Dev Hynes, known as Blood Orange, has officially announced his new album, “Essex Honey,” set to release on August 29, 2025, via RCA Records, per hypebeast.com. The LP marks Hynes’s first full-length project in six years and is a deeply personal exploration of grief, his upbringing in Essex, England, and the healing power of music.
Hynes revealed the album in an Instagram video, sharing poignant red-lettered text over London landscapes and clips of him working.
“The loss I had suffered, combined with this feeling, took me back to a beginning,” read one message, reflecting the album’s introspective themes.
“Essex Honey” boasts an impressive roster of collaborators, including Daniel Caesar, Lorde, Caroline Polachek, Tirzah, Mustafa, Turnstile’s Brendan Yates, Mabe Fratti, Ian Isiah, Liam Benzvi, Tariq Al-Sabir, Charlotte Dos Santos, The Durutti Column, and notably, author Zadie Smith in her first recorded musical appearance. Actors Naomi Scott and Amandala Stenberg are also featured.
The album follows Hynes’s 2022 EP “Four Songs” and has been preceded by singles like “The Field” and the dual release of “Mind Loaded” and “Somewhere In Between.” Fans can anticipate a reflective and sonically rich journey through Hynes’s experiences with grief, youth, and the profound influence of music.
•Featured image by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for GQ
