aja monet, is back with her first new music since 2023, “hollyweird” is now out via via drink sum wtr. The track, produced by monet, Meshell Ndegeocello and Justin Brown, is accompanied by a video directed by B+ and Monet herself, and features Chicago rapper and close collaborator, Vic Mensa. monet is bringing her singular live show to New York City’s famed Carnegie Hall Theater, the show will take place at the Zankel Hall on May 20th.

“I wrote ‘hollyweird’ on scraps of found paper, frantically jotting down observations and sentiments of the moment during the Los Angeles fires and its aftermath,” monet explains. “The song is an Afropunkesque ode to frustrations and feelings around our current culture of social isolation and performative solidarity. I wanted to speak to the emptiness of ‘hollyweird’ not as a place but as a way of being where insincerity is normalized. Where social interactions become void in of sincerity and we lose sight of community and connection.”

“hollyweird” is the first taste of new music from monet since the release of her debut album, when the poems do what they do. The album was released by drink sum wtr and was nominated at the 66th GRAMMY Awards for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album in 2024. The album marked the arrival of a singular poet and peerless lyricist. On it, monet explored themes of resistance, love, and the inexhaustible quest for joy.

Order “hollyweird” by aja monet featuring Vic Mensa HERE