Hear James Blake’s New Single, ‘Are You Even Real?’
The electro-pop track marks Blake’s newest release, following ‘You’re Too Precious.’
James Blake has just unveiled his newest song, “Are You Even Real?” The electro-pop track marks Blake’s second standalone single release in 2020, following “You’re Too Precious.”
“Are You Even Real?” finds Blake expanding his sonic palette and his pool of collaborators. For his newest song, Blake worked alongside two chart-topping songwriters: Starrah, whose credits include “Girls Like You” from Maroon 5 and Cardi B, and Ali Tamposi, who penned “Señorita” from Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes, and co-wrote “Stronger” by Kelly Clarkson. The two writers also previously joined forces to pen Cabello’s hit single, “Havana”.
Blake can also be seen working on the track in Apple’s “Behind The Mac” campaign, which showcases a variety of creatives bringing their work to life via Apple products.
“Are You Even Real?” follows Blake’s first single of the year, “You’re Too Precious.” Since its release in April, the song has drawn widespread acclaim from a variety of outlets, including NME, NPR, and Billboard, who featured it among their “50 Best Songs of 2020 (So Far)” and dubbed it, “a song that’s both calming and magical.” Rolling Stone, meanwhile, called it, “dreamy.”
Both singles mark Blake’s first new music since his widely-acclaimed fourth album, Assume Form. The long-awaited follow-up to The Colour In Anything, Blake’s 2019 LP topped the US Dance/Electronic Albums chart and hit the Top Ten in multiple countries, including Canada and the UK. The album also featured a variety of collaborators, including rap giant Travis Scott, Outkast’s André 3000, fellow singer Moses Sumney and rising Latin star Rosalía.
In recent months, Blake has been keeping his fans entertained amid lockdown with regular live-streamed performances, in which he’s shared both original material and a variety of covers – from Ray Charles’ “Georgia On My Mind” and Joni Mitchell’s “A Case Of You” to Joy Division’s “Atmosphere,” Billie Eilish’s “When The Party’s Over” and even Aqua’s “Barbie Girl.” Most recently, the artist covered Nirvana’s “Come As You Are” during a special hour-long set, benefitting The Loveland Foundation.
Listen to the Best of James Blake on Apple Music and Spotify.
