Even the most irreverent artists tend to mellow with age—but not Lucinda Williams. The latest proof is out this Friday, Apr. 24, with her bombastic, defiant and gorgeous new album Good Souls Better Angels. Emanating divine light from just beneath the surface of its devilishly oversaturated guitar tones and her cracked stained-glass voice are what Williams does best: her songs.  

"I'm just an anomaly. I'm not like everybody else and I don't know how to explain it. Everybody's asking me, especially now with this album and it's so punk-ish and garage rock-ish and youthful," the 67-year-old Williams told the Recording Academy. "'Wow, you're still out on the road touring and you're still so active and productive. How do you do it?'… 'Are you still going to be able to write songs?' And I was like, 'Yes.'"

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Since teaming up with producer, co-writer (and now-husband) Tom Overby on 2007's West, Williams has been downright prolific, releasing seven albums in 13 years, including two double-albums. Relatively speaking, her career was on a slow rise before 1998's landmark, GRAMMY-winning Car Wheels On A Gravel Road skyrocketed her into the upper echelon of American songwriters, bringing with her the blueprint for Americana music that everyone from East Nashville to Silverlake still uses today.

From the very timely and polically charged urgency on her brand-new album to the authentic enthusiasm in her voice over the phone, you can hear Williams just getting started.

"My dad said one time, 'Poets usually don't even get taken seriously for their work until they're at least in their 60s,'" she told us. "It never occurred to me to stop. It's what I do. It comes from me. It's self expression."

A true artist to the core, Williams spoke with us via telephone late last month to talk about her new album and the chaotic world it now enters. The conversation took place before the tragic passing of two of her friends and talented contemporaries due to coronavirus, fellow songwriting sage John Prine and collaboration ace producer Hal Willner. At the time, news of Prine's COVID-19 diagnosis had just struck the music world, putting the crisis into new perspective for almost everyone who ever penned a song, including Williams.

In this extensive interview, Williams opens up about co-writing the songs of Good Souls Better Angels with Overby, recording with GRAMMY winner Ray Kennedy again, taking her landmark album Car Wheels On A Gravel Road on the road for its 20th anniversary, producing and writing with Jesse Malin, the real story behind her GRAMMY-winning song "Passionate Kisses," hip-hop as the new blues music and much more…

It's a bit of a loaded question these days, but how are you doing?

I know right? You really want to know the answer? Well, right now, currently, I'm pretty concerned about John Prine. I found out about that yesterday [this interview took place on March 30, 2020]. It's starting to hit close to home. At first, I didn't know anybody personally who even had it. Then a good friend of mine got it, but she's doing okay now. She's fine. She climbed out of it. Yeah. Then the next one was Jackson Browne. But apparently, he got a light case of it… Now I'm angry, as are a lot of people, because the idiot who's in the White House, the way he's been handling [this]. They could have made sure that things were done sooner. So, that's a whole thing.

That's really the perfect segue into your new album. Good Souls Better Angels has so much snarl. There's such a punk spirit to it, starting right out of the gate.

I know. Because I'm a punk. Maybe people are going to figure that out now instead of this whole, "Well, I've always been pegged country or country something." It's kind of, just kind of got stuck. I guess by default, because I started out as a singer/songwriter. I mean, I was and am a singer/songwriter, but for a long time, I didn't even have a band or anything. I just played around in the early days by myself. So, it's a natural progression, I guess, to get tagged in that.

When I was trying to get a record deal in the '80s, the thing that kept me from getting a deal was there was no market for Americana and they kept telling me my music fell in the cracks between country and rock, which is exactly what Americana is or was created for. But I remember when I almost got a record deal with Sony Records back in the '80s, and when I was in LA, the LA label said it was too country for rock and they sent it to Nashville to see if Sony in Nashville was interested. They said it was too rock for country. [laughs] I know, it's ridiculous.  So, my stuff's always been mixed up…. Hank Williams was punk. Punk's an attitude. I don't have to tell you that.

I had a lot of fun making this album. It was done relatively quickly with just my band, and other than Ray Kennedy brought this guy in that played a little keyboard parts on a couple of things. But other than that, we just left it alone. Stuart [Mathis] did all the guitar parts and not a lot of cymbals. We told Butch [Norton] to put all the cymbals down because he loves all that stuff.

The other thing that added to it was that Ray Kennedy has a collection, a huge collection of vintage instruments, vintage guitars, and vintage amplifiers. So, I used his stuff that was there. So, everything I played, I was playing at one point through a 1950s guitar going through a vintage amplifier. So, you immediately get that crunchy sound. Then Ray just latched onto this sound for these songs. We went in there really just to cut a couple of tracks and see how it went kind of thing because Ray kept saying, "Well, come by and do a couple things and come over in my studio."

So, it was real casual. It wasn't like a formal thing like, "Okay, we're going to go do a whole album with Ray." We just went in to see how it went and the sound was just [so good]. We all just kind of were knocked back. We all just went, "Holy s**t. This sounds really good." So, we kept going and we cut other stuff too that'll be on the next album. But the sound we were getting was more suited for these kind of songs.

"Punk's an attitude. I don't have to tell you that."

Yeah, the guitar sounds on the record are mind-blowing, but so are the songs. How was it like doing the co-writing with Tom? That was new for you, in some ways.

It is. It's actually been really good. It's been really positive. It's been really kind of liberating. We ended up with more songs than we would have had because it started before this, actually, a little bit like Ghosts of Highway 20, we had everything already written and cut and everything. Tom said, "Well, I kind of feel like maybe we need one more song." He said, "I have this idea for this song," and he had this Ghosts of Highway 20.

He said, "Why don't you write about the South and all these things you see in the South?" At first, I said, "Well, I don't know what I could say that I haven't already said in the song, "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road," and I was resistant about it at first. But he said, "Well, just kind of see." He kind of nudged me a little and he said, "See what you can do." Then I did it. I went in and did it and then we ended up with that song, "Ghosts of Highway 20."

So, he was a little shy about it too. He didn't want to interrupt my space or anything. So, then we were working on stuff in between, way before this album got done and all last year. He's always been into writing everything. So, I would be working on something and he would bring an idea in and he'd say, "Now, you don't have to, but here's an idea I had." One of them was "Man Without a Soul." He had that line and the idea for it. The atmosphere was what everybody's living with right now, what's going on in the country right now.

I go, "Wait a second. Everybody's got a soul," and Tom looked me and rolled his eyes like, "Well, I don't know if everybody does." He goes, "But just look at it like an expression and everything." Because I was remembering that Neil Young song where he goes, "Even Richard Nixon has got soul"? It's like even Donald Trump has got soul and Tom goes, "No, no, no. No. Not in this case."

