| The Loneliest Time • Timeline • Gallery • Photography • Formats |
The Loneliest Time is the fifth studio album from Carly Rae Jepsen. It was released on October 21st 2022, through 604, School Boy and Interscope Records.
The album serves as a follow-up to her 2019 record, Dedicated. The first single from the album, Western Wind, was released on May 6th 2022.
Track listing[]
Standard track listing[]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Surrender My Heart 🅴 | Carly Rae Jepsen • Imad Royal • Max Hershenow | Imad Royal • Max Hershenow • Jordan Palmer | 2:48 |
| 2. | Joshua Tree | Jepsen • Tavish Crowe • Luke Niccoli | Luke Niccoli • Jordan Palmer | 2:29 |
| 3. | Talking To Yourself | Jepsen • Ryan Rabin • Benjamin Berger • Simon Wilcox | Captain Cuts | 2:53 |
| 4. | Far Away | Jepsen • Tavish Crowe • Nathan Jenkins | Bullion | 2:59 |
| 5. | Sideways | Jepsen • John Hill • Jordan Palmer • Jay Stolar | John Hill • Jordan Palmer | 2:16 |
| 6. | Beach House | Jepsen • Nate Cyphert • Alex Hope | Alex Hope | 2:30 |
| 7. | Bends | Jepsen • Tavish Crowe • Nathan Jenkins | Bullion | 3:15 |
| 8. | Western Wind | Jepsen • Rostam | Rostam | 3:45 |
| 9. | So Nice | Jepsen • Nate Cyphert • Kyle Shearer | Kyle Shearer | 3:39 |
| 10. | Bad Thing Twice | Jepsen • John Hill • Jordan Palmer • Jay Stolar | John Hill • Jordan Palmer | 3:13 |
| 11. | Shooting Star | Jepsen • Jared Solomon • Danny Silberstein | Jared Solomon | 3:19 |
| 12. | Go Find Yourself or Whatever | Jepsen • Rostam | Rostam | 4:44 |
| 13. | The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright) | Jepsen • Kyle Shearer • Nate Cyphert | Kyle Shearer | 4:34 |
Bonus tracks[]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | Anxious | Jepsen • Oliver Lundström • Tavish Crowe | Oliver Lundström | 2:57 |
| 15. | No Thinking Over the Weekend | Jepsen • Patrik Berger • Noonie Bao | Patrik Berger | 4:42 |
| 16. | Keep Away | Jepsen • Kyle Shearer • Nate Cyphert | Kyle Shearer | 4:02 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | Keep Away | Jepsen • Kyle Shearer • Nate Cyphert | Kyle Shearer | 4:02 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | Anxious | Jepsen • Oliver Lundström • Tavish Crowe | Oliver Lundström | 2:57 |
| 15. | No Thinking Over the Weekend | Jepsen • Patrik Berger • Noonie Bao | Patrik Berger | 4:42 |
Writing and development[]
The writing process for The Loneliest Time would take place over the span of two years between 2020 and 2022. In that time, over 100 songs were written, and narrowed down to just 30-40 to be in consideration for the album. [1]
Quarantine album project[]
In its very early stages, work on The Loneliest Time began sometime between March and May 2020 as a quarantine project alongside Jepsen's guitarist Tavish Crowe. [2] Right from the start of the project, Carly's writing was characterised by experimentation. "If you heard what we were making you’d be like, “every song sounds completely different” – and that’s the point." [3]
Prior to quarantine, Carly revealed she had written roughly five or six songs since the release of Dedicated in May 2019 whilst embarking on The Dedicated Tour. She described it as "therapeutic" writing in the same vein as scrapped projects such as Disco Sweat. [4] In August 2022, Carly stated that some of those original ideas that she wrote whilst on tour had made it into the final cut of the album. [5]
Early development in 2020[]
Development on the project continued throughout 2020. By August, Tavish and Carly produced a number of demo tracks for the record, including a couple of "experimental funk" songs. At this time, Carly cited her influences for the project were derived from funk and disco primarily, but there was no concrete direction set in place. She described how she was still in the discovery stages of the creative process. [6] Whilst in quarantine, development of the album took place over Zoom with Carly recording vocals in her purpose-built home studio. [7][8]
In September 2020, Jepsen described how she was "really liking funk sounds" and was "getting really funky and almost cheesy with it." Similar to the way she's discussed Disco Sweat, she explained, "I know that's part of the process before I pull it back a bit to a place that feels authentic and a little cooler." [7][9] Around this time, she wrote Move Me with Lewis OfMan via Zoom.
