A quick glance at the credits for the Black Keys‘ new Ohio Players album reveals a number of A-list collaborators — including, Juicy J, Noel Gallagher, Beck and Greg Kurstin — marking a departure from the relatively insular creative process they employed on past records such as 2019’s chart-topping Let’s Rock.
In a new interview with Billboard News, the Grammy-winning duo breaks down how their approach to collaborations has evolved over the years.
“It took us 20 years to be able to even collaborate this deeply with people,” says Dan Auerbach. “We’re comfortable now being in the studio and just solely being supportive. It feels kind of amazing to be able to do this, it almost feels like anything’s possible. We can navigate differently than we used to. We really had fun and it didn’t really feel like we sacrificed who we were when we got into the studio with these people, our footprint was still firmly planted.”
The Black Keys launched three singles in the lead-up to the full release of Ohio Players on April 5. Lead single “Beautiful People (Stay High),” which features writing contributions from Grammy-winning rock savant Beck, became their seventh chart-topper on Alternative Airplay, spending two weeks atop the ranking. Second single “I Forgot to Be Your Lover,” a cover of William Bell‘s 1968 classic, arrived on Feb. 9, and third single “This Is Nowhere” — also co-written with Beck — hit DSPs on March 8.
In addition, to co-writing “Beautiful People” and “This Is Nowhere,” Beck also lends his vocals to “Paper Crown,” a track on the album’s back half that also features Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper Juicy J. Moreover, Memphis rapper Lil Noid appears on “Candy and Her Friends,” English singer-songwriter Noel Gallagher helped co-write “On the Game” and Grammy-winning cross-genre producer Greg Kurstin lent his talents to album closer “Every Time You Leave.”
“When you’re working with people who have different perspectives on melody, like Noel or Beck, to just be able to thread the line between the songs — we do that with some overdubs and the way Dan’s voice is working and harmony-building — that’s a fun problem to have,” notes Patrick Carney.
Auerbach, who released Electrophonic Chronic in 2023 as a part of garage rock band The Arcs, also explained how moving to Nashville helped collaborating become a more approachable practice for him.
“I moved to Nashville [14] years ago, Pat shortly after,” Auerbach says. “The recording scene is so collaborative and I’ve met so many people, it definitely opened my mind to collaboration. Pat and I slowly dipped our toes in there on the last album, calling in some people that were from Nashville, that I knew from doing other records, it slowly seeped in.”
Ohio Players debuted and peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard 200 (chart dated April 20), marking the duo’s 13th entry on the ranking. Their new LP also reached No. 7 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums, becoming their eighth consecutive studio album to reach the top 10 on that chart.
In addition to breaking down the collaborations on Ohio Players, the Black Keys also discuss their longevity in the industry, their pre-album release rituals and their respective bowling skills.
Watch the full Billboard News interview above.
