Pokey LaFarge, the iconoclastic American troubadour who has spent his career gleefully sidestepping trends, is back with a brand-new single that doubles as a mission statement. “The Thing” is out everywhere now via LaFarge’s own Boxer Boy Records, and it’s the opening salvo from his highly anticipated new album, Rent Money, arriving September 11, 2026.

An official music video for “The Thing,” directed by Jacob Butler (LA LOM, Paul Cauthen), premieres today on YouTube. Stream the single here: https://open.spotify.com/search/Pokey%20LaFarge%20The%20Thing

LaFarge calls “The Thing” the foundation of the record. “The first song written for the record and a positive retort to my own ‘F*** Me Up,'” he explains. “A reminder that usually the one who craves to have more and more will usually be the most dissatisfied.” It’s a fitting entry point for an album that swings, twangs, and preaches in equal measure.

A Genre-Defying Statement

Produced by Elliot Bergman (Wild Belle, LA LOM, Natalie Bergman), Rent Money finds the Illinois-born songwriter once again dancing between the seams of 20th century American music. Urban blues, primal rock ‘n’ roll, early jazz, ragtime, first wave reggae, boogie, gospel, and electric country funk all show up to the party — and somehow LaFarge makes it feel like the most natural conversation in the world. Tracks like “My Baby Loves Me” and the outspoken title cut “Rent Money” ride buoyant melodies and plucky rhythms while quietly reckoning with the kitchen-table anxieties of the moment.

“People are always going to tell you what they think you should play, what you should sing about, how you should sound, how you should look, how you should act,” LaFarge says. “And I’ve always just been like, nah. Nope. I’ve just completely gone my own way, and hopefully I’ve been honest and authentic in the process.”

He goes further: “I’m just trying to make music that AI can’t replicate. Things are so homogenized right now. That’s what I’m really, really, really resistant to, especially when it comes to music. I’m not going to do it. I’m not going to conform.”

Rent Money Tracklist

1. The Thing
2. My Baby Loves Me
3. Hambone
4. Rent Money
5. Stick Together
6. Work
7. Stranger
8. Can’t Take it With You
9. Told You No
10. Big Boss Man
11. On and On

Hitting the Road

LaFarge will bring Rent Money to the stage with an ambitious North American headline run featuring both full-band and solo performances. Things kick off July 23 at Codfish Hollow Barnstormers in Maquoketa, IA, and wind through the fall and winter before wrapping December 19 at the historic Lodge Room in Los Angeles. Highlights along the way include stops in St. Louis, Toronto, Washington DC, New York’s Sony Hall, Chicago’s Lincoln Hall, Denver’s Gothic Theatre, and Seattle’s Neptune Theatre, with solo dates sprinkled through New England in late August.

Pre-orders and pre-saves for Rent Money are available now, and full tour details and tickets can be found at pokeylafarge.net/tour. If you’ve been waiting for a record that trusts its own instincts and refuses to play by algorithm rules, this one’s for you — go stream “The Thing” and get ready for September 11.