Updated

Updated · The Guardian · Jul 12

Kelela Releases Third Album 'New Avatar' With 2-Thirds Guitar and Shoegaze-R&B Shift

Updated

Updated · The Guardian · Jul 12

Kelela Releases Third Album 'New Avatar' With 2-Thirds Guitar and Shoegaze-R&B Shift

Q: Kelela's new rock album is a bold move, but is her political activism the bigger career gamble?

Yes. The bigger career gamble appears to be Kelela’s political activism, not the rock turn on *New Avatar*. The album is a risk artistically, but it is also a logical extension of her history. Kelela has long been genre-fluid, and *New Avatar* draws on her earlier indie-rock and punk background in Washington, D.C., plus years of interest in making a guitar-forward record. Critics have largely treated the shift as ambitious rather than alienating, praising it as one of her strongest and most assured releases. In that sense, the musical pivot looks less like a reckless break and more like a calculated reinvention that fits her career pattern. Her activism carries clearer material costs. Kelela has publicly tied her work to a Black queer feminist politics, joined the “No Music For Genocide” campaign, and withdrawn her music from Israeli streaming services. She has also said these positions have cost her opportunities, including a canceled brand partnership. That is a direct commercial penalty, not a hypothetical one. The broader context matters too. Kelela is not chasing maximum scale; she has said making avant-garde work matters more to her than “getting the numbers on the board.” That makes the album risk one she seems prepared to absorb. Activism is different because it can affect touring, partnerships, platform support, and industry relationships beyond the music itself. So while *New Avatar* is the bolder sonic move, her politics are the more tangible professional gamble.

1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 12

Kelela’s third studio album, "New Avatar," arrives as her boldest stylistic pivot yet, recasting her R&B foundation through shoegaze reverb, rock textures and hook-heavy vocals.
Aiming for a "two-thirds guitar, one-third dance music" balance, she built the record through jamming and a core team including Oscar Scheller, Asma Maroof, Mischa Notcutt and painter Janiva Ellis.
The shift also reconnects with her earlier indie-rock roots in Washington, after years in electronic and club-driven music that made her an influential reference point for younger Black pop and electronic artists.
PinkPantheress, who appears on new single "The Bridge," said Kelela helped open space for Black female electronic and pop artists to experiment beyond the status quo.
The album lands as Kelela’s profile grows online and after her 2025 activism—including joining 400-plus artists in pulling music from Israeli streaming services—while she says artistic conviction matters more than chasing mass fame.