Today, Thursday, October 1st, 2026, Shabazz Palaces is sharing “Tongue In Chic,” a new wave R&B jam with humorous reflections on his dating life. It’s also another highlight from It’s a Style Sport, out later this month worldwide from Sub Pop. Listen here.
The Stranger reviewed Shabazz Palaces’ live performance of “Tongue In Chic” at their Genius Awards event last month, and said of the track: “The standout for me was the closer—a new song called “Tongue In Chic”…In the song, Butler raps coolly, ‘New girlfriend, that’s what I need,’ and goes on to regale us with his experience dating a woman who claimed to be a chef but has an empty fridge and no utensils. This song was fucking funny and cool.”
“Tongue In Chic” features Shabazz Palaces’ Ishmael Butler (Vocals, Drum Machine, Keyboards), along with Gerald “Tugboat” Turner (Bass), Thaddeus “Thaddillac” Turner (Guitar, Keyboards), and album co-producer Erik Blood (Guitar).
Later this evening, Shabazz Palaces will host an early album listening party for Southern California fans at Los Angeles, CA’s Gold Line Bar from 6-8 PM PT. The event is open to the public, free for entry, and 21+. Entry is first-come, first-served.
Shabazz Palaces’ It’s a Style Sport is available now to preorder on CD/LP/Digital from Sub Pop. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com in North America, Mega Mart Europe in the UK and EU, and your local record store will receive the limited Loser edition on Metallic Silver (North America) and Sparkle Starlight (EU/UK) vinyl (while supplies last).
It’s a Style Sport is the eighth Shabazz Palaces studio album and the first since the release of sibling mini-albums 2023’s Robed In Rareness and 2024’s Exotic Birds Of Prey.
It’s a bold, forthright, heavy-hitting album. Throughout, Butler compiles what he’s learned from his storied, dense career into a playful, shimmering portal, again proving himself an artist of chameleonic ambition, fuelled by curiosity, courage, and a limitless imagination.
It’s a Style Sport also features guest appearances from Marquette Miller, Darrius Willrich, Evan Flory-Barnes, Kassa Overall, Carlos Overall, and the aforementioned Turner brothers. The album was produced by Shabazz Palaces and Blood, recorded at Circular Ruin Studios in Brooklyn (NY), Lake View Studios and Hall of Justice in Seattle (WA), and Parkman Labs in Los Angeles (CA). It was mixed by Blood at Circular Ruin, and mastered by Warren Defever at Third Man Mastering in Detroit (MI).
Pitchfork included It’s a Style Sport in its “34 Most Anticipated Albums for Fall 2024,” and said, “Lead single ‘Ahh World (I Won The Alpha Bet)’ sets lucid social commentary to ominous beats that sound like the very dystopian future he rallies listeners to prevent; ‘Jheri Curl Jump,’ meanwhile, is a loquacious love story murmured over jittery electro-funk.”
Tracklisting: 1. Ahh World (I Won The Alpha Bet) 2. Field Notes 3. Show Me Missouri In Mink 4. Jheri Curl Jump 5. Deadstock Dude 6. Tongue In Chic 7. Heliocentric Immortality Manifesto H.I.M. 8. Olivia According To Touch 9. Money Can’t Save Your Mind 10. From One Future To Another
Maximum MN, a digital mixtape featuring Sub Pop artists covering Minnesota musicians, capturing a snapshot of Minnesota’s long history of life-changing music and showing solidarity with the people of Minnesota, is out today worldwide, Friday, September 18th, 2026. In the wake of the ICE raids in Minneapolis this year, a lot of communities have been hit hard. Families have been disrupted, people have been displaced, and local support systems are under real strain. Proceeds from this compilation will be sent to The International Institute of Minnesota, a non-profit organization that supports refugees and immigrants through resettlement services, English and citizenship classes, job training (including nursing assistant training), immigration legal services, and direct financial support in the current environment.
The eight-song tracklist includes Yuno (covering Hippo Campus “The Way It Goes”), Sweeping Promises (covering Hüsker Dü’s “Something I Learned Today”), Mudhoney (covering Halo of Flies’ “Rubber Room”), Shabazz Palaces (covering Prince’s “Pop Life”), Flock of Dimes (covering Low’s “Especially Me”), Weird Nightmare (covering Paul Westerberg’s “It’s a Wonderful Lie”), and Pissed Jeans (covering former Minnesota Governor and WWF wrestler Jesse “The Body” Ventura’s “The Body Rules”). Listen to Downtown Boys cover of The Replacements “Can’t Hardly Wait” now.
