The beloved indie folk pop star Maggie Rogers has just announced that her new album, Don’t Forget Me, will be released on April 12th; along with the news, she dropped the stunning title track. The instrumentation – gentle piano and acoustic strums grounded by a warm backbeat – is a perfect canvas for Rogers’ signature singer-songwriter storytelling. She reflects on friends finding love, while wishing for a connection of her own. The track’s swelling soul stems from Rogers’ gorgeous layered vocals, which showcase her heart-rending range.
Rogers shared an intriguing statement about creating the new album on Instagram. She describes the speedy songwriting process of the album, which was “written over five days, two songs a day.” She continued: “Some of the stories on this album are mine. And for the first time really, some of them are not. In writing the album sequentially, at some point a character emerged. I started to picture a girl on a roadtrip through the American south and west. A sort of younger Thelma & Louise character who was leaving home and leaving a relationship, processing out loud, finding solace in her friends and in the promise of a new city and new landscape.” Rogers cited the “intimacy of Linda McCartney’s photographs” as a major influence in the process. Ian Fitchuk, collaborator with Devon Gilfillian, Gus Daperton and Kacey Musgraves, wrote eight of the tracks and co-produced with Rogers.
Don’t Forget Me will be Rogers’ third album, after Heard It In A Past Life (2019) and Surrender (2022). She first broke out with surprise viral success while still in college. The legendary producer/rapper Pharrell Williams visited her NYU classroom to share feedback with several young musician students. Rogers shared “Alaska,” a slow-burning dance-folk track that was then just a demo, and rendered Williams speechless for a moment. “I have zero, zero, zero notes for that,” he gushed. “I’ve never heard anyone like you before, and I’ve never heard anything that sounds like that,” he continued before comparing her to the singular originality of artists like the Wu-Tang Clan. Far from a fleeting social-media success story, Rogers has proved herself as a thoughtful singer-songwriter and commanding performer in the years since. She’s collaborated with Phoebe Bridgers, Zach Bryan, and longtime friend Del Water Gap. Last summer, she performed at Philly’s Mann Center. Stay tuned to WXPN for more updates on a likely return to the city.