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So, anyway, it's been a really positive experience and both of us were a little hesitant at first about because the whole thing of, oh, now Lucinda's writing with her husband, Tom, and the whole thing. But it actually hasn't really been like that. We haven't had negative feedback about it. What I always say is, what I like to remind people of is that Tom Waits and his wife [Kathleen Brennan].

It's a great example.

I think that's probably the best example of that because they've done a lot of writing together and nobody said anything like, "Oh, now Tom's working with his wife," kind of thing.

It's almost two minds are better than one. What's the biggest relief about it? Does it take any of the pressure off? I imagine it might.

Well, I still felt the pressure of getting the songs done and finished and everything. I'm not real disciplined… Tom gets worried. He's starting to get used to it now. He was always worried, "Well, you're not writing enough. You're not writing. You're a songwriter. You're supposed to be writing every day, all day." You know?

I'm more like, I kind of work on it on a J curve, as it's called sometimes, like you just go along then there's a big whoosh. Then when I'm in that period, I'm writing, writing, writing. That'll last for a couple of weeks and I'll write. Once I get into that, then I am writing every day, all day. But I do that in spurts.

I didn't think about it as far as taking all the pressure off. I found it somewhat liberating because it does give me that more room. There's more room for more ideas. Bring them on. You know? "Big Black Train" was Tom's idea too. That was another one where he said, "I've had this idea roaming around in my head for a while and about a big black train." It's supposed to be a metaphor for depression, like the big black cloud. He brought that to me and the first thing I said was, "Well," I said, "what am I going to say about a train? "Big Black Train"? Do you have any idea how many songs have been written about trains and black trains?"

Yeah. Especially in East Nashville.

Yeah. Tom goes, "Well, just see what you can do" and I'm like, "Oh, god. I don't know." But I started working at it and somehow, I got inside of it and I got some more lyrics. Then I came up with this melody and it got inside of me and I got it. I did it. Now almost every time I sing that song, I feel like I'm going to cry. There's something about it. It's weird. Other people have told me that, that when they've heard that song, it made them cry.

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I can see why. It's a beautiful song. How were you able to broach the topic of depression, and handle such a sensitive subject matter?

Well, yeah. I've dealt with things like that, the sensitive subjects before. But this one is so much like a metaphor. It doesn't have to just be about depression. Somebody told me, I was doing an interview the other day and she said, "It kind of reminds me of death a little bit." Like getting the train to go to… You know?

Yeah, I thought about [Bob Dylan's] "Not Dark Yet."

Exactly. Yes.

Well, you've also been extremely prolific the last few years, starting your own label, releasing double albums. What do you think the difference is between now and earlier in your career?

I don't know. A lot of it is Tom gently nudging me and, "We got to get some songs written," and that kind of thing. I guess working with somebody else, it's a combination of we're just able to work well together. It kind of goes back to when that album, [2008's] Little Honey and [2007's) West, those two albums were towards the end of my contract with Lost Highway. I think [2011's] Blessed was the last album for them.

Tom and I got engaged around the time that the Little Honey album came out and I was doing press for that album and they were asking, believe it or not, I was getting asked one of the most ridiculous questions, maybe the most ridiculous question I've ever been asked, which was, "Well, everybody's concerned that you might not still be able to write songs now that you're engaged and you've found your soulmate." Yeah. I swear to God, they were asking, in all seriousness. "Are you still going to be able to write songs?" I'm like, "Oh, my God." I go, "Okay. Do I have to explain this to you? Just because you get married, just because you have kids, just because you have a big house, you're making more money, whatever it is, I'm an artist first and foremost." You know?

Absolutely.

It all comes from there. Did Picasso quit painting? There's this whole myth that, well, once you get past a certain age or once this happens, once this happens. I go, "These are all external things." It's just part of life. I can't spend the rest of my life in a miserable state of loneliness in order to keep writing songs, although some people think they do and they subconsciously sabotage relationships because that's the only way they can write songs, because that's all they know to write about.

I figured out a long time ago, way before I met Tom, that at some point in my life, I need to learn how to write other kinds of songs. So, it's kind of a combination of that kind of thinking, and I'm just an anomaly. I'm not like everybody else and I don't know how to explain it. Everybody's asking me, especially now with this album and it's so punk-ish and garage rock-ish and stuff, youthful, and my age and all. I'm 67, like, "Well, wow. You're still out on the road touring and you're still so active and productive. How do you do it?" But anyway, so I started getting asked that question about, "Are you still going to be able to write songs?" And I was like, "Yes."

Yeah. It's what you do.

Then exactly. That's what I do. Maybe it's because I grew up around poets. My dad being a poet. He was married with three kids and taught college, as did most of the writers I grew up around. Most of them taught creative writing. But they all still wrote and my dad said one time, "Poets usually don't even get taken seriously for their work until they're at least in their 60s." It's just a different world. It never occurred to me to stop. It's what I do. It comes from me. It's self expression.

So when all that stuff started coming up, I'd already been thinking, for years, I've wanted to write more topical songs, but good ones. They're not easy to do. I wanted to be able to write songs like Bob Dylan did in his early topical songs like "With God on Our Side" and "Masters of War" and those kinds of just brilliant, really well-written, anti-war protest songs. But they're harder to do probably for most songwriters, I would think. because the easiest thing to write, I think, is an unrequited love song. You can write those forever… There are other things to write about. There's always something to write about. That's the thing. That's the lesson here.

You mentioned your dad and poetry, and you also mentioned Picasso and painting… Have you ever thought, "why songs?" Why are songs your medium for expression?

Yeah. Well, probably because my dad was a writer. I'm not really sure. And my mother was a musician. Not professionally, but she studied piano all of her life and she was a music major at LSU when she met my dad. So, she played piano. So, there was always a piano around the house. My music genes, I definitely got from my mother and my dad, the words part, I got from my dad.

As soon as I was able to read and write, I remember sitting and writing little poems and stories and I think I just gravitated to songwriting because, I don't know, I fell in love with music and it was a great. When I was growing up, it was just such a vital time for folk music and folk rock and rock and all that. There are just amazing stuff coming out. I just gravitated towards that, towards that medium. But that's an interesting question.

Actually, my other interest is photography. I always said if I ever didn't write songs, that would be the other thing that I would want to learn how to do. I don't know how much of that needs to be taught necessarily.

There's something about the imagery in your lyrics feels photographic, so that makes sense.

Yes. Absolutely.

What about producing? I love what you did with Jesse Malin last year on Sunset Kids.

That was a great adventure and project and everything, too. But that was a first. Tom and I both, Jesse approached us and asked us and said, "Would you help me make my album?" We said, "Yeah, absolutely." So, it was like a team effort really with Tom and me. Because my last albums, it's just been us with the engineer, so it's been a co-production kind of a thing.

