Kelela has been keeping her fans fully fed in the 2020s. Three years after dropping her sophomore album — and a year after releasing a live album — the Washington, D.C. native is back with her third outing, new avatar (stylized in lowercase), via Warp Records.
Mainly produced by Oscar Scheller, the 12-track includes the previously shared “idea 1,” inspired by Octavia E. Butler’s classic novel Parable of the Sower, plus “linknb,” “point blank” and “outta time” featuring A.K. Paul. It features additional collaborations from PinkPantheress and Fousheé.
Speaking on new avatar, the alt-R&B phenomenon said, “When it comes to genre, so much of what we compartmentalize isn’t natural; it’s something institutions and structures impose on us. My goal as an artist is to express what feels true to me regardless of whether or not it fits into those boundaries.”
She added, “When I do that, I know I’m creating space for other people to feel affirmed in their own perspective. My hope for this record is that everyone can experience this catharsis of integration with me. I also need everyone to put some respect on R&B’s name — it being as foundational as it is expansive, and to rethink what alternative and rock music can be.”
New avatar is the follow-up to 2023’s Raven, which was reissued the following year with RAVE:N, The Remixes. Last year, she released her first live album, In The Blue Light, recorded in May 2024 during a series of intimate shows at New York City’s Blue Note.
Stream Kelela’s new avatar below.
