Lorely Rodriguez, the fire that fuels the introspective pop project Empress Of, released her debut album, Me, back in 2015. In the years since, she’s collaborated with artists like Blood Orange, DJDS, and Darkstar, and released a one-off single. This past spring, Empress Of shared two new songs called “In Dreams” and “Trust Me Baby,” both of which were sung in both English and Spanish. Ever since then we’ve been waiting to hear when Rodriguez’s sophomore album would drop.

The wait is over. Empress Of announced that her new album, Us, will be out in the fall via Terrible Records. According to a release, the LP was recorded “all over Southern California” and features collaborations with Blood Orange and DJDS as well as the Spanish producer Pional. Rodriguez describes Us as a collection of love songs. “It’s about different experiences of the heart,” she says.

Lead single “When I’m With Him” explores the sense of alienation one can feel when they’ve been embedded in a toxic relationship for too long. The bilingual song’s glossy, upbeat production does little to mask Rodriguez’s anxieties, and her lyrics hit hard. “I feel possessed/ I can’t help but repress/ All of the signs telling me that I’m not fine,” she sings. The chorus, though catchy, hints at a need to escape: “I don’t know how to tell you how to tell you/ I feel like I’m in the outside looking in/ When I’m with him.”

Rodriguez directed the video for “When I’m With Him.” Watch below.

TRACKLIST:
01 “Everything To Me”
02 “Just The Same”
03 “Trust Me Baby”
04 “Love For Me”
05 “I Don’t Even Smoke Weed”
06 “Timberlands”
07 “I’ve Got Love”
08 “All For Nothing”
09 “When I’m With Him”
10 “Again”

Us is out 10/19 via Terrible.