But the last time I worked with an outside producer really would be Don Was, I think he worked with us on the Blessed album, I believe. Then the West album was with Hal Willner. But then gradually, it was comfortable and we felt confident just because the engineers that I was able to work with have just been David Bianco, he's the first one I worked after we did the Blessed album. I think I started working with David Bianco and it's a very democratic process when I go in the studio with my band and the guys. Greg Leisz was involved with a lot of that, with a lot of stuff, listening back and just talking about what we're listening to and what we're hearing and just all of that. I want everybody to be happy with everything. I don't want anybody to walk out of the studio and feel like they don't like something.

So, it's been a learning experience as we've gone along, and I was flattered to have been asked to work on Jesse's album. Then of course, I got involved with him with a couple of the songs. He asked me to throw my two cents worth in with lyrics and stuff. The whole thing was a real positive experience.

Yeah. It's a great record.

It is a great record. I think it's really good. I think it's his best one. The sound, there were a lot of little of things, like Tom was really good about. The vocal sound I think is really good and we focused on that with Jesse because Tom told Jesse, he says, "You should sing in in a lower key and so your voice is a little more relaxed sounding and not try to push so much and everything," because Jesse was used to singing in his punk band, D Generation.

So, when he became a singer/songwriter from D Generation, he was kind of still pushing his voice past his range a little bit because he was so used to doing that with D Generation. So, Tom got him, worked with him a little, and got him to look at his vocals a different way, and it really made a difference, just that alone.

You did a Car Wheels… 20th anniversary tour recently. How did it feel to revisit that material two decades later?

Well, I didn't have any problem with it and part of that is because several of the songs, I'd been doing already on a regular basis in our show. So "Drunken Angel" and "Joy" and "Lake Charles." Almost all the songs on there were on my set list here or there. Some of them more than others, the ones I mentioned. Like "Joy," we pretty much end every show with that song. I'll always do "Drunken Angel" because that turned into an anthem almost. So it wasn't really that kind of thing like, "Oh, wow. I've got to revisit these old songs."

"Metal Firecracker" was my introduction to your work, and I love that song so much.

Oh, thanks. I think that might be my favorite track, my favorite one to do on the album. It's more sort of a pop-rock kind of a song compared to some of the other ones. So, you can see I'm trying to branch out a little bit there. Of course, well, I kind of did that with that song "Passionate Kisses"… You can see me kind of, a little bit by little bit, trying to move away a little. It's never a conscious decision. It's not like, oh, I'm never going to write another country song or whatever, because I don't think in terms of that anyway. I don't think in terms of what style this is and, well, I should do this style or I can't do this other style or something.

That's the other thing. I'm still going to write narrative songs and all that. This album that's out right now is a lot about that. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to ever write another song like "Drunken Angel" or something. I'm always going to be just doing whatever I do. I'm never going to leave anything behind and never do it again.

It seems like a lot of those labels were forced upon your music anyway. But you did win your first GRAMMY for "Passionate Kisses" and I believe it was in a country category…

It's not a country song. That's what's so funny about it. I know. I mean, duh. Well, the story behind that is that Mary Chapin Carpenter and I have got to know each other a little bit because when she and Roseanne Cash and I did a little acoustic tour in Australia in the early '90s, and we did these writers-in-the-round things, and Chapin had heard "Passionate Kisses," and she had started doing it at her live shows. During that tour, she asked for my blessing because she wanted to record the song. Of course, I said yes, said that would be awesome. So, she cut the song and then she started having problems with some of the people at our label because she wanted it to be the first single. They said no, that they didn't want it to because it wasn't country enough. This is the ultimate irony.

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Chapin, bless her heart, she stood her ground and she said, "Look. I've been playing this at my live shows. My fans love this song. I think it should be the first single." So, she fought with them about it and then they finally conceded and they put it out, and lo and behold, it wins a GRAMMY for Country Song of the Year [Best Country Song, a songwriter's award]. Nobody was more surprised than I was. But it was kind of like the label said it wasn't country enough and there it wins a GRAMMY for Country Song. I was like, "Wow. This is crazy."

Yeah. She proved the label wrong. You've also won in a Rock category, and Folk...

Tom and I were talking about that one time and he said, "You've been nominated just about every in just about every category almost, except for hip-hop and jazz."

And you're not done yet. So, you never know. 

Yeah. I'm not done yet. Exactly.

Speaking of hip-hop, some of the more rhythmic, lyric-heavy songs you do really reminds me of that style.

Yes. Well, that's because I got into it at a certain point because I like good songwriting, and Tom's turned me on to some really great music, because he worked at labels for years and years. So, he's like a music freak and he knows about almost any band you mention to him. So he turned me onto Thievery Corporation and I just loved it and still love them, and also a hip-hop artist out of Minneapolis who goes by the name Atmosphere. Just brilliant writing. Hip-hop kind of in that vein, but it's more musical and there's stuff mixed in. I just love it.

I think that some of the hip-hop artists really are kind of the blues artists of today in a way. The blues/soul type. See, again, there are probably some of them that don't want to be lumped into the hip-hop thing maybe. It's like because somebody like Atmosphere, when you hear their stuff and look at [Slug's] lyrics and everything and he's a really good writer and he's very compassionate and you can hear it. I've met him before and he's just a really nice, really cool guy, a really good person. Tom's from Minneapolis, so he knows him and he turned me onto his music and I just fell in love with this one particular album called Southsiders. It's just really good.

Then there's another artist, Tricky, who's out of London, and his stuff is really good. Yeah. His stuff is really good too. A lot of people are so close-minded, if they just hear a certain style of music, they go, "Oh. I don't like that kind of music," without even really listening to it. I don't listen to the radio, commercial radio. So, most of the stuff I like isn't going to be on the radio… Well, now you've got satellite radio and all that, so that's all changed now. But I'm talking about the top 10 or top 100 Billboard artists. You're not going to find Atmosphere on the top 100 Billboard artists in any particular year or something like that. So, you've got to go outside the lines a little bit to find really good artists.

Updated Friday Oct. 13, 2023 to include info about Kendrick Lamar's most recent GRAMMY wins, as of the 2023 GRAMMYs.

A GRAMMY veteran these days, Kendrick Lamar has won 17 GRAMMYs and has received 47 GRAMMY nominations overall. A sizable chunk of his trophies came from the 58th annual GRAMMY Awards in 2016, when he walked away with five — including his first-ever win in the Best Rap Album category.

This installment of GRAMMY Rewind turns back the clock to 2016, revisiting Lamar's acceptance speech upon winning Best Rap Album for To Pimp A Butterfly. Though Lamar was alone on stage, he made it clear that he wouldn't be at the top of his game without the help of a broad support system. 

"First off, all glory to God, that's for sure," he said, kicking off a speech that went on to thank his parents, who he described as his "those who gave me the responsibility of knowing, of accepting the good with the bad."

Looking for more GRAMMYs news? The 2024 GRAMMY nominations are here!

