Yesterday marked the publication of a new Adele profile in British Vogue. The feature notes that while Adele worked on the album with folks like Greg Kurstin, Max Martin, and Ludwig Göransson, there are no featured performers on the album. Adele said, “It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s not calculated. It’s just never been right for some reason.”
However, it looks like there will still be some notable non-Adele voices on the album. A separate Adele profile was also published in the US edition of Vogue yesterday, and in it, Adele notes that Tyler The Creator and Skepta will be making appearances on the album, but not as featured artists.
For the first time ever Vogue and @BritishVogue profile one cover star. @Adele is back—and this reemergence is different. https://t.co/5SvEldGN5U pic.twitter.com/b7GdOcAnqY
— Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) October 7, 2021
The piece describes listening to a new track, of which Adele says, “The next song is the one I wrote when I went to the studio the day after Angelo [Adele’s son] said, ‘I can’t see you.’” It goes on to note that the song incorporates voice notes from Tyler and Skepta. Adele explained, “I thought it might be a nice touch, seeing as everyone’s been at my door for the last ten years, as a fan, to be like, ‘Would you like to come in?’”
The Skepta appearance is noteworthy also because it was rumored around this time last year that he and Adele were dating. Shortly after those rumors surfaced, though, Adele seemingly addressed them by referring to herself as a “(single) cat lady.”
As for the style of the song, the feature describes it, “A certain combination of elements — sexy ’70s groove, heavy strings, heavier lyrics — immediately calls to mind Marvin Gaye.” It continues, “What’s Going On was a ‘very big reference’ on the album, turns out.”
Check out the full Vogue feature here.