anohni and the johnsons tour uk

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ANOHNI announces first shows with The Johnsons since 2010

The summer run includes two nights at the Barbican in London

ANOHNI has announced her first shows with The Johnsons in 14 years – find all the details below.

• READ MORE: Anohni – ‘My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross’ review: a sublime soul reinvention

Following the release of 2023 album ‘ My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross ’ – her first in seven years – the artist will be reuniting with The Johnsons for a concert series in the UK and Europe which will include two nights in London.

The first show will take place on June 13 at Epidaurus Festival Herodion in Athens, followed by dates in Madrid, Paris, Berlin and more.

On July 1 and 2, she’ll stop at the Barbican for consecutive shows and finish up with another two at DR Koncerthaus in Copenhagen on July 12 and 13.

General sale tickets will be available from 10am GMT on Friday (March 1). Alternatively, fans can sign up to pre-sale via ANOHNI’s website to purchase tickets from 9am GMT Wednesday (February 28).

ANOHNI will be joined by a nine-piece band including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston (violin), Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer).

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The shows will see her draw from new material as well as songs from across her back catalogue. The statement that has driven her new work is: “It’s Time to Feel What’s Really Happening.”

ANOHNI and the Johnsons’ 2024 UK and European dates are:

JUNE 13 – Athens, Epidaurus Festival Herodion 15 – Ravenna Festival, Pala de André 18 – Madrid, Noche del Botanico 20 – San Sebastián, Kursaal Auditorium 26 – Paris, Philharmonie 27 – Paris, Philharmonie

JULY 1 – London, Barbican 2 – London, Barbican 6 – Gent Jazz Festival 9 – Berlin, Citadel del Music Festival 12 – Copenhagen, DR Koncerthaus 13 – Copenhagen, DR Koncerthaus

Reviewing ‘My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross’ last year, NME  awarded the album four stars and described it as a “sublime soul reinvention”.

It added that the music was “warm, inviting and tender can still be vital and engaged; that beauty, hope, rage, disillusion, dejection, sorrow and joy can not only co-exist, but thrive in one another’s company”.

Before that, ANOHNI  and  The National ’s Bryce Dessner collaborated on a new string arrangement of the former’s song ‘Another World’ in 2021.

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Anohni And The Johnsons

London barbican, united kingdom.

The singer and songwriter gets back together with her band The Johnsons after a decade break to play material from across her catalogue under the title “It’s Time To Feel What’s Really Happening”. London Barbican Centre, 1–2nd July, 7:30pm, £90–£40.

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ANOHNI and the Johnsons

Mon 01 Jul 2024 & Tue 02 Jul 2024

For the first time in a decade, ANOHNI presents a series of concerts with the Johnsons, joined by a nine musicians including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston (violin), Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist),Gael Rakotondrabe (piano), Leo Abrahams (guitarist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer). Responding to a time of upheaval, ANOHNI issues a challenge: “It’s Time to Feel What's Really Happening.” 

Born in the UK and raised in Amsterdam and California, ANOHNI relocated to NYC in her late teens, forming her group the Johnsons in 1998 and establishing a unique path as an artist with a focus on animist and eco-feminist themes. ANOHNI's musical journey has spanned genres - from electronic experimental to avant-classical, dance, and soul. Achieving breakthrough success in 2005 with I Am a Bird Now (2005), she garnered the UK’s Mercury Award. Releases since include The Crying Ligh t (2009), Swanlights (2010), and live albums Cut The World (2012) and TURNING (2014). In 2016, she released the sharply political electronic album HOPELESSNESS , produced by Hudson Mohawke and Daniel Lopatin, noted as one of the year’s top ten albums by the NY Times. That same year, she was nominated for an Academy Award (best song) for the environmentalist elegy, Manta Ray, featured in the film Racing Extinction (dir. Louie Psihoyos, 2015). 

ANOHNI's sixth studio album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross (2023), continues to examine societal structures, spirituality, and our relationships with the biosphere. The record was named album of the year by The New Yorker.  Politiken awarded it five hearts and called it "a delicate flame ignited by the soul music of the past," while GAFFA characterized it as "an otherworldly experience." 

The artist reaches for courage, resilience, and ceremony in the face of an unprecedented contemporary landscape, and emphasizes, "For me, there’s no heavenly respite; Creation is a spectral and feminine continuum, and we remain an inalienable part of Nature."

Subscribe to Anohni’s newsletter to hear more

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The voice and charisma familiar to fans of her work with Antony and the Johnsons. Hopelessness juxtaposes dance beats with political lyrics that touch more...

• Mon Jul 01 Jul 02 Tue London, Barbican Centre Anohni and the Johnsons View Tickets

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Live reviews.

Having seen Anohni's latest performance twice, both in Sydney and Paris, I'm loathe to report that the show leaves you hoping it had been much more than it really was.

An enormous screen sets the stage as close-up shots of various women lip-sync along with Anohni as she belts out tunes from her latest album, Hopelessness. The singer herself is shrouded in a floor-length cloak complete with full arm gloves and a sheer black hood. The desire to be shrouded from the audience is an understandable one but it nonetheless acts as an insurmountable barrier between the performer and the audience.

Further to this disconnect, Anohni's playlist seems so rigid that no time is left for any interaction with the audience. Again, this desire to be separated from the audience is understandable but the total absence of hellos or thankyous or any interaction at all left this viewer a little cold.

The sound too was substandard with far too much bass being blasted at the audience to the point where much of the intricacies of the music were drowned out. In 4 degrees, the urgency of the music was lost in overlapping waves of bass-heavy drone music, diluting the song to little more than a powerful voice sung over ambient noise.

However, Anohni's vocal performance was outstanding. The power was real and resonant while her trademark trembling vibrato betrayed the emotion heard on her albums, particularly her earliest, from which we heard nothing throughout the show.

Hopelessness is a strong concept album but perhaps the stage performance in all its light-art centric gloom needed a little human connection to help guide the audience as it waded through the murky soundscapes led by a mere silhouette of a performer.

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I really not enjoyed the concert. Maybe because of his last album title hopelessness, the atmosphere was not good in the room. Anohni's performance was also really disappointing, we couldn't see his face, no interaction with the public, etc...

Não recomendo. Ele fica o show todo com uma máscara no rosto e não dá pra saber se ele está cantando ao vivo ou é PlayBook. Show curto e sem emoção.

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ANOHNI is not due to play near your location currently - but they are scheduled to play 13 concerts across 8 countries in 2024-2025. View all concerts.

