Kehlani season is on the way. The 29-year-old singer announced their forthcoming album Crash is coming out next month.
The Los Angeles artist posted a cover art featuring their self sitting on top of a heavily damaged red car with glass shards scattered across the hood. They sport a metallic dress and eccentric boots. “CRASH 6.21.24 the album,” they wrote in the caption.
The two-time Grammy nominee built up hype for the June project with their lead single “After Hours,” which came out last month. The track samples Cordel “Scatta” Burrell’s song “Coolie Dance Rhythm,” which is heard in Nina Sky’s classic 2004 record “Move Ya Body.” They doubled down with a colorful, dance-heavy music video that was shot at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas earlier this month.
“Coming out of this pandemic to global tragedy to global tragedy to global tragedy, I was like I’m not really in a space to make something that feels super jarring or super sad,” Kehlani told Apple Music’s Zane Lowe when discussing “After Hours” and its inspiration. “I’m very outspoken about these things, but I want my art to provide some kind of life and fun. I wanna hear this outside and I wanna feel good.”
Nina Sky’s “Move Ya Body” has withstood the test of time and they wanted to pay homage to that while also bringing the energy to today’s music landscape. “One of my favorite songs of all time, but also just like to be outside […] and everybody just moves is — no pun intended — is ‘Move Ya Body’ by Nina Sky,” they said. “I remember walking around the house like, ‘Why has nobody sampled [this]?’ Because those drums are so recognizable and everybody just loses it.”
Crash will be the “Nights Like This” artist’s first album since 2022’s Blue Water Road, and they sought to create different music based on where they currently are in life. “For once, I’m not attached to some story, some public thing, some trauma, or [something needing a] deep explanation,” they said. “I have nothing but joyful things to say to you. I’m in such a happy place. I’m ready to be outside.”
Kehlani’s Blue Water Road was a 13-track LP featuring Justin Bieber, Jessie Reyez, Blxst, Syd, Thundercat, and Ambré. The album debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard 200 and No. 8 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
Outside of music, they also helped announce the WNBA’s latest expansion team, the Golden State Valkyries. “Born from the Bay, gilded in gold,” they said in the promotional video. “This is where legends take flight, but our story has yet to be written.” They previously performed at the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game halftime show.