Thundercat Returns with Distracted

Thundercat released Distracted on April 3, six years after his Grammy-winning It Is What It Is. His long-awaited follow-up turns his eclectic brand of leftfield funk and jazz fusion on the absurdity of the attention economy and its permeation throughout modern life.

It's packed with collaborations from Willow, Remi Wolf, A$AP Rocky, Lil Yachty, Channel Tres, Tame Impala, and the late Mac Miller, with executive producer Greg Kurstin (Adele, Paul McCartney, Foo Fighters) helping shape the project. The bassist has been doing a lot of deep thinking about modern distraction, describing our current moment as feeling like the Nasty Patty from SpongeBob—everything reduced to gray area.

The album has received positive reviews and topped the UK R&B Albums chart. Thundercat was announced as a performer at the 2026 Newport Jazz Festival, and he recently performed on The Tonight Show.