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ANOHNI and The Johnsons

For the first time in a decade, ANOHNI presents a concert with the Johnsons on July 12th and 13th at the Concert Hall of DR Koncerthuset during the Copenhagen Jazz Festival 2024. ANOHNI will be joined by a nine piece band including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston (violin), Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist), Leo Abrahams (guitarist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer). Responding to a time of upheaval, ANOHNI issues a challenge: “It’s Time to Feel What's Really Happening.” Born in the UK and raised in Amsterdam and California, ANOHNI relocated to NYC in her late teens, forming her group The Johnsons in 1998 and establishing a unique path as an artist with a focus on animist and eco-feminist themes. ANOHNI's musical journey has spanned genres - from electronic experimental to avant-classical, dance, and soul. Achieving breakthrough success in 2005 with I Am a Bird Now (2005), she garnered the UK’s Mercury Award. Releases since include The Crying Light (20...

For the first time in a decade, ANOHNI presents a concert with the Johnsons on July 12th and 13th at the Concert Hall of DR Koncerthuset during the Copenhagen Jazz Festival 2024. ANOHNI will be joined by a nine piece band including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston (violin), Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist), Leo Abrahams (guitarist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer). Responding to a time of upheaval, ANOHNI issues a challenge: “It’s Time to Feel What's Really Happening.” Born in the UK and raised in Amsterdam and California, ANOHNI relocated to NYC in her late teens, forming her group The Johnsons in 1998 and establishing a unique path as an artist with a focus on animist and eco-feminist themes. ANOHNI's musical journey has spanned genres - from electronic experimental to avant-classical, dance, and soul. Achieving breakthrough success in 2005 with I Am a Bird Now (2005), she garnered the UK’s Mercury Award. Releases since include The Crying Light (2009), Swanlights (2010), and live albums Cut The World (2012) and TURNING (2014). In 2016, she released the sharply political electronic album HOPELESSNESS, produced by Hudson Mohawke and Daniel Lopatin, noted as one of the year’s top ten albums by the NY Times. That same year, she was nominated for an Academy Award (best song) for the environmentalist elegy, Manta Ray, featured in the film Racing Extinction (dir. Louie Psihoyos, 2015). ANOHNI's sixth studio album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross (2023), continues to examine societal structures, spirituality, and our relationships with the biosphere. The record was named album of the year by The New Yorker. Politiken awarded it five hearts and called it "a delicate flame ignited by the soul music of the past," while GAFFA characterized it as "an otherworldly experience." The artist reaches for courage, resilience, and ceremony in the face of an unprecedented contemporary landscape, and emphasizes, "For me, there’s no heavenly respite; Creation is a spectral and feminine continuum, and we remain an inalienable part of Nature." ANOHNI has an enduring relationship with Denmark. In 2018, she presented a solo exhibition featuring drawings, paintings, and video installation at Nikolaj Kunsthal in Copenhagen. ANOHNI was artist-in-residence for European Capital of Culture Aarhus 2017, where she performed with the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra, and staged the exhibition “Future Feminism”. ANOHNI has presented concerts at Falkoner Hall, NorthSide, and at the Concert Hall of DR Koncerthuset, where she recorded a live album ("Cut the World") with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra. The beautiful concert cathedral of DR Koncerthuset will be the setting in which ANOHNI and the Johnsons perform for the Copenhagen Jazz Festival on two consecutive evenings, July 12th and 13th, 2024....

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Anohni and the Johnsons: My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross review – piercing heartache

(Rough Trade) Recorded at speed, Anohni’s first album since 2016 adds a soulful swagger to poetic, cathartic rock

O n her first album since 2016’s hollowed out electronic lament, Hopelessness , and the first using the “and the Johnsons” moniker in more than a decade, Anohni continues to soundtrack oppression, loss and alienation with heart-aching precision. The presentation has shifted, however: made with British producer Jimmy Hogarth (Duffy, Amy Winehouse), songs such as lead single It Must Change and Can’t add a soulful swagger to often brutally direct lyrics contemplating forgiveness for abuse and the sudden loss of a friend (“I don’t want you to be dead”), respectively.

Loss also permeates the incandescent ballad Sliver of Ice, which poetically traces the final moments of mentor Lou Reed’s life, Anohni’s multi-octave voice dancing round a searching guitar figure. While in the past, piano and orchestral flourishes augmented shifts in emotion, here cathartic rock excess anchors the winding Rest and the gut-punch of Scapegoat, while Why Am I Alive Now?’s paean to a dying world is something approaching light-footed pastoral folk.

Recorded quickly, with most of the 10 songs featuring Anohni’s original vocal takes, it’s an album that manages to wear its heaviness lightly and quickly buries its way under your skin.

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ANOHNI and the Johnsons

“ANOHNI:  It’s Time To Feel What's Really Happening" For the first time in a decade, ANOHNI presents a concert with the Johnsons. Drawing from her new album My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross as well as songs from throughout her catalogue, ANOHNI issues a challenge to herself and to the world to Feel What's Really Happening.

Over two nights at the Philharmonie de Paris, ANOHNI will be joined by a 9 piece band including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston, Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer).

With music embracing a time of change and upheaval, ANOHNI issues a challenge to herself and to the world to Feel What's Really Happening.

Born in the UK and raised in Amsterdam and California, ANOHNI relocated to NYC in her late teens, forming her group in 1998 and establishing a unique path in music with a focus on animist and eco-feminist themes. ANOHNI's musical journey has spanned genres - from electronic experimental to avant-classical, dance, and soul. Achieving breakthrough success in 2005 with I Am a Bird Now (2005), she garnered the UK Mercury Music Prize. Notable releases since include The Crying Light (2009), Swanlights (2010), and live albums Cut The World (2012) and TURNING (2014). In 2016, she released the sharply political experimental electronic album HOPELESSNESS , produced by Hudson Mohawke and Daniel Lopatin. The same year, she received an Academy Award nomination for the environmentalist elegy, Manta Ray, featured in the film Racing Extinction (dir. Louie Psihoyos, 2015).

ANOHNI's sixth studio album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross (2023), continues to model and encourage transformation in our ways of thinking about spirituality, societal structures, and our relationships with the biosphere. The record was named album of the year by The New Yorker.  The artist reaches for courage, expression, resilience, and ceremony in the face of an unprecedented contemporary landscape, and emphasizes, “For me, there’s no heavenly respite; Creation is a spectral and feminine continuum, and we remain an inalienable part of Nature.”

To stay up to date with the latest news from ANOHNI and the Johnsons and to follow their tour:  ANOHNI.COM

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Breaking Down Anohni And The Johnsons' 13-Year Journey To 'My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross'

After a series of stupendously moving albums in the 2000s, Antony and the Johnsons are back as ANOHNI and the Johnsons. Here's what ANOHNI has been up to during the 13-year break.

