Gregg Alexander ended New Radicals after their lone album, 1998's acclaimed Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too, but went on to become one of pop's most successful behind-the-scenes songwriters. He co-wrote hits like Sophie Ellis-Bextor's "Murder On The Dancefloor," Santana and Michelle Branch's "The Game Of Love," and the Oscar-nominated Begin Again song "Lost Stars," recorded by Keira Knightley and Adam Levine. At the conclusion of New Radicals' run, Alexander was disillusioned with the life of a rock band frontman, and he's rarely given interviews or performed since their 1999 tour opening for Goo Goo Dolls.
In 2021, however, New Radicals reunited for the first time in 22 years to perform at President Joe Biden's virtual inauguration parade. New Radicals' big hit, "You Get What You Give," was Beau Biden's "theme song" during his fight with cancer, and the president wrote about its significance in his memoir. In the past couple of years, Geese, Benee, Gus Dapperton, and other Gen Z artists have also covered the song.
Alexander recently released his own versions of "Murder On The Dancefloor" (in 2024) and "The Game Of Love" (last month), giving fans a chance to hear those songs in his own voice.
Now there's an actual new New Radicals song. Alexander and Danielle Brisebois were the band's only permanent members, and they continued working together after the project ended, co-writing songs including "Lost Stars" with Brisebois' husband, Nick Lashley (not to be confused with Nick Lachey).
On Friday, they released "One Night Only (Break Loose Break Free!)." Alexander, Brisebois, and Lashley co-wrote and performed it, and it's the first newly recorded song credited to New Radicals since 1998. (To be pedantic: Alexander and Brisebois released their own version of "Lost Stars" in 2015, but not under the New Radicals name. When it was reissued in 2024, it was retroactively credited to New Radicals before disappearing from streaming services. So if you want to call this the first New Radicals song in 11 years instead, I won't argue. Anyway…) The new track serves as the theme for One Night Only, the upcoming Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner romcom in which premarital sex is illegal except for one night each year. Its punchy piano-driven pop-rock and spoken-word bits aren't too far removed from Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too.
King Princess and Este Haim, who are both part of the movie's intriguing cast, also contributed to the soundtrack. King Princess covered John Paul Young's 1977 hit "Love Is In The Air," while Este Haim reteamed with her Suncoast collaborator Christopher Stracey to compose the film's score. "One Haim Only Plus A Stray (Score Suite)," a medley of their work, is streaming alongside the New Radicals and King Princess tracks. Check 'em out below along with the trailer.
