For Demi Lovato, ‘It’s Not That Deep.’ Her new pop era, album and tour are reasons to celebrate

LOS ANGELES (AP) — On her ninth studio album, Demi Lovato has had a revelation: “It’s Not That Deep.”

It’s the title of her energetic dance-pop record, and a celebration of life’s joys and messiness — all of which appear across its 11 tracks.

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Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Demi Lovato performs at “One Night Only” on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

“I’ve put so much energy and so much love into this album,” Lovato told The Associated Press at rehearsals for a special One Night Only event at the Palladium in Los Angeles last week. “I just couldn’t be more excited.”

Next spring, she’ll tour the album, hitting 23 cities across North America. The “It’s Not That Deep” Tour kicks off April 8 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, and concludes May 25 at the Toyota Center in Houston.

Lovato will hit Orlando, Florida; Atlanta; Nashville; Washington, D.C,; Philadelphia; Toronto; Boston; New York; Columbus, Ohio; Detroit; Chicago; Minneapolis; Denver; Las Vegas; Anaheim, California; San Francisco; Seattle; Los Angeles; Glendale, Arizona; Dallas and Austin, Texas.

Artist presale begins Thursday at 10 a.m. local time. General sales begin Friday.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Lovato discussed her new album, her penchant for musical transformation and her forthcoming tour.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

LOVATO: I think it’s a bit of owning it. … I guess I didn’t realize that I’ve done iconic things. And if they are cringe to some people, they’re fun to me. … I think it’s, like, making peace with my past. … I’ve made peace with my journey and now I’m celebrating where I am at today.

For instance: The Poot meme, when it first happened, I didn’t realize it was photoshopped. I thought it was a bad angle of me. So, I like was really self-conscious about that meme and was like, “Oh my God, like, I can’t believe people are laughing at a bad angle of me,” and then I realized it was photoshopped and I was like “Wait, this is actually hilarious.” … Life is too short to take yourself too seriously, and I’m definitely not doing that anymore.

LOVATO: I think there’s something about your 30s, too, where you just take a second, and you are able to let go of some of the pressures that you once put on yourself, maybe in your 20s. And now I’m 33, and I’m not taking myself so seriously because I realize there’s room for everyone.

Creatively, what it unlocks for me is spontaneity and taking risks and having fun and cherishing the moments. … “Kiss,” for instance, it’s not the most intellectually stimulating song. It’s a simple party, fun song, and it’s sexy. And it’s like, that’s what it is. And I think so much of my past was, like, “I want to try and write, you know, deeply emotional songs about my past” and with this album, I was like, “I’m in a place where I’m having fun. I want my lyrics to reflect that, too.”

LOVATO: It was exactly what I was hoping for. There’s songs like “Sorry to Myself,” too, which is another party moment but has a really powerful message. And it also bridges the gap between my old music and my music today, lyrically, where it is a bit emotional.

LOVATO: I think what drives the transformations for me are literally what is inspiring me musically at the moment. And so, I’m a fan of all genres of music pretty much, for the most part. When I was in my rock era, I was listening to a lot of rock music that was inspiring me.

I went into this album thinking, “I’m gonna make an even harder rock album. I wanna go even more rock.” So, I started this process and I realized, I was like, “There’s only so many happy rock songs that you can write.” I’m in love, I’m feeling empowered, and I’m in this really great place, and I don’t know how to write rock songs that are, you know, all sunshine and rainbows. And there’s only so many of that that you can write. And so, I was like, “I need to switch up the genre.” So, I tried a couple of other genres, but what was really inspiring me was all the pop girlies and the pop artists that are out there today.

LOVATO: Well, first of all, I cried when I saw that 200,000 people wanted to come to my show at the Palladium. … That was a dream come true — that level of demand is so reassuring. … I can’t thank my fans enough, like, I wouldn’t be here in this place without them. And so, I am just so thankful. And that’s why I shed tears of joy that day. (It) was because I was like, “Wow, I’m really sure of this album and I’m sure of this era, but so many people are too and that’s really rewarding.” And I can’t wait to bring the show on the road.

AP Music Writer Maria Sherman contributed to this report from New York.

A previous version of this story featured a misquote. Lovato said “So, I tried a couple of other genres,” not “of their genres.”

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge in San Francisco on Tuesday indefinitely barred the Trump administration from firing federal employees during the government shutdown, saying that labor unions were likely to prevail on their claims that the cuts were arbitrary and politically motivated.

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston granted a preliminary injunction that bars the firings while a lawsuit challenging them plays out. She had previously issued a temporary restraining order against the job cuts that was set to expire Wednesday.

Illston, who was nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, has said she believes the evidence will ultimately show the mass firings were illegal and in excess of authority.

Federal agencies are enjoined from issuing layoff notices or acting on notices issued since the government shut down Oct. 1. Illston said that her order does not apply to notices sent before the shutdown.

The Republican administration has slashed jobs in education, health and other areas it says are favored by Democrats. The administration has also said it will not tap roughly $5 billion in contingency funds to keep benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as SNAP, flowing into November.

The American Federation of Government Employees and other labor unions have sued to stop the “reductions in force” layoffs, saying the firings were an abuse of power designed to punish workers and pressure Congress.

Lawyers for the government say the district court does not have the authority to hear personnel challenges, and that Trump has broad authority to reduce the federal workforce as he pledged to do during the campaign.

“The president was elected on this specific platform,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Velchik. “The American people selected someone known above all else for his eloquence in communicating to employees that you’re fired, this is what they voted for.”

Trump starred on a long-running reality TV series called “The Apprentice” in which his signature catchphrase was telling candidates they were fired.

About 4,100 layoff notices have gone out since Oct. 10, some sent to work email addresses that furloughed employees are not allowed to check. Some personnel were called back to work, without pay, to issue layoff notices to others.

Democratic lawmakers are demanding that any deal to reopen the federal government address expiring health care subsidies that have made health insurance more affordable for millions of Americans. They also want any government funding bill to reverse the Medicaid cuts in Trump’s big tax breaks and spending cuts bill passed this summer.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to negotiate with Democrats until they first agree to reopen the government.

This is now the second-longest shutdown in U.S. history.

The longest shutdown occurred during Trump’s first term over his demands for funds to build the U.S.-Mexico border wall. That one ended in 2019 after 35 days.