The hazy, conversational Charlotte indie rapper Mavi released his sophomore album Laughing So Hard It Hurts in 2022, and now he’s announced that the follow-up LP Shadow Box is coming later this summer. Judging by first single “Drunk Prayer,” this one should be heavy.

Mavi recorded “Drunk Prayer” with longtime producer Angelo Leroi, and it’s a mellow, soulful, melodic track with big feelings behind it. Rapping in a back-of-the-throat croak, Mavi sing-raps about performing metaphorical self-surgery and using substances to dull himself. Here’s what he says about the new LP:

I was really sad about the last album. I didn’t really know how to get back into making stuff into the way I like. I felt really hopeless about it, started getting really drunk, dealt with love and heartbreak, having to be there for my family. I had to come back and really learn how to make art all over again. My path back was centered around visual art, fashion, interior design, and design as an artistic framework and as an organizational force in society. A lot of the backbone of the album came from my time with this design book, The Black Experience In Design. The idea I gained from that is design is power. The ability to determine the order of things, the way things are supposed to be… that’s power. The orderliness in the lives of the devoutly religious became an attractive subtext during the creation of this album.

Along with the album, Mavi has also announced a fall tour with dates across North America, as well as a few in Europe. Along the way, he’ll do shows with MESSIAH!, Malaya, Pink Siifu, Ovrkast., Chenayder, Vayda, Sideshow, Niontay, Igwe Aka, and Ahmir. Below, check out the “Drunk Prayer” video and the tour dates.

TOUR DATES:
9/07 – Raleigh, NC @ Hopscotch Music Festival
9/12 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
9/13 – Washington, DC @ Howard Theatre
9/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
9/17 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
9/18 – Montreal, QC @ Theatre Fairmont
9/19 – Toronto, CA @ Axis Live/The Opera House
9/20 – Detroit, MI @ El Club
9/22 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre
9/25 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
9/26 – Omaha, NE @ Reverb
9/28 – Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck
9/30 – Denver, CO @ Summit
10/02 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
10/04 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
10/05 – Vancouver, CA @ Pearl Theatre
10/07 – Portland, OR @ The Aladdin
10/09 – Sacramento, CA @ Harlows
10/10 – Oakland, CA @ The New Parish
10/11 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey/Goldenvoice
10/19 – Phoenix, AZ @ Viva PHX Festival
11/08 – Orlando, FL @ The Abbey
11/09 – Charlotte, NC @ The Underground
11/10 – Charleston, SC @ Music Farm
11/13 – London, UK @ Scala
11/15 – Dublin, Ireland @ The Workman’s Club
11/17 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Bitterzoet
11/18 – Paris, France @ La Bellivouise
11/19 – Lisbon, Portugal @ B.Leza
11/22 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
11/23 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
12/03 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
12/04 – San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
12/05 – Austin, TX @ Parish
12/06 – Dallas, TX @ Tulips
12/08 – Nashville, TN @ The Cannery

The self-released Shadow Box is out 8/9.