Antony and the Johnsons are no more: long live ANOHNI and the Johnsons.

From their 2000 self-titled indie debut to three albums on Secretly Canadian, the chamber-pop ensemble — led by the mononymous singer — has plumbed themes of gender transition, ecological collapse and much more to emotionally throttling effect.

Together, these albums built a universe — with Candy Darling, Lou Reed , Japanese butoh dancer Kazuo Ohno, and many more tortured, hopeful, unforgettable characters as its denizens. (If you haven't heard 2005's I Am a Bird Now and 2009's The Crying Light in particular, ameliorate this immediately — and brace yourself.)

After 2010's lower-key but still satisfying Swanlights , ANOHNI put the Johnsons to bed for more than a decade, and took a hard left turn with her experimental, electronic 2016 debut solo album Hopelessness .

With the newly christened band, she's back to a string-laced, jazzy aesthetic — once again alongside the Johnsons — with My Back Was a Bridge For You to Cross , released July 7. As mellow and accessible as it is, there's plenty of the old anguish and grief in songs like "It Must Change," "It's My Fault" and "Why Am I Alive Now?"

Here's a brief overview of what ANOHNI has been up to in the 13 years since the last Johnsons album.

ANOHNI Released A Live Symphonic Album

In 2012, the group released Cut the World , a live collaborative album with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra, recorded in Copenhagen.

Suitably incisive, Cut the World featured a healthy array of tracks from all four of Antony and the Johnsons' albums, from self-titled's "Cripple and the Starfish" to I Am a Bird Now 's "You Are My Sister" to The Crying Light 's "Epilepsy is Dancing."

Cut the World also featured a new song of the same name, as well as a spoken-word piece called Future Feminism . Therein, ANOHNI argues against a patriarchal model of society in the service of one of her integral themes — healing the earth.

The Group Soundtracked A Charles Atlas Film

For another semblance of an Antony and the Johnsons mixtape, check out the group's soundtrack to Atlas' 2014 film Turning , which features key tracks like I Am a Bird Now 's "Bird Gerhl" as well as captivating deep cuts like The Crying Light 's "Daylight and the Sun."

They Also Continued Performing Live

Despite having no new releases five years after Swanlights , the group continued performing in Europe and Australia into 2015. This included a benefit for the Martu people of Parnngurr in Western Australia, in the community's effort to stop the construction of a uranium mine near their community.

ANOHNI Went Solo

In 2015, ANOHNI shed her deadname for good, explaining that she had assumed the name ANOHNI privately " for years ." Her first offering by her lonesome was the following year's Hopelessness , a hurled cherry bomb with sick-and-tired laments about climate change ("4 Degrees"), drone warfare ("Drone Bomb Me") and the policies of a certain prez ("Obama"). ANOHNI has also released tracks apart from Hopelessness , like 2018's "Miracle Now" — which features an accompanying video featuring trans performance artist Page Reynolds — and covers of Bob Dylan 's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" and Nina Simone 's "Be My Husband," all of which she released in 2020.

ANOHNI And The Johnsons Returned — And Honored Their Namesake

Antony and the Johnsons' original name derived from ANOHNI's birth name and Marsha P. Johnson, the revered activist who fought in the 1969 Stonewall uprising against anti-LGBTQ+ policing in New York — and was tragically found dead in the Hudson River under mysterious circumstances.

Under their updated name with ANOHNI's moniker, the band reunited for their first project in 13 years — and with the return of the Johnsons came a further tribute to Marsha. My Back Was a Bridge For You To Cross is emblazoned with Johnson's visage. Coupled with the music — which hones in on the blue-eyed soul side of the band's aesthetic — it has a full-circle effect.

"For me, it is an honor to represent Marsha here," ANOHNI explained in an Instagram post with the album cover, which features an image of Johnson. "This record cover, the most important of my career, commemorates the restoration of connections and neural pathways between generations, past and future."

On My Back Was a Bridge For You To Cross , ANOHNI positions herself as such connective tissue — in the lineage of queer musicians, in the ongoing fight for ecology, in the battle for human rights. 

But as always, she renders these lofty subjects bracingly personal — and such expressions are best transmitted with her old collaborators by her side.

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15 Must-Hear Albums This July: Taylor Swift, Dominic Fike, Post Malone, NCT Dream & More

From the highly anticipated 'Barbie' soundtrack to a celebration of Joni Mitchell's iconic Newport Folk Festival return, check out 15 albums dropping this July.

The first half of 2023 is already behind us, but July gives us much to look forward to. The warm sun, tours and festivals abound, and a heap of exciting releases — from Colter Wall's country music to NCT DREAM 's K-pop — will surely make this season even more special.

We start it off with Taylor Swift and her third re-recorded album, Speak Now (Taylor's Version) on July 7, the same day Pitbull returns with his twelfth studio album, Trackhouse . Post Malone will deliver his fourth LP, AUSTIN , and Blur returns with their first album in eight years. And for the classic music lovers, folk legend Joni Mitchell will release At Newport — a recording of her first live performance since 2015 — and rock maven Stevie Nicks will drop her Complete Studio Albums & Rarities box set.

To welcome the latter half of a year filled with great music so far, GRAMMY.com offers a guide to the 15 must-hear albums dropping July 2023.

Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor's Version)

Release date: july 7.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift)

Taylor Swift fans are used to gathering clues and solving puzzles about the singer's intricate, ever-expanding discography. Therefore, in her hometown of Nashville concert last May, when she announced that Speak Now (Taylor's Version) would come out on July 7, it was not much of a surprise to the audience, but rather a gratifying confirmation that they had followed the right steps.

"It's my love language with you. I plot. I scheme. I plan. And then I get to tell you about it," Swift told them after breaking the news. "I think, rather than me speaking about it ... I'd rather just show you," she added, before performing an acoustic version of Speak Now 's single, "Sparks Fly." 

Shortly after, she took it to Instagram to share that "the songs that came from this time in my life were marked by their brutal honesty, unfiltered diaristic confessions and wild wistfulness. I love this album because it tells a tale of growing up, flailing, flying and crashing … and living to speak about it."

Speak Now (Taylor's Version) is Swift's third re-recorded album, following 2021's Red (Taylor's Version) . It will feature 22 tracks, including six unreleased "From the Vault" songs and features with Paramore 's Hayley Williams and Fall Out Boy . "Since Speak Now was all about my songwriting, I decided to go to the artists who I feel influenced me most powerfully as a lyricist at that time and ask them to sing on the album," she shared on Twitter . Swift is currently touring the U.S. with her acclaimed The Eras Tour, which will hit Latin America, Asia, Australia, UK, and Europe through August 2024.

