Ravyn Lenae has her next chapter ready. The R&B innovator has announced her third studio album, ‘Blue Island,’ arriving August 7th via Atlantic Records, and she’s shared the new single “Handle” to mark the news. The record is executive-produced by GRAMMY-winning producer and Bird’s Eye collaborator Dahi.
“Handle” joins previously released songs “Reputation” featuring Dominic Fike and “Bobby” to sketch the picture of a musician evolving in real time. The track finds the Chicago native pushing past expected genres with a seductive new energy, hopscotching through her mind’s inner workings on love.
The single arrives with a striking music video that marks the first time Ravyn has woven choreography into her artistry. With live shows in mind, she teamed with New York-based movement director Akira Uchida to show how a song can stay personal while reaching the back row. It’s a bold, fully realized leap that confirms her standing as one of her generation’s sharpest talents.
‘Blue Island’ captures a threshold Ravyn has occupied over the past year. Her hit “Love Me Not” reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 10 on the Billboard Global 200 and No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart, and the wider world finally caught up. That success brought joy alongside anxiety, loneliness and heartbreak, plus ill-informed questions about her Blackness and her place in certain music spaces.
She answered by leaning on her influences. Looking to Santigold, Janet Jackson and Tracy Chapman, whose catalogs pushed back against limits placed on Black women artists, she uses ‘Blue Island’ to explore the full scope of her identity, from flirty energy and lingering teenage angst to the quiet, off-beat moments of transformation.
The sound widens to match. The record expands her classic style while drawing in her listening diet, from Blondie, The Sundays and The Cranberries to Martin Rev and the dramatic chorus structures of Bollywood soundtracks. “‘Blue Island’ is a point of arrival, and feeling set in my ways and in who I am,” she says, adding that it’s fun to challenge what R&B and pop are supposed to sound like and just do her own thing.
2025 proved a breakthrough year. Ravyn performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Good Morning America, made her Coachella and Lollapalooza debuts, and played a sold-out two-night residency at the Blue Note Jazz Club that Billboard called a dexterous display of musicality and wisdom. She also landed a Coach partnership, headlined her own North American and UK/EU tour, and joined select arena dates with Sabrina Carpenter and Reneé Rapp.
The road stays busy. She plays Barcelona’s Primavera Sound on June 4th and New York’s Governors Ball on June 6th, with a run of European festival dates to follow through late August.
Ravyn Lenae Upcoming Live Dates:
6/4 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
6/6 – New York, NY @ Governors Ball
8/13 – Copenhagen, DK @ Syd for Solen
8/14 – Gothenburg, SE @ Way Out West
8/15 – Oslo, NO @ Oya Festival
8/20 – St. Poelten, AT @ Frequency Festival
8/22 – Biddinghuizen, NL @ Lowlands Festival
8/23 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop Festival
8/25 – Lausanne, CH @ Headline
8/26 – Paris, FR @ Rock en Seine
8/28 – London, UK @ All Points East
8/29 – Lisbon, PT @ Kalorma
8/30 – County Laois, IE @ Electric Picnic