Kehlani Begs Their Love to Stay on the ‘Altar’ in New Song

Kehlani has released a new song, “Altar,” from their next album, Blue Water Road, which is expected to arrive later this year.

“Altar” is a swooning hit of pop-R&B that finds Kehlani (who uses she/they pronouns) crooning over a crisp drum skip and a mix of sparkling, swaying synths and guitars: “So I put you on the altar, stay just a little bit longer,” goes the hook, “Laid it out for ya, thought I felt you before/Now you’rе closer, closer.” The track also arrives with a music video, directed by Kid Studio, and starring Diovanna LaBeija alongside Kehlani.

“Altar” marks Kehlani’s first solo single of 2021, though it’s far from their first song of the year. They’ve dropped a handful of collaborations as well, including “I Like Dat” with T-Pain, “Love You Too” with Lil Durk, and “Back Together” with Amorphous.

Kehlani did not share any additional details about, Blue Water Road, like an exact release date or tracklist. The album will follow their 2020 effort, It Was Good Until It Wasn’t.

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone,  Kehlani said Blue Water Road began with sessions that were supposed to yield bonus songs for a deluxe edition of It Was Good, but they soon morphed into something all their own: “We just made so much cool shit, and it was so different from what I would consider to be able to be on the deluxe because it didn’t sound anything like it. I just was like, ‘Fuck it, this is a whole new project.’”