ANOHNI and the Johnsons, My Back Was a Bridge For You To Cross

"I want the record to be useful," said ANOHNI about her upcoming sixth studio album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross . The English singer says she learned with her previous LP, 2016's HOPELESSNESS , that she "can provide a soundtrack that might fortify people in their work, in their activism, in their dreaming and decision-making," therefore aiming to make use of her talents to further help and inspire people.

Through 10 tracks that blend American soul, British folk, and experimental music, ANOHNI weaves her storytelling on inequality, alienation, privilege, and several other themes. According to a statement, the creative process was "painstaking, yet also inspired, joyful, and intimate, a renewal and a renaming of her response to the world as she sees it."

My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross "demonstrates music's unique capacity to bring harmony to competing, sometimes contradictory, elements" — qualities that can be observed in the album's contemplative pre-releases "It Must Change" and "Sliver Of Ice."

Pitbull, Trackhouse

GRAMMY-winning singer/rapper Pitbull has recently broadened his reach into an unexpected field: stock cars. Together with Trackhouse Entertainment Group founder Justin Marks, he formed Trackhouse Racing in 2021, an organization and team that participates in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Now, to unite both passions, the Miami-born singer is releasing Trackhouse , his twelfth studio album and first release since 2019's Libertad 548 . "In no way, shape, or form is this some kind of publicity stunt," said Mr. Worldwide of the upcoming album during a teleconference in April. "This is real. This is all about our stories coming together, and that's why the fans love it. […] This right here is about making history, it's generational, it's about creating a legacy."

Preceded by singles "Me Pone Mal" with Omar Courtz and "Jumpin" with Lil Jon , it seems that Trackhouse , despite its innovative inception, will continue to further Pitbull's famed Latin pop brand. This fall, he will also join Enrique Iglesias and Ricky Martin on The Trilogy Tour across the U.S. and Canada.

Dominic Fike,  Sunburn

Multitalented singer, songwriter and actor Dominic Fike also joins the roll of summer comebacks. His second studio album, Sunburn , comes out July 7, and follows 2020's acclaimed What Could Possibly Go Wrong.

In recent years, the Florida star found great exposure after landing a role in the HBO hit series "Euphoria" as well as the upcoming A24 drama Earth Mama , which is slated to release on the same day as Sunburn . The past three years were also marked by collaborations with a handful of artists, from Justin Bieber ("Die For You") to Paul McCartney ("The Kiss of Venus") to his Euphoria co-star Zendaya on "Elliot's Song" from the show's soundtrack.

Sunburn marks Fike's joyful return to music, aiming to portray "the aching and vulnerable revelations of a young artist still growing and putting their best foot forward," according to a press release. Through 15 tracks, including singles "Dancing in the Courthouse," "Ant Pile," and "Mama's Boy," Fike will explore themes of "heartbreak and regret, addiction, sex, and jealousy." 

One week after Sunburn 's arrival, Fike will embark on a tour across North America and Canada, starting July 13 in Indianapolis.

Lauren Spencer Smith, Mirror

Release date: july 14.

Lauren Spencer Smith said on TikTok that she's been working on her debut album, Mirror , for years. "It has been with me through so much in my life, the highs and the lows, and it means more to me than I can put into words. It tells a story of reflection, healing and growth," she added.

The 19-year-old, British-born Canadian singer is unafraid to dive deep into heartbreak and sorrow — as she displayed on her breakthrough hit "Fingers Crossed" —  but offers a way out by focusing on her growth. "I went through a hard breakup, and the album tells the story of that all, the journey of that and now being in a more happy relationship. The title comes from the one thing in my life that's seen me in every emotion through that journey — my bedroom and bathroom mirror."

Like a true Gen Zer, Smith has been teasing the 15-track collection and its upcoming world tour all over social media . On July 14, the day of the album release, she kicks off the North American leg of the tour in Chicago, before heading to the UK, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

Colter Wall, Little Songs

"You might not see a soul for days on them high and lonesome plains/ You got to fill the big empty with little songs," sings Colter Wall on the titular track off his fourth studio album, Little Songs . The Canadian country star says in a press release that he wrote these songs over the last three years, and that "I penned most of them from home and I think the songs reflect that."

Born and raised in the prairies of Battle Creek, Saskatchewan, Wall found inspiration in the stillness of his surroundings. With this album, he bridges "the contemporary world to the values, hardships, and celebrations of rural life" while also opening "emotional turns as mature and heartening as the resonant baritone voice writing them," according to a press release.

Little Songs is composed of 10 tracks — eight originals and two covers (Hoyt Axton's "Evangelina," and Ian Tyson's "The Coyote & The Cowboy.") He'll celebrate the album's release with a performance at Montana's Under The Big Sky festival on the weekend of the LP's arrival.

Mahalia, IRL

British singer Mahalia celebrated her 25th birthday on May 1 by announcing IRL , her sophomore album. Out July 14, the R&B star claims the album to be "a real reflection of the journeys I've had, what actually happened, and a celebration of everyone who got me there."

The 13-track collection will feature names like Stormzy and JoJo , the latter of whom appears on the single "Cheat." Before the release, Mahalia also shared "Terms and Conditions," a self-possessed track that pairs her silky voice with delightful early-aughts R&B.

"I'm so proud of this album, and so proud of how much I challenged myself to just let those stories out," she said in a statement. "We're all fixated on how we can make ourselves better but I want people to also reminisce on lovely or painful situations they've lived through and how they've helped shape the people they are now."

IRL is Mahalia's follows 2019's highly-acclaimed Love and Compromise . In support of the release, she has announced UK and Europe tour dates from October through November.

NCT DREAM, ISTJ

Release date: july 17.

The Myers-Briggs Personality Test (also known as MBTI) is a current craze in South Korea, therefore, it was only a matter of time until a K-pop group applied its insights on their music. Although none of NCT DREAM's seven members has the ISTJ personality type, that's what they decided to call their upcoming third studio album, out on July 17.

The 10-track collection comes in two physical versions: Introvert and Extrovert, the first letters and main differentiators in any MBTI personality. Spearheaded by the soaring "Broken Melodies," where they display an impressive set of vocals, their comeback announcement on Twitter promises "The impact NCT DREAM will bring to the music industry."

Since September, the NCT sub-group embarked on The Dream Show 2: In A Dream World Tour, which crossed Asia, Europe, North America. The group will wrap up July with four concerts in Latin America.

Blur, The Ballad of Darren

Release date: july 21.

"The older and madder we get, it becomes more essential that what we play is loaded with the right emotion and intention," said Blur 's guitarist Graham Coxon in a statement about The Ballad of Darren , the band's ninth studio album set to arrive on July 21.

