2022 has already had its fair share of highly anticipated album releases, with Kendrick Lamar’s comeback record, “Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers,” and Harry Styles’ “Harry’s House.” While there has been plenty of new music that has already made its way to the forefront, some artists are still awaiting their big day, many of whom have not released music since the pandemic began.  

“Special” by Lizzo  

Lizzo released her most recent album, “Cuz I Love You,” in 2019. With singles such as “Truth Hurts” and “Good as Hell”, the Grammy Award-winning album set big expectations for the singer. Lizzo announced her fourth studio album, “Special” in April when she took to Twitter to post the album cover. 

 The album has 12 tracks on it, including the TikTok sensation single, “About Damn Time” and title track “Special.” According to Lizzo, the goal of the album is to “spread love from every angle.” 

“I’m writing songs about love from every direction,” Lizzo told Apple’s Zane Lowe. “And I hope that I can turn a little bit of the fear that’s been running rampant in this world, energetically into love. That’s the point. I had a lot of fear, and I had to do the work on myself, and this music is some of that work in turning that fear into love.” 

Lizzo’s new era is set to take off on July 15, when the album will be released with Atlantic Records. 

“Renaissance” by Beyonce 

It has been six years since “Queen Bey” last released an album, making “Renaissance” her most anticipated album yet. Early on the morning of June 16, Beyonce surprise-announced her seventh studio album via a Tweet by the streaming service Tidal, which is owned by her husband, Jay-Z.  

The multifaceted performer sent shockwaves through the music industry when she dropped the album’s lead single “Break My Soul” in June. 

To kick off her brand-new era, Beyonce changed her Instagram bio to the release date of the album, July 29, and graced the cover of British Vogue. Accompanied by stunning photographs of the musical icon came teases of the essence that is believed to be on the record.   

The track list titles are yet to be shared, but it boasts sixteen new songs.  

“5SOS5” by 5 Seconds of Summer 

For over 10 years, 5 Seconds of Summer has been performing and evolving their sound. What started out as an angsty boy band with their first two albums, “Self-Titled” and “Sounds Good, Feels Good,” quickly became raw and well-versed lyrics with the likes of their most recent album, “Calm.”  

In April, the Australian band released their single, “Complete Mess,” leading fans to believe that their fifth studio album was on the way. After rebranding their 2022 summer tour, it was confirmed that “5SOS5” would be making its way to audiences worldwide on Sept. 23.  

There will be 14 tracks on the standard edition, with five more being added to the deluxe edition. “Take My Hand,” the namesake of their 2022 world tour, is included, as well as “Easy for You” and “Blender,” which have not been released to the public but are being performed exclusively at their shows.  

Luke Hemmings, the lead singer for 5 Seconds of Summer, described the album to People magazine as a “total ascension.” 

“Hopefully it shows the kind of power that an art form can hold and that we take this very seriously,” Hemmings said. “We put a lot of heart and soul into these in hopes that we can connect with as many people as we can in a positive way.”  

“Being Funny in a Foreign Language” by The 1975 

Fans were not in the least surprised when British band The 1975 announced they had a new album on the way. The title, “Being Funny in a Foreign Language” had been teased in postcards that fans received as promo from the band.  

The album is set to be released on Oct. 14 via Dirty Hit and is co-produced by lead singer, Matty Healy and Grammy-award-winning producer, Jack Antonoff.  

The lead single “Part of the Band” was released on Friday, July 8, and was accompanied by a stunning, black and white visual music video. The single opens with lyrics reminiscing on past love affairs, such as “I was Rimbaud and he was Paul Verlaine in my, my, my imagination / So many cringes and heroin binges, I was coming off the hinges.” 

Along with the lead single and release date, the band shared the track list, which includes 11 brand new songs. While the sound of the album is still unclear, the glitzy and unique aesthetic of the international rock stars will not be lost in translation.