Multi-platinum, award-winning Swedish duo Icona Pop—Caroline Hjelt and Aino Jawo—has released its highly anticipated new album, Ritual, out now via Ultra Records/Iconic Sound Recordings.
The album arrives alongside the official visualizer for its focus track, “Hurt,” co-directed by Icona Pop and Nicole Walker. The emotionally charged song explores heartbreak, acceptance, and the process of letting go.
A deeply personal collection of emotional electro-pop, Ritual finds Icona Pop embracing vulnerability while maintaining the dancefloor energy that has defined their sound. Across 10 tracks, the duo explores friendship, reinvention, motherhood, healing, heartbreak, and joy through euphoric synths, club-ready rhythms, bittersweet melodies, and candid lyrics.
At the heart of Ritual is the evolution of Caroline and Aino as artists and as women. Now mothers, creative partners, entrepreneurs, and longtime friends, the duo turns their personal experiences into an album about embracing change and finding strength in connection.
“It’s always been us against the world,” says Icona Pop. “But now, it feels like we’ve built a world of our own. We let each other grow; and we want each other to be happy. It’s beautiful to have somebody with you through the hardest times, but also the greatest times. We don’t take it for granted.”
The album was created during a transformative period in both artists’ lives. Caroline and Aino became mothers within days of each other, returned to Sweden after years in Los Angeles, and experienced significant personal changes, including heartbreak and anxiety. These experiences shaped the album’s honest and emotionally open approach.
“The whole journey with Ritual was us being in the studio with people that made us feel safe enough to stay in the uncomfortable and explore,” Icona Pop explains. “We had no rules making this album. All feelings were welcome, and that felt very liberating. That’s why the album sounds so honest. Writing the album became very therapeutic and important to be able to move forward and heal.”
The album’s focus track, “Hurt,” captures that emotional journey. Built around lonely keys, fractured vocal textures, and a pulsating bass-driven climax, the song reflects the difficult process of accepting the end of a relationship and finding the strength to move forward.
“‘Hurt’ is not an angry song about revenge. It’s a song about brutal acceptance of being left by the one you love,” Caroline shares. “It hurts, but you’re realizing that you’re going to be fine and you’re letting go.”
“Hurt” follows the previously released tracks “Yellow Top,” “Ritual” featuring Daya, “Dance To This,” and “Butterfly Feelings,” offering glimpses into the album’s expansive sonic and emotional landscape.
The title Ritual reflects the small practices that help people reconnect with themselves, process difficult experiences, and move forward. For Icona Pop, the album ultimately serves as both a celebration of where they are today and a reaffirmation of the friendship and music that have carried them through the years.
“It’s okay to not be okay, but still go out and dance,” says Caroline. “It’s okay to be where you are right now. Find your rituals, find your friends, and find your energy.”
Icona Pop 2026 North American tour
Icona Pop will bring Ritual to the stage this fall with headline performances across the United States:
- Sept. 25 — Baby’s All Right — Brooklyn, NY
- Oct. 2 — Lincoln Hall — Chicago, IL
- Nov. 20 — Las Vegas, NV — venue to be announced
- Nov. 21 — Moroccan Lounge — Los Angeles, CA
Tickets are on sale now.
Ritual tracklist
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- “Hurt”
- “Ritual” feat. Daya
- “Dance To This”
- “Butterfly Feelings”
- “Cooler”
- “Yellow Top”
- “Mad Love”
- “Didn’t Mean It Like That”
- “Never Over”
- “Foreverness”
