Blood Orange Unveils New Songs and Announces ‘Essex Honey’ Album Featuring Collaborations with Lorde, Brendan Yates, Zadie Smith, and More

July 18, 20252 min read

Blood Orange has unveiled his upcoming album titled Essex Honey alongside the release of two new tracks: “Mind Loaded” and “Somewhere In Between.” You can listen to them below.

This marks Blood Orange, the artistry of Dev Hynes, first album since 2018’s Negro Swan. The new album includes collaborations with notable artists such as Lorde, Caroline Polachek, Daniel Caesar, Mustafa, Brendan Yates from Turnstile, and Tariq Al-Sabir.

The project also features contributions from writer Zadie Smith, The Durutti Column, Wet’s Kelly Zutrau, Tirzah, and actors Naomi Scott and Amandla Stenberg. Essex Honey is set to release on August 29 via RCA Records, and you can pre-order it here.

The initial tracks from Essex Honey showcase a blend of styles, with “Mind Loaded” being a minimalist yet soothing song featuring vocals from Polachek, Lorde, and Mustafa, while “Somewhere In Between” offers a more dynamic, sultry R&B sound. Listen to both tracks below:

According to a press release, Essex Honey is inspired by Hynes’ emotional journey through grief and reflects his childhood experiences growing up in the county of Essex.

Earlier this month, Hynes also announced a UK and European tour for Blood Orange, starting this fall. The tour will follow his upcoming U.S. dates, kicking off in Berlin on October 29 and featuring multiple performances in London on November 8, 9, and 10. UK tickets can be found here, while international tickets are available here.

Additionally, Hynes will be supporting Lorde on her upcoming tour for her new album, Virgin, which features several tracks produced by him. He also lent his musical talents to the single “Man Of The Year” and contributed to “Favourite Daughter.”

Maintaining his status as a sought-after producer in the alternative music scene, Hynes recently worked on We Are Love, the upcoming album from The Charlatans.

Furthermore, he collaborated on Turnstile’s “Seein’ Stars” from their Never Enough album this summer, contributing backing vocals and playing the cello.