Kehlani unveiled the collaborators on her self-titled album on Monday, April 20, pairing the reveal with a cocktail-friendly trailer made with Spotify. The lineup is stacked with Missy Elliott, Cardi B, Usher, Brandy, Clipse, Lil Wayne, Big Sean, Leon Thomas, Lil Jon and T-Pain.
Missy Elliott already appeared on Kehlani’s “Back and Forth,” while the singer had previously teased Usher, Clipse and Brandy as features on the project. The release lands later this week, with the album set to arrive on Friday, April 24.
The self-titled record will be Kehlani’s fifth album, following Crash, which arrived in 2024 and debuted at No. 25 on the Billboard 200. The timing also puts the album release just before Kehlani is honored with Billboard’s Women In Music Impact award later that month.
Several of the pairings reach back into Kehlani’s catalog and career history. She previously appeared with Lil Wayne on Khalid’s “Location” remix, joined T-Pain on 2021’s “I Like Dat,” and linked with Leon Thomas on “Dirt on My Shoes,” giving the new roll call a sense of built-in chemistry rather than a random guest list.
Kehlani has described the project as a marker of where she is now. “I’m just growing up. Something happens when you turn 30 — everything’s making sense,” she said, adding that her motherhood is going well and that her family life, friendships and inner world are finally clicking. She also said she wants to perform the album at Carnegie Hall with an orchestra, and hopes some of the songs make it into movies while helping shift the conversation around the kind of music “Folded” represents. For Kehlani, the album is not just a release date on the calendar. It is the clearest sign yet that she is aiming for a bigger stage, and for songs with a life beyond the week they come out.