Alice Ivy Announces New Album 'Do What Makes You Happy', Plots National Tour

One of Australia’s favourite electronica-meets-pop artists, Alice Ivy, is back with new music and a massive national tour.

Today, Alice Ivy announced that her third album, Do What Makes You Happy, will be released via Helix Records on Friday, 21 June. In addition to announcing the album, Alice Ivy has announced a national tour and dropped a new single, Criminal, starring Nigerian American artist Kah-Lo and a vocal sample from BJ The Chicago Kid.

Criminal is an ultra-catchy tune that displays Ivy’s ability to host a wicked dancefloor beat while blending Ivy’s and Kah-Lo’s distinctive styles. Check out the track below.

“Do What Makes You Happy was written at a time where so many people were finally experiencing the freedom to do what gives them the most joy in life again, it was felt in the production, every vocal line and the photography and art,” Ivy said about her new album in a press release. “I like to think of every layer of this record as art at its purest and most natural form.

“Everyone I worked with was so enthusiastic and grateful to be able to create in studios again and to just simply connect with people on that level. I feel like I captured most of the collaborators on this record at their rawest; you can hear it in the vocal recordings.”

On working with Ivy, Kah-Lo commented, “I loved Alice after watching her at Splendour and so glad we got to create this gem of a track together. It's so fun and reminds me of a James Bond theme pop exploration.”

Alice Ivy added, “I've always been a fan of Kah-Lo. We finally found time during my recent stint in New York City, and we smashed out most of Criminal in a day. A couple months later, my friends The Knocks sent me a folder full of samples and vocals that they weren’t using on their album, and I found these really dope BJ The Chicago Kid stems that felt like a good fit for Criminal.

“I dropped them in and made a couple of tweaks, and it worked perfectly! That so rarely happens; they were in the same key and almost at the same tempo! I loved Disclosure’s album Energy, and I was inspired to make room for at least one big dance banger on my new album, and for me, that's Criminal.”

Ivy’s latest track follows her recently released single, Popstar, which features London-based songwriter and producer Låpsley. On Popstar, the pair become rock stars, with noisy guitars, commanding drums, and a guitar solo to boot. The vocals are enchanting and rich, with Alice Ivy calling back to her work on Mallrat’s Teeth.

“I went in thinking we’d probably write something electronic or dance,” Ivy admitted in a press release about the writing sessions, “but for one reason or another, we cranked out a massive angsty rock song, which is ironic because it’s called ‘Popstar’.”

Tickets to Alice Ivy’s upcoming national tour are on sale now—you can find them here. Before her headline tour starts, you can catch Ivy opening for San Cisco across regional Australia this May.

ALICE IVY

DO WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY AUSTRALIAN HEADLINE TOUR DATES

Friday 21 June - Lion Arts Factory - Tarntanya / Adelaide

Saturday 22 June - The Night Cat - Naarm / Melbourne

Friday 28 June - Mojo's Bar - Walyalup / Fremantle

Friday 5 July - The Zoo - Meanjin / Brisbane

Friday 12 July - Oxford Art Factory - Eora / Sydney

Saturday 13 July - Altar - nipaluna / Hobart