Lykke Li releases new single 'Knife In The Heart' ahead of sixth album 'The Afterparty'
Published: 17 March 2026
Acclaimed Swedish artist Lykke Li has released her new single ‘Knife In The Heart’, the second taste of her long awaited sixth studio album The Afterparty.
Written and produced with the legendary Rick Nowels (Madonna, Lana Del Rey, Belinda Carlisle, Dua Lipa), ‘Knife In The Heart’ is a haunting, brooding song that begins with tortured strings and brings into gradually louder beats and multiple vocal lines that give the song a fascinating, otherworldly feel. Lyrically it explores emotional survival, as it veers between a sense of misery and hope. ‘You can break, you can spit, you can walk on me / Go ahead / This life is a knife in the heart...You can't hurt me.’
“This is my brutalist nursery rhyme anthem — the emo girl in me, fully unleashed,” Li says. “I had my son and his friend sing the choruses because the juxtaposition of their voices against the EBow just created such a powerful sonic landscape, somewhere I've never really been before. A world totally collapsing in front of us and all we really have left is our humanity. My dream is to hear a whole football stadium chanting: ‘This Life This Life is a Knife in the Heart.’ To me, a pretty accurate description of what it feels like to be alive right now.”
The song will feature on Li’s sixth studio album The Afterparty, due to be released on 8 May. Written in Los Angeles and recorded in Stockholm with a 17-piece string orchestra, the album blends disco and orchestral music. With a run time of just 24 minutes, the album will explore shame, desire and existential uncertainty.
Li has also announced she will be performing at Coachella in April, followed by a worldwide tour that will see her perform headline shows as well as support Robyn, Wolf Alice and Nick Cave.
Releasing her first single ‘Little Bit’ almost 20 years ago, Li’s eclectic and singular pop music has made her one of the most intriguing pop artists of her time. After a four year wait for new music, Li’s return is one of 2026’s most exciting musical moments and based on what we have heard so far, The Afterparty is set to be one of her greatest works to date.
‘Knife In The Heart’ is out now via Neon Gold Records/Futures. You can download and stream here.
The Afterparty will be released on 8 May via Neon Gold Records/Futures. You can pre-order and pre-save here.
Follow Lykke Li on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.
US & EU LIVE DATES 2026
10 April 2026 – Coachella Music Festival – Indio, CA
14 April 2026 – The Fonda – Los Angeles
17 April 2026 – Coachella Music Festival – Indio, CA
22 May 2026 – Vivo Rio – Rio de Janeiro
24 May 2026 – C6 Festival – São Paulo
10 June 2026 – Malahide Castle – Dublin, Ireland*
19 June 2026 – Metronome Festival, Prague
28 June 2026 – Live is Live Festival, Belgium
2 July 2026 – Roskilde Festival, Denmark
5 July 2026 – Finsbury Park, London**
10 July 2026 – Pohoda Festival, Slovakia
14 August 2026 – Way Out West, Sweden
16 August 2026 – Flow Festival, Finland
19 September 2026 – Palacio de los Deportes – Mexico City, MX***
*w/ Nick Cave
** w/ Wolf Alice
*** w/ Robyn
