Jordan Rakei is In Paradise
Jordan Rakei today releases ‘Paradise’, the third single from his forthcoming seventh album, A Safe Place To Be Wild, due for release 19th February via Fontana. This is accompanied by Jordan’s biggest-ever UK and European headline tour, culminating in his largest show to date at London’s Alexandra Palace on 24th April 2027.
Opening with impactful drums that are joined by mellow keys, ‘Paradise’ is a vibrant, yet emotionally reflective track. Arriving just before the midpoint of the album, it offers clear insight into the place Jordan was in when creating ‘A Safe Place To Be Wild’. It feels deeply emotionally connected, as Jordan asks, “Who am I?” before answering with the track’s primary refrain, “Still a child of paradise”.
Speaking on the single, Jordan says: “Paradise is a nostalgic look back at childhood, at the vivid memories shared with my brothers, who were really the emotional core of those early years. Parts of that time were chaotic, but the song focuses on the bond we had through it all. It also touches on that shift into adulthood, moving from an inner childlike world into something harsher, and the way those early memories stay with you even as you grow and start confronting darker, more complex parts of life”.
A Safe Place To Be Wild, the seventh album from Jordan Rakei, arrives after more than a decade of quietly reshaping the contours of soul, jazz and alternative R&B. His most instinctive and fearless work to date, it is an intimate, surreal and emotionally direct record about self-acceptance, vulnerability and creative freedom. Stripping everything back to raw feeling, Rakei lets go of expectation and steps into a more unguarded space, embracing the stranger, freer parts of himself with a sense of play, honesty and instinct.
At its heart, A Safe Place To Be Wild is a study of the unobserved self: an artist confronting the fear of exposure, dissolving it in real time, and discovering the quiet power of becoming fully, unapologetically whole. The album was recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios, during Jordan’s tenure as the inaugural Artist In Residence. The full significance of those sacred rooms can be felt in the profundity of the album. Available in multiple formats, including a CD digipack, exclusive indie red vinyl, an opaque signed vinyl edition, and standard black vinyl. Pre-order A Safe Place To Be Wild here.
‘Paradise’ follows closely on the heels of ‘Promise’. This track arrives laden with doubt, yet uplifted by its sound. It contemplates relationship anxieties whilst providing a textured, and mellifluous listening experience. Soft keys brush against crisp drum hits, providing the soundbed for Jordan’s serene vocal texture to tell the story. Jordan says: “Promise explores insecurity and doubt that can exist within a relationship. But still making a pledge and holding onto hope that it can still work between two people. Parts of it were written over a decade ago with the incredible Rosie Lowe, and the song just stayed with me through the years before finally finding its place and coming to life on the record”.
This in turn, succeeded the album’s first single, ‘Enemies‘. Embodying a ’70s-tinged psych-soul sound, ‘Enemies’ carries a laid-back, rootsy warmth and a hazy, summer-tinged feel, the track captures the ambition and self-assured spirit of the album. Jordan says: “‘Enemies’ has a playful, almost arrogant energy to it, not from bitterness, but from self-confidence. It’s an ownership song about not taking any more crap, rising above past dynamics, and turning all of that into positive energy. It’s dedicated to all the enemies of my past, haha”.
A Safe Place To Be Wild Tour will be Jordan Rakei’s biggest headline tour to date, opening in Europe for a full run across Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, before returning to the UK for final shows in Bristol and Manchester, culminating in his largest-ever headline performance at London’s Alexandra Palace. Support for the EU/UK dates will come from Dorset-born, London-based Jazz/Soul singer Olive Jones. Pre-sale tickets on sale 22nd July, general sale 24th July, available here.
