On Oct. 4 Mitski’s Instagram account @mitskileaks, which is run by her management, posted a photo with the caption, “link in bio.” The next day, “Working for the Knife,” one of the first songs off her new album and her upcoming tour announcement, was made public. 

Recently, on Nov. 9, she dropped “The Only Heartbreaker” and it received a lot of discussion online. Some students voiced their own thoughts and opinions on her new music.

“I am actually loving her new stuff, like sure, it is a little different than some things she’s put out in the past but I do not think that is a bad thing because artists are continually changing and growing their craft so I am excited to see what she is going to do,” said Jay Guziewicz, senior psychology and English double major.

Sophomore political science and history major Kaelin Hughes is super excited for everything new coming for Mitski. She has been listening to a few songs by her over the years here and there, but this year she got into her music fully. 

“It is exciting to be able to get into an artist while they are still active in the industry and listen to their releases and see how they change and evolve,” said Hughes.

Mitski is a comfort artist for sophomore King’s student Joe Gacek.

“Her lyrics just make so much sense and they are so poetic,” said Gacek. “She is a wonderful storyteller and performer.”

Her tour will start on Feb. 17, 2022, in Asheville, NC, and will make her way around North America with support from CHAI and MICHELLE. The North America tour will wrap up on March 31 in Nashville. 

CHAI is a Japanese rock band from Nagoya, Japan. The group consists of Mana, Kana, Yuuki and Yuna. These four women formed CHAI in 2012. 

MICHELLE is a predominantly POC and queer collective mix of six that formed in 2018. The band originally born and raised in New York consists of Sofia D’Angelo, Julian Kaufman, Charlie Kilgore, Layla Ku, Emma Lee and Jamee Lockhard. Their genre is indie-pop.

“I am looking forward to seeing MICHELLE,” said Hughes. “I have never listened to them, but this will prompt me to listen and get even more excited for the concert.”

Mitski will also be touring the UK and Europe as well, starting on April 21 in Bristol, UK. Support on her UK and Europe tour will be from SASAMI. She is an American singer, songwriter and musician. 

For Gacek and Guziewicz, they will not be attending her tour. However, Gacek is looking forward to watching videos of her live performances. Hughes however, will be attending her Philadelphia show on March 25, 2022. 

“I have seen some videos of her live and I cannot wait to see that in person,” said Hughes. “I love her routines that go with her songs. They show more emotion and expression so I feel like I will be more into the experience of watching that.”

Her next album titled “Laurel Hell” will be released on Feb. 4, 2022, with a total of 11 songs.  Laurel Hell is named after Mountain Laurels, known to be a beautiful but poisonous flower, which she uses as a symbol in regards to the internet. 

Out of the 11 songs being released Gacek claims “Stay Soft” will be one of their favorites.

“The title just resonated with me when I read over all of them,” said Gacek. “That expression is special because it is typically used to remind a person that no matter what they have weathered throughout their life that they should remain innocent and optimistic- to not let their trauma define them- and that is a beautiful concept to me.” 

Hughes shared what songs they believe will be their favorites off Mitski’s new album too.

“ I love music that absolutely wrecks my emotions,” said Hughes. “I feel that either “Love Me More” or “There’s Nothing Left for You” will wreck me the most. The songs that make you feel the most emotions are the best. I just know those will be my favorite.”

Also, Guziewicz is most excited for “Love Me More” or “I Guess.”

“I am a huge lyric person so that is super important to me,” said Guziewicz.

Overall, it seems there is a lot of excitement for Mitski’s comeback. To find more information about Mitski, follow her Instagram or go to www.mitski.com