Unreleased Prince Album, 'Welcome 2 America,' To Arrive in July

A statement from the Prince estate says the album shows his "concerns, hopes, and visions for a shifting society."

On Thursday, the Prince estate announced the forthcoming release of Welcome 2 America, a previously-unreleased album recorded in 2010. The album will arrive on July 30th. In a statement, the estate said the album was "a powerful creative statement that documents Prince’s concerns, hopes, and visions for a shifting society, presciently foreshadowing an era of political division, disinformation, and a renewed fight for racial justice."

Fans also have the chance to pre-order a numbered limited-edition gold-colored 7-inch vinyl from the official Prince store. A deluxe edition with gold-foil package designed by Grammy-nominated artist Mathieu Bitton, paired with a companion book will also be up for grabs. The record includes the studio version of the title track, as well as a previously-unreleased live version of the song recorded in May 2011. The live version is part of a medley featuring Prince's 2009 track "Dreamer," from his 2009 album Lotusflow3r.

Welcome 2 America will be the first full-length album released by the estate since Prince's death in 2016. The estate says the album touches on "golden parachutes, the superficial nature of social media, reality TV-fueled celebrity culture, and corporate monopolies in the music industry, ultimately concluding that America is the ‘Land of the free/home of the slave."

The album's bonus material features a live concert with covers of Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love" and Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done For Me Lately."

Stay tuned for further updates on the Welcome 2 America album. You can pre-order your copy of both the 2xLP and deluxe edition of the album (with a CD and Blu-Ray of the performance) via The Shop today. Orders are expected to begin shipping on July 30th.