Alana Springsteen is out with “i loved you then,” a sweeping, confessional track that ranks among the most unguarded music she’s ever recorded. Written with Lauren LaRue, Sara Bares and Jared Keim, and co-produced by Springsteen and Keim, the song revisits a period when she’d fallen in love but couldn’t bring herself to say it, held back by a deep fear of being fully seen. It builds from hushed intimacy into sprawling guitar work and hard-driving drums, landing at a bridge that hits like a question she can finally ask out loud. It’s out now via Santa Anna Nashville.
The track is one of the few true love songs on ‘I Hope This Helps,’ Springsteen’s 16-track sophomore album due May 29. All 16 songs are co-produced by Springsteen, who also plays guitar and piano throughout. The record documents her dismantling of long-held patterns of self-abandonment and confronts a fear-driven upbringing with the kind of directness that has defined her writing since her debut. Previously released tracks “love me anyway,” “black sheep” and “note to self” have already set the tone for what the full album delivers.
At 25, Springsteen has built a career on telling the truth without softening it. Her three-part debut ‘TWENTY SOMETHING’ earned her praise from NPR and PEOPLE, a Gold-certified single with Mitchell Tenpenny, a No. 1 collaboration with Tiësto on “Hot Honey,” a Tiny Desk debut in 2024 and tours alongside Luke Bryan, Keith Urban, LANY and NEEDTOBREATHE. ‘I Hope This Helps’ reads like the next step from an artist who has been working toward exactly this kind of record.
Following the album’s release, Springsteen heads to Europe for a headline summer tour, kicking off July 3 at Huercasa Country Festival in Riaza, Spain, and wrapping with a 2-night stand at Norsk Countrytreff in Breim, Norway on July 10 and 11, with stops in London, Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast along the way.
ALANA SPRINGSTEEN: LIVE IN EUROPE Tour Dates:
July 3 – Riaza, Spain – Huercasa Country Festival
July 10 – Breim, Norway – Norsk Countrytreff
July 11 – Breim, Norway – Norsk Countrytreff