Maybe that explains why The Ballad is their first release in eight years, and represents "an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now," according to frontman Damon Albarn . During a press conference in May, bassist Alex James reinforced the positive moment that they find themselves in, stating that "there were moments of utter joy" while recording together.

Produced by James Ford, the album contains 10 tracks, including the wistful indie rock of lead single "The Narcissist." On July 8 and 9, Blur is set to play two reunion gigs at London's Wembley Stadium, followed by a slew of festivals across Europe, Japan and South America.

Barbie: The Album

The most-awaited summer flick of 2023 also comes with a staggering soundtrack. Scored by producers Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt , Barbie: The Album features songs by hot stars like Dua Lipa , Lizzo , and Ice Spice, as well as some surprising additions, such as psychedelic star Tame Impala and K-pop rookie sensation Fifty Fifty .

As undecipherable and alluring as the actual movie plot, the album tracklist only increases expectations for Greta Gerwig's upcoming oeuvre. Is it all a satire? Is it a serious take on "life in plastic" and consumerism? Is it about nothing at all? You can try to find some clues through pre-release singles "Dance the Night" by Dua Lipa, "Watati" by Karol G, and "Angel" by PinkPantheress.

Greta Van Fleet,  Starcatcher

Fans who attended the three final shows of Greta Van Fleet 's Dreams in Gold Tour this March already got a sneak peek of the band's upcoming third studio album, Starcatcher . Among their most popular hits, the quartet played five new songs — or half of Starcatcher — including singles "Meeting the Master," "Sacred the Thread," and "Farewell for Now."

In a statement about the album, drummer Danny Wagner said that they "wanted to tell these stories to build a universe," and that they wanted to "introduce characters and motifs and these ideas that would come about here and there throughout our careers." Bassist Sam Kiszka adds: "When I imagine the world of Starcatcher , I think of the cosmos. It makes me ask a lot of questions, like 'Where did we come from?' or 'What are we doing here?' But it's also questions like, 'What is this consciousness that we have, and where did it come from?'"

Just a few days after release, Greta Van Fleet will embark on a world tour. Starting in Nashville, Tennessee on July 24, they will cross the U.S. and then head over to Europe and the UK in November.

Post Malone, AUSTIN

Release date: july 28.

In a shirtless, casual Instagram Reel last May, hitmaker Post Malone announced his upcoming fourth studio album, AUSTIN , to be released on July 28. Titled after his birth name, the singer shared that "It's been some of the funnest music, some of the most challenging and rewarding music for me, at least" — a very different vibe from the more mellow, lofi sounds of 2022's Twelve Carat Toothache — and that the experience of playing the guitar on every song was "really fun."

Featuring 17 tracks (19 on the deluxe version), AUSTIN is preceded by the dreamy "Chemical" and the angsty "Mourning," and sees Malone pushing his boundaries in order to innovate on his well-established sound. The album will also be supported by a North American 24-date trek, the If Y'all Weren't Here, I'd Be Crying Tour, starting July 8 in Noblesville, Indiana and wrapping up on August 19 in San Bernardino, California.

Stevie Nicks: Complete Studio Albums & Rarities box set

To measure Stevie Nicks' contribution to music is an insurmountable task. The Fleetwood Mac singer and songwriter has composed dozens of the most influential, well-known rock classics of the past century ("Dreams," anyone?), also blooming on her own as a soloist since 1981, when she debuted with Bella Donna .

In the four decades since, seven more solo albums followed, along with a trove of rarities that rightfully deserve a moment in the spotlight. Enter: her upcoming vinyl box set, Stevie Nicks: Complete Studio Albums & Rarities . The 16xLP collection compiles all of her work so far, plus a new record with the aforementioned rarities, and is limited to 3,000 copies. It's also the first time that Trouble in Shangri-La , In Your Dreams , and Street Angel are released on vinyl. For those who can't secure the limited set, a version of Complete Studio Albums & Rarities with 10xCDs will be available digitally.

Joni Mitchell, At Newport

Last year's Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island was one to remember. During one evening of the fest, a surprise guest graced the " Brandi Carlile and Friends" stage: it was none less than legendary folk star, Joni Mitchell. And what's more? It was her first live appearance since 2015, when she suffered a debilitating aneurysm.

During that time, the 79-year-old singer quietly held "Joni Jams" at her home in Los Angeles — inviting musicians that ranged from Elton John to Harry Styles to participate — with organizational support offered by Carlile. With Mitchell's special appearance at Newport, the coveted experience of a Joni Jam was available for thousands of fans.

This month, the release of At Newport eternalizes the headlining-making moment, bringing her talents to an even bigger audience. Among the classics in the tracklist are "Carey," "A Case of You," and "The Circle Game," proving that Mitchell is still as magical as when she stepped on the Newport Folk Festival stage for the first time, in 1969.

Jennifer Lopez, This Is Me… Now

Release date: tbd.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jennifer Lopez (@jlo)

In 2002, J.Lo was everywhere. Her relationship with actor Ben Affleck ensued heavy attention from the media, and her This Is Me… Then album — which featured hits like "Jenny from the Block" — was a commercial success, with over 300,000 first-week sales in the U.S.

How funny is it that, 20 years later, the singer and actress finds herself in a similar situation. After rekindling with Affleck in 2021, she announced the sequel to her 2002 release, This Is Me… Now , and stated in an interview with Vogue that the album represents a "culmination" of who she is.

A press release also describes This Is Me… Now as an "emotional, spiritual and psychological journey" across all that Lopez has been through in the past decades. Fans can also expect more details on the new-and-improved Bennifer, as many of the titles among its 13 tracks suggest, especially "Dear Ben Pt. II."

Although an official release date has not yet been revealed, on June 29, Lopez posted a cryptic image on social media with the caption "album delivery day" — suggesting that the highly anticipated This Is Me update may not be far away.

Everything We Know About Olivia Rodrigo's New Album 'Guts': Release Date, New Songs & More

Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images

After Viral Fame, Oliver Anthony Bares His Soul With 'Hymnal Of A Troubled Man's Mind': "I Want To Truly Make A Difference"

On the heels of releasing his debut album, Oliver Anthony details how the project parallels his unexpected breakthrough hit, "Rich Men of North Richmond": music that's "as raw, from the heart and sincere as it can be."

Last August, Oliver Anthony became the quintessential definition of overnight success. His working class anthem "Rich Men North of Richmond" went from viral sensation to history-making hit, helping the singer become the first to top the Billboard Hot 100 without any prior chart history.

But while "Richmond" showcases Anthony's brutally honest songwriting and raw delivery, its message and success are far from what define him. And he's proving just that with his debut album, 'Hymnal Of A Troubled Man's Mind.'

