2025 is historic for Disney legends: Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, and Demi Lovato are all releasing albums in the same year. Meanwhile, Hilary Duff is teasing a return, making this feel like the ultimate full-circle moment for the Disney alums who defined 2000s pop culture.
Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco — I Said I Love You First (Released: Mar 21, 2025)
Selena returned to music alongside her fiancé Benny Blanco with the intimate I Said I Love You First, featuring Gracie Abrams, J Balvin, Finneas, and the Marías. The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 with 120,000 units—the biggest first week of both their careers—cementing Selena’s evolution into a narrative-driven pop artist rather than just a singles star.
Miley Cyrus — Something Beautiful (Released: May 30, 2025)
Shortly after, Miley released Something Beautiful, a visual concept album centered on healing and reinvention. The project echoed showgirl motifs from The Last Showgirl (for which Miley recorded the title track) and repositioned her as the experimental veteran pushing format and spectacle on a Beyoncé scale. The album debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200, marking Miley’s 15th U.S. top-10 album.
Demi Lovato — It’s Not That Deep (Upcoming: Oct 24, 2025)
Demi’s new project’s title hints at levity after her heavier, rock-leaning projects and years of public mental health battles. She has stated she doesn’t “feel like [she needs] to sing huge emotional ballads anymore,” describing the new record as “a perfect reflection of where I’m at today” and her official “Popvato era” — lighter, dance-pop and unapologetically fun. As the final early aughts Disney alum to release in 2025, she closes out the trifecta.
While Selena leaned more intimate and Miley went visual and conceptual, Demi now has space to deliver something lighter and more mainstream — potentially reshaping her role in this alum resurgence. Over the years, these Darlings have cycled through hardcore phases, R&B detours, bubblegum pop and full-blown pop-punk, but what makes this moment resonate is how both the artists and their audience have aged together: the angsty preteens who once blasted these songs in their bedrooms are now 30-somethings still invested in the evolution.
Hilary Duff — Hints of Return
Hilary has teased a comeback by signing with Atlantic Records, her first major label deal in nearly a decade. She’s also developing a docuseries with director Sam Wrench (Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish) to document her return.
A key piece: Hilary’s husband, Matthew Koma, is a well-established musician and producer. Beyond fronting indie-pop band Winnetka Bowling League, he co-wrote and performed vocals on Zedd’s Grammy-winning “Clarity,” co-wrote Zedd & Alessia Cara’s hit “Stay,” and worked on tracks for Carly Rae Jepsen, Shania Twain, Gwen Stefani, and Tiësto (“Wasted”). His track record suggests Hilary’s comeback could lean on pop credibility, not just nostalgia.
The Renaissance Completed
The Disney Darlings who once soundtracked middle school sleepovers and first heartbreaks are now delivering albums that speak to 30-somethings navigating reinvention, resilience and reclaimed joy. It’s a full-circle cycle—proof that the stars shaped by the Disney machine are still driving pop culture, this time on their own terms, with their original audience grown up and still listening.