Alabama Shakes return with new single "American Dream" as they continue teasing long-awaited reunion album

Lead vocalist Brittany Howard describes the song as “a snapshot of what we’re living through in 2026.” She adds: “I look around and wonder how we got to a place where there’s so much strain and so little support. I mean, it shouldn’t be impossible to take off work so you can bring your child to the doctor – that’s actually insane. My hope is that one day people will hear this song and say, ‘Yeah, shit was crazy back then, but we made it through.’”

The trio – Howard, guitarist Heath Fogg, and bassist Zac Cockrell – last released music in 2015, the album Sound & Color. It won three Grammy Awards including Best Alternative Music Album and received a nomination for Album of the Year. Their returning single "Another Life", released last summer, marked the group’s first original release in over a decade and their debut for Island Records.

Alabama Shakes will tour North America from 16 April, before arriving in the UK for two shows in July: Leeds’ Millennium Square on 1 July and London’s Alexandra Palace on 3 July. Dove Ellis supports in Leeds, with Tyler Ballgame in London. European festival dates follow in Belgium, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

No release date or title for the third album has been confirmed at this stage.