Helmed by Nashville superproducer Dave Cobb, the 18-track collection is rife with stories of addiction, depression, faith, and fury as Anthony documents the decade leading up to his unexpected rise to stardom (it also features eight Bible verses as interludes). A stark departure from "Richmond" in some ways and others not, the album is proof that his viral moment wasn't a fluke. 

One element that remains is Anthony's defiance of adhering to any cookie-cutter artist blueprint, which was further evidenced by the Easter Sunday arrival of Hymnal Of A Troubled Man's Mind . It's one of the many ways Anthony is showing that he's still fiercely independent, and that his unprecedented ascent hasn't changed the man he is or the music he makes.

"My day-to-day life hasn't changed a whole lot other than just not having to wake up for my job every morning," Anthony — who was born Christopher Anthony Lunsford, but pays tribute to his late grandfather with his stage name — admits. "I have this new career, but at the same time I don't know how long I'll be doing this either. At the end of the day I want to truly make a difference, not just play a bunch of shows to make a handful of executives a bunch of money only to get a pat on the back."

On the heels of releasing Hymnal Of A Troubled Man's Mind — and playing a sold-out hometown show — Lunsford spoke with GRAMMY.com about how he's navigating the balance between fame and privacy, and staying true to himself through it all.

Your stage name is your grandfather's name, so he clearly means a lot to you. Can you tell me a bit about the man Oliver Anthony was, and why he inspired you to pay tribute to him in such a way?  

Originally I was using his name as an alias because a lot of the songs I was writing talked about things my employer wouldn't approve of, like smoking pot. It was a way of hiding my identity so they couldn't Google my name and find everything. 

Another reason I did it is because we looked a lot alike. I'm the only redhead in the family other than him, and we're both 6'6" and left-handed. 

He was also just a very down-to-Earth guy. He never was one to talk much and never took the bait on politics and other stuff, he was always very down the middle. He was a hard worker too, taking a job later in life at a chemical plant where he moved up in the ranks despite being mostly self-taught. 

He was a role model of mine in many ways. During his final years, he experienced cognitive decline that made his death more of a slow goodbye. When I started writing all of these songs I was still really grieving his loss.

The full listing of your stage name, at least in the beginning, was Oliver Anthony Music. What was your intention with adding the "Music" part onto it?

The "music" is supposed to capture the timeless era from the beginning of the Industrial Revolution to into the late 60's and 70's. I'm not trying to paint it as an ideal time in American history by any means, but it was just a very real time. People weren't just living then, they were surviving. I wanted to capture that era of America before we became reliant on ordering everything from Amazon, going to the grocery store for all our food and depending on people on TV to tell us how to think, where to go or what to do.

That's what Oliver Anthony Music is supposed to encapsulate — that precious time in our history that, in certain parts of the country, still exists. When you go into rural Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky and the Carolinas, it almost feels like time is slowed down a bit, almost like they're 20 or 30 years in the past. 

That's why we recorded this album on 1940's microphones inside an old church. We didn't even hire a photographer for the album cover. Instead we used a Polaroid camera that Dave Cobb had sitting in his drawer. This was never intended to have all the flash of modern production. It's supposed to just be as raw, from the heart and sincere as it can be.

Is "Rich Man's Gold" a song about your grandfather and how the circumstances of his upbringing shaped him into the man you remember?  

It also focuses on the contrast between the lifestyle we live now compared to the one we lived not long ago. The main verse in the song talks about how we weren't born to just pay bills and die. The point behind that is so many people today have encapsulated their lives in student loans, credit card debt, financing new vehicles they don't need, and buying big houses as a way of filling a void they'll never be able to fill. 

I think true fulfillment in life comes from basic things we overthink, like love and connection with our family, neighbors and friends, and just living a more purposeful life. A lot of us go to work at a job we don't really like because it pays the bills, even though it falls well outside our passion, leaving us only a couple hours a week to spend doing what we truly love. Then before you know it, you're old and die and that's it, you don't get another shot at it. 

Time is the most precious thing we have, and at any moment we don't really know how much left of it we have. The song really hones in on all that to show how a lot of people are alive, but they're not really living.

How has the overnight success you've experienced changed, or not changed, who you are as a person?  

I've kept a lot of my same friends and would say that my personal life hasn't changed a whole lot. I've still got the same s—ty Suburban with a salvage title and 330,000 miles on it, and the same s—ty clothes — although I have been able to put money into a few investments to set my family up with some financial security. But I've been really careful not to change my life a lot. 

I never, ever want to get to a point in my life where I feel like I'm better than everyone else. It makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about it. That's one thing that's been a problem from the beginning because I never wanted to get on Facebook and say "Hey, look at me!" When "Richmond" blew up, I didn't want to post a lot, and instead opted to let things run their course. But due to the monetization of social and online media, people were incentivized to make posts about me since I was a trending topic, with much of it being completely fabricated. 

So it's been a weird balance of figuring out how I can, with good conscience, keep my voice out there without being an attention seeker. It's a weird balance because if I'm not posting and speaking my mind, then somebody else pretending to be me is going to do it instead.

I really just want to use what little discernment I have to make decisions that I'll look back on in 20 or 30 years and feel proud of, and not like somebody strong-armed or pressured me into something that my heart wasn't into.

One of the ways you showed that after going viral was by promoting other amazing Appalachian artists that RadioWV has featured. Who are some Appalachian artists you've been listening to or think deserve a bigger platform for their music?

To be honest, what I listen to is pretty limited and is mostly made up of people who are dead. I mainly discover new music through YouTube videos — I don't have Spotify, Pandora or anything like that. I've had the chance to meet and talk with folks like Logan Halstead, and am a big fan of his work, though. 

It drives my wife absolutely crazy, but anytime we're in the truck together and I've got control of the dial I'm putting on Hank Jr. , Waylon Jennings , Jerry Lee Lewis , Lightnin' Hopkins and random stuff like Cuban dance music. I like listening to a lot of old material and folk music from other countries. It just feels more real, and nobody is trying to shove it down my throat. 

At least when I'm listening to somebody who's dead, I know that they didn't manipulate me to somehow stumble across it like how so much is today with algorithms and pay-to-play. That's also what was so cool about "Richmond," because it blew up in such an organic way with no record label or management pushing it. 

Getting back to your original question about Appalachian artists, there's so many people from the region that would blow the doors off anyone on country radio right now, that most people may never actually get to enjoy because they simply aren't getting the exposure. I'd love to see things go back to the days of good music being played and bad music doesn't rather than it all being about how much money you've got behind the song.

You previously hinted at getting into ministry in the future, and this new album of yours is littered with Bible verses. With that in mind, what does your foundation in faith mean not only to your music, but who you are as a person?  

