The band will release its sixth full-length album this fall
5 Seconds of Summer returns with their first new single in three years, “Not Okay,” marking the group’s first release since 2022, and debut under their newly minted deal with Republic Records.
The quartet of frontman Luke Hemmings, guitarist Michael Clifford, bassist Calum Hood, and drummer Ashton Irwin has boldly elevated their sound to another stratosphere with “Not OK.” Nodding to everyone from The Prodigy to N.E.R.D., the track’s bright, hyper-charged beat could just as easily ignite the dance floor of an underground rave as it could shake festival grounds anywhere in the world. Across the song, anxious cymbals accent a buoyant bassline, and a hummable guitar solo rings out as Luke carries an emotionally complicated and undeniably catchy chorus, “Hey, I’m not okay! I like the darker side of me, that part of me comes out to play when I’m with you, bite the apple, baby.” It has all the makings of a live staple from the group as well.
“It has the older 5 Seconds of Summer energy, but it’s different—which is the whole M.O. of this chapter. Lyrically, it’s about letting out the darker side of yourself and embracing it. The song is also a nod to the band itself. We pull those sides out of each other,” Hemmings shares.
The song heralds the arrival of the band’s sixth full-length album, Everyone’s A Star!, available on November 14th. The guys carefully assembled the record throughout 2024 and 2025, working in Los Angeles and Nashville with super pop producer Jason Evigan.
5 Seconds of Summer dropped their most recent album, 5SOS5, in 2022. It notably bowed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100 hit “Complete Mess.”
1. Everyone’s A Star!
2. Not OK
3. Telephone Busy
4. Boyband
5. No. 1 Obsession
6. I’m Scared I’ll Never Sleep
7. istillfeelthesame
8. Ghost
9. Sick of Myself
10. Evolve
11. The Rocks
12. Jawbreaker