Continued development in 2021[]
In March 2021, Jepsen reiterated that she was working on her next album in her new homemade studio, which was renovated from an old office space apart of her house in Los Angeles. [8][5] Later that month, Carly revealed she was writing new music with Patrik Berger via Zoom. [10] In April 2021, she recorded Sideways with John Hill.
In June 2021, songwriter and producer Nate Campany confirmed via Instagram that he and Jepsen had been working on new music together. [11] That month, Carly was photographed with Surrender My Heart co-writers Imad Royal and Max Hershenow and likely recorded the song around this time. [12] In July 2021, it was revealed Dedicated collaborator Rogét Chahayed had worked on new music with Jepsen - likely, this was Lost in Devotion. [13] Leaked demos of both songs were produced in August 2021.
Furthermore, in the summer of 2021, Carly and Rostam ended up in the studio together and wrote Western Wind, with the song being one of the first ideas the pair had come up with. That same week, the pair wrote Shadow. Likely around this same time, Go Find Yourself or Whatever was written. [14] That summer, it's likely Shooting Star was written in New York.
In September 2021, Carly performed at Governor's Ball in New York City - her first performance following the COVID-19 pandemic, inspiring the songs Stadium Love and Weekend Love. A month later, she shared lyrics to Weekend Love, though explained it was "too soon' for her to be teasing new music. [15] That same month, in October 2021, Carly was working with collaborators CJ Baran and Ben Romans on new material. [16]
On November 23rd, Ava Raiin posted to Instagram stories to reveal that she and Jepsen had been recording together at Electric Lady Studios in New York, alongside producer Lewis OfMan and mixing engineer Mikaelin BlueSpruce. [17] In a December 2021 interview with Alan Neal, Jepsen stated she was looking to bring flute instrumentation into her writing for the album, which likely materialised within No Thinking Over the Weekend. [18]
Across the development of The Loneliest Time, Jepsen met with Bullion several times in the studio between Toronto and London to record the songs Far Away, Bends, Waterlines, and Rare. The pair initially met on Zoom, with their first writing session in person seeing Carly record Far Away alongside Tavish Crowe in Toronto. [19] Carly recorded the song alongside Bullion on their first meeting in Toronto, after first being introduced via Zoom. [20]
Album finalisations in 2022[]
In January 2022, music duo The Knocks confirmed they had been working on new material with Carly, though were unsure if it would be released. [21] Later than month, Carly teased Beach House lyrics via social media; "I’ve got a beach house in Malibu and I’m probably going to hurt your feelings." [22] On February 26th, Jepsen posted a snippet of a new song she was working on whilst in London with Bullion, titled Waterlines. [23] That same day, Carly and Bullion worked on Bends. [20]
On May 6th 2022, the album's official lead single Western Wind, produced by Rostam, was released. On May 19th, Carly was working on new music in the studio and teased the title of the album for the first time prior to its official unveiling. [24] Likewise, on May 27th, Jepsen was pictured in the studio with Swedish composer and producer Oliver Lundström - co-writer and producer of Anxious. [25]
In June 2022, Carly discussed her then-upcoming album in an interview with Kyle Meredith. She explained how there was no one solid direction in mind for the project, and how Western Wind was just one of several directions she had gone in. "I think that’s the beauty of growth in music. At this point for me, it’s a little bit of like, let’s see what we can do with this one voice and this many tastes that I have and attractions to different flavours of music." [26]
Discussing Rostam's influence on the project, Carly stated, "I think that Rostam and I definitely bring out a certain flavour in each other, and I think that’s definitely prominent in the things to come, but it’s not the only flavour I would say." Carly also explained how she was still in the "deciding phase" of finalising the album's track listing at the time. [26] Development on The Loneliest Time was officially completed in early July 2022. [5]
Album pre-release in 2022[]
