t recognize that she’s just being Miley.” Chris William of Entertainment Weekly graded the album a B and noted that the first half of the album was “fun” but the second half became “overly ballad-heavy,” assuming that was the more mature side of Cyrus she had promised. Miakel Wood of the Los Angeles Times stated, “In that respect, Breakout is unlikely fodder for the razzle-dazzle road shows and 3-D concert films to come. As a portrait of the artist as a young malcontent, though, it’s rarely less than fascinating.”

Ben Ratliff of The New York Times said Cyrus’ attempt to leave Hannah Montana was weak, only being driven by “more gray thoughts”. Ratliff continued, “She eases up on songs with total-affirmation chants about being the captain of her ship … The lyrics are half-terrible — almost too realistic as teenage thoughts — but the best of them transmit the desired message … It’s a lackluster album, floated by two or three strong singles.” Josh Timmermann of PopMatters believed Breakout was “a just-okay teenpop record with audible suggestions of said singer-songwriter aspirations. To be sure, it’s a stronger collection of songs than Moms and Dads with upturned noses … would probably expect.” Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine rated the album two and half stars out of five, being disappointed and deeming the songs not to be a “worthy follow-up” to “See You Again”. Cinquemani finished, “For teen-pop, your kid could do worse. You know, like Avril [Lavigne]“. Mordechai Shinefield of The Village Voice wrote, “If her lyrical prowess hasn’t caught up to her voice yet, that should only hold promise of things to come. She’s a rare talent; now she only has to survive until adulthood.” Ash Dosanjh of Yahoo! Music gave Breakout seven stars out of ten and referred to Cyrus, in Breakout, as the ideal of the American Dream: “a combination of hard work, good Christian living and un-smutty pop”.

Chart Performance

On the week ending August 8, 2008, Breakout debuted and peaked at number-one on the Billboard 200, thus earning Cyrus a third number-one album on the Billboard 200 – including albums fully credited to Hannah Montana; the album sold a 371,000 copies in its debut week, becoming the fourth-highest sales week of 2008 for a female artist. The following week, Breakout descended to number two, selling 163,000 copies. The album spent a total of forty-eight weeks on the Billboard 200. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments exceeding one million copies. According Nielsen SoundScan, the album has sold 1.5 million copies since its release. Due to sales of 27,000 copies, Breakout entered at number-one on the Canadian Albums Chart on the week ending August 8, 2008, maintaining the top spot for two consecutive weeks.

On the week ending September 14, 2008, the album entered the Australian Albums Chart at number two. In the succeeding week, it moved to number-one, where it only stayed for a week. Breakout was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipments exceeding 35,000 copies. Breakout debuted at number four on the New Zealand Albums Chart on the week ending September 8, 2008. On the week ending October 13, 2008, the album reached its peak at number two on the New Zealand Albums Chart, a position it maintained for two consecutive weeks. Breakout was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) for the shipment of more than 15,000 copies. In Japan, it peaked at number ten.

On the week ending September 13, 2008, the album entered and peaked at number ten on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Cyrus’ first top ten album in the country. It was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for the shipment of 300,000 copies. In Ireland, Breakout peaked at number eleven and was certified platinum by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) for shipments exceeding 15,000 copies. In mainland Europe, Breakout peaked at number twenty-eight on the European Top 100 Albums Chart, number twelve on the Austrian Albums Chart, number six on the Italian Albums Chart, and number sixteen on the German Albums Chart. On the week ending September 21, 2008, the album debuted at number twenty-six on the Spanish Albums Chart and, after twenty-six weeks of ascending and descending the chart, it reached its peak at number seven. The album was certified gold by the Productores de Música de España (PROMUSICAE) for the shipment of more than 30,000 copies. Breakout experienced similar commercial outcomes throughout the rest of Europe; it charted within the top twenty on charts in Finland, Norway, and Poland.

Singles

“7 Things” was released on June 17, 2008 as the lead single from Breakout, through digital distribution. Following the song’s release, allegations sparked that it was about Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers, which Cyrus neither confirmed nor denied. It received mixed reviews from contemporary critics, several of which compared Cyrus to Avril Lavigne. “7 Things” enjoyed worldwide commercial success, becoming a top ten hit on charts in Australia, Japan, Norway, and the United States. The single was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). The song’s accompanying music video was directed by Brett Ratner and features Cyrus performing the song with a back-up band as many teenage girls lipsync along.

“See You Again” (Rock Mafia Remix) was released August 11, 2008 as the second single from Breakout; it was only released in countries where the original version was not. The remix was received well by critics for properly combining vocals and music. The remix expanded the success of “See You Again”, appearing on charts in Austria, Belgium (Flanders), Germany, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. “See You Again” (Rock Mafia Remix) was given a promotional music video, taken from a performance at the 2008 Disney Channel Games.

“Fly on the Wall” was released on February 16, 2009 as the third and final single from the album. “Fly on the Wall” received critical praise; several critics claiming it defied teen pop expectations and was Breakout’s best track. However, the song failed to match success of “7 Things”, reaching its highest peak at number sixteen on the UK Singles Chart. Its music video was directed by Philip Andelman. Inspired by Michael Jackson’s Thriller, the video depicts Cyrus attempting to escape the paparazzi, as they follow her in a parking garage.

