It seems like it’s been a long, long time since Chicago rapper/poet Noname put out a new song. However, the wait will soon come to an end, as the outspoken MC has announced the release date for her next single. It’s called “Balloons,” it features New Orleans rapper Jay Electronica and Detroit singer Eryn Allen Kane, and it’s due on July 21.
balloons – 7/21
Jay Electronica
Eryn Allen Kane pic.twitter.com/VYaekwHXCL— noname (@noname) July 13, 2023
The track constitutes Noname’s first new single since 2021 when she released “Rainforest” without much fanfare. Prior to that, her last release was the fiery “Song 33,” her June 2020 response to J. Cole’s “Snow On The Bluff,” which criticized an unnamed commenter for shutting down questions online. Fans interpreted the song as a shot at Noname, and after the hype died down, it seemed that the Chicago rapper was exhausted by the scrutiny.
She announced that she was canceling her album Factory Baby in December 2021 to focus on her activism — namely the Radical Hood Library in Los Angeles — but after taking a few months away opted to return the stage at Afropunk in 2022. Then, this April, she told fans, “My new album is called Sundial. It will be released in July 2023. Thank you for everything.”
It looks like Noname’s aiming for a late-July release for the album if she’s releasing a single next week. Fingers crossed.