The Loneliest Time was officially announced on August 2nd 2022. In a press statement, the album was described as Jepsen's "most introspective" yet, and was said to expand on the songwriting and sound familiar to her previous works, notably Emotion. Upon its announcement, Jepsen stated, "I’m quite fascinated by loneliness. It can be really beautiful when you turn it over and look at it. Just like love, it can cause some extreme human reactions." [27][28]
In an August 2022 interview, Jepsen stated her approach to making The Loneliest Time was different to both Emotion and Dedicated, which were mostly influenced by music from the 80s and 70s respectively. Instead, with The Loneliest Time, Carly states she was "less conscious" of decades - "I had the playground of all the eras to jump from, and this was more just writing from the heart, in whatever direction the songs wanted to go." [5] The album includes a variety of different influences, including 80s pop, 70s folk, funk, and disco. [5]
With writing The Loneliest Time, Jepsen expressed she wanted to be more intentional about her lyricism. In a notable difference from her previous work, The Loneliest Time is "more self-reflective" and "analytical" of Jepsen's own behaviours. "It excited me to have those moments of flirtation on the album, but also broaden the spectrum of what the subject of a pop song was allowed to be." [5]
Whilst making her previous album, Dedicated, Carly explained how, although she had been in a relationship at the time, she still felt lonely - she stated this was an overarching theme that had been carried into the new project, but now she was "reflecting more on what extreme emotion causes in you." She explained, "It’s a subject that I find really inspiring because there’s a lot of different things to take away from it, and that was what I was broaching with this album." [5] "It wasn’t just trying to be overly happy or romantic, I wasn’t glossing over that it was the loneliest time of my life." [5]
Announcement and release[]
| “ | I’m quite fascinated by loneliness. It can be really beautiful when you turn it over and look at it. Just like love, it can cause some extreme human reactions. | ” |
The Loneliest Time was officially announced by Jepsen on August 2nd 2022, alongside the reveal of the cover artwork and pre-order. It was teased the day prior with a cryptic social media video. [29][27] The album was released on October 21st 2022 through 604, School Boy, and Interscope Records.
Carly originally teased the title of the album multiple times in her Instagram posts between May and June 2022, notably alongside the announcement of The So Nice Tour on June 7th 2022; "It’s been the loveliest, loneliest time." [30][31] On August 22nd, the album track listing was revealed. [32]
Release history[]
| Country | Date | Edition | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global | October 21st 2022 | Standard Deluxe |
CD Digital Streaming |
604 School Boy Interscope |
| Standard | Vinyl
Cassette |
Singles[]
Western Wind[]
Western Wind is the first single from The Loneliest Time, released on May 6th 2022 under 604, School Boy, and Interscope Records. It serves as the project's lead single.
Beach House[]
Beach House was released on August 5th 2022 as the second single from the album. Its release coincided with the announcement and reveal of The Loneliest Time that same week.
Talking To Yourself[]
The third official single from the album, Talking To Yourself, was released on September 16th 2022, prior to the start of The So Nice Tour the following week.
The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright)[]
The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright) was released on October 7th 2022 as the fourth single from the album and the last prior to its release.
Gallery[]
- § Visit The Loneliest Time gallery: Gallery • Photoshoot Gallery
Album covers[]
Album booklet[]
Album credits[]
Writing and production[]
- Carly Rae Jepsen - songwriting (all tracks)
- Imad Royal - songwriting, production (1)
- Max Hereshenow - songwriting, production (1)
- Jordan Palmer - production (1, 2); songwriting, production (5, 10)
- Tavish Crowe - songwriting (2, 4, 7, 14)
- Luke Niccoli - songwriting, production (2)
- Ryan Rabin - songwriting, production (3)
- Ben Berger - songwriting, production (3)
- Simon Wilcox - songwriting (3)
- Bullion - songwriting, production (4, 7)
- John Hill - songwriting, production (5, 10)
- Jay Stolar - songwriting (5, 10)
- Nate Cyphert - songwriting (6, 9, 13, 16)
- Alex Hope - songwriting, production (6)
