Albums to Look Forward to in 2023
From Gorillaz to Rihanna, to the fans harboring hope for the new Frank Ocean. Here are The Most Anticipated Album Releases of 2023, the new music you have to look forward to in the new year. Here are the album releases we can’t wait to sink into in 2023.
Gorillaz: Cracker Island
After the release of their single “Crack Island,” Gorillaz quickly followed the drop with an even bigger announcement. Gorillaz will release their eighth LP, Cracker Island, next year.
Cracker Island is due out February 24. It will include the already released singles “Cracker Island” and “New Gold,” featuring Tame Impala and Bootie Brown. “The hallowed tones of Cracker Island will soundtrack our collective ascension into the new dimension!” the band’s Murdoc Niccals says in a press release. “JOIN ME!”
Margo Price: Strays
Next year, Americana and country rock musician Margo Price will release her fourth studio album. The upcoming record, Strays, was produced by musician Jonathan Wilson. Strays features musical guests Mike Campbell, Sharon Von Etten, and Lucius.
The new album arrives January 13. Strays has been led by the singles “Been to the Mountain,” “Change of Heart,” and most recently, “Lydia.” We can’t wait to hear what Price has stored on the remainder of Strays.
Sam Smith: Gloria
Gloria will arrive January 27, 2023 via Capitol Records. According to Rolling Stone, for Smith, the new record “feels like a coming of age.” In their press release, they referred to Gloria as their “boldest statement yet.” Smith described the album as an “emotional, sexual and spiritual liberation” and in making it has found a new sense of freedom.
“Oddly, it feels like my first-ever record,” they said. In an Instagram post announcing the album, they went into even more heartfelt detail.
Gloria has been led by the singles “Love Me More” and “Unholy.” The full track list for Sam Smith’s fourth album came out just weeks after the artist celebrated their first No. 1 hit. Gloria, with its many special guests, already signals a triumph.
Lana Del Rey: Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
I think it’s safe to say, this has been Lana Del Rey’s most prolific era yet. Next year, she’ll release the follow-up to 2021’s Blue Banisters. The new LP, Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd, arrives March 10.
In announcing her the new record, Lana also released its title track. The lush, piano-driven “Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” is centered on Lana’s velvety voice. Her lovelorn and heart-baring lyrics.
It’s no surprise how, after setting the record on the most No. 1 albums on Billboard’s Alternative Albums chart, Lana’s sound is as confident as ever. We can’t wait for the rest of the album to arrive this Spring.
Travis Scott: Utopia
The last studio album we’ve received from the famed rapper Travis Scott was 2018’s Astroworld. Finally, as we get ready to ring in 2023, it’s beginning to feel like Travis Scott’s fourth LP is just around the corner.
Utopia, set to be released through Cactus Jack Records and Epic Records, is due out early 2023. What can fans expect from Travis Scott’s new album? We wouldn’t be surprised if he reprises his number-one charted single “Highest In The Room,” which debuted back in 2019.
In 2021, while speaking with WWD, Scott stated a new direction for his fourth LP. “I’m in this new album mode where it’s like psychedelic rock,” he said. We know Scott has taken this time to expand his sound and are curious as to which boundaries he’s pushed in the making of Utopia.
Ellie Goulding: Higher Than Heaven
Back in October, the English singer/ songwriter Ellie Goulding announced her fifth album Higher Than Heaven. Goulding previewed her new album with the lead single “Let It Die” and an accompanying music video. Check it out, below.
In speaking with NME about the new album, Goulding described the difficulty of returning to the studio during a pandemic. “I think for that reason, nobody wanted to sit and agonise over some relationship or some drama. So that’s how this album came together.”
She continued. “[Higher Than Heaven is] about being passionately in love. But it’s a hyper form of love, almost like a drug induced feeling. It feels almost artificial and there’s the potential for a crash.”
Ellie Goulding’s Higher Than Heaven arrives February 23. It follows her 2020 album, Brightest Blue.
Paramore: This Is Why
We could not be more overjoyed that Paramore, one of the best bands to rise out of the emo-punk era of the early 2000’s, is back and back and back again with new music. Next year, on February 10, Paramore will release their seventh studio album.
You must remember the uncertainty, the break-up, and the slandering of band members post-Paramore dissolution. And how fraught the discography felt after. But in 2017, with the release of After Laughter, Paramore has made their way back into the mainstream consciousness. More pop than before—but who isn’t? Now, Hayley Williams, Zac Farro, and Taylor York are gearing up for a 2023 release.
