Photo Credit: Andy Witchger under license CC BY 2.0 No changes were made to the image.
Carly Rae Jepsen recently announced an upcoming follow-up album to her 2022 release, The Loneliest Time, titled The Loveliest Time. The official release date for this album is set for July 28, 2023. Jepsen has said that it's the aptly titled completed set to a body of work that taught her about "love and loneliness." Jepsen describes the follow-up project as a time for celebration and "for all the lessons we have learned to burst into joyful action."
The Loneliest Time, released on October 5, 2022, peaked at #19 on the Billboard 200 and became the singer's fourth Top 40 album. Jepsen also recently released disco-inspired "Shy Boy," a single expected to appear on The Loveliest Time. While Jepsen's previous albums were followed by projects featuring B-sides and outtakes, Jepsen confirmed The Loveliest Time is more of a companion project, with fewer B-sides.
What else is Carly Rae Jepsen up to?
Recently, the "Call Me Maybe" singer had her Glastonbury debut, describing the five-day festival as a "bucket list" and lifetime experience. Unfortunately, her first time also left her "heartbroken," as she was also starting a six-date tour in Japan, leading to an in-and-out festival experience. The singer expressed her disappointment about missing the opportunity to watch Cat Stevens' performance, which was scheduled two days after her stage.
Still, Glastonbury is only one of Jepsen's many festival appearances throughout the first half of the year. She is set to headline the All Things Go Music Festival alongside Lana Del Rey, Boygenius, and Maggie Rogers (September 30 and October 1). She was also a festival headliner for the Golden Plains 2023 on a confetti cannon-armed stage. Other outdoor festivals Jepsen performed at in 2023 include the OUTLOUD Music Festival 2023 — the flagship music festival of WeHo Pride Weekend — and BottleRock Napa Valley 2023.
Aside from festival shows, Jepsen committed to a worldwide tour. Many of Jepsen's contemporaries, like Taylor Swift, have similarly spent the past year on their own international tour, boasting multiple overseas dates in major cities around the world. Jepsen herself embarked on The So Nice Tour to promote The Loneliest Time's release from September 2022 through March 2023, playing shows across North America, Europe, and Australia.
Aside from her music, Jepsen is also a budding style icon, matching her often playful pop tunes to equally playful and fashionable outfits, whether on stage or in her music videos. In the music video for "Beach House," she dons brightly coloured swimwear, a fun straw hat, and a pair of pink women's sunglasses that masterfully tie together recent trends. The rose gold sunnies, in particular, are reminiscent of the Michael Kors Arrowhead design — with a retro, cat-eye shape and bright metal lines that perfectly fit Jepsen's image.
Pink seems like a growing motif recently. For her Glastonbury debut, Jepsen wore full I.AM.GIA gear, looking sweet in a fully pink get-up, from corset to her shrug and pants. I.AM.GIA is known for its collection of bold statement pieces that juggle outdoor summer and cool girl, which suits Jepsen's music and airy voice. The soft and breezy pink look goes well with her performance of the newly released "Shy Boy" — perhaps as a cutesy welcome for the summer season.
While we would've loved all the pink-spiration to mean a feature in the Barbie film soundtrack, Jepsen recently performed the adorable and catchy theme song for Hello Kitty: Super Style! — a new 3D-style Hello Kitty show on Amazon Kids+. The theme song runs short and sweet at about 30 seconds, during which Jepsen sings about how Hello Kitty is always there for you. It seems like Jepsen's star across the music, fashion, and media industries will continue to rise.