Please find a full tracklist below.
Various Artists MaximumMN
Tracklisting: 1. Downtown Boys - Can’t Hardly Wait (The Replacements) 2. Yuno - The Way It Goes (Hippo Campus) 3. Sweeping Promises - Something I Learned Today (Hüsker Dü ) 4. Mudhoney - Rubber Room (Halo of Flies) 5. Shabazz Palaces - Pop Life (Prince) 6. Flock of Dimes - Especially Me (Low) 7. Weird Nightmare - It’s a Wonderful Lie (Paul Westerberg) 8. Pissed Jeans - The Body Rules (Jesse “The Body” Ventura)
Today, September 9th, 2026, ever-evolving rapper, producer, and musician Shabazz Palaces is sharing “Jheri Curl Jump,” a sensual electro-funk jam and standout from It’s a Style Sport, featuring guest vocals from Marquette Miller (Breaks and Swells, Knife Knights) and Darrius Willrich. Watch the official visualizer animated by returning collaborator Jacob Kasar and edited by Leigh Riibe.
Later this week, Shabazz Palaces will appear at The Stranger’s Genius Awards on Saturday, September 12th at the Moore Theatre in Seattle. Additional live dates will be announced soon.
Shabazz Palaces It’s a Style Sport is available now to preorder on CD/LP/Digital from Sub Pop. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com in North America, Mega Mart Europe in the UK and EU, and your local record store will receive the limited Loser edition on Metallic Silver (North America) and Sparkle Starlight (EU/UK) vinyl (while supplies last).
It’s a Style Sport is the eighth Shabazz Palaces studio album and the first since the release of sibling mini-albums 2023’s Robed In Rareness and 2024’s Exotic Birds Of Prey.
It’s a Style Sport is a bold, forthright, and heavy-hitting album. Throughout, Butler compiles what he’s learned from his storied, dense career into a playful, shimmering portal, again proving himself an artist of chameleonic ambition, fuelled by curiosity, courage, and a limitless imagination.
It’s a Style Sport features guest appearances from Thaddeus “Thaddillac” Turner, Evan Flory-Barnes, Gerald “Tugboat” Turner, Kassa Overall, Carlos Overall, and the aforementioned Miller and Willrich. The album was produced by Shabazz Palaces and Erik Blood, recorded at Circular Ruin Studios in Brooklyn (NY), Lake View Studios and Hall of Justice in Seattle (WA), and Parkman Labs in Los Angeles (CA). It was mixed by Blood at Circular Ruin, and mastered by Warren Defever at Third Man Mastering in Detroit (MI).
Tracklisting: 1. Ahh World (I Won The Alpha Bet) 2. Field Notes 3. Show Me Missouri In Mink 4. Jheri Curl Jump 5. Deadstock Dude 6. Tongue In Chic 7. Heliocentric Immortality Manifesto H.I.M. 8. Olivia According To Touch 9. Money Can’t Save Your Mind 10. From One Future To Another
Friday, September 18th will see the release of Maximum MN, a digital mixtape featuring Sub Pop artists covering Minnesota musicians, capturing a snapshot of Minnesota’s long history of life-changing music and to show solidarity with the people of Minnesota. In the wake of the ICE raids in Minneapolis this year, a lot of communities have been hit hard. Families have been disrupted, people have been displaced, and local support systems are under real strain. Proceeds from this compilation will be sent to The International Institute of Minnesota, a non-profit organization that supports refugees and immigrants through resettlement services, English and citizenship classes, job training (including nursing assistant training), immigration legal services, and direct financial support in the current environment.
The eight-song tracklist includes Downtown Boys (covering the Replacements “Can’t Hardly Wait”), Yuno (covering Hippo Campus “The Way It Goes”), Sweeping Promises (covering Hüsker Dü’s “Something I Learned Today”), Mudhoney (covering Halo of Flies’ “Rubber Room”), Shabazz Palaces (covering Prince’s “Pop Life”), Flock of Dimes (covering Low’s “Especially Me”), Weird Nightmare (covering Paul Westerberg’s “It’s a Wonderful Lie”), and Pissed Jeans (covering former Minnesota Governor and WWF wrestler Jesse “The Body” Ventura’s “The Body Rules”). Please find a full tracklist below.
