The Brandi Carlile Sad Gay Version of her album Returning To Myself arrived today, September 25, 2026. The 21-track deluxe edition reimagines all ten songs from her 2025 record as intimate, stripped-back confessionals. It is out now via Interscope and Lost Highway Records, and it also includes a haunting collaboration with electronic composer Jon Hopkins and a digital-exclusive cover of Billy Joel’s “And So It Goes.”
Carlile announced the expanded edition in mid-August, timing it for the one-year anniversary of the original album. The first Returning To Myself was her eighth studio record, and it followed her collaborative album with Elton John. However, instead of simply tacking on bonus tracks, she rebuilt the entire record from the ground up. As a result, the new versions trade the originals’ bigger production for piano, strings, and raw vocal takes.
What’s Inside the Brandi Carlile Sad Gay Version
The digital edition opens with the original ten tracks — including “Human,” “Church & State,” “Joni,” and “A Long Goodbye” — and then moves into the reimagined set. “Human (feat. Jon Hopkins)” turns the breakout single into a tender piano ballad that slowly builds in intensity. In addition, the digital release exclusively features her version of Billy Joel’s “And So It Goes.”
Carlile returned to Long Pond Studio to co-produce four of the new tracks with Aaron Dessner. Meanwhile, fans who prefer physical media can pre-order a signed rainbow vinyl edition. It is a special one-time pressing, available only on Carlile’s website, and pre-orders close October 1. The vinyl ships December 11.
For a taste of the reimagined sound, Consequence has the full announcement, and the complete track list is posted by Universal Music.
Brandi Carlile performing in Seattle. Photo: Kirk Stauffer / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Why She Calls It “Sad Gay”
The title comes straight from Carlile’s own teenage bedroom. In a statement, she explained that she used to seek out songs “in a genre that very few are willing to call by its rightful name. The ‘Sad Gay’ genre.”
Her examples paint a vivid picture: R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts,” the Indigo Girls’ “Language or the Kiss,” Sinead O’Connor singing “Nothing Compares 2 U,” Kate Bush’s “This Woman’s Work,” Tracy Chapman’s “The Promise,” and the soundtracks to Philadelphia and City of Angels. She would sit at the edge of her bed and let the music “break her heart into a thousand pieces,” just to feel something.
“I reimagined this album in this way because I want to be brought back to the edge of my bed again and I want to bring you with me,” she said. “I rebuilt the whole thing for you and for myself. This one is for us… the sad gays wherever you are.”
In a new interview, she laughed about her assistant’s take on her taste, calling it the specific moody energy of a “depressed bisexual.” She also covers Alanis Morissette in the session, which fits the theme perfectly.
Carlile performing at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2016. Photo: Robbie Mendelson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).
A Landmark Year for Carlile
The deluxe album caps an enormous run for the 11-time Grammy winner. Earlier this year, she earned her first Oscar nomination for “Never Too Late,” the song she wrote with Elton John, Bernie Taupin, and Andrew Watt for a Disney+ documentary. She was also named one of TIME’s 2026 Women of the Year.
Her live work has been just as busy. In February, she played a sold-out show at Minneapolis’ Target Center called “Be Human: A Concert For Minneapolis.” It raised more than $750,000 for The Advocates for Human Rights, and a concert film of the night later streamed in full. In addition, she appeared on Saturday Night Live, NPR’s Tiny Desk, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and even Super Bowl LX.
Behind the scenes, Carlile has become one of music’s most respected producers, with recent Grammy-winning projects for Joni Mitchell and Brandy Clark. She has also worked with everyone from Soundgarden to Dolly Parton. Meanwhile, her Looking Out Foundation has raised more than $10 million for grassroots causes.
Brandi Carlile at the 2024 Gershwin Prize. Photo: UKinUSA / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).
What’s Next: The Human Tour and All Things Go
Carlile shows no signs of slowing down. The next leg of her Human Tour kicked off with a sold-out show at Portland, Maine’s Cross Insurance Arena, and dates continue across the U.S. into the fall. After that, she heads to Europe next spring.
Fans can also catch her at the All Things Go festival this weekend — she headlines the D.C. edition at Merriweather Post Pavilion from September 25 to 27 alongside Hayley Williams and Zara Larsson. So between the tour, the festival, and today’s release, it is officially Brandi Carlile season.
The Sad Gay Version deluxe is streaming everywhere now, and the digital edition is available on her official shop. She is not the only star with new music today — Taylor Swift also released new material this Friday — but few releases feel this personal. Which reimagined track are you playing on repeat first? Catch up on this week’s other big music honors, and for a very different album rollout, revisit Lady Gaga’s delayed Chromatica release.