- Rostam - songwriting, production (8, 12)
- Kyle Shearer - songwriting, production (9, 13, 16)
- Jared Solomon - songwriting, production (10)
- Danny Silberstein - songwriting (10)
- Oliver Lundström - songwriting, production (14)
- Noonie Bao - songwriting (15)
- Patrik Berger - songwriting, production (15)
Performance[]
- Carly Rae Jepsen – vocals (all tracks)
- Imad Royal - background vocals (1)
- Max Hereshenow - background vocals (1)
- Ryan Rabin - background vocals (3)
- Ben Berger - background vocals (3)
- Nathan Jenkins - vocals (4)
- Joey Hendricks - vocals (6)
- Tony Marino - vocals (6)
- Bobby Wooten III - vocals (6)
- Jared Manierka - vocals (6)
- Ben Romans - vocals (6)
- Nate Cyphert - background vocals (6, 9, 13, 16)
- Angel Deradoorian - background vocals (8)
- Julia Ross - background vocals (8)
- Rostam - background vocals (8)
- Georgia Greene - background vocals (12)
- Lauren Jones - background vocals (12)
- Quinn D'Andrea - background vocals (12)
- Rufus Wainwright - vocals (13)
- Kyle Shearer - background vocals (13)
Instrumentation[]
- Imad Royal - bass, guitar, drums (1)
- Max Hershenow - drums (1)
- Luke Niccoli - bass, drums, keyboard, guitar (2)
- Trevor Rabin - guitar (3)
- Nathan Jenkins - bass, synthesizer (4, 7)
- Liam Hutton - drums (4)
- Jordan Palmer - drums, guitar, synthesizer (5, 10); bass (10)
- John Hill - drums(5); bass (10); guitar (5, 10)
- Alex Hope - guitar, synthesizer (6)
- Rostam - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, piano, synthesizer (8, 12); bass, organ, shaker, clapping, tambourine, drums, conga (8); electric bass, hammond B3, mandolin, percussion, sitar (12)
- Andrew Tachine - tambourine, drums, conga (8)
- Joey Messina-Doerning - conga (8)
- Kyle Shearer - bass (9, 13, 16); guitar (9, 16); drums, synthesizer (13)
- Andrew Bulbrook - violin (12)
- Elizabeth Lamb - violin (13)
- Emily Kohavi - violin (13)
- Cassie Morrow - violin (13)
- Avery Bright - violin (13)
- Cara Fox - chello (13)
- Cody Fry - strings arrangement (13, 16)
- Oliver Lundström - bass, guitar, synthesizer (14)
- Christoffer Cantillo - drums (15)
- Evan Smith - flute (15)
Technical[]
- Tom Norris - mixing, engineering (1, 2, 5, 10)
- Imad Royal - engineering (1)
- Max Hershenow - engineering (1)
- Chris Allgood - mastering (1, 2, 4-9, 11-12); assistant mastering (3, 13)
- Emily Lazar - mastering (1-13)
- Jordan Palmer - engineering (2)
- Luke Niccoli - engineering (2)
- Ryan Rabin - recording engineer (3)
- Ben Rabin - recording engineer (3)
- Eli Heisler - recording engineer (3)
- Rob Kinelski - mixing (3)
- Jonathon Gilmore - vocal production (4, 7)
- Nathan Jenkins - vocal production (4); engineering, vocal programming (7)
- Anthony Dolhai - engineering (4, 7); mixing (7)
- Alex Hope - programming (6)
- Rob Cohen - programming (6); engineering (10)
- Mitch McCarthy - mixing (6)
- Rostam - engineering (8, 12); programming (8); drum programming (12)
- Joey Messina-Doerning - engineering (8, 12)
- Ivan Wayman - additional engineering (8)
- Travis Pavur - engineering assistance (8)
- Shawn Everett - mixing (8)
- Kyle Shearer - engineering, programming (9, 13, 16)
- James Krausse - mixing, engineering (9, 13, 16)
- Nathan Phillips - mixing, engineering (11)
- Geoff Swan - mixing, engineering (12)
- Matt Cahill - additional engineering (12)
- Niko Battistini - additional engineering (12)
- Jared Fox - engineering (13)
- Anthony Dolhai - mixing (14)
- Davey Badiuk - mixing (14)
- Oliver Lundström - programming (14)
- Jamie Snell - mixing (15)
- Patrik Berger - programming (15)
Album cover[]
- Jodie Clemons - creative director
- Meredith Jenkins - photography
- Jon Lieckfelt - hair
- Gregory Arlt - makeup
- Hayley Atkin - styling
- Jenna Remy - styling
[]
Side B • 2020
2019
Side B • 2016
2015
2012
2012
2008
| The Loneliest Time | Surrender My Heart • Joshua Tree • Talking To Yourself • Far Away • Sideways • Beach House • Bends • Western Wind • So Nice • Bad Thing Twice • Shooting Star • Go Find Yourself or Whatever • The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright) • Anxious • No Thinking Over the Weekend • Keep Away |
|---|---|
| The Loveliest Time | Anything To Be With You • Kamikaze • After Last Night • Aeroplanes • Shy Boy • Kollage • Shadow • Psychedelic Switch • So Right • Come Over • Put It To Rest • Stadium Love • Weekend Love |
| Other releases | Move Me (with Lewis OfMan) • Hello Kitty: Super Style (Theme Song) • Shadow (George Daniel Remix) • Rare (feat. Carly Rae Jepsen) • Tiny Moves |