He also extended his love and gratitude to his fiancée, Whitney Alford, and shouted out his Top Dawg Entertainment labelmates. Lamar specifically praised Top Dawg's CEO, Anthony Tiffith, for finding and developing raw talent that might not otherwise get the chance to pursue their musical dreams.

"We'd never forget that: Taking these kids out of the projects, out of Compton, and putting them right here on this stage, to be the best that they can be," Lamar — a Compton native himself — continued, leading into an impassioned conclusion spotlighting some of the cornerstone rap albums that came before To Pimp a Butterfly.

"Hip-hop. Ice Cube. This is for hip-hop," he said. "This is for Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle. This is for Illmatic, this is for Nas. We will live forever. Believe that."

To Pimp a Butterfly singles "Alright" and "These Walls" earned Lamar three more GRAMMYs that night, the former winning Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song and the latter taking Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (the song features Bilal, Anna Wise and Thundercat). He also won Best Music Video for the remix of Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood." 

Lamar has since won Best Rap Album two more times, taking home the golden gramophone in 2018 for his blockbuster LP DAMN., and in 2023 for his bold fifth album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

Watch Lamar's full acceptance speech above, and check back at GRAMMY.com every Friday for more GRAMMY Rewind episodes. 

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June is an important moment in the year, as it brings us Pride Month, Black Music Month and Juneteenth. It also marks the official start of summer, where rising temperatures invite late afternoons enjoying good music — whether it’s outdoors at one of the season’s many festivals or in the comfort of your own home.

As for the good music, this month brings us plenty of new releases by queer artists, like Kim Petras' long-awaited debut, Feed The Beast, and the Aces’ I’ve Loved You For So Long. Black musicians have much on offer in June as well, including Janelle Monáe (who is also queer) The Age of Pleasure, house music DJ and producer Jayda G’s Guy, and Ghana-born singer Amaarae’s Fountain Baby. Last but not least, June also marks the return of both Foo Fighters and Lucinda Williams after life-altering events, and the ultimate release of Bob Dylan’s 2021 concert film soundtrack, Shadow Kingdom.

To inspire you further with their bold artistry and moving stories, GRAMMY.com compiled a guide to the 15 must-hear albums dropping June 2023. 

Foo Fighters - But Here We Are

Release date: June 2

In dark times, humans often turn to art. Even if they have no answers for what the future holds, the transmuting power of expression reminds us that, sometimes, existing is enough. But Here We Are, Foo Fighters’ 11th studio album, does just that.

After "a year of staggering losses, personal introspection and bittersweet remembrances," as they state in their website  — referring to the sudden loss of longtime drummer, Taylor Hawkins,  and of frontman Dave Grohl’s mother, Virginia — they find both grievance and strength in what has been called "the first chapter of the band’s new life."

In support of this change, Foo Fighters have announced over 25 performances across the U.S. and Europe in the upcoming months. But Here We Are drops on June 2, and features ten new tracks, including promotional singles "Rescued," "Under You," "Show Me How," and "The Teacher."

Juan Wauters - Wandering Rebel

Release date: June 2

For most of his life, the Uruguay-born, New York-raised singer Juan Wauters was a rover — never for too long in one place. But as he sings on the upcoming titular track of his new album, Wandering Rebel, "During COVID I discovered/ that I like stability."

In a statement, Wauters reflected about moving back to his home country because of the pandemic, and the personal changes that came with it: "New York was the place I always came back to, but I never really had a 'home.' My parents left Uruguay, their home, when I was young. Now, [in Montevideo], I have a place to come home to, and people that are waiting for me."

The 12 songs on Wandering Rebel are defined as "candid reflections on subjects like career, romantic commitment, mental health, and the personal toll of touring," some of which can be seen through singles "Milanesa al Pan (ft. Zoe Gotusso)" and "Modus Operandi (ft. Frankie Cosmos)." As to not lose sight of his itinerant roots, Wauters will embark on a lengthy U.S. tour starting this month.

Bob Dylan - Shadow Kingdom

Release date: June 2

When the COVID-19 pandemic stalled Bob Dylan’s illustrious Never Ending Tour, he decided to baffle the world with something entirely different.

First released in 2021 as a concert film directed by Alma Har'el, Shadow Kingdom sees Dylan perform 14 tracks from the first half of his career in an acoustic, intimate atmosphere. In the setlist, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" from 1965’s Bringing It All Back Home marks the earliest composition to be featured, while "What Was It You Wanted" from 1989's Oh Mercy is the latest.

With little-to-no prior information, the film originally premiered on livestream platform Veeps, and swiftly disappeared 48 hours after. On June 2, an official soundtrack release will revive the experience for all those who missed it.

Rancid - Tomorrow Never Comes

Release date: June 2

Breaking a six-year absence of new music, California’s boisterous Rancid are back. Tomorrow Never Comes, the band’s tenth album, proves that the verve from one of punk rock’s biggest acts in the mid-1990s is still alive.

Produced by longtime collaborator and Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz, the record holds 15 tracks, but runs just short of 29 minutes — Rancid’s briefest album yet. But judging by singles "Tomorrow Never Comes," "Don't Make Me Do It," and "Devil in Disguise," quick-paced or not, the quality remains the same.

Right after the release, Rancid will kick off an European tour for the rest of the month, before hitting Canada and a few cities in the U.S. starting September.

The Aces - I’ve Loved You For So Long

Release date: June 2

Pride month celebrations have just gotten the perfect soundtrack: I’ve Loved You For So Long, the Aces’ third studio album, comes out on June 2. 

Preceded by the title track and singles "Girls Make Me Wanna Die," "Always Get This Way," and "Solo," the album marks the Utah quartet’s first release since 2020’s LP Under My Influence. According to a press release, I’ve Loved You For So Long is "rife with songs that celebrate their queer identities, juxtaposed by tracks that reflect on their early relationships with Mormonism."

The 11-track collection is also described as "a nostalgic look back at the formative experiences that shaped who they are as a band today, like pages straight from their diaries that will leave their listeners feeling seen and critics wanting more."

Janelle Monáe - The Age of Pleasure

Release date: June 9

Marking her return to music five years after 2018’s Dirty Computer, the chameleonic singer and actor Janelle Monáe ushers in The Age of Pleasure. Her fourth studio album features 14 tracks, including collaborations from Grace Jones, Amaarae, Seun Kuti, and others.

During an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Monáe said all the songs "were written from such an honest space," with the goal of being "so specific to this Pan-African crowd who are my friends. I want it to be a love letter to the diaspora."

If its two delightful singles "Float" and "Lipstick Lover" are any indication, it looks like Monáe has nailed her target — while also providing us a much-needed new era for the summer.

Amaarae - Fountain Baby

Release date: June 9

"Coming back after so long, I had a lot of time to think and reflect on what I wanted my message to be. Last time it was about confidence, this time it’s about love and faith," said Ghanaian-American singer Amaarae in a statement about her single, "Reckless & Sweet."

