Photo: Shervin Lainez

David Byrne has announced the release of his first album in seven years, Who Is The Sky?, due on September 5 via Matador Records. The impending studio effort builds on the musical foundation Byrne laid via his 2018 critically acclaimed American Utopia. As an initial preview of his latest creative endeavor, Byrne has shared the first single and official music video for “Everybody Laughs.” In addition, the artist delivered an extensive global tour schedule, featuring coast-to-coast appearances in the US. 

Today’s official announcement follows a prolific spurt for Byrne, who joined pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo on stage during her headlining Governors Ball set on Saturday, June 7, to perform the Talking Heads’ classic, “Burning Down the House.” Prior to appearing on the festival stage, Byrne and his former bandmates marked the 50th anniversary of their first live performance [opening for the Ramones at New York’s CBGB in 1975] by releasing an official music video for “Psycho Killer,” featuring Irish actress Saoirse Ronan. 

The 12-piece collection of new material finds Byrne continuing his collaborative efforts on select tracks, tapping friends like St. Vincent, Hayley Williams (Paramore), Tom Skinner (The Smile), and Mauro Refosco, American Utopia percussionist. “Everybody’s Laughing” represents the initial album preview, a catchy, easy listen with connective tissue that applies to listeners of all ages and backgrounds, with added help from Vincent. In his own words, he says, “Someone I know said, ‘David, you use the word ‘everybody’ a lot.’ I suppose I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it.”

Byrne continues, “Everybody lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done. I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that – hold opposites simultaneously. I realized that when singing with Robyn earlier this year. Her songs are often sad, but the music is joyous.”

The album’s producer, Kid Harpoon, also known as Tom Hull, commented on the set’s totality: “It took me a second to realize, oh yeah, these songs are personal, but with David’s unique perspective on life in general.”

“Walking around New York listening to the demo of ‘Everybody Laughs’ was so joyous, because it made me feel like we’re all the same – we all laugh, cry and sing. The thing about David that resonates with a lot of people is that he’s in on the joke. He gets the absurdity of it all, and all of these personal observations are his perspective on it,” Hull reflects. 

In support of the set, which was arranged by the members of the New York-based chamber ensemble Ghost Train Orchestra, Byrne and 13 musicians, singers, and dancers, including participants in the American Utopia band, will hit the road beginning this fall for an extensive series of North American tour dates. This will precede the tour’s New Zealand and Australia leg in early 2026 and European dates slated for next spring. 

Who Is The Sky? maintains Byrne’s distinct brand of art-pop-focused songs, with space for play and child-like wonder. At 73 years old, the artist remains cognizant of the environment and feelings he aims to elicit, while emoting a scarce offering of deep feeling. He says, “I suspected that intimate orchestral arrangements would bring out the emotion I sense is there in these songs. It’s something that folks don’t always hear in my work, but this time for sure I thought it was there. At the same time, I also see myself as someone who aspires to be accessible. I imagined that Kid Harpoon would help with that, as well as being a set of trusted ears, since there was a lot going on. People think of producers as people who mainly make a record sound good, and Kid Harpoon did that, but he was also aware of how important the storytelling is.”

“At my age, at least for me, there’s a ‘don’t give a shit about what people think’ attitude that kicks in,” Byrne says via press release. “I can step outside my comfort zone with the knowledge that I kind of know who I am by now and sort of know what I’m doing. That said, every new set of songs, every song even, is a new adventure. There’s always a bit of, ‘how do I work this?’ I’ve found that not every collaboration works, but often when they do, it’s because I’m able to clearly impart what it is I’m trying to do. They hopefully get that, and as a result, we’re now joined together heading to the same unknown place”

Click here to pre-order Who Is The Sky?, available in limited Cantaloupe Orange / Strawberry Pink split vinyl featuring a lenticular cover. 

Watch the official music video below, and pre-order/save the album.

