Credit: Frank Morales

It seems like only yesterday Odd Future fans were leading the “free Earl” movement after Earl Sweatshirt was sent to the Coral Reef Academy in Samoa by his mother. Now, the Los Angeles rapper is many albums deep into his career and possesses the same skillfulness in his raps that people were first drawn towards

Earl’s first mixtape, Earl, initially put him on the radar of hip-hop fans in 2010. Upon his return, he released his debut album Doris in 2013, followed by 2015’s I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside, 2018’s Some Rap Songs, and 2022’s Sick!. He then dropped a collaborative album with The Alchemist, Voir Dire, in 2023.

Now, Earl is set to return with a new album titled Live Laugh Love on Warner Records. Although a release date has yet to be confirmed, the project was announced during a listening party in Los Angeles on August 15th. The under-the-radar event included three custom cocktails: Live Whiskey, Laugh Vodka, and Love Tequila.

According to Complex, copies of a zine were given to those who attended the event, which included contributors like Donald Glover, Dave Chappelle, Vince Staples, The Alchemist, DJ Dahi, Hiro Murai, Liv.e, and Navy Blue. It’s unclear if any of the people on the list are part of the album itself.

The DJ played new music from the album and joked about the title, telling the crowd, “I still can’t believe this is what he named the album.” Despite the new project being previewed, Earl wasn’t in attendance. Instead, after the DJ told the venue he was “bringing my brother out,” a random man wearing a Supreme hat started rapping Earl’s songs.

Earl is making big changes to his life right now that might impact his writing. During an interview with INDIE Magazine in November, he revealed he was on a health journey. He considers it a drastic change from his 20s, going from being a virgin to excessive alcohol consumption, to the point he was scared about his lifestyle.

“This is my life. I had a funny 20s,” he said. “Everything, socially, was super advanced for me on the front end of my 20s—to the point where I couldn’t handle it. Because I spent the end of my childhood in the program, I was a little bit socially undercooked. I’m like, ‘I haven’t started having sex yet—like, what are y’all….? What is right now? I’m… scared.’

“So I spent the first four years of my 20s very reserved, very high on weed, very music-minded. Then at the mid-20s, I was like, ‘Oh.’ I learned how to, like, drink a cocktail, and then that turned into the drinking that I would have been doing if I wasn’t being reserved and weird at the beginning of my 20s. Then I looked up after four, five years and was like, ‘Wow, I’m going to die.’ And so then I hit 30. I’m like, ‘I don’t want to die.'”

In May, it was announced that Earl was expecting a daughter with his partner, writer and comedian Aida Osman, with whom he’s been in a relationship since 2022. With all the changes to his personal life, all signs are pointing towards some of his most personal writing to date. And, if his recent music with The Alchemist is anything to go by, there’s a lot to be excited about.