Leading up to everything that's happened, it's obvious from listening to my music that I was severely depressed and dealing with regular suicidal thoughts and anxiety attacks. Every part of my life, from my career to my marriage, my family and my future seemed very grim. I was in a bad place leaning on alcohol, like a lot of adult men do, because they have a tough time opening up about their struggles. 

At some point I got in touch with Draven Riffe from RadioWV and made plans to record a few songs on my property the following weekend. We got to talking about the personal issues going on in both our lives and how we'd both just decided to give our lives to God. I felt like I didn't have anything left in me, so I just told God that I've done things this long by myself and haven't been able to figure anything out, so please guide me where to go and show me what to do. 

I ended up recording seven songs with Draven that weekend, but the most special moment definitely came on "Richmond." As soon as we finished recording, I looked up at him, and we locked eyes. After a moment he said, "I know we just met and I don't want you to think I'm crazy, but I swear I could feel the presence of God with us when we recorded that." 

The song ended up doing what it did, but the icing on the cake came months later during my first show after going viral at the farmer's market where over 12,000, including Jamey Johnson , showed up. I talked with him afterward and he told me he had been off songwriting but that God spoke to him and told him he needed to meet me that day. To have one of my favorite artists of all-time show up at my first gig because God told him to after everything I'd been through, it became so clear to me that I was doing what I was meant to. 

A lot of people joke that they sell their souls to the devil, but in my case I truly feel like I've signed my soul to God. He put me here to give me purpose because my life had been without it up until then. 

I don't know that I'd even call myself a Christian, but I definitely believe in Jesus Christ and find a lot of wisdom in the timeless knowledge of The Bible. There's parts of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Matthew — all of which have excerpts on the record — that are full of practical advice on living, whether it's with marriage or finances, lust or alcoholism, or even how to interact with your neighbor. That advice written many years ago is still so relevant in today's society even though most things are totally different. 

My first time in a church in 10 years was for our Easter show the other day, so I'm definitely not the church-going devout religious kind of person. I just got to a point in my life where I didn't have any other choice than to let God take control of things. You can see just how much change has happened since then — it's undeniable.

Aside from ministry, is there anything else you want to pursue with your newfound platform?

Our family just bought this old farm that was operational until a couple years ago. We're in the process now of getting it going again. Once it's operational we want to start educating the public and maybe bringing people out for workshops on gardening and other homesteading basics. 

I also want to partner with other people in that space, like Joel Salatin, or some of these YouTubers that are getting people excited about gardening on only a quarter-acre in their backyards. It tastes better than anything you can buy — even at a high-end grocery store — and can be done for little to nothing. It's so rewarding to do and something I hope to repopularize as part of this whole thing.

It sounds like you're really trying to practice what you preach in terms of what you sing about and how you embody that spirit in everything you do.

Music and my whole life in general is just trying to hold on to that beautiful, raw, less glorified and flashy way of living that's still readily available in this country. There's so much noise and everything moves so quick now that it's hard to slow your brain down enough to get excited about gardening, being outdoors and clearing the land or raising livestock. There is no instant gratification to that, it's a process. 

If you get on YouTube and scroll through 100 Shorts your mind will start going a million miles per hour, which makes it hard to want to slow down to clean up after some stupid cow afterward. It makes it very hard to integrate the two things together into how we live today. 

What has making this music taught you about yourself?  

One thing I've learned is that if I want to try to have good mental health and be a normal functioning member of society, I've got to create music. In the same way that some people use a journal to write out their thoughts, songwriting is how I'm able to get my feelings and perceptions out of my own head. When life is going really well, it's harder for me to write songs because usually my motivation stems from things going wrong. I could probably write some catchy lyrics, but they wouldn't mean anything to me. 

Everything I write about I feel deep down inside, which can also be said about some of my favorite songs. That's the beauty of music — writing it as a way to clear your head and listening to it to remind you that you're not alone.

8 Artists Bringing Traditional Country Music Back: Zach Top, Randall King, Emily Nenni & More On Why "What's Old Becomes Beloved Again"

Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

GRAMMY Rewind: Megan Thee Stallion Went From "Savage" To Speechless After Winning Best New Artist In 2021

Relive the moment Megan Thee Stallion won the coveted Best New Artist honor at the 2021 GRAMMYs, where she took home three golden gramophones thanks in part to her chart-topping smash "Savage."

In 2020, Megan Thee Stallion solidified herself as one of rap's most promising new stars, thanks to her hit single "Savage." Not only was it her first No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100, but the " sassy, moody, nasty " single also helped Megan win three GRAMMYs in 2021.

In this episode of GRAMMY Rewind , revisit the sentimental moment the Houston "Hottie" accepted one of those golden gramophones, for Best New Artist.

"I don't want to cry," Megan Thee Stallion said after a speechless moment at the microphone. Before starting her praises, she gave a round of applause to her fellow nominees in the category, who she called "amazing."

Along with thanking God, she also acknowledged her manager, T. Farris, for "always being with me, being by my side"; her record label, 300 Entertainment, for "always believing in me, sticking by through my craziness"; and her mother, who "always believed I could do it."

Megan Thee Stallion's "Savage" remix with Beyoncé also helped her win Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance that night — marking the first wins in the category by a female lead rapper.

Press play on the video above to watch Megan Thee Stallion's complete acceptance speech for Best New Artist at the 2021 GRAMMY Awards, and remember to check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of GRAMMY Rewind.

Black Sounds Beautiful: How Megan Thee Stallion Turned Viral Fame Into A GRAMMY-Winning Rap Career

Photo: Larry Niehues

11 Black Keys Songs To Know With New Album 'Ohio Players': From "I Got Mine" To "Beautiful People (Stay High)"

The Black Keys' discography is chock full of smooth, yet deliciously grungy top-down jams. With their new album, 'Ohio Players,' out now, press play on 11 essential songs by the four-time GRAMMY winners.

Two guys can sure make a lot of noise. That's the throughline when it comes to Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney 's brotherhood in their long-running indie-garage-blues band the Black Keys — but that noise doesn't just come from their lungs and hands.

Sometimes, they're channeling the gut-bucket sound of hill country blues, like on their 2021 covers album Delta Kream . Other times, that noise has been refracted through the lens of outside producer Danger Mouse .

And on their new album, Ohio Players — out today — the once-musically insular Auerbach and Carney have opened up that noise to collaborators, like Noel Gallagher , Dan "the Automator" Nakamura , superproducer Greg Kurstin, and most prominently, Beck . (He co-wrote seven songs on the album; he sings lead on "Paper Crown," which also features Juicy J of Three Six Mafia .)