The new Paramore, titled This Is Why, was announced with the album’s title track. Funky, focused, and definitively pop-rock, “This Is Why” signals a highly-listenable LP on the horizon.
Metallica: 72 Seasons
Heavy metal lives on through one of its iconic bands, Metallica, who is getting ready to release their eleventh studio album next year. The new LP, 72 Seasons, will be their first in six years. It arrives April 14, 2023.
Not only will Metallica release an album of original material in 2023, they are also getting ready for a huge European and North American tour. Their dates kick off in Europe the same month of the 72 Seasons release, before a string of North American shows later in the year. Metallica fans, the time has come to assemble. It’s about to be a momentous year for this legendary band.
The Smashing Pumpkins: Atum
For those who’ve been keeping up with The Smashing Pumpkins and their unfolding rock opera, the second and third installments will arrive next year. Atum: Act Two is scheduled for January 31, 2023, and Atum: Act Three is scheduled for April 23. Following the third installment, Corgan will release a physical box set containing all 33 songs, and an additional 10 extra songs.
According to Corgan, Atum is a more esoteric, guitar-driven project than what fans have heard from this era of Smashing Pumpkins. More spread than the singular sound of the 90’s Smashing Pumpkins, Atum broadly explores everything that makes Corgan a musician. Fans of the lead singer are bound to enjoy.
Janelle Monae
It’s been four years since the release of Janelle Monae’s Dirty Computer.Recently, Monae was seen starring in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery with Daniel Craig. In an interview about the movie, Monae was, of course, asked if fans would be getting the highly anticipated follow-up to Dirty Computer.
“Actually, you will,” the singer responded when asked if fans will hear some new tunes soon. “You will get new music because I now have a clone. That clone does all of my music, and I have another clone for acting. I’m not going to tell you if it’s me or not. They’re in the studio right now!”
We’re taking Monae’s statement as confirmation. There will be a new Janelle Monae album coming out in 2023. And we are absolutely thrilled about it.
Youth Lagoon
Back in 2016, Trevor Powers retired the Youth Lagoon moniker and instead released new music under his own name. It seemed, with little room for doubt, that Youth Lagoon had found the end of its journey. But last month, Powers surprised us all by announcing there would be a new Youth Lagoon album in 2023.
We don’t know too much about the upcoming Youth Lagoon LP. But we know it’s on the way. You can check out Trevor Powers announcement and video on Instagram, showing a short clip of music which might appear on the new album.
Albums We Want to Hear in 2023
Rihanna
Fans were hoping this month they’d be listening to more new Rihanna. But we’re almost at the new year, and the only Rihanna track that surfaced was “Lift Me Up” from the Wakanda Forever soundtrack. Will Rihanna come through with her long-awaited LP next year? Or will she find another reason to delay?
“It really does suck that it can’t just come out, because I’m working on a really fun one right now. I’m really happy with a lot of the material we have so far, but I am not going to put it out until it’s complete,” Rihanna stated previously.
Of course, we want Rihanna to uphold her standards of perfection. ANTI, Unapologetic, Talk That Talk, etc, were no easy feats. But we are growing very tired of the teasing, with only more waiting to follow.
Frank Ocean
Look, we truly wouldn’t even both with contributing to the ongoing speculation over Frank Ocean, if he will ever release a new album, if he’s unofficially retired. BUT, Frank Ocean is scheduled to headline Coachella in 2023. That’s right. We can’t think of another reason for Frank Ocean headlining the festival unless he’s about to drop new music.
It’s been six years since Frank Ocean released Blonde, one of the defining albums of the decade. In September 2021, it was reported that Frank was “shopping” his new album to another label, his last being recorded on his own Boys Don’t Cry. This doesn’t mean the album was finished. But it does mean he plans to finish, and then release, another album.
If Frank Ocean upholds his plans to headline Coachella in 2023, we think the chances are strong, if not likely: there will (finally!) be new Frank Ocean music in 2023. Our hearts! Be still!
Cardi B
We’re coming up on three years since Cardi B dropped her dazzling, powerful, commanding debut Invasion of Privacy. From a small acting role in Hustlers, to building an empire for the Bardi Gang to worship, to dropping the scandalous, star-studded “WAP,” Cardi’s queendom can’t be denied. But where is Cardi B’s sophomore album?
Most recently, the arrival of the new Cardi single “Up” gave the Bronx rapper another opportunity to assure her fans that she is working on the new album, but the songs simply aren’t all there yet. But with the continued success and platinum-level listening of her singles, we think Cardi has all the steam she needs to make the album of her—and her fans—dreams.