Sturgill Simpson Uploads New Photo From The Studio As New Album Talk Continues To Swirl

Are we getting one step closer to a new album?

It’s safe to say it’s been a pretty interesting past 24 hours for fans of Johnny Blue Skies (or Sturgill Simpson for the ill-informed). Last week, The Tennessean sat down to talk with The Black Keys band member and producer, Dan Auerbach. In the article, it would claim that the 24x Grammy-nominee is working with the “Long White Line” singer on a new project in 2026.

“In 2026, Auerbach’s got work on the horizon with Sturgill Simpson.”

Of course, this sent everyone into a frenzy, not only because fans have been all but begging for new music from Simpson since his brilliant rebirth as Johnny Blue Skies in Passage Du Desir in 2024 but also due to the fact that Auerbach and The Black Keys have been one of the most consistent rock bands over the past two decades.

With more and more fans and outlets beginning to cover the fact that Simpson and Auerbach were set to work together this year, Simpson took to Instagram last night, under the verified Johnny Blue Skies account, to clear the air and call the potential collaboration “fake news.”

He would, however, note that he did record in Auerbach’s studio a few months ago.

“Fake news!! Although it probably wouldn’t suck, Dan Auerbach and Johnny B & The DC’s have not worked together. But the band did hi-jack and pop the cherry sh*t out of his new studio months back.”

JBS added in the caption of the post:

“Keep holdin’ yer horses..

View this post on Instagram

Of course, the speculation around his album stems from the fact that Simpson himself confirmed that a new album is coming soon, under Johnny Blue Skies yet again, at his Red Rocks show back in September.

“We just wrapped up a nice little … a new record, in the can. And for all the record labels out there acting like record labels that want to f*** around… f*** around. Find out. I just want to make America f*** again. That’s all.”

@whiskeyriff Come on with it. // : bknorskn (IG) #whiskeyriff #sturgillsimpson #johnnyblueskies #redrocks ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff

Before the whole Auerbach confusion popped up this week, there hadn’t been many updates regarding his new project. In fact, the only post we got since the confirmation of the album in September was a single Ghostbusters meme posted on the aforementioned JBS account with the caption, “There is no Stu only JBS.”

That changed today.

Minutes ago, in typical fashion, Simpson uploaded a simple photo of himself in the studio, presumably working on the new album. Of course, there was no caption to accompany it, and the comments were turned off.

View this post on Instagram

So what does this all mean?

Since this is Sturgill Simpson we’re talking about, there’s truly no telling what’s truly up his sleeve. As we know, he has already confirmed that the album is on its way at some point in the near future. If I were a betting man, I would say it’s pretty safe to assume we’ll be getting an official album announcement within the coming months. As for an album date, an overall direction or even a sonic style for the project, anyone’s guess is as good as mine. Lord knows Sturgill likes to keep everyone on their toes from album-to-album, so pretty much anything is on the table for the next chapter in the Johnny Blue Skies lore.

If there’s one thing that’s for certain, judging by his track record, we’re in for yet another stellar project. For now, however, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Before you go, fire up Passage du Desir’s standout track, “Jupiter’s Faerie.”

The post Sturgill Simpson Uploads New Photo From The Studio As New Album Talk Continues To Swirl first appeared on Whiskey Riff.