Melissa Etheridge has announced plans to release a new album titled Rise on March 27, 2026. The 11-track studio effort is Etheridge’s first full-length collection of brand-new songs since she released The Medicine Show in 2019.
Videos by American Songwriter
Rise was co-produced by Melissa and Shooter Jennings, and recorded at the famed Sunset Sound studio in Los Angeles. You can pre-order and pre-save the album now. It’s available on CD, as a vinyl LP, and via digital formats. Limited-edition white-vinyl and tan-smoke-vinyl variants can be purchased, respectively, at Etheridge’s and the Sun Records’ official online stores.
Coinciding with the album announcement, Melissa has released a song titled “Matches” as the second advance digital track from Rise. A companion lyric video for the country-flavored roots-rock tune also has debuted at Etheridge’s official YouTube channel. In the tune, the 64-year-old singer/songwriter reflects on how watching Johnny Cash’s historic 1970 performance at the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas, sparked her interest in music.
“I was 8, and a huge Johnny Cash fan,” Etheridge recalled. “His music really lit my fingers and made me so excited. When I say, ‘Mama, let me play with the matches,’ I really wanted to play that music.”
The first advance track from Rise, “Don’t You Want a Woman,” was released in October. The album also features a duet with Chris Stapleton, “The Other Side of Blue,” which the country star co-wrote. Another track, “Call You,” is an emotional tribute to Etheridge’s son, Beckett, who died in 2020 of opioid addiction at age 21.
Shooter Jennings Loved Working with Etheridge
In a statement, Jennings shared enthusiastic praise for Etheridge and his experience collaborating with her.
“Getting to work with Melissa was one of the greatest times of my life,” he said. “From the moment she walked into the studio the first time I met her, she exuded such light and wisdom, I was floored. She’s one of the greatest rock and roll artists of our lifetime and an incredible songwriter as well. Watching her work, wearing her songs, basking in her abilities, was a high mark in my career as musician.”
He added, “Nobody plays a 12-string acoustic like Melissa. The only thing I can say is I am lucky to have had the chance to work with Melissa and her incredible band on this album. Being around her is to be second party to the kind of experience, excellence and musicianship that made the rock and roll heroes of our generation. And Melissa Etheridge is certainly one of those. I had a blast making this album and I can’t wait for the world to hear it.”
About Etheridge’s Upcoming Tour and Other Plans to Promote Rise
Etheridge recently announced plans for a 2026 North American tour in support of Rise. The trek kicks off March 26 in Detroit and is scheduled through a May 9 in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina.
Melissa also will promote the album during a March 12 appearance on Talk Shop Live.
Rise Track List:
- “Bein’ Alive”
- “Matches”
- “Rise”
- “Don’t You Want a Woman”
- “Other Side of Blue”
- “If You Ever Leave Me”
- “Davina”
- “To Be a Woman”
- “Tomboy”
- “Call You”
- “More Love”
Melissa Etheridge’s 2026 Tour Dates:
March 26 – Detroit, MI @ Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts
March 27 – Pickering, ON, Canada @ venue to be announced
March 28 – The Vine at Del Lago Resort & Casino – Waterloo, NY @
March 31 – Burlington, VT @ Flynn Center for the Performing Arts
April 2 – Hampton Beach, NH @Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
April 3 – Woonsocket, RI @ Stadium Theatre for the Performing Arts
April 4 – Portland, ME @ Merrill Auditorium
April 8 – Plymouth, MA @ Plymouth Memorial Hall
April 10 – Englewood, NJ @ Bergen Performing Arts Center
April 11 – Patchogue, NY @ Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts
April 12 – Poughkeepsie, NY @ Bardavon 1869 Opera House
April 14 – Ridgefield, CT @ Ridgefield Playhouse
April 15 – Medford, MA @ Chevalier Theatre
April 17 – Red Bank, NJ @ Count Basie Center for the Arts
April 18 – Bensalem, PA @ XCite Center at Parx Casino
April 19 – Winston-Salem, NC @ The Ramkat
April 21 – Rocky Mount, VA @ Harvester Performance Center
April 22 – Danville, KY @ Norton Center for the Arts
April 24 – Tulsa, OK @ venue to be announced
April 26 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theater
May 1 – St. Louis, MO @ The Factory
May 2 – New Buffalo, MI @ Four Winds Casino Resort, Silver Creek Event Center
May 3 – Carmel, IN @ Payne & Mencias Palladium at Allied Solutions Center
May 5 – Munhall, PA @ Carnegie Music Hall of Homestead
May 6 – Troy, NY @ Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
May 8 – Hershey, PA @ Hershey Theatre
May 9 – Roanoke Rapids, NC @ Weldon Mills Theatre
(Photo by Candice Lawler)
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