{"id":31456,"date":"2026-08-07T20:32:29","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T15:32:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=31456"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:32:29","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T15:32:29","slug":"new-radicals-return-with-one-night-only-and-first-album-in-28-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=31456","title":{"rendered":"New Radicals Return With &#8216;One Night Only&#8217; and First Album in 28 Years"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2024\/music\/news\/new-radicals-first-songs-25-years-supporting-democracy-1236116481\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"1236116481\">Gregg Alexander wasn\u2019t planning<\/a> to make a splashy return with <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/new-radicals\/\" id=\"auto-tag_new-radicals\" data-tag=\"new-radicals\">New Radicals<\/a>, his pop-rock collective that burned bright and fast in the late 1990s before abruptly disbanding. So it\u2019s fitting that \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/one-night-only\/\" id=\"auto-tag_one-night-only\" data-tag=\"one-night-only\">One Night Only<\/a> (Break Loose Break Free!),\u201d the group\u2019s first new song in 28 years, arrived last Friday without warning. Its release was so under the radar, in fact, that it was a virtual obstacle course to track down the song on streaming services, unlisted on New Radicals\u2019 own profile pages yet discovered and disseminated far and wide across the media.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s like most things that happen in New Radicals\u2019 world: organically and seemingly out of nowhere,\u201d Alexander tells <em>Variety<\/em> just days after its release. The jubilant tune, written and recorded as the title track for Will Gluck\u2019s freshly released new rom-com <a data-id=\"1236828254\" data-type=\"post\" href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/film\/news\/one-night-only-review-1236828254\/\">\u201cOne Night Only,\u201d<\/a> picks up right where New Radicals left off, setting jaunty handclaps and candy-sweet melodies against heavier lyrics that question the systems humming just in the background of society. Alexander, who largely stays out of the limelight, met the song\u2019s fervent reaction with typical candor: \u201cSometimes, you just hop on the roller coaster and go along for the ride.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tFor Alexander, that\u2019s been something of a de facto mantra over the past three decades as New Radicals have endured well beyond their heyday. Since releasing their sole album \u201cMaybe You\u2019ve Been Brainwashed Too\u201d in 1998, the set\u2019s lead single \u201cYou Only Get What You Give\u201d has become a song of the people, a cross-generational hit that rallies against corporate America with a sentiment that\u2019s trickled down family trees. Last year alone, Geese went viral with a cover of the song on BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge; the MTV Video Music Awards featured a re-recorded version with Benee in a promo; and Journeys reimagined its iconic video set to a cover by Gus Dapperton.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAll of this, says Alexander, is partly what\u2019s inspired him to revive New Radicals, a project he dismantled at the peak of its powers after getting a cold, hard look inside the star factory. But mostly, he says, it boils down to New Radicals\u2019 ethos \u2014 how a song can potentially change the world. \u201cI am intrigued by the idea of what would happen with a song as good as the best that I could do, if it went out there again,\u201d he says during our three-hour interview. \u201cAnd I do have some songs, I think, that are in that pantheon and can proudly stand next to \u2018You Get What You Give.\u2019 I am a true believer that if it\u2019s meant to be to have a song reach the world the same way, then hopefully it will come to be.\u201d (Watch a teaser for the \u201cOne Night Only\u201d video below.)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\">\n<p>\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"New Radicals, &quot;One Night Only&quot; \u2013 Snippet\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3Sf9AdRmonI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThat\u2019s largely been the driving force behind Alexander bringing back New Radicals, which has been slowly emerging from the shadows over the past few years. (I remind Alexander that when we first spoke in 2018, he said he had \u201cseven to 10\u201d New Radicals albums that he\u2019d potentially release after he dies. He heartily laughs when I refer to the records as a \u201cpost-mortem.\u201d)<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tIn the time since, the group has reawakened, however slowly. In 2021, Alexander teamed with band member Danielle Brisebois to perform \u201cYou Get What You Give\u201d at President Joe Biden\u2019s inauguration, and in 2024, they released New Radicals versions of Sophie Ellis-Bextor\u2019s \u201cMurder on the Dancefloor\u201d and the Oscar-nominated \u201cLost Stars,\u201d sung by Maroon 5\u2019s Adam Levine for the 2014 film \u201cBegin Again.