Kim Petras is a groundbreaking experimental pop artist who has recently spoken out against her record label, Republic Records. The trendsetting star became the first openly trans artist to win a Grammy Award and has established herself in the pop music world with hits like “Unholy”, “Alone”, and “Freak It”. Despite her notoriety and critical acclaim, Republic Records has decided to withhold her latest EP from release on major streaming platforms.
The new Kim Petras EP is named Detour and features an electropop/EDM sound that Kim Petras is known for. While three singles from this project have been officially released, Detour, as a whole, remains shelved. This has frustrated Petras, who says she finished the EP in July 2025.
Over time, frustration from a lack of control grew, and in early January, Petras called out her record label in a series of posts, including a formal request to be dropped from the label. She said her departure stems from having “no control” over her life or career. Petras also stated that Republic Records did not support her project and had yet to pay any of the artists featured on Detour.
In retaliation, Kim Petras began funding the next steps for Detour on her own. On February 10th, 2026, Petras dropped the music video for “Pop Sound”, a song that Republic Records refused to be released. She funded the entire music video herself and promoted it solely through her social media platforms. Since its release, “Pop Sound” has been streamed over 700,000 times between the music video and SoundCloud.
Following the success of “Pop Sound”, support for Petras poured in through social media, which led her to announce the release dates for other songs on Detour. Kim shared with fans that a new song from Detour would be released each week for a month in an event she calls “Pretour”. Her latest track from the Pretour event is titled “Get Some” and features artist Cortisa Star, who shares Petras’ trans identity. While unsupported by her label, Pretour has proven to be quite popular amongst fans.
It has been nearly two months since Kim Petras’ initial post calling out Republic Records, and still, there are few answers regarding the future of Detour. While many fans were excited about the underground release of the new tracks, some of them seem doubtful about Petras’ future in music. Alongside news outlets, fans have begun questioning Republic Records’s involvement with the recently low levels of social engagement on Kim Petras’s social media pages. Fan comments alluding to Republic Records “shadow-banning” content from Kim Petras has garnered thousands of likes across social platforms.
While the reason for prolonging the release of Detour remains unclear, the situation has drawn attention from fans and fellow artists alike.
