Following the release of "idea 1" and an intimate fan screening that brought SoHo to a standstill, Kelela announces new avatar, her third album via Warp Records, arriving July 10th, and shares its second single, "linknb," produced by Oscar Scheller.

"linknb" is the natural next move in Kelela’s new era. Born during a season of writer's block, the track began as a mantra Kelela wrote to pull herself back into the work. Lead by a labyrinthine guitar riff over driving metal drums, “linknb” is a song about confidence earned through difficulty, about refusing to shrink. "It's not hard to be brave / Easier to give too much away / All I know is that I paved the way, underpaid."

The visual, directed by Mischa Notcutt, places Kelela at the center of a city dreamscape, moving with urgency and purpose. A close friend and Kelela’s previous creative director, Notcutt was a natural choice. Blurring realism with abstraction, the video transforms a solitary journey into a meditation on self-discovery and renewal.

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new avatar is where everything Kelela has been building toward comes into focus. She started writing her first songs in the D.C. indie scene before the club music and electronic production that defined her early career took over. With new avatar, she closes the loop: R&B run through distorted guitar living alongside new intersections in dance music, culminating in a sound that pulls from everywhere she has ever lived musically. The album also features collaborations with PinkPantheress, A. K. Paul and Fousheé. “This album finds solace in confronting," Kelela says. "I don't want the music to be a distraction from what's really going on in the world; I want it to make sense in this crazy moment while helping people get in touch with the beauty and joy they’re also experiencing.”

The album reckons with a world coming apart at the seams, and the clarity that survival demands. “People also need to know that my friends and I are laughing constantly and that humor isn’t a defense mechanism; it’s an expression of how sharp our read is and how clearly we see the world.” At its heart, new avatar depicts a multi-dimensional experience, and while the world outside is present, it never weakens Kelela’s resolve.