MaximumMN will be available on all streaming services on Friday, September 18th worldwide from Sub Pop. Fans can also secure the mixtape two weeks early exclusively through today’s Bandcamp Friday on (September 4th).
Various Artists MaximumMN
Tracklisting: 1. Downtown Boys - Can’t Hardly Wait (The Replacements) 2. Yuno - The Way It Goes - Yuno (Hippo Campus) 3. Sweeping Promises - Something I Learned Today (Hüsker Dü ) 4. Mudhoney - Rubber Room (Halo of Flies) 5. Shabazz Palaces - Pop Life (Prince) 6. Flock of Dimes - Especially Me (Low) 7. Weird Nightmare - It’s a Wonderful Lie (Paul Westerberg) 8. Pissed Jeans - The Body Rules (Jesse “The Body” Ventura)
Today, August 11th, 2026, Ever-evolving rapper, producer, and musician Ishmael Butler has announced his return as Shabazz Palaces and forthcoming new album, It’s a Style Sport, out Friday, October 23rd worldwide from Sub Pop.
It’s a Style Sport is the eighth Shabazz Palaces studio album and first since the release of sibling mini-albums 2023’s Robed In Rareness and 2024’s Exotic Birds Of Prey.
The ten-track project is preceded by thumping meditation “Ahh World (I Won The Alpha Bet),” out today via a new visualizer from Jacob Kasar and edited by Leigh Riibe. The single finds Butler taking the role of an all-knowing narrator, telling the story of his own life and rise to excellence from a fantasy-fuelled third-person perspective, ending with a list of directives for a successful life. Butler deals out flair while staying grounded in what matters most: his own honor.
It’s a Style Sport is a bold, forthright, and heavy-hitting album. Throughout, Butler compiles what he’s learned from his storied, dense career into a playful, shimmering portal, again proving himself an artist of chameleonic ambition, fuelled by curiosity, courage, and a limitless imagination.
It’s a Style Sport features guest appearances from Marquette Miller, Thaddeus “Thaddillac” Turner, Evan Flory-Barnes, Gerald “Tugboat” Turner, Kassa Overall and Carlos Overall. The album was produced by Shabazz Palaces and Erik Blood, recorded at Circular Ruin Studios in Brooklyn (NY), Lake View Studios and Hall of Justice in Seattle (WA), and Parkman Labs in Los Angeles (CA). It was mixed by Blood at Circular Ruin, and mastered by Warren Defever at Third Man Mastering in Detroit (MI).
Ishmael Butler has been consistently exploring the outer reaches of music for the last three and a half decades. In the early 90s, he helped pioneer jazz-infused hip-hop by founding Digable Planets, the Grammy Award-winning trio who released two landmark albums, toured with Sade, and are still playing live together today. Butler’s later creative rebirth as Shabazz Palaces began in earnest 15 years ago with the experimental, highly influential debut album, Black Up. Butler has continued to push boundaries over seven subsequent Shabazz Palaces albums, and his exemplary taste and verve has led to collaborations with Flying Lotus, Thundercat, George Clinton, Clipping, Battles, Oneohtrix Point Never, Animal Collective, plus his own son, Lil Tracy.
Shabazz Palaces has toured with Radiohead, TV On The Radio, and Ms Lauryn Hill. Additionally, Butler’s ability to spot like-minded visionaries, both in music and the wider creative cosmos, has led to striking visual output alongside filmmakers Khalil Joseph (Beyoncé, FKA Twigs, Kendrick Lamar) and Hiro Murai (Atlanta, Widow’s Bay), to incredible design work with Toronto artist/designer and his fellow Black Constellation member Nep Sidhu.
Shabazz Palaces It’s a Style Sport is available now to preorder on CD/LP/Digital from Sub Pop. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com in North America, Mega Mart Europe in the UK and EU, and your local record store will receive the limited Loser edition on Metallic Silver (North America) and Sparkle Starlight (EU/UK) vinyl (while supplies last).
Later this week, Shabazz Palaces and his live band will join labelmates Clipping at their Splendor & Misery Festival, happening Thursday, August 13th at Knockdown Center in Flushing, NY. On Friday, August 14th, Shabazz Palaces will host “Baz Off Broadway,” a DJ set via The Lot Radio in Brooklyn from 2-3 pm ET.
