Adele will not release a new album in 2014, according to a financial statement published by her record label. Despite rumours that the singer’s third full-length might appear before the end of the year, XL are said to have indicated to regulators that they do not expect her next blockbuster this year.
“There will not be a further new release by Adele during 2014 and consequently there will be a fall in XL’s turnover and profits,” the label were alleged to have written in an annual financial report obtained by the New York Times. While sales of Adele’s back-catalogue accounted for a “significant proportion” of the company’s recent receipts, “the directors are confident that by pursuing management policies ... XL will continue to achieve success with other artists”.
XL’s disclosure throws cold water on fans’ hopes that the singer would create a pattern of releasing a new album every thee years. Generally, Adele’s albums have been titled according to her age when they were written; after 19, in 2008, and 2011’s worldwide smash 21, there was speculation that she would unveil 25 in 2014. “Bye bye 25,” she tweeted at the time of her 26th birthday, in May. “See you again later in the year.”
Back in 2011, Adele warned fans that her next record would probably “take a lot longer” than the previous one. “I want to write it, record it all, produce it all and master it on my own,” she said, as well as describing plans to install (and learn) a home studio system. Adele has since given birth to her first child and also reportedly undertook songwriting sessions with Ryan Tedder, Phil Collins and rapper Wiz Khalifa.
Adele’s two albums have sold a total of more than 35 million copies worldwide.
