Better Mistakes

Better Mistakes is the second studio album by American singer Bebe Rexha, released on May 7, 2021, by Warner Records. It serves as the follow-up to her debut studio album, Expectations (2018) and contains guest features from Travis Barker, Ty Dolla Sign, Trevor Daniel, Lil Uzi Vert, Doja Cat, Pink Sweats, Lunay and Rick Ross. The album was preceded by the singles "Baby, I'm Jealous", "Sacrifice", and "Sabotage".

Better Mistakes
Studio album by Bebe Rexha
Released	May 7, 2021 (2021-05-07)
Recorded	May–October 2019
Genre	Pop
Length	36:00
Label	Warner
Producer	Burns Jussifer Jason Gill Greg Kurstin The Six
Bebe Rexha chronology
Expectations (2018) Better Mistakes (2021) Bebe (2023)
Singles from Better Mistakes
"Baby, I'm Jealous" Released: October 9, 2020 "Sacrifice" Released: March 5, 2021 "Sabotage" Released: April 16, 2021 "Break My Heart Myself" Released: July 29, 2022

Background

Bebe worked on the album and finished it before the COVID pandemic, with most of the recording taking place in the summer and fall of 2019. Rexha announced the parent album's title as Better Mistakes, along with its artwork and release date (May 7, 2021), on April 14, 2021,^[1][2] along with the announcement of the third single, "Sabotage".^[3] On April 15, she revealed the tracklist on her social media accounts. The album was available for pre-order on April 16, conceding with the release of "Sabotage".

Composition

Rexha described the album as a pop record with "a lot of hip-hop in it". She added that it's "not...dance music, but you can bop to it".^[4] The opening track, "Break My Heart Myself", which features Travis Barker, makes references to how Rexha lives with bipolar disorder.^[5]

Singles

On October 5, 2020, Bebe Rexha announced the lead single called "Baby, I'm Jealous", featuring Doja Cat, would be released on October 9.^[6][7][8] The song charted at number 58 on the US Billboard Hot 100. She released the follow-up single, "Sacrifice", on March 4, 2021.^[9] On April 14, Rexha announced the third single, "Sabotage", would be released on April 16, along with the album's pre-order. On April 28, Rexha announced the song "Die for a Man" featuring American rapper-singer-songwriter Lil Uzi Vert would be released as the promotional single off the album on April 30.^[10] She later gave a snippet of the song a day before the single's release.^[11]

A remix of "Break My Heart Myself" featuring Yeji and Ryujin of K-pop girl group Itzy was released as a single on July 29, 2022, following a viral dance performance of the original song by Yeji and Ryujin in June.^[12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[13]
Clash	7/10^[14]
Entertainment Weekly	B^[15]
The Forty-Five	^[16]
Spectrum Culture	65%^[17]
The Young Folks	8/10^[18]

Robin Murray from Clash called the album a "bulldozer 30 minute pop experience" that "affords Bebe Rexha space to amplify her potency while exposing her insecurities", further summarizing it as "13 songs that punch out their truths and then dissipate".^[14]

Commercial performance

Better Mistakes debuted at number 140 on the US Billboard 200 becoming Rexha's lowest charting album on the chart.^[19] In Canada, the album debuted at number 57 on the Billboard Canadian Albums.^[20]

Track listing

Better Mistakes track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Break My Heart Myself" (featuring Travis Barker)	Bleta Rexha Justin Tranter Jussi Karvinen Travis Barker	Jussifer Mike Elizondo Barker	2:31
2.	"Sabotage"	Rexha Michael Tighe Jon Hume Michael Matosic Greg Kurstin	Kurstin	2:56
3.	"Trust Fall"	Rexha Madison Love Sorana Păcurar Blake Slatkin	Slatkin Nick Mira Sam Wish	2:30
4.	"Better Mistakes"	Rexha Tranter Lisa Scinta Peter Rycroft Richard Boardman Pablo Bowman	Lostboy The Six	2:15
5.	"Sacrifice"	Rexha Bowman Rycroft Matthew Burns	Burns	2:40
6.	"My Dear Love" (featuring Ty Dolla Sign and Trevor Daniel)	Rexha Tyrone Griffin Trevor Neill Tranter Brian Lee Andrew Bolooki	Lee Bolooki	2:52
7.	"Die for a Man" (featuring Lil Uzi Vert)	Rexha Symere Woods Michelle Buzz Nick Mira Jason Gill	Mira Gill	2:47
8.	"Baby, I'm Jealous" (featuring Doja Cat)	Rexha Amala Dlamini Bowman Tranter Karvinen Gill	Jussifer Gill	2:55
9.	"On the Go" (featuring Pink Sweats and Lunay)	Rexha David Bowden Michael Keenan Jefnier Osorio Moreno	Keenan	2:59
10.	"Death Row"	Rexha Tranter Boardman Bowman	The Six	3:05
11.	"Empty"	Rexha Tranter Karvinen Boardman Bowman	Jussifer The Six	2:28
12.	"Amore" (featuring Rick Ross)	Rexha Michael Pollack William Roberts Nate Cyphert Alex Schwartz Joe Khajadourian Harry Warren Jack Brooks	The Futuristics	2:54
13.	"Mama"	Rexha Tranter Karvinen Lee Alexander Dexter-Jones Freddie Mercury	Jussifer Lee	3:08
Total length:				36:00

Notes

• "Amore" contains an interpolation of the 1953 song "That's Amore", written by Harry Warren and Jack Brooks.
• "Mama" contains an interpolation of the 1975 song "Bohemian Rhapsody", by the band Queen.