On Saturday, September 12th, Shabazz Palaces will also perform at The Genius Awards event hosted by local arts and culture magazine The Stranger in Seattle at The Moore Theatre.
Tracklisting: 1. Ahh World (I Won The Alpha Bet) 2. Field Notes 3. Show Me Missouri In Mink 4. Jheri Curl Jump 5. Deadstock Dude 6. Tongue In Chic 7. Heliocentric Immortality Manifesto H.I.M. 8. Olivia According To Touch 9. Money Can’t Save Your Mind 10. From One Future To Another
Today, July 29th, Sub Pop is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the release of Shabazz Palaces’ Lese Majesty, his acclaimed second album and the follow-up to his label debut Black Up, with a new repress on red and black vinyl.
Lese Majesty is a seven-suite, eighteen-track sonic mythmap of new black wave and ghetto psychedelics, featuring singles and official videos for “They Come In Gold,”“Ishmael,”“#CAKE” (directed by Hiro Murai), and “Forerunner Foray” (directed by Chad VanGaalen).
Lese Majesty features Shabazz Palaces leader Ishamel Butler alongside Black Constellation collaborators Tendai Maraire, THEESatisfaction’s Catherine Harris-White, Erik Blood and Thadillac. The album was produced by Shabazz Palaces and mixed by Blood at Protect and Exalt Labs in Seattle, Washington.
Upon its release, Lese Majesty earned raves from the likes of New York Times, NPR Music, Entertainment Weekly, FLOOD, All Music, and would go on to see placement on “Best of 2014” lists from the likes of Gorilla Vs Bear (“Album of the Year”), Pitchfork, PASTE, SPIN, The Wire, Passion of the Weiss, Stereogum (“Best Rap Albums”), and more.
What people said about Shabazz Palaces’ Lese Majesty: Lese Majesty is Shabazz Palaces getting interstellar, a set of intricate, enigmatic, yet meaningful suites complete with an (initially) impenetrable multidimensional blueprint/map connecting it all in the liner notes. Beneath the visuals, the album contends with a strain of Afrofuturism that puts its faith in finding unities in contradictions and clarity in riddles (“I’m having my cake and I’m eating cake,” “facts stated to enhance what is pre-born,” “we try to unreproduce six tension intervals”), reconciling structure and formlessness, forethought and spontaneity….meter-defying breaks and tactile, synthesized bass-church/musique concrète production that turns human language into primordial elements of cosmic influence. It’s humbling stuff that urges you to dance but knows full well that, to do so, you’ll need to relearn new and better steps [50 Best Albums Of 2014] - Pitchfork
“Unlike their previous, also brilliant full-length Black Up, Shabazz Palaces’ new “sonic move” Lese Majesty is not necessarily conducive to absorption in small doses. The record is a massive, dense monolith, divided into suites that only start to make sense after countless repeat listens. It’s a bridge from rap’s beginnings in the early ’70s into its future — structurally, thematically, lyrically, sonically, all of it — that sounds so many light years ahead of everything else in the genre that its nods to the past only reveal themselves after one invests real time immersed in what we called “the impossibly deep, singular astral landscape” that the group has created.” [Album of the Year] - Gorilla Vs. Bear
“With their second album, Seattle hiphop duo Shabazz Palaces unshackled Afrofuturism from cliche in order to present a holistic almost familiar worldview that the future is already here, before demanding an honest response to that revelation. Hua Hsu said: Abstraction is only useful insofar as it shakes our reliance and this is what makes Lese Majesty’s primal futurism such a bewildering experience. Palaceer raps with secularity and conviction as all that was once solid melts into air - rules and codes vanish, leaving nothing but ghosts while beats dissolve into pretty colors.” [#7 / Albums of the Year] - The Wire
Shabazz Palaces Lese Majesty
Tracklisting: 1. Dawn in Luxor 2. Forerunner Foray 3. They Come in Gold 4. Solemn Swears 5. Harem Aria 6. Noetic Noiromantics 7. The Ballad of Lt. Maj. Winnings 8. Soundview 9. Ishmael 10. …down 155th in the MCM Snorkel 11. Divine of Form 12. #CAKE 13. Colluding Oligarchs 14. Suspicion of a Shape 15. MindGlitch Keytar TM Theme 16. Motion Sickness 17. New Black Wave 18. Sonic MythMap for the Trip Back
