ALANA SPRINGSTEEN ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM I HOPE THIS HELPS, DUE OUT MAY 29
ACCLAIMED ARTIST/SONGWRITER’S BOLD NEW ANTHEM OF SELF-RECLAMATION “black sheep” OUT NOW
TOURING INTERNATIONALLY THIS SUMMER ON HEADLINE ALANA SPRINGSTEEN: LIVE IN EUROPE TOUR
ALANA SPRINGSTEEN AT C2C: COUNTRY TO COUNTRY, O2 ARENA / PHOTO CREDIT: RUBY GAUNT
LONDON, U.K. / NASHVILLE, TN. – Alana Springsteen has announced the upcoming release of her sophomore album I HOPE THIS HELPS, due out May 29 via Santa Anna Nashville, following a weekend performing across the UK on the main stage at C2C: Country to Country Festival – watch her recap reel here.
In tandem with the album announcement, the Virginia Beach-bred musician is sharing a fiercely empowered new track called “black sheep.” Accompanied by an official music video, “black sheep” is the second song released from her most unguarded work to date. Listen to “black sheep” here, check out the video here, and go here to pre-order/pre-save I HOPE THIS HELPS now.
The follow-up to her landmark debut album TWENTY SOMETHING — a three-part exploration of life lessons learned in her early 20s — I HOPE THIS HELPS delves even deeper into Springsteen’s inner world. With an unsparing honesty, the 25-year-old artist documents her journey in undoing a lifetime of self-abandoning patterns and the lingering impact of the fear-based faith that raised her. As she infused the album with both unfiltered introspection and deeply personal storytelling, Springsteen co-wrote and co-produced all 16 of its songs, in addition to playing guitar and piano throughout the LP.
Last month, Springsteen offered an early glimpse at I HOPE THIS HELPS with “note to self” — a soul-searching track that reckons with the pain of her early years, released alongside an official music video. While “note to self” bears a heavy-hearted intensity, “black sheep” arrives as a windows-down anthem of triumphant self-acceptance. Written by Springsteen, Lydia Vaughan, Lauren LaRue, and Jared Keim, the sunlit and soaring track perfectly mirrors her transformation from shame and frustration to fully embodied authenticity.
Produced by Sam Martinez, Springsteen, and Keim “black sheep” centers on a tender but assured vocal performance from Springsteen, who opens the song with a lived-in snapshot of feeling fundamentally out of place (“Raised in a small town bubble / They said that one is trouble / When I left my eyes were opened / Wide wide wide wide”). As the fast-paced track gathers momentum, she begins to embrace her outsider status as a source of strength (“Tired of making everyone else happy / I used to wanna blend right in so badly / But if being one of them means that I can’t be me / Then I would rather be the / Black sheep”). Shimmering with lush pedal-steel tones, radiant piano melodies, and sweetly propulsive rhythms, “black sheep” ultimately makes a gorgeous case for following your own path without apology.
Directed by Jonah George and Springsteen, the video for “black sheep” finds Springsteen riding in the back of a Bronco along the coastline that stretches from her native Virginia Beach to the Outer Banks — a one-of-a-kind area where ocean meets farmland. Over the course of the playful but poignant visual, the camera also follows a group of young kids as they delight in the carefree magic of childhood: riding bikes, running around the beach, skating on a halfpipe, hosing each other down after playing in the mud. In its constant shift between the two interwoven storylines, the result is a potent reflection on the neverending journey of becoming yourself.
Additionally, Springsteen announces ALANA SPRINGSTEEN: LIVE IN EUROPE, a headline summer tour of the UK and Europe, including stops in major cities like London, Manchester, Glasgow, and Belfast. Kicking off on July 3 at Huercasa Country Festival in Riaza, Spain, the tour will wrap up with a two-night stand at Norsk Countrytreff (a Country music festival in Breim, Norway) on July 10 and 11. Tickets for Huercasa and Norsk Countrytreff are on sale now, and fans can sign up to access the UK tour pre-sale here. Pre-sale begins March 23 at 10am GMT; and general on-sale begins March 25 at 10am GMT. See below for the full UK/Europe itinerary:
ANNOUNCED DATES FOR ALANA SPRINGSTEEN: LIVE IN EUROPE
July 3 | Riaza, Spain – Huercasa Country Festival
July 5 | Glasgow, UK – Òran Mór
July 6 | Manchester, UK – Academy 2
July 7 | London, UK – Islington Assembly Hall
July 8 | Belfast, UK – Limelight 2
July 10 | Breim, Norway – Norsk Countrytreff
July 11 | Breim, Norway – Norsk Countrytreff
PHOTO CREDIT: STEFAN KOHLI // ART CREDIT: BRIANNE FARQUHAR
Since the arrival of TWENTY SOMETHING — a 2023 LP that delivered hits like the GOLD-certified “goodbye looks good on you (feat. Mitchell Tenpenny)” and earned praise from major outlets like NPR Music (whose All Songs Considered hailed the title track as one of “The Best Songs of 2023”) — Springsteen has embarked on her first U.S. headline run, performed at leading festivals like Stagecoach, and taken the stage at arenas across the country as support for Keith Urban’s HIGH AND ALIVE WORLD TOUR. Along with releasing Alana Springsteen: Live from the Ryman and Alana Springsteen: Live from NPR’s Tiny Desk, she also scored her first No. 1 hit with “Hot Honey” — a Country-Dance collaboration with multi-platinum superstar DJ/producer Tiësto.
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ABOUT ALANA SPRINGSTEEN:
Since making her powerhouse debut with TWENTY SOMETHING – a landmark three-part album featuring GOLD “goodbye looks good on you (feat. Mitchell Tenpenny)” (among the RIAA’s Class of 2024) and accompanied by an extended DELUXE edition – artist-songwriter Alana Springsteen has won acclaim from the likes of NPR Music, who noted, “Few artists dissect and make sense of life in your 20s quite like Alana Springsteen.” Lauded by GRAMMY.com for “Speaking To An Entire Generation,” and praised by E! News as “one of Nashville’s most buzzworthy emerging artists,” she’s been crowned “the future of country music” by PEOPLE. With her latest output including crossover collaborations like her first career No. 1 with Tiësto (“Hot Honey”) and William Black (“My Own Advice” feat. ILLENIUM), she’s surpassed 404 MILLION streams worldwide. The 25-year-old is among the roster for the 2024 CMT LISTEN UP campaign; Class of 2023 for CMT Next Women of Country and MusicRow’s Next Big Thing; and a Celebrity Ambassador for the Ryan Seacrest Foundation. Along with headlining her first U.S. run, THE TWENTY SOMETHING TOUR, she’s appeared at the Grand Ole Opry, and supported Luke Bryan, LANY, Mitchell Tenpenny, NEEDTOBREATHE, Switchfoot, Keith Urban, and more. Following the back-to-back releases of Alana Springsteen: Live from the Ryman and Alana Springsteen: Live from NPR’s Tiny Desk, Springsteen opened her most emotionally revealing chapter yet with “note to self’ — the first song released from her forthcoming sophomore album I HOPE THIS HELPS, due out 5/29.
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(ALANA SPRINGSTEEN AT C2C: COUNTRY TO COUNTRY, O2 ARENA / PHOTO CREDIT: RUBY GAUNT)