\u201d (Alexander wrote both songs, while Brisebois co-wrote the latter.) \u201cMurder on the Dancefloor\u201d had its own recent renaissance after its use in \u201cSaltburn,\u201d while Natasha Bedingfield\u2019s \u201cUnwritten\u201d and \u201cPocketful of Sunshine,\u201d both written by Brisebois, had similar resurgences.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tNow, New Radicals have had yet another revival, this time by their own hand. Just last month, they teamed with Michelle Branch to release a rerecording of her 2002 smash with Santana, \u201cThe Game of Love,\u201d which Alexander initially wrote before filtering the demo through Tina Turner and Macy Gray. (A video for the duet with Branch is on the way.) And, after releasing \u201cOne Night Only,\u201d New Radicals are officially returning to the stage they once shunned with plans to release their sophomore album \u201cMaybe You\u2019ve Been Brainwashed TWO (THE Heathen Will \u2018Con$pirituality\u2019 TROLL),\u201d which is currently without a release date but in gestation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s basically where we are right now between organized religion and politics and even social media,\u201d explains Alexander about the record. He says that the \u201cbeautiful response\u201d internally they got to \u201cOne Night Only\u201d only fanned the flames of wanting to test the waters with more new music. \u201cIt seemed like a point of entry in the same way releasing the demo of \u2018Murder on the Dancefloor\u2019 or \u2018Lost Stars\u2019 was a way of just reminding ourselves what we do best, which is really just writing songs and singing. It\u2019s easy to get lost with all of the different distractions about what our purpose is on this earth. It could be caretakers for those we love. It could be if there\u2019s a cause that we believe in. It could be trying to be there as a support system if a friend is going through a depressing time. But at the core of who I am is a singer and a songwriter, and dare I say even occasionally an entertainer. It\u2019s good to remind yourself why you were put on this earth. And I think music was the main reason.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  size-large alignnone \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure  lrv-u-font-family-secondary u-color-medium-grey lrv-u-border-b-1 u-border-color-light-grey-tint-two u-margin-b-150 lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:1024px\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-variety-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unnamed-21.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unnamed-21.jpg 5712w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unnamed-21.jpg?resize=150,113 150w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unnamed-21.jpg?resize=300,225 300w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"768\" width=\"1024\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  lrv-u-flex lrv-u-flex-direction-column lrv-u-padding-t-1 lrv-u-padding-b-1\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-line-height-normal lrv-u-font-size-14 u-font-family-neue u-letter-spacing-007-rem u-margin-b-050\">(From L-R) Brandi Carlile, Cameron Crowe, Alexander, Roger Friedman, Dave Grohl. <em>Courtesy of c2026Showbiz411<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThe announcement comes on the heels of Branch and New Radicals\u2019 \u201cThe Game of Love,\u201d originally a hallmark post-millennium tune that hit just a few years after Alexander called it quits on the industry as a front man. At the time, it was a ubiquitous smash, a song that Alexander performed only once after it was awarded song of the year at the <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=X9GN7Y2WQk8\" target=\"_blank\">2004 BMI Pop Awards<\/a>. Decades later, Branch asked Alexander to produce a new version of the track, potentially with Olivia Rodrigo in mind for a duet, before they concluded that his vocal was the right fit. After they cut the song, Alexander was on his way back from Prague to New York City to play it as a surprise for Clive Davis, who was involved in the song\u2019s initial creation, when he learned that the music icon had passed away.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cVery few people lived as fully as Clive did, a family man who traveled everywhere and was a champion of music and artist rights,\u201d says Alexander. \u201cThe fact that we got to make this record and now that it\u2019s going out there and getting a special response\u201d \u2014\u00a0debuting on the Billboard Adult Pop Airplay chart last week \u2014\u00a0\u201cwe\u2019re honored and touched because like anything I do, I always had zero expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAs much as Alexander has steered the New Radicals ship, \u201cYou Get What You Give\u201d had also been coopted in ways they\u2019d never imagined. One of the sticking points of their hit was its fast-paced riff against corporate America, bemoaning \u201cbig bankers buying\u201d and \u201ccomputers crashing down and cloning while they\u2019re multiplying.\u201d So it came as a surprise that an AI rendition of the song aired in a dramatic <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/snfonnbc\/status\/2020634971946602785\" target=\"_blank\">lead-in to the Super Bowl<\/a> earlier this year, as well as in an AI rip-off that aired during an Olympic figure skater routine in February. Alexander addresses the usage by chalking it up to the indifference at a leadership level, and the impression it leaves on the masses.