"We had this epiphany: 'We can call our friends to help us make music,'" Carney said in a statement — adding that this is especially rich, given they always co-write with others. "What we wanted to accomplish with this record was make something that was fun. And something that most bands 20 years into their career don't make, which is an approachable, fun record that is also cool."

As a ramp-up to Ohio Players , take a spin through 11 great songs from the four-time GRAMMY winners and 13-time nominees' catalog — whether you're a newbie or a longtime player.

"Girl is On My Mind" ( Rubber Factory , 2004)

If you've heard the Black Keys' breakout hits like "Tighten Up," but prefer their sound a little rawer, all their early, pre- Attack and Release records should vibe with you. "Girl is On My Mind" has all their hallmarks — a sexy crawl, controlled-demolition drums, an abundant lo-fi buzz.

"I Got Mine" ( Attack & Release , 2008)

Attack and Release is an album of two important Keys firsts: their first in a professional studio, and their first with Danger Mouse. With said six-time GRAMMY winner and 22-time nominee at the helm, their sound gains depth and resonance — yet remains gloriously stripped down.

"Tighten Up" ( Brothers , 2010)

This is where the Black Keys zoomed up to the top, and the tired "car commercial rock" criticisms really got rolling. (Maybe so, but they do it better than anyone.) When Carney's four-on-the-floor rhythms collide with Auerbach's effortless melodic gifts, magic transpires.

"Howlin' For You" ( Brothers )

The Keys' discography is something of one uninterrupted, glorious buzz — but at this point, they were teasing new colors out of it left and right. The fuzzy, buzzy "Howlin' For You" represents the flipside of Brothers — a more finicky, angular and wired feel.

"Lonely Boy" ( El Camino , 2011)

After the smash success of Brothers , Auerbach and Carney returned with the even more brazen and brassy El Camino — a direct shot of Keysiness to the arm. "Am I born to bleed?

Any old time, you keep me waitin'," Auerbach pleads in this rollicking, uptempo favorite.

"Gold on the Ceiling" ( El Camino , 2011)

Ain't it wild that for a decade, there were equal and opposite rock acts called the Black Keys and the White Stripes? While both have always been loath to be lumped in with each other — Auerbach and White have a history of bad blood — "Gold on the Ceiling" shows that Auerbach's serrated fuzz could occasionally rip a hole in the firmament, much like his sometime rival.

"Fever" ( Turn Blue , 2014)

After the rush of riotous success surrounding Brothers and El Camino , Auerbach and Carney took a two-year cooldown to produce for other artists. The album they made upon their return was moodier and more midtempo: "Fever" is one laser-focused example of this approach.

"Lo/Hi" ( Let's Rock , 2019)

As they approached 20 years as a band, the Black Keys relaxed into their own skin with Let's Rock , a happily middle-of-the-road offering with idiosyncratic charm galore. (The title is a reference to convicted murderer Edmund Zagorski's last words before getting the chair.) "Lo/Hi" is a deep, satisfying rumble from the core of their well-explored aural aesthetic.

"Shine a Little Light" ( Let's Rock , 2019)

This equally appealing Let's Rock cut is commensurately dreamy and guttural, showing off their still-sharp dynamics over a gospel-like heft.

"Wild Child" ( Dropout Boogie , 2022)

Dropout Boogie isn't altogether different from its predecessor — again, this is the Black Keys, and it's all a continuum. But the choruses are even sharper — and the underdog video, where Auerbach and Carney get verbally torn apart by public school staff, is just as memorable.

"Beautiful People (Stay High)" ( Ohio Players , 2024)

A sizable leap forward from the already very good Let's Rock and Dropout Boogie , Ohio Players shows not only their range more than two decades in, but their chemistry with their old friends.

And it's all boiled into "Beautiful People (Stay High)" — which, admittedly, leans on something on a shopworn lyrical trope about getting high and never coming down. But it's impossible to quibble with that when that indelible chorus shakes the cheap seats.

It serves as a reminder that the Black Keys draw from a universal canon of blues, rock, psychedelia and much more — and it's less what they say than how they say it.

From The Black Keys To Behind The Board: How Dan Auerbach's Production Work Ripples Through The Music Community

• 1 Breaking Down Anohni And The Johnsons' 13-Year Journey To 'My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross'
• 2 15 Must-Hear Albums This July: Taylor Swift, Dominic Fike, Post Malone, NCT Dream & More
• 3 After Viral Fame, Oliver Anthony Bares His Soul With 'Hymnal Of A Troubled Man's Mind': "I Want To Truly Make A Difference"
• 4 GRAMMY Rewind: Megan Thee Stallion Went From "Savage" To Speechless After Winning Best New Artist In 2021
• 5 11 Black Keys Songs To Know With New Album 'Ohio Players': From "I Got Mine" To "Beautiful People (Stay High)"

Anohni and the Johnsons

For the first time in a decade, ANOHNI presents a series of concerts with the Johnsons, joined by nine musicians including Julia Kent (cello), Maxim Moston (violin), Doug Wieselman (multi-instrumentalist), Gael Rakotondrabe (piano), Leo Abrahams (guitarist) and Jimmy Hogarth (guitarist/producer). Responding to a time of upheaval, ANOHNI issues a challenge: It’s Time to Feel What's Really Happening. Born in the UK and raised in Amsterdam and California, ANOHNI relocated to NYC in her late teens, forming her group the Johnsons in 1998 and establishing a unique path as an artist with a focus on animist and eco-feminist themes. ANOHNI’s musical journey has spanned genres – from electronic experimental to avant-classical, dance, and soul. Achieving breakthrough success in 2005 with I Am a Bird Now (2005), she garnered the UK’s Mercury Award. Releases since include The Crying Light (2009), Swanlights (2010), and live albums Cut the World (2012) and TURNING (2014). In 2016, she released the sharply political electronic album HOPELESSNESS , produced by Hudson Mohawke and Daniel Lopatin, noted as one of the year’s top ten albums by the NY Times . That same year, she was nominated for an Academy Award (best song) for the environmentalist elegy, ‘Manta Ray’, featured in the film Racing Extinction (dir. Louie Psihoyos, 2015). ANOHNI’s sixth studio album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross (2023), continues to examine societal structures, spirituality, and our relationships with the biosphere. The record was named album of the year by The New Yorker . Politiken awarded it five hearts and called it ‘a delicate flame ignited by the soul music of the past,’ while GAFFA characterized it as ‘an otherworldly experience.’ The artist reaches for courage, resilience, and ceremony in the face of an unprecedented contemporary landscape, and emphasizes, ‘For me, there’s no heavenly respite; Creation is a spectral and feminine continuum, and we remain an inalienable part of Nature.’  

Production Supernova Productions

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