Dawn Richard returns this year with Second Line, the follow-up to her 2019 record New Breed. The album will be released on April 30 via Merge Records, her new label home. It will be available in various formats, including CD, LP, and white deluxe peak vinyl.
Like the predecessor, the forthcoming LP traces its bloodline to her deep New Orleans roots. But while Richard has cited her father as the inspiration for New Breed‘s sound, Richard’s mother is at the core of the Second Line.
The new album covers her persona, King Creole’s journey as a Southern Black girl who comes to a fork about her artistic career. Richard further describes the album in a press statement as “a movement to bring pioneering Black women in electronic music to the forefront.”
“The definition of a second line in New Orleans is a celebration of someone’s homecoming,” said Richard in a press statement about the album title. “In death and in life, we celebrate the impact of a person’s legacy through dance and music. I’m celebrating the death of old views in the industry. The death of boxes and limits. I’m celebrating the homecoming of the Future. The homecoming to the new wave of artists. The emergence of all the King Creoles to come. This is our revival.”
Richard packaged her album announcement with a new song called “Bussifame.” It arrives with a self-directed, futuristic music video. Watch it above.
Praised for her “strong focus on vivid expressions regarding disappointment, perseverance, and self-acceptance,” New Breed was named one of the best R&B albums of 2019 by Rated R&B.
In our 2019 interview with Richard, she shared what she learned about herself during New Breed‘s recording process.
“I think with this album, I found myself reflecting on all the times that I’ve had to be pushed into boxes. It made me reflect on the fact that it’s not about people accepting you, it’s about self-acceptance,” said Richard exclusively to Rated R&B.
Listen to Dawn Richard’s new song “Bussifame” below.
