The Grammy-nominated producer is chasing “super happy music” on his most personal record yet
Baauer is back in album mode. The Grammy-nominated producer has announced his third studio LP U, landing June 12, alongside a new single, ‘Better’.
It’s his first full-length since 2020’s PLANET’S MAD.
Written in the aftermath of the pandemic, the record leans into what Baauer calls “super happy music”, pulling from the sounds that first got him hooked on dance floors as a teenager in London.
Lead single ‘Better’ sets the tone. It’s bright, disco-leaning and built for movement, tapping into that early-2000s, sample-heavy energy while still sounding like a natural extension of Baauer’s club instincts.
Across 16 tracks, U plays out like a continuous mix – think Ibiza house, bloghouse and late-night BBC Radio 1 energy stitched together into something cohesive but loose. It’s less about overthinking, more about feel.
That shift in mindset comes from how the album was made. During lockdown, Baauer started producing live on Twitch, opening up his process in real time.
“Doing that cracked open my process,” he says. “People could see me the whole time, from starting a beat to finishing.”
It forced a different approach – quicker decisions, less polishing – and that immediacy runs through U.
Executive produced by Hudson Mohawke, the album also pulls in a tight circle of collaborators including Aluna, KUČKA, Brazy and Betsy, plus piano work from Eli Teplin and additional production from Parisi.
Baauer’s always been a producer who thrives on digging – whether that’s obscure samples or internet rabbit holes – and U leans into that. “I truly love the process of digging… to find a cool five seconds,” he says.
It’s that instinct-driven approach that gives the record its energy.
More than a decade on from ‘Harlem Shake’, Harrison Bauer Rodrigues isn’t chasing virality anymore. If anything, U sounds like someone reconnecting with why they started making dance music in the first place – and keeping it simple.
U lands June 12 via LUCKYME®. ‘Better’ is out now.
TRACKLIST
1 Do U Wanna Get Down ?
2 Kno U
3 The Way U Do It
4 Supersonic
5 Kiss On The Lips ft. Brazy
6 One Last Time ft. Aluna & Brazy
7 Calling Out For U
8 U Give Me Love
9 Closer Together
10 Gravity/Chaos Flow ft. KUČKA
11 Meldy (Want U So Bad)
12 Better
13 Nothing’s Ever Real (U Mix) ft. Betsy
14 Somebody
15 U Know It’s Real
16 Follow U