The mystifying track gives a taste of her upcoming sophomore album, Fountain Baby, set to release on June 9. Following her acclaimed 2020 debut The Angel You Don’t Know, the album also features last month’s cheeky "Co-Star," and points to an expansion of the singer’s avant-garde Afro-pop sound, as well as a celebration of Black women all over the world.

Jayda G - Guy

Release date: June 9

Canadian producer and DJ Jayda G was only 10 years old when she lost her father, William Richard Guy. However, his memories shaped her life in significant ways, and now she is ready to share them with the world through her upcoming studio album, Guy.

Through a press release, Jayda said that she wanted the album to be "a blend of storytelling, about the African American experience, death, grief, and understanding." The singer also added that "it’s about my dad and his story, and naturally in part my story, too, but it’s also about so many people who wanted more for themselves and went on a search to find that. This album is just so much for people who have been oppressed and who have not had easy lives."

The first single of the project, "Circle Back Around," features archival footage of Jayda and her father — an endearing portrait that ultimately delivers an uplifting message. As she explains further in the press release: "I think it’s just a testament that it’s never too late to look at yourself and try to understand why you are the way you are, and strive to be better. Understanding the Black man’s experience, Black people’s experience in terms of America, and rising above what society tells you you’re supposed to be."

King Krule - Space Heavy

Release date: June 9

British singer King Krule was inspired by "the space between" his London and Liverpool commutes — both places he considers home — to craft Space Heavy, his fourth studio album.

Written throughout 2020 to 2022, the record was produced by Dilip Harris, and recorded alongside bandmates Ignacio Salvadores, George Bass, James Wilson, and Jack Towell. In April, the hazy "Seaforth" was released as the album’s first single.

King Krule, whose real name is Archy Marshall, will soon embark on a summer tour spanning North America, Europe, and the UK. The first stop is in Minneapolis on July 21.

Killer Mike - Michael

Release date: June 16

It’s been more than a decade since Killer Mike released a solo album (2012’s R.A.P. Music), but June brings forward new, exciting material from the Atlanta rapper and member of Run the Jewels. Upcoming LP Michael is said to be his "most autobiographical" work so far, and features 14 tracks that depict "an origin story," according to a statement.

2022 singles "RUN" and "Talkin Dat S—!" are also included in the album, as well as this year’s "Don’t Let The Devil" and "Motherless" — whose two music videos form a short film paying homage to Mike’s late mother, Mama Niecy. The rapper is also set to perform a 19-stop tour in the U.S. this summer.

Home Is Where - the whaler

Release date: June 16

Florida emo band Home Is Where built a reputation for delivering catharsis through their gloomy lyrics and angry melodies. Their upcoming sophomore LP, the whaler, takes that up a notch: It was defined as a project about "getting used to things getting worse" in a press release.

Produced by Jack Shirley and containing 10 interconnected songs, the whaler "paints a bleak picture of a world in an endless state of collapse — of ruined utopias and desperate people faking normalcy — [but] there’s a humanity-affirming undercurrent throughout that screams to break free."

Ahead of the release, the band shared the lead single "yes! yes! a thousand times yes!," and is currently gearing up for a U.S. tour through the East Coast and Midwest in July and the West Coast in September.

Kim Petras - Feed the Beast

Release date: June 23

The much-awaited debut LP of German singer Kim Petras, Feed the Beast, finally has a birth date: June 23. After struggling with the leaking and eventual scrapping of would-have-been album Problématique, Petras compiled 15 tracks for this new effort — including last year’s mega hit "Unholy" featuring Sam Smith, which earned them both a GRAMMY Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

In an interview with Vice, the singer said Feed the Beast marks "a transition from being an independent artist to being at a major label now. Spearheaded by singles "If Jesus Was a Rockstar," "Brrr," and lead single "Alone" featuring Nicki Minaj, Petras will celebrate the release with a performance at NBC’s TODAY Citi Concert Series, as well as live sets at Governor’s Ball in NYC and Life is Beautiful Festival in Las Vegas.

Lunice - OPEN

Release date: June 23

Described as a project that "focuses on the natural human ability and behavior of intuition, instinct, openness, flexibility, and adaptation," and also as "a bizarre ride through the Montreal underground," OPEN is the sophomore album by Canadian producer and TNGHT member, Lunice.

Following up his 2017 acclaimed solo debut, CCCLX, the new record aims to be even more dynamic, with every track conceived to be performed live. Featuring collaborations with Cali Cartier, Zach Zoya, Yuki Dreams Again, DAGR and GRAMMY-winning producer DRTWRK, OPEN drops on June 23.

"No Commas," the pulsating first single off the project, sets the mood to the upcoming folly. "This track is the result of multiple natural occurrences where the melody, drums, and vocal performance coincidentally fit with each other in the moment of creation without any prior motive behind it," Lunice said in a statement. "I find these instinctual moments of creativity beautiful and inspiring."

Maisie Peters - The Good Witch

Release date: June 23

British singer/songwriter Maisie Peters calls herself The Good Witch — the "keeper of the keys and the holder of the cards" to her own universe, soon on display through her upcoming second album.

Written last year while she was on tour, Peters explains that its 15 tracks represent a time when she was "searching for balance between career highs and personal lows," a quality that can be seen through "Body Better," the album’s acutely honest lead single. 

"This is my heart and soul, my blood on the page, the collection of stories that I’ve managed to capture in the past year," said Peters. "A true chronicle of my life in recent history, it is my own twisted version of a breakup album and it all draws upon the same couple of months’ worth of experiences and inspirations." 

The singer is also set to tour 27 cities in the U.S. and Canada from August to October.

Lucinda Williams - Stories From a Rock n Roll Heart

Release date: June 30

Lucinda Williams is living proof that getting older doesn’t mean getting duller. The Americana legend just celebrated her 70th birthday in January — and the last three years of her life have been some of the most tumultuous yet.

In 2020, her Nashville home was damaged by a tornado. Then, came the COVID-19 pandemic. And lastly, a stroke that affected her ability to play the guitar, therefore changing the way she writes songs. But Williams didn’t let any of that stop her — Stories from a Rock n Roll Heart, her 15th studio album, comes out on June 30, and shows that she’s only getting better.

The project already has three singles out: "New York Comeback," "Stolen Moments," and "Where the Song Will Find Me," and counts on backing vocals from artists like Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa, and Angel Olsen.

Listen To GRAMMY.com's LGBTQIA+ Pride Month 2023 Playlist Featuring Demi Lovato, Sam Smith, Kim Petras, Frank Ocean, Omar Apollo & More

It's rare that a genre can be traced back to a single artist or group, but for funk, that was James Brown. The Godfather of Soul coined the phrase and style of playing known as "on the one," where the first downbeat is emphasized, instead of the typical second and fourth beats in pop, soul and other styles. As David Cheal eloquently explains, playing on the one "left space for phrases and riffs, often syncopated around the beat, creating an intricate, interlocking grid which could go on and on." You know a funky bassline when you hear it; its fat chords beg your body to get up and groove.