| Leaked | Lost in Devotion • The Man's Got Music • Like Gold • Down To The Middle |
|---|---|
| Unleaked | Let's Pretend This Never Happened • Waterlines • Don't Kiss the Producer • Devotion • Come Around • Wait For Me • Unconditionally • Sweater Weather • It's Not Over • Water Me Down |
| Electric Guest demos | Clues • Coming Soon • Summer Vibe • Cruising For Hours • Spotlight • Night Out • Why Not? • Only 1 4 Me • 97 • Come Pick Me Up • Ur Love Means 2 Me • Weekend • Next Life • OUCH • You, You, You, You • Emergency Love • Closer • Let's Pretend |
References[]
- ↑ Kuga, Mitchell CARLY RAE JEPSEN DOESN’T WANT TO STAY IN HER LANE Nylon, August 8th 2022
- ↑ Neale, Matthew "Carly Rae Jepsen says she’s made an “entire quarantine album”..." NME.com, May 27th 2020
- ↑ Snapes, Laura "Carly Rae Jepsen's lockdown listening: 'My fridge caught on fire!'" The Guardian, May 22nd 2020
- ↑ Griffiths, Neil Episode 109 | Carly Rae Jepsen | 2 - 12 - 2019" Spotify, December 2nd 2019
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Kaplan, Illana 'Carly Rae Jepsen: More Than a Feeling' Crack Magazine, August 5th 2022
- ↑ In Depth w/ Larry Flick: Carly Rae Jepsen. SiriusXM. August 31st 2020
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Carley, Brennan "Carly Rae Jepsen Looks Back On Her Game-Changing Album E•MO•TION..." ELLE.com, September 2nd 2020
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 @CarlyCrave "...at the end of the program, Carly revealed that she is working on a new album!..." March 6th 2021 - via Twitter
- ↑ Balow, Eve "Carly Rae Jepsen: “It’s not too scary to say everything”" The Fourty-Five, September 22nd 2020
- ↑ "New music soon?" March 10th 2021 - via Reddit
- ↑ @carlycrave "Music producer Nate Campany has been teasing new Carly Rae Jepsen music lately (...)" June 30th 2021 - via Twitter
- ↑ Instagram; @carlyraejepsen
- ↑ Horowitz, Stephen J. 'Producer Roget Chahayed Tells the Stories Behind... Billboard, July 22nd 2021
- ↑ @CarlyCrave #WesternWind producer @matsoR reveals he and Carly have 3 scrapped DEDICATED era tracks!🎶... May 6th 2022 - via Twitter
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen "“Weekend Love. Eyes like invitations..." October 23rd 2021 - via Instagram
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen "A self timed studio pic..." October 14th 2021 - via Instagram
- ↑ Ava Raiin (@avaraiin) - via Instagram stories, November 23rd 2021
- ↑ "All in a Day with Alan Neal" cbc.ca. December 13th 2021, Retrieved December 24th 2021.
- ↑ @bullionness Excited to be part of the new @carlyraejepsen album, out October 21st! We wrote and recorded Far Away and Bends... Instagram, August 29th 2022
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 @carlyraejepsen "The new @Bullionness album Affection comes out in April and we are all so lucky for that! (...)" January 25th 2024 - via Instagram
- ↑ The Knocks Discord Server, January 17th 2022
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen I’ve got a beach house in Malibu and I’m probably going to hurt your feelings. ☀️✌🏻 January 26th 2022 - via Twitter
- ↑ @CarlyCrave "🚨POP EMERGENCY🚨@carlyraejepsen teases new music snippet on Instagram! 🎶" February 26th 2022, Retrieved February 27th 2022 (via Twitter)
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen 'Headed to the studio today and it’s overcast and almost raining. That makes me feel some kinda way...' Instagram, May 19th 2022
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen Studio baby ♥️ 📸 Instagram, May 27th 2022
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Meredith, Kyle 'Kyle Meredith with... Carly Rae Jepsen' YouTube, June 27th 2022
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 @carlyraejepsen THE LONELIEST TIME 💌 Oct 21. I’m quite fascinated by loneliness... August 2nd 2022 - via Twitter
- ↑ 'The Loneliest Time' CD August 2nd 2022, Interscope Records
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen 'I’m coming back for you, baby… 🌛' August 1st 2022 - via Instagram
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen '...But it’s been the loveliest, loneliest time.' May 19th 2022 - via Instagram
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen 'We’ve had the loneliest time… but after 3 years, the SO NICE tour... June 7th 2022 - via Instagam
- ↑ @carlyraejepsen 'Here it is… each and every song that makes up The Loneliest Time. Assembled with the utmost intention and care...' August 22nd 2022 - via Twitter