Promotion

Cyrus first performed songs from Breakout, “Breakout”, “Fly on the Wall”, and “See You Again” (Rock Mafia Remix), at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Disney Channel Games on May 4, 2008. Her first live performance of “7 Things” took place on May 17, 2008 at the 2008 Zootopia, an annual summer concert put on by radio station Z100. Later that summer, she promoted Breakout at outdoor concerts hosed by Good Morning America and The Today Show, while hosting the 2008 Teen Choice Awards, and at FNMTV. Cyrus began promotion for Breakout in Europe in fall 2008, performing the track on the United Kingdom channel GMTV, the French television show Le Grand Journal, and the British singing competition The X Factor among other venues. Cyrus performed several songs from album on April 24, 2009 in a London Apple Store. These performances were recorded and sold exclusively by the United Kingdom iTunes Store as a live extended play (EP) titled iTunes Live from London.

Cyrus embarked on her second concert tour, the Wonder World Tour, to promote Breakout and the EP The Time of Our Lives. The tour was Cyrus’ first to not have her costumed as Hannah Montana and was announced in June 2009, with dates revealed for American venues. Dates for venues in the United Kingdom were later announced. In to order to avoid the extensive scalping that occurred during the Best of Both Worlds Tour, all tickets were sold exclusively through paperless ticket delivery, which would require audiences to bring identification to gain entry into the concert. The tour expanded from September to December 2009.

Track Listing

1.”Breakout”
Written by: Ted Bruner, Trey Vittetoe, Gina Schock
Produced by: Scott Cutler, Anne Preven
Length: 3:25

2.”7 Things”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Antonina Armato, Tim James
Produced by: John Fields
Length: 3:34

3.”The Driveway”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Scott Cutler, Anne Preven
Produced by: Cutler, Preven
Length: 3:42

4.”Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”
Written by: Robert Hazard
Produced by: Matthew Wilder
Length: 3:07

5.”Full Circle”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Cutler, Preven
Produced by: Cutler, Preven
Length: 3:15

6.”Fly On The Wall”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James, Devrim Karaoglu
Produced by: Antonina Armato, Tim James
Length: 2:32

7.”Buttom Of The Ocean”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James
Produced by: Armato, James
Length: 3:15

8.”Wake Up America”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James, Aaron Dudley
Produced by: Armato, James
Length: 2:45

9.”These Four Walls”
Written by: Cutler, Preven, Cheyenne Kimball
Produced by: Cutler, Preven
Length: 3:26

10.”Simple Song”
Written by: Jeffrey Steele, Jesse Littleton
Produced by: Armato, James
Length: 3:33

11.”Goodbye”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James
Produced by: Armato, James
Length: 3:53

12.”See You Again” (Rock Mafia Remix)
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James
Produced by: Armato, James
Length: 3:17

Platinum Bonus edition track listing

13. “Hovering” (featuring Trace Cyrus)
Written by: Armato, James
Length: 2:29

14. “Someday”
Written by: Miley Cyrus, Armato, James, Karaoglu
Length: 3:03

Platinum Edition DVD track listing

1. “7 Things” (Music Video)
Length: 3:39

2. “Making of 7 Things”
Length: 2:31

3. “7 Things”
Live at Clear Channel Stripped
Length: 3:34

4. “The Driveway”
Live at Clear Channel Stripped
Length: 3:49

5. “Simple Song”
Live at Clear Channel Stripped
Length: 3:46

6. “See You Again”
Live at Clear Channel Stripped
Length: 3:31

7. “Breakout”
Live at 2008 Disney Channel Games
Length: 3:13

8. “Fly On The Wall”
Live at 2008 Disney Channel Games
Length: 2:42

9. “See You Again”
Live at 2008 Disney Channel Games
Length: 3:25

10. “Miley, Music & More”
Length: 3:01

Charts and Certifications

Charts (2008): U.S. Billboard 200
Peak Position: 1
Sales: 371,000
Certification: Platinum

Charts (2008): U.K. Albums Chart
Peak Position: 10
Sales: 300,000
Certification: Platinum

Charts (2008): Canadian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 1
Sales: 27,000
Certification: -

Charts (2008): European Top 100 Albums
Peak Position: 28
Sales: 30,000
Certification: Gold

Charts (2008): Argentinean Albums Chart
Peak Position: 19
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Australian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 1
Sales: 35,000
Certification: Platinum

Charts (2008): Austrian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 12
Sales: -
Certification: Gold

Charts (2008): Belgian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 17
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Czech Albums Chart
Peak Position: 32
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Danish Albums Chart
Peak Position: 27
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Finnish Albums Chart
Peak Position: 17
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): French Albums Chart
Peak Position: 30
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): German Albums Chart
Peak Position: 24
Sales: -
Certification: Gold

Charts (2008): Hungarian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 7
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Irish Albums Chart
Peak Position: 11
Sales: 15,000
Certification: Platinum

Charts (2008): Italian Albums Chart
Peak Position: 6
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Japanese Albums Chart
Peak Position: 10
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Mexican Albums Chart
Peak Position: 23
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): New Zealand Albums Chart
Peak Position: 2
Sales: 15,000
Certification: Platinum

Charts (2008): Norway Albums Chart
Peak Position: 15
Sales: -
Certification: -

Charts (2008): Polish Albums Chart
Peak Position: 15
Sales: -
Certification: Gold

Charts (2008): Spanish Albums Chart
Peak Position: 7
Sales: 30,000
Certification: Gold

Charts (2008): Swiss Albums Chart
Peak Position: 25
Sales: -
Certification: -