Brown's 1965 classic, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag," became one of the first funk hits, and has been endlessly sampled and covered over the years, along with his other groovy tracks. Of course, many other funk acts followed in the '60s, and the genre thrived in the '70s and '80s as the disco craze came and went, and the originators of hip-hop and house music created new music from funk and disco's strong, flexible bones built for dancing.

Legendary funk bassist Bootsy Collins learned the power of the one from playing in Brown's band, and brought it to George Clinton, who created P-funk, an expansive, Afrofuturistic, psychedelic exploration of funk with his various bands and projects, including Parliament-Funkadelic. Both Collins and Clinton remain active and funkin', and have offered their timeless grooves to collabs with younger artists, including Kali Uchis, Silk Sonic, and Omar Apollo; and Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, and Thundercat, respectively.

In the 1980s, electro-funk was born when artists like Afrika Bambaataa, Man Parrish, and Egyptian Lover began making futuristic beats with the Roland TR-808 drum machine — often with robotic vocals distorted through a talk box. A key distinguishing factor of electro-funk is a de-emphasis on vocals, with more phrases than choruses and verses. The sound influenced contemporaneous hip-hop, funk and electronica, along with acts around the globe, while current acts like Chromeo, DJ Stingray, and even Egyptian Lover himself keep electro-funk alive and well.

Today, funk lives in many places, with its heavy bass and syncopated grooves finding way into many nooks and crannies of music. There's nu-disco and boogie funk, nodding back to disco bands with soaring vocals and dance floor-designed instrumentation. G-funk continues to influence Los Angeles hip-hop, with innovative artists like Dam-Funk and Channel Tres bringing the funk and G-funk, into electro territory. Funk and disco-centered '70s revival is definitely having a moment, with acts like Ghost Funk Orchestra and Parcels, while its sparkly sprinklings can be heard in pop from Dua Lipa, Doja Cat, and, in full "Soul Train" character, Silk Sonic. There are also acts making dreamy, atmospheric music with a solid dose of funk, such as Khruangbin’s global sonic collage.

There are many bands that play heavily with funk, creating lush grooves designed to get you moving. Read on for a taste of five current modern funk and nu-disco artists making band-led uptempo funk built for the dance floor. Be sure to press play on the Spotify playlist above, and check out GRAMMY.com's playlist on Apple Music, Amazon Music and Pandora.

Say She She

Aptly self-described as "discodelic soul," Brooklyn-based seven-piece Say She She make dreamy, operatic funk, led by singer-songwriters Nya Gazelle Brown, Piya Malik and Sabrina Mileo Cunningham. Their '70s girl group-inspired vocal harmonies echo, sooth and enchant as they cover poignant topics with feminist flair.

While they’ve been active in the New York scene for a few years, they’ve gained wider acclaim for the irresistible music they began releasing this year, including their debut album, Prism. Their 2022 debut single "Forget Me Not" is an ode to ground-breaking New York art collective Guerilla Girls, and "Norma" is their protest anthem in response to the news that Roe vs. Wade could be (and was) overturned. The band name is a nod to funk legend Nile Rodgers, from the "Le freak, c'est chi" exclamation in Chic's legendary tune "Le Freak."

Moniquea

Moniquea's unique voice oozes confidence, yet invites you in to dance with her to the super funky boogie rhythms. The Pasadena, California artist was raised on funk music; her mom was in a cover band that would play classics like Aretha Franklin’s "Get It Right" and Gladys Knight’s "Love Overboard." Moniquea released her first boogie funk track at 20 and, in 2011, met local producer XL Middelton — a bonafide purveyor of funk. She's been a star artist on his MoFunk Records ever since, and they've collabed on countless tracks, channeling West Coast energy with a heavy dose of G-funk, sunny lyrics and upbeat, roller disco-ready rhythms.

Her latest release is an upbeat nod to classic West Coast funk, produced by Middleton, and follows her February 2022 groovy, collab-filled album, On Repeat.

Shiro Schwarz

Shiro Schwarz is a Mexico City-based duo, consisting of Pammela Rojas and Rafael Marfil, who helped establish a modern funk scene in the richly creative Mexican metropolis. On "Electrify" — originally released in 2016 on Fat Beats Records and reissued in 2021 by MoFunk — Shiro Schwarz's vocals playfully contrast each other, floating over an insistent, upbeat bassline and an '80s throwback electro-funk rhythm with synth flourishes.

Their music manages to be both nostalgic and futuristic — and impossible to sit still to. 2021 single "Be Kind" is sweet, mellow and groovy, perfect chic lounge funk. Shiro Schwarz’s latest track, the joyfully nostalgic "Hey DJ," is a collab with funkstress Saucy Lady and U-Key.

L'Impératrice

L'Impératrice (the empress in French) are a six-piece Parisian group serving an infectiously joyful blend of French pop, nu-disco, funk and psychedelia. Flore Benguigui's vocals are light and dreamy, yet commanding of your attention, while lyrics have a feminist touch.

During their energetic live sets, L'Impératrice members Charles de Boisseguin and Hagni Gwon (keys), David Gaugué (bass), Achille Trocellier (guitar), and Tom Daveau (drums) deliver extended instrumental jam sessions to expand and connect their music. Gaugué emphasizes the thick funky bass, and Benguigui jumps around the stage while sounding like an angel. L’Impératrice’s latest album, 2021’s Tako Tsubo, is a sunny, playful French disco journey.

Franc Moody

Franc Moody's bio fittingly describes their music as "a soul funk and cosmic disco sound." The London outfit was birthed by friends Ned Franc and Jon Moody in the early 2010s, when they were living together and throwing parties in North London's warehouse scene. In 2017, the group grew to six members, including singer and multi-instrumentalist Amber-Simone.

Their music feels at home with other electro-pop bands like fellow Londoners Jungle and Aussie act Parcels. While much of it is upbeat and euphoric, Franc Moody also dips into the more chilled, dreamy realm, such as the vibey, sultry title track from their recently released Into the Ether.

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Living Legends is a series that spotlights icons in music still going strong today. This week, GRAMMY.com spoke with Billy Idol about his latest EP,  Cage, and continuing to rock through decades of changing tastes.

Billy Idol is a true rock 'n' roll survivor who has persevered through cultural shifts and personal struggles. While some may think of Idol solely for "Rebel Yell" and "White Wedding," the singer's musical influences span genres and many of his tunes are less turbo-charged than his '80s hits would belie.  