Personnel

Musicians

• Bebe Rexha – lead vocals
• Travis Barker – drums (1)
• Peter Rycroft – bass, drums, guitar, synthesizer programming (4)
• David Strääf – drum programming (4), guitar (4, 11), backing vocals, drums, synthesizer (10, 11); acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, programming, violin (10)
• Richard Boardman – drum programming, synthesizer (4, 11); keyboards (10)
• Burns – all instruments (5)
• Pablo Bowman – backing vocals (5), guitar (10)

Technical

• Colin Leonard – masterer
• Jaycen Joshua – mixer (1, 2, 6–9, 12, 13)
• Şerban Ghenea – mixer (3)
• Tom Norris – mixer (5)
• Mitch McCarthy – mixer (10)
• Greg Kurstin – recording engineer (2)
• Alex Pasco – recording engineer (2)
• Julian Burg – recording engineer (2)
• Burns – recording engineer (5)
• Devon Corey – vocal engineer (2)
• Jon Hume – vocal engineer (2)

Charts

Chart performance for Better Mistakes

Chart (2021)	Peak position
Canadian Albums (Billboard)^[21]	57
UK Album Downloads (OCC)^[22]	22
US Billboard 200^[23]	140

Release history

Release dates and formats for Better Mistakes

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	May 7, 2021	Digital download streaming	Warner	^[24]
	July 2, 2021	CD		^[25]
	December 31, 2021	LP		^[26]

References

1. @beberexha (April 14, 2021). "Better Mistakes - New Album May 7th". Retrieved May 30, 2021 – via Instagram.
2. Alvarado, Karen (April 14, 2021). "Bebe Rexha Announces Her Sophomore Album Better Mistakes". Celeb Secrets. from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
3. @beberexha (April 14, 2021). "One more surprise since it doesn't seem like you all can wait any longer for this one... #SABOTAGE out Friday!". Retrieved April 14, 2021 – via Instagram.
4. Nelson, Jeff (October 28, 2020). "Bebe Rexha Talks Overcoming Insecurities — and Teases New, Britney Spears-Inspired Music". People. from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
5. McCabe, Kathy (May 4, 2021). "Bebe Rexha shares her mental health battles on new record Better Mistakes". The Daily Telegraph. ProQuest 2521891143. from the original on August 8, 2022. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
6. @BebeRexha (October 5, 2020). "#BabyImJealous ft @dojacat out Friday, pre-save now http://beberexha.lnk.to/babyimjealous" (Tweet). Retrieved October 5, 2020 – via Twitter.
7. "Bebe Rexha Links With Doja Cat For "Baby, I'm Jealous"". Idolator. October 5, 2020. from the original on March 15, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
8. "Bebe Rexha announces new Doja Cat collaboration "Baby I'm Jealous"". The Line of Best Fit. from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
9. Tuesday (March 2, 2021). "Bebe Rexha to premiere video for new song "Sacrifice" Thursday on YouTube's 'RELEASED' - Music News - ABC News Radio". Abcnewsradioonline.com. from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
10. @beberexha (April 28, 2021). "DIE FOR A MAN ft. @liluzivert out this Friday ☠️". Retrieved April 28, 2021 – via Instagram.
11. "If you ever were to say goodbye..." Instagram. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
12. Benjamin, Jeff (July 29, 2022). "ITZY's Yeji & Ryujin Join Bebe Rexha on 'Break My Heart Myself' Remix After Viral K-Pop Performance". Billboard. from the original on July 29, 2022. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
13. Yeung, Neil Z. "Better Mistakes – Bebe Rexha | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. from the original on November 28, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
14. Murray, Robin (May 7, 2021). "Bebe Rexha – Better Mistakes". Clash. from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021. Bebe speaks her whole truth on a riveting, contradictory, and exhilarating pop album…
15. Greenblatt, Leah (May 7, 2021). "Bebe Rexha - Better Mistakes - Entertainment Weekly". Entertainment Weekly. from the original on November 28, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
16. French-Morris, Kate (May 7, 2021). "Bebe Rexha – 'Better Mistakes' review: pop's cross-pollinator continues her scrappy charm". The Forty-Five. from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
17. Davies, Jeffrey (May 9, 2021). "Bebe Rexha: Better Mistakes". Spectrum Culture. from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
18. Abbott, Noah (May 14, 2021). "Bebe Rexha - Better Mistakes - The Young Folks". The Young Folks. from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
19. Willman, Chris (May 17, 2021). "Bebe Rexha Addresses 'Upsetting' Album Debut, Plus More Chart Feats and Defeats". Variety. from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
20. "Bebe Rexha". Billboard. from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
21. "Bebe Rexha Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
22. "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
23. "Bebe Rexha Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
24. "Better Mistakes by Bebe Rexha on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
25. Physical releases for Better Mistakes:
    • "Bebe Rexha - Better Mistakes - Amazon.com Music". Amazon (US). from the original on May 29, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
    • "Better Mistakes by Bebe Rexha: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon (UK). from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
    • "Better Mistakes - Rexha, Bebe: Amazon.de: Musik". Amazon (DE). from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
    • "Better Mistakes: Bebe Rexha: Amazon.es: Música". Amazon (ES). from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
26. "Bebe Rexha – Better Mistakes – Vinyl LP". Rough Trade. from the original on August 8, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2022.