Blood Orange Announces New Album Essex Honey Featuring Lorde, Zadie Smith

Devonté Hynes, known as Blood Orange, has announced his first album in six years titled Essex Honey, set for release on August 29 via RCA. The album is described as a dreamscape soundtrack reflecting Hynes' journey through grief, his upbringing in Essex outside London, and the healing power of music, featuring a wide array of collaborators including Lorde, Caroline Polachek, Daniel Caesar, Mustafa, Turnstile's Brendan Yates, author Zadie Smith, and actors Naomi Scott and Amandala Stenberg. Two singles, "Mind Loaded" and "Somewhere In Between," showcase a blend of hypnotic backing vocals and warm, yearning sounds, continuing the mournful and introspective themes explored in the lead single "The Field." Hynes balances his work on Essex Honey with film and TV scoring, and he will support the album with a tour that includes European dates, North American arena shows opening for Lorde, and a residency at Brooklyn Steel in New York. Essex Honey follows Hynes' previous Blood Orange projects, including 2018's Negro Swan, as well as his production and scoring work for artists like Carly Rae Jepsen and Harry Styles, highlighting his ongoing creative evolution. The album art and music together underscore themes of grief, loss, acceptance, and resolution amidst a cultural moment of collective mourning.