Revered multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and producer Jordan Rakei has today announced his new collaborative EP Between Us, due for release on April 24, via Fontana. The project launches with the radiant new single ‘Easy To Love’, featuring Tom McFarland of Jungle.
Speaking on the track, Jordan explains: ”I’d seen Jungle a few times over the summer beforehand and had been a fan of their music for years, so I was super excited to finally get in the studio with Tom. In many ways we come from similar influences, a shared love of groove, AND we’re both producer-songwriters, so it felt natural sharing the responsibilities and creative decisions together. Bouncing around between instruments. We hit it off straight away. We talked about our kids, life in London, and what it meant for me to be working at Abbey Road, and then we just rolled straight into making the song. By the time lunch was over, it was basically done. It just flowed out of us. Really relaxed, fun, and natural.”
Created during the final chapter of his tenure as Artist in Residence at the iconic Abbey Road Studios, Between Us brings together a carefully curated circle of collaborators (FKJ, Jalen Ngonda, Tom McFarland (Jungle), Nubya Garcia and Femi Koleoso (Ezra Collective)), each invited into Jordan’s world for an intense one-day writing session. Every track began with the spark of a single day spent in the room together, before being refined and expanded in the weeks that followed, preserving the immediacy and honesty of genuine creative exchange. The result is a body of work that positions Jordan not only as a singular artist, but as a tastemaker and curator with a rare ability to unite distinct voices under a cohesive sonic vision.
‘Easy To Love’ follows previous single ‘What It Gave Me’ featuring Jalen Ngonda, a meeting of two of UK soul’s most captivating and distinctive voices, and marks the second glimpse into a collaborative project Jordan has been quietly shaping behind the scenes. Speaking on the EP as a whole, Jordan explains:
“I had a lot of fun making this EP. For me, it really captures my time at Abbey Road. While I was there working on my own music, I also found myself diving into loads of spontaneous collaborations, using the space almost like a creative playground. I had so many different artists and musicians come through, and it constantly kept me on my toes and excited. With everyone I worked with on this record, we set ourselves a simple goal: make a song in one day — and whatever came of it, that’s what it was. No overthinking. That freedom was incredibly liberating. When you’re making music with the intention of releasing it, things can start to feel very serious. But this felt different. It took me back to my teenage years, making beats with friends and throwing them up on SoundCloud just because we loved it. It’s a super chilled, fun project, and I’m really glad it’s out in the world.”
Released last year via Decca (and Verve Forecast in the US), Jordan’s fifth studio album The Loop marked a new chapter in Jordan’s career that coincided with a number of profound changes in his personal life. It’s an extraordinary record, not least for its sheer, breathtaking ambition whilst retaining the experimental, off-kilter vibe he’s synonymous with. Containing singles ‘Flowers’, ‘Freedom’, ‘Learning’, ‘Friend or Foe’ and ‘Trust’, the album showcased his typically bold production style alongside spectacular orchestral arrangements and haunting choirs, hypnotic beats and an Odyssean-style narrative that charts a course through times of darkness and positivity.
The album saw Jordan achieve his first Top 40 album, be nominated for Best Album at the Ivor Novello Awards, named Abbey Road’s first ever Artist In Residence, play a coveted slot on Glastonbury’s West Holts stage, sell out his biggest-ever shows globally, curate his very own BBC Prom, and finish the year of 2024 with 2 stellar sold-out nights at London’s Royal Albert Hall. As well as the previously unheard singles, The Loop (Deluxe) version also featured live versions of key singles from the Royal Albert Hall shows
Jordan Rakei: Between Us:
1. What It Gave Me with Jalen Ngonda
2. Easy To Love with Tom McFarland (From JUNGLE)
3. It Never Ends with Femi Koleoso (From Ezra Collective)
4. Problems with FKJ
5. Monsters with Nubya Garcia