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThe sad thing is I can\u2019t speak to what will happen to all of people\u2019s jobs being replaced, your voice being replaced, your songs being replaced. I feel like it\u2019s so much bigger than that one usage,\u201d he says. \u201cBut I do also feel that people feel disempowered because, do they really want to let their lives become consumed by it, or does somebody want to go just go write a better song? When are we going to wake up as the slow-boiling frog that we are and realize that if we don\u2019t collectively demand that from an ethical and integrity and economic standpoint and in a survivability of our actual species standpoint, if we don\u2019t collectively stand up to that, because it\u2019s in all of our best interests, then we\u2019re all fucked?\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  size-full alignnone \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure  lrv-u-font-family-secondary u-color-medium-grey lrv-u-border-b-1 u-border-color-light-grey-tint-two u-margin-b-150 lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:642px\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-variety-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Image-from-iOS-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Image-from-iOS-2-1.jpg 642w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Image-from-iOS-2-1.jpg?resize=130,150 130w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Image-from-iOS-2-1.jpg?resize=261,300 261w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"739\" width=\"642\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  lrv-u-flex lrv-u-flex-direction-column lrv-u-padding-t-1 lrv-u-padding-b-1\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-line-height-normal lrv-u-font-size-14 u-font-family-neue u-letter-spacing-007-rem u-margin-b-050\">The back album cover of \u201cMaybe You\u2019ve Been Brainwashed TWO.\u201d <em>Courtesy of Bob Zuckerman.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAt present, Alexander is focused on the future of New Radicals and making sure music is at the center. He was recently credited as a songwriter on the Strokes\u2019 \u201cGoing to Babble On,\u201d included on the group\u2019s new album \u201cReality Awaits\u201d after he wrote the tune with Julian Casablancas five years ago. He\u2019s planning on rolling out the video for \u201cOne Night Only,\u201d a nod to a bygone era before cell phones when you could dance like no one\u2019s watching. Most of all, he says, it\u2019s about making music that resonates, however it may take hold.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThe songs that you think are your best ones are the ones that often people don\u2019t connect with,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd then something that you write as a throwaway, like \u2018Murder on the Dancefloor\u2019 or \u2018You Get What You Give,\u2019 are the ones that people remember out of my body of work. You have to be humbled by it and go, wow, I have to follow the lead of whatever connects with people. Because once you put a song out into the world or you write a book or you make a film, as soon as it goes out there, it\u2019s really no longer yours. And so you have to just stand by and hopefully be proud of it if it gets a little bit of love from time to time.\u201d <\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  size-large is-resized alignnone \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure  lrv-u-font-family-secondary u-color-medium-grey lrv-u-border-b-1 u-border-color-light-grey-tint-two u-margin-b-150 lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:828pxpx\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-variety-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8478F7FA-7DFD-4542-BD16-558396CD425B_8fa55b.png?w=473\" alt=\"\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8478F7FA-7DFD-4542-BD16-558396CD425B_8fa55b.png 1125w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8478F7FA-7DFD-4542-BD16-558396CD425B_8fa55b.png?resize=69,150 69w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8478F7FA-7DFD-4542-BD16-558396CD425B_8fa55b.png?resize=139,300 139w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"0\" width=\"828\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  \">\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gregg Alexander wasn\u2019t planning to make a splashy return with New Radicals, his pop-rock collective that burned bright and fast in the late 1990s before abruptly disbanding. So it\u2019s fitting that \u201cOne Night Only (Break Loose Break Free!),\u201d the group\u2019s first new song in 28 years, arrived last Friday without warning. Its release was so&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31457,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8478F7FA-7DFD-4542-BD16-558396CD425B-e1786063355909.png?w=1000&h=563&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31456","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31456","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=31456"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31456\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/31457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}