Idol first made a splash in the latter half of the '70s with the British punk band Generation X. In the '80s, he went on to a solo career combining rock, pop, and punk into a distinct sound that transformed him and his musical partner, guitarist Steve Stevens, into icons. They have racked up multiple GRAMMY nominations, in addition to one gold, one double platinum, and four platinum albums thanks to hits like "Cradle Of Love," "Flesh For Fantasy," and "Eyes Without A Face." 

But, unlike many legacy artists, Idol is anything but a relic. Billy continues to produce vital Idol music by collaborating with producers and songwriters — including Miley Cyrus — who share his forward-thinking vision. He will play a five-show Vegas residency in November, and filmmaker Jonas Akerlund is working on a documentary about Idol’s life. 

His latest release is Cage, the second in a trilogy of annual four-song EPs. The title track is a classic Billy Idol banger expressing the desire to free himself from personal constraints and live a better life. Other tracks on Cage incorporate metallic riffing and funky R&B grooves. 

Idol continues to reckon with his demons — they both grappled with addiction during the '80s — and the singer is open about those struggles on the record and the page. (Idol's 2014 memoir Dancing With Myself, details a 1990 motorcycle accident that nearly claimed a leg, and how becoming a father steered him to reject hard drugs. "Bitter Taste," from his last EP, The Roadside, reflects on surviving the accident.)

Although Idol and Stevens split in the late '80s — the skilled guitarist fronted Steve Stevens & The Atomic Playboys, and collaborated with Michael Jackson, Rick Ocasek, Vince Neil, and Harold Faltermeyer (on the GRAMMY-winning "Top Gun Anthem") —  their common history and shared musical bond has been undeniable. The duo reunited in 2001 for an episode of "VH1 Storytellers" and have been back in the saddle for two decades. Their union remains one of the strongest collaborations in rock 'n roll history.

While there is recognizable personnel and a distinguishable sound throughout a lot of his work, Billy Idol has always pushed himself to try different things. Idol discusses his musical journey, his desire to constantly move forward, and the strong connection that he shares with Stevens. 

Steve has said that you like to mix up a variety of styles, yet everyone assumes you're the "Rebel Yell"/"White Wedding" guy. But if they really listen to your catalog, it's vastly different.

Yeah, that's right. With someone like Steve Stevens, and then back in the day Keith Forsey producing... [Before that] Generation X actually did move around inside punk rock. We didn't stay doing just the Ramones two-minute music. We actually did a seven-minute song. [Laughs]. We did always mix things up. 

Then when I got into my solo career, that was the fun of it. With someone like Steve, I knew what he could do. I could see whatever we needed to do, we could nail it. The world was my oyster musically. 

"Cage" is a classic-sounding Billy Idol rocker, then "Running From The Ghost" is almost metal, like what the Devil's Playground album was like back in the mid-2000s. "Miss Nobody" comes out of nowhere with this pop/R&B flavor. What inspired that?

We really hadn't done anything like that since something like "Flesh For Fantasy" [which] had a bit of an R&B thing about it. Back in the early days of Billy Idol, "Hot In The City" and "Mony Mony" had girls [singing] on the backgrounds. 

We always had a bit of R&B really, so it was actually fun to revisit that. We just hadn't done anything really quite like that for a long time. That was one of the reasons to work with someone like Sam Hollander [for the song "Rita Hayworth"] on The Roadside. We knew we could go [with him] into an R&B world, and he's a great songwriter and producer. That's the fun of music really, trying out these things and seeing if you can make them stick. 

I listen to new music by veteran artists and debate that with some people. I'm sure you have those fans that want their nostalgia, and then there are some people who will embrace the newer stuff. Do you find it’s a challenge to reach people with new songs?

Obviously, what we're looking for is, how do we somehow have one foot in the past and one foot into the future? We’ve got the best of all possible worlds because that has been the modus operandi of Billy Idol. 

You want to do things that are true to you, and you don't just want to try and do things that you're seeing there in the charts today. I think that we're achieving it with things like "Running From The Ghost" and "Cage" on this new EP. I think we’re managing to do both in a way. 

**Obviously, "Running From The Ghost" is about addiction, all the stuff that you went through, and in "Cage" you’re talking about  freeing yourself from a lot of personal shackles. Was there any one moment in your life that made you really thought I have to not let this weigh me down anymore?**

I mean, things like the motorcycle accident I had, that was a bit of a wake up call way back. It was 32 years ago. But there were things like that, years ago, that gradually made me think about what I was doing with my life. I didn't want to ruin it, really. I didn't want to throw it away, and it made [me] be less cavalier. 

I had to say to myself, about the drugs and stuff, that I've been there and I've done it. There’s no point in carrying on doing it. You couldn't get any higher. You didn't want to throw your life away casually, and I was close to doing that. It took me a bit of time, but then gradually I was able to get control of myself to a certain extent [with] drugs and everything. And I think Steve's done the same thing. We're on a similar path really, which has been great because we're in the same boat in terms of lyrics and stuff. 

So a lot of things like that were wake up calls. Even having grandchildren and just watching my daughter enlarging her family and everything; it just makes you really positive about things and want to show a positive side to how you're feeling, about where you're going. We've lived with the demons so long, we've found a way to live with them. We found a way to be at peace with our demons, in a way. Maybe not completely, but certainly to where we’re enjoying what we do and excited about it.

[When writing] "Running From The Ghost" it was easy to go, what was the ghost for us? At one point, we were very drug addicted in the '80s. And Steve in particular is super sober [now]. I mean, I still vape pot and stuff. I don’t know how he’s doing it, but it’s incredible. All I want to be able to do is have a couple of glasses of wine at a restaurant or something. I can do that now.

I think working with people that are super talented, you just feel confident. That is a big reason why you open up and express yourself more because you feel comfortable with what's around you.

Did you watch Danny Boyle's recent Sex Pistols mini-series?

I did, yes.

You had a couple of cameos; well, an actor who portrayed you did. How did you react to it? How accurate do you think it was in portraying that particular time period?

I love Jonesy’s book, I thought his book was incredible. It's probably one of the best bio books really. It was incredible and so open. I was looking forward to that a lot.

It was as if [the show] kind of stayed with Steve [Jones’ memoir] about halfway through, and then departed from it. [John] Lydon, for instance, was never someone I ever saw acting out; he's more like that today. I never saw him do something like jump up in the room and run around going crazy. The only time I saw him ever do that was when they signed the recording deal with Virgin in front of Buckingham Palace. Whereas Sid Vicious was always acting out; he was always doing something in a horrible way or shouting at someone. I don't remember John being like that. I remember him being much more introverted.

But then I watched interviews with some of the actors about coming to grips with the parts they were playing. And they were saying, we knew punk rock happened but just didn't know any of the details. So I thought well, there you go. If ["Pistol" is]  informing a lot of people who wouldn't know anything about punk rock, maybe that's what's good about it.