Who Is the Sky? track list:

1. Everybody Laughs
2. When We Are Singing
3. My Apartment Is My Friend
4. A Door Called No
5. What Is the Reason for It?
6. I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party
7. Don’t Be Like That
8. The Avant Garde
9. Moisturizing Thing
10. I’m an Outsider
11. She Explains Things to Me
12. The Truth

North America:

September 14, 2025 – Veterans Memorial Auditorium – Providence, R.I.
September 16, 2025 – Benedum Center PAC – Pittsburgh
September 17, 2025 – Mershon Auditorium – Columbus
September 19, 2025 – Akron Civic Theatre – Akron, Ohio 

September 21, 2025 – Proctors – Schenectady, N.Y.
September 23, 2025 – Landmark Theatre – Syracuse, N.Y.
September 25, 2025 – Shea’s Buffalo Theatre – Buffalo, N.Y.
September 27, 2025 – The Anthem – Washington D.C.
September 28, 2025 – The Anthem – Washington D.C.
September 30, 2025 – Radio City Music Hall – New York
October 1, 2025 – Radio City Music Hall – New York
October 3, 2025 – Boch Center Wang Theatre – Boston
October 4, 2025 – Boch Center Wang Theatre – Boston
October 7, 2025 – Toyota Oakdale Theatre – Wallingford, Conn.
October 8, 2025 – Merrill Auditorium at City Hall – Portland, Maine
October 10, 2025 – Radio City Music Hall – New York
October 14, 2025 – Altria Theater – Richmond, Va.
October 16, 2025 – The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark – Philadelphia
October 17, 2025 – The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark – Philadelphia
October 21, 2025 – Massey Hall – Toronto
October 22, 2025 – Massey Hall – Toronto
October 25, 2025 – Fox Theatre – Detroit
October 28, 2025 – The Auditorium – Chicago
October 29, 2025 – The Auditorium – Chicago
October 31, 2025 – The Auditorium – Chicago
November 3, 2025 – Orpheum Theatre – Minneapolis
November 4, 2025 – Orpheum Theatre – Minneapolis
November 6, 2025 – Bellco Theatre – Denver

November 7, 2025 – Bellco Theatre – Denver
November 11, 2025 – Paramount Theatre – Seattle
November 12, 2025 – Paramount Theatre – Seattle
November 16, 2025 – The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium – San Francisco, Calif.
November 17, 2025 – The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium – San Francisco, Calif.
November 20, 2025 – Dolby Theatre – Los Angeles
November 21, 2025 – Dolby Theatre – Los Angeles
November 25, 2026 – Bass Concert Hall – Austin

November 26, 2025 – Bass Concert Hall – Austin
November 28, 2025 – Music Hall at Fair Park – Dallas
November 29, 2025 – Music Hall at Fair Park – Dallas
December 2, 2025 – Fox Theatre – Atlanta
December 3, 2025 – Fox Theatre – Atlanta
December 5, 2025 – Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theatre – Miami
December 6, 2025 – Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theatre – Miami

Europe & United Kingdom:

February 12, 2026 – Tempodrom – Berlin, Germany
February 15, 2026 – AFAS Live – Amsterdam, Netherlands
February 16, 2026 – AFAS Live – Amsterdam, Netherlands
February 18, 2026 – Forest National – Brussels, Belgium
February 21, 2026 – Teatro degli Arcimboldi – Milan, Italy
February 22, 2026 – Teatro degli Arcimboldi – Milan, Italy
February 24, 2026 – Jahrhunderthalle – Frankfurt, Germany
February 27, 2026 – The Hall – Zurich, Switzerland
March 2, 2026 – Utilita Arena – Cardiff, UK
March 3, 2026 – Eventim Apollo – London, UK
March 4, 2026 – Eventim Apollo – London, UK
March 6, 2026 – SEC Armadillo – Glasgow, UK
March 7, 2026 – SEC Armadillo – Glasgow, UK
March 9, 2026 – o2 Apollo – Manchester, UK
March 10, 2026 – o2 Apollo – Manchester, UK
March 13, 2026 – 3Arena – Dublin, Ireland
March 15, 2026 – Eventim Apollo – London, UK
March 18, 2026 – La Seine Musicale – Paris, France
March 19, 2026 – La Seine Musicale – Paris, France