Hilary Duff's New Single: This Is What Dreams Are Made Of

Hilary Duff’s Dignity was one of the best albums of the late 2000s and I will fight anyone who disagrees. Unfortunately, after giving us the Europop perfection we neither deserved nor appreciated (tragic!), Duff went quiet for almost eight years. But she’s releasing an album this year and her new single is fucking fantastic. Wait, am I allowed to say “fucking” in relation to Hilary Duff? Related: Do you think Hilary Duff will ever swear on an album? (Whoa, let’s all calm down here before we get carried away.)

While the full single won’t be available until April 7th, Duff’s giving fans a preview of “Sparks.” a song she recorded in Sweden in collaboration with Tove Lo, whose song “Habit” is fucking bomb. Time reports that Duff’s transitioning from a “folk-pop” sound to one “more appropriate for the club,” but I’d argue that she’s always been a club diva. Did you even listen to the Lizzie McGuire soundtrack, Time? Every one of the songs done by Hilary could have been played in the club! Also that one remix of “Come Clean” which is probably her best song. How many times have you cried while listening to it? Me: 2.

If it sounds like I’m a little amped up for this release, it’s because I am. Much like the devoted fans of Justin Bieber and One Direction, I’ve been loving Duff’s sound since her first album. In fact, when I was younger and less worried about my mortality I almost got into a fight with a teenager who referred to Duff as an Avril Lavigne wannabe. It was at the movies and the teen’s grandma had to hold her back. It’s true she would have probably won (every fight I’ve lost has ended me being beaten up by a girl) but the point is I am ready to defend Hilary Duff’s artistic vision with my health and, luckily for all of us, what’s out there of her new single is a delicious pop confection that would not be out of place on the dessert page of a The Cheesecake Factory menu.

The video included in the preview features scenes from Duff’s new TV Land show, Younger, and appears significantly less promising than her forthcoming album; but then Duff’s always been a better singer than an actress… or have you forgotten Beauty and the Briefcase?