Maybe down the road John Lydon will get the chance to do John's version of the Pistols story. Maybe someone will go a lot deeper into it and it won't be so surface. But maybe you needed this just to get people back in the flow.

We had punk and metal over here in the States, but it feels like England it was legitimately more dangerous. British society was much more rigid.

It never went [as] mega in America. It went big in England. It exploded when the Pistols did that interview with [TV host Bill] Grundy, that lorry truck driver put his boot through his own TV, and all the national papers had "the filth and the fury" [headlines].

We went from being unknown to being known overnight. We waited a year, Generation X. We even told them [record labels] no for nine months to a year. Every record company wanted their own punk rock group. So it went really mega in England, and it affected the whole country – the style, the fashions, everything. I mean, the Ramones were massive in England. Devo had a No. 1 song [in England] with "Satisfaction" in '77. Actually, Devo was as big as or bigger than the Pistols.

You were ahead of the pop-punk thing that happened in the late '90s, and a lot of it became tongue-in-cheek by then. It didn't have the same sense of rebelliousness as the original movement. It was more pop.

It had become a style. There was a famous book in England called Revolt Into Style — and that's what had happened, a revolt that turned into style which then they were able to duplicate in their own way. Even recently, Billie Joe [Armstrong] did his own version of "Gimme Some Truth," the Lennon song we covered way back in 1977.

When we initially were making [punk] music, it hadn't become accepted yet. It was still dangerous and turned into a style that people were used to. We were still breaking barriers.

You have a band called Generation Sex with Steve Jones and Paul Cook. I assume you all have an easier time playing Pistols and Gen X songs together now and not worrying about getting spit on like back in the '70s?

Yeah, definitely. When I got to America I told the group I was putting it together, "No one spits at the audience."

We had five years of being spat on [in the UK], and it was revolting. And they spat at you if they liked you. If they didn't like it they smashed your gear up. One night, I remember I saw blood on my T-shirt, and I think Joe Strummer got meningitis when spit went in his mouth.

You had to go through a lot to become successful, it wasn't like you just kind of got up there and did a couple of gigs. I don't think some young rock bands really get that today.

With punk going so mega in England, we definitely got a leg up. We still had a lot of work to get where we got to, and rightly so because you find out that you need to do that. A lot of groups in the old days would be together three to five years before they ever made a record, and that time is really important. In a way, what was great about punk rock for me was it was very much a learning period. I really learned a lot [about] recording music and being in a group and even writing songs.

Then when I came to America, it was a flow, really. I also really started to know what I wanted Billy Idol to be. It took me a little bit, but I kind of knew what I wanted Billy Idol to be. And even that took a while to let it marinate.

You and Miley Cyrus have developed a good working relationship in the last several years. How do you think her fans have responded to you, and your fans have responded to her?

I think they're into it. It's more the record company that she had didn't really get "Night Crawling"— it was one of the best songs on Plastic Hearts, and I don't think they understood that. They wanted to go with Dua Lipa, they wanted to go with the modern, young acts, and I don't think they realized that that song was resonating with her fans. Which is a shame really because, with Andrew Watt producing, it's a hit song.

But at the same time, I enjoyed doing it. It came out really good and it's very Billy Idol. In fact, I think it’s more Billy Idol than Miley Cyrus. I think it shows you where Andrew Watt was. He was excited about doing a Billy Idol track. She's fun to work with. She’s a really great person and she works at her singing — I watched her rehearsing for the Super Bowl performance she gave. She rehearsed all Saturday morning, all Saturday afternoon, and Sunday morning and it was that afternoon. I have to admire her fortitude. She really cares.

I remember when you went on "Viva La Bam" back in 2005 and decided to give Bam Margera’s Lamborghini a new sunroof by taking a power saw to it. Did he own that car? Was that a rental?

I think it was his car.

Did he get over it later on?

He loved it. [Laughs] He’s got a wacky sense of humor. He’s fantastic, actually. I’m really sorry to see what he's been going through just lately. He's going through a lot, and I wish him the best. He's a fantastic person, and it's a shame that he's struggling so much with his addictions. I know what it's like. It's not easy.

Musically, what is the synergy like with you guys during the past 10 years, doing Kings and Queens of the Underground and this new stuff? What is your working relationship like now in this more sober, older, mature version of you two as opposed to what it was like back in the '80s?

In lots of ways it’s not so different because we always wrote the songs together, we always talked about what we're going to do together. It was just that we were getting high at the same time.We're just not getting [that way now] but we're doing all the same things.

We're still talking about things, still [planning] things:What are we going to do next? How are we going to find new people to work with? We want to find new producers. Let's be a little bit more timely about putting stuff out.That part of our relationship is the same, you know what I mean? That never got affected. We just happened to be overloading in the '80s.

The relationship’s… matured and it's carrying on being fruitful, and I think that's pretty amazing. Really, most people don't get to this place. Usually, they hate each other by now. [Laughs] We also give each other space. We're not stopping each other doing things outside of what we’re working on together. All of that enables us to carry on working together. I love and admire him. I respect him. He's been fantastic. I mean, just standing there on stage with him is always a treat. And he’s got an immensely great sense of humor. I think that's another reason why we can hang together after all this time because we've got the sense of humor to enable us to go forward.

There's a lot of fan reaction videos online, and I noticed a lot of younger women like "Rebel Yell" because, unlike a lot of other '80s alpha male rock tunes, you're talking about satisfying your lover.

It was about my girlfriend at the time, Perri Lister. It was about how great I thought she was, how much I was in love with her, and how great women are, how powerful they are.

It was a bit of a feminist anthem in a weird way. It was all about how relationships can free you and add a lot to your life. It was a cry of love, nothing to do with the Civil War or anything like that. Perri was a big part of my life, a big part of being Billy Idol. I wanted to write about it. I'm glad that's the effect.

Is there something you hope people get out of the songs you've been doing over the last 10 years? Do you find yourself putting out a message that keeps repeating?

Well, I suppose, if anything, is that you can come to terms with your life, you can keep a hold of it. You can work your dreams into reality in a way and, look, a million years later, still be enjoying it.

The only reason I'm singing about getting out of the cage is because I kicked out of the cage years ago. I joined Generation X when I said to my parents, "I'm leaving university, and I'm joining a punk rock group." And they didn't even know what a punk rock group was. Years ago, I’d write things for myself that put me on this path, so that maybe in 2022 I could sing something like "Cage" and be owning this territory and really having a good time. This is the life I wanted.

The original UK punk movement challenged societal norms. Despite all the craziness going on throughout the world, it seems like a lot of modern rock bands are afraid to do what you guys were doing. Do you think we'll see a shift in that?

Yeah.  Art usually reacts to things, so I would think eventually there will be a massive reaction to the pop music that’s taken over — the middle of the road music, and then this kind of right wing politics. There will be a massive reaction if there's not already one. I don’t know where it will come from exactly. You never know who's gonna do [it].

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