Wild and Unapologetic: Crafting a Commander Deck Inspired by Kesha's Animal

Atla Palani, Nest Tender by Ekaterina Burmak

Hello, readers!

This week, we're veering off the well-trodden path of my usual Commander deck techs to explore a crossover that's as wild, vibrant, and unapologetically fun as it gets. We're diving deep into the glitter-soaked, party-fueled world of Kesha's iconic album Animal and translating its infectious energy into the realm of EDH.

Animal isn't just an album, it's a declaration of self-expression, a celebration of life lived on your terms, and an invitation to unleash your inner wild child. Our mission? To build a Commander deck that captures the essence of Kesha's debut album, channeling its themes of empowerment, freedom, and chaotic joy into every card and every play.

Unleashing the Beast: Choosing the Commander

To embody the fierce spirit of Animal, we need a commander who can lead our deck with confidence, charisma, and a touch of unpredictability. Enter Atla Palani, Nest Tender, a Commander as wild and untamed as the album that inspired this deck.

Atla Palani is a 2/3 for that can create 0/1 green Egg creature tokens; when one of those Eggs dies, you reveal cards from the top of your library until you hit a creature card and put that creature directly onto the battlefield. This ability perfectly captures the album's theme of transformation and the wild surprises that life can throw at you. Just as each track on Animal reveals a new facet of Kesha's persona, each Egg cracked under Atla's watch unveils a new, powerful creature, ready to take the battlefield by storm.

Why Atla Palani? The answer lies in her unpredictability and the raw potential she brings to the game. Much like Kesha's music, Atla's strategy is all about embracing the unexpected and making the most of every wild turn of events. She represents the raw, untamed energy that courses through Animal, an energy that's equal parts fierce and fun. With Atla at the helm, every game becomes a party where anything can happen and every creature has the potential to be a showstopper.

Crafting the Vibe: Deck Themes and Strategy

To capture the spirit of Animal in an EDH deck, we'll focus on three main themes: unleashing the wild side, embracing chaos and fun, and glamourizing over-the-top style. Each of these themes reflects key elements of the album, ensuring that our deck plays as boldly and unapologetically as Kesha herself.

1. Unleashing the Wild Side

Animal is all about living your truth and embracing the wild, untamed aspects of your personality. To reflect this, our deck will feature powerful creatures and game-changing spells that hit the battlefield with explosive impact. A lot of cards in the deck capture the unstoppable, multiplying energy of Kesha's party anthems. Giant Adephage, for example, is a 7/7 trampler that creates a copy of itself whenever it deals combat damage to a player, much like the infectious beats of Animal that keep you coming back for more. Meanwhile, Mayael's Aria is an enchantment that rewards you for controlling creatures with power five or greater, echoing the themes of self-celebration and empowerment that run through tracks like "Tik Tok" and "Your Love Is My Drug." This card ensures that, as your creatures grow stronger, your board state becomes an unstoppable force, just like Kesha's rise to stardom.

2. Embracing Chaos and Fun

Kesha's music is known for its carefree, chaotic energy, and we're bringing that vibe straight into our deck. Warstorm Surge deals damage equal to a creature's power whenever it enters the battlefield, adding a layer of chaotic fun where every new arrival shakes things up in unexpected ways, while Rite of the Raging Storm creates a 5/1 red Elemental creature token for each player at the beginning of each upkeep. These Elementals must attack, ensuring that every turn is filled with aggressive, unpredictable action. This card mirrors the party spirit of Kesha's music, where the energy never fades, and the night is always young.

3. Glitter, Glam, and Over-the-Top Style

Kesha's style is bold, glittery, and unapologetically over-the-top. To bring that into our deck, we're including cards that have big, flashy effects, like Cathars' Crusade and Beastmaster Ascension. Cathars' Crusade adds a +1/+1 counter to each creature you control whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control, ensuring that your army grows stronger and more dazzling with every turn. Beastmaster Ascension, on the other hand, powers up your creatures once you've attacked with them seven times, reflecting the escalating excitement of a night out as depicted in Kesha's music.

Song References and Card Interpretations

To truly do justice to Animal, it's essential to tie specific cards to the album's most iconic tracks, capturing their themes and translating them into powerful plays on the battlefield.

1. "Tik Tok"
   Theme: Living in the moment, party vibes, carefree fun.
   Representative Card: Purphoros, God of the Forge
   Purphoros, God of the Forge embodies the nonstop, high-energy vibe of "Tik Tok." Every time a creature enters the battlefield, Purphoros deals damage to each opponent, turning the simple act of creature summoning into a full-blown party where everyone feels the heat. Just like Kesha waking up and seizing the day in "Tik Tok," this card ensures that every moment in the game is a blast.
2. "Your Love Is My Drug"
   Theme: Passion, love, and obsession.
   Representative Card: Dragonlord Atarka
   The overwhelming, larger-than-life feelings of "Your Love Is My Drug" are perfectly encapsulated by Atarka. This 8/8 flyer with trample deals 5 damage divided as you choose among any number of target creatures and/or planeswalkers when it enters the battlefield. The card's sheer power and impact mirror the intensity and passion that Kesha sings about, ensuring that when Dragonlord Atarka enters the battlefield, it makes a statement just as bold as the song itself.
3. "Take It Off"
   Theme: Letting go, embracing freedom, wild abandon.
   Representative Card: Hellkite Tyrant
   Hellkite Tyrant captures the rebellious, carefree attitude of "Take It Off." With its ability to steal all artifacts your opponents control when it deals combat damage to them, Hellkite Tyrant is all about throwing caution to the wind and taking what you want, much like the song's message of shedding inhibitions and embracing freedom. It's a card that embodies the wild, no-holds-barred spirit of the track, making it a perfect fit for this deck.
4. "Animal"
   Theme: Embracing your wild side, self-expression, freedom.
   Representative Card: Atla Palani, Nest TenderThere's no better representation of the title track than our very own Atla Palani. Atla's ability to turn Eggs into powerful creatures mirrors the idea of unlocking your true potential and embracing your wild side. Just as Kesha urges listeners to embrace their inner "animal," Atla Palani transforms humble Eggs into mighty beasts, showcasing the power of self-expression and the wild, untamed energy within us all.
5. "Blah Blah Blah"
   Theme: Cutting through the noise, focusing on what matters.
   Representative Card: Vandalblast
   Vandalblast is a spell that destroys all artifacts your opponents control, symbolizing the way "Blah Blah Blah" cuts through the nonsense and gets straight to the point. Just as Kesha dismisses superficial talk in the song, Vandalblast clears the board of clutter, leaving your opponents scrambling to rebuild while you stay focused on what really matters: winning. It's a card that captures the no-nonsense, take-charge attitude that's at the heart of this track.

Closing Thoughts

Bringing Animal to life as a Commander deck is more than just a fun exercise in creativity, it's a celebration of the wild, untamed spirit that Kesha's music inspires. From the explosive, unpredictable plays of Atla Palani to the bold, flashy effects of cards like Purphoros and Hellkite Tyrant, this deck is designed to capture the essence of Animal in every game. It's about more than just winning; it's about embracing the chaos, reveling in the moment, and playing with the same fearless energy that Kesha brings to her music.

So whether you're a longtime fan of Kesha or just someone who loves a deck that's as unpredictable as it is powerful, this Animal-themed Commander deck is sure to bring some glittering, chaotic fun to your next game night. Embrace your wild side, unleash the beast within, and remember: life's too short not to play with a little sparkle.