The Black Keys Kick Off New Album Announcement With Electric Single Release
By Logan DeLoye
January 12, 2024
2024 is the year of The Black Keys.
The band announced the release date of their highly-anticipated 12th studio album on Friday (January 12), and shared a vibrant new single to kick off the new year. According to a press release, Akron natives Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach will release a brand new album titled Ohio Players this Spring. Building anticipation for the epic project, the band shared their latest single, "Beautiful People (Stay High)" in tandem with the exciting announcement.
The jazzy, mood-boosting track gives fans a glimpse into the eclectic nature of the upcoming album, set to be released on April 5. Auerbach and Carney wrote the standout tune with friends and fellow musicians, Dan “The Automator” Nakamura and Beck. "Beautiful People (Stay High)" is one of many tracks to be featured on the album created in collaboration with some of alternative rock's greatest. Ohio Players will also feature musical stylings from Greg Kurstin, Noel Gallagher, and more! Carney is especially fond of writing music with friends, stating that collaboration is not only stitched into the album, but the band's entire foundation.
“We had this epiphany: ‘We can call our friends to help us make music.’ It’s funny because we both write songs with other people – Dan all the time [as a solo artist and producer], me when I'm producing a record. That’s what we do.” Auerbach also detailed his love for crafting new projects with musical colleagues, comparing the refreshing experience to expanding one's palette.
“No matter who we work with, it never feels like we're sacrificing who we are. It only feels like it adds some special flavor. We just expanded that palette with people we wanted to work with. We were there to support them and their ideas, to do whatever we could to see that moment flourish. But when it came time to finish the album, it was just Pat and me.”
The Black Keys guitarist and vocalist noted that Ohio Players took a long time to perfect.
“We'd never worked harder to make a record. It's never taken us this long to make an album. We took our time and did it right.” Carney expressed the importance of creating something "fun" that listeners could jam out and relate to at the same time.
“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.” The iconic pair were able to "let go a little bit" while creating the album. The project is slated to be a reflection of "record hang dance parties" around the world, bottling the electric, lively energy present in moments where music sets the scene.
As if announcing an album and releasing a new single wasn't exciting enough, a Black Keys documentary titled, This is a Film About The Black Keys, will be exclusively premiered at the SXSW music festival in March. An international tour announcement is also in the works for 2024.
The Black Keys will perform "Beautiful People (Stay High)" live for the first time ever at iHeartRadio’s ALTer Ego festival at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on January 13. Fans can watch the performance live via Veeps.com or the Veeps app on Apple TV, Roku, iOS, and Android. The show will also be broadcast across iHeartRadio alternative and rock stations across the country, and on the free iHeartRadio app beginning at 10pm ET/7pm PT.