Ravyn Lenae is one of those unique artists who simply can’t be put in a box. She is a chaotic mix of every genre she dares to dip her toe into. Chaotic in the best way possible. You never know what her next move will be. The only thing that always stays central is her almost innocent, angelic voice. After the immense success of her 2024 album Bird’s Eye, particularly with the slow-burner hit ‘Love Me Not’, she announced her new project.

Her third studio album Blue Island is set for release on August 7th. Along with the announcement, she already gave away what we can expect. “Blue Island is a point of arrival, and feeling set in my ways and in who I am, and feeling free of any of those preconceived notions about Blackness or what I had to be in the past. I think now it’s fun to challenge the idea of what R&B is supposed to sound like, what pop is supposed to sound like… and really say ‘fuck all of that’ and do my own thing.”

Of course, the announcement went hand in hand with new music. Her new single ‘Handle’ is everything you’d expect from the singer, yet nothing you could have ever imagined. The catchy tune challenges what today’s music can sound like. We are way past the time when artists had to place themselves in one box and limit themselves to a single genre. On the perfect ‘Handle’ we hear R&B in the vocal production, pick up on indie-rock through the guitar riffs and drums, and stay light and bubbly with the chanting pop chorus. This instantly became one of our favorite songs released this year so far.