Robbie Williams surprises fans by releasing 'BRITPOP' album early
It was originally due to be released in February
Last updated 11 hours ago
Following the success of his Number 1 album 'Better Man' at the end of 2024, pop superstar Robbie Williams announced his new studio album titled 'BRITPOP' back in May 2025. The album was originally set for an October release, but in September it was announced it would now be delayed until February 2026, however the singer has now surprised fans by releasing it on 16th January!
The album will be supported by four intimate gigs across the country taking place in February. Let's take a look at the album and what we can expect from it.
When is it out?
'BRITPOP' was originally due to be released on 10th October 2025, but then delayed until 6th February 2026. However, he decided to release it as a surprise drop on 16th January, revealing a video where can be seen telling fans: "It's been ages... Now, now, please deploy, let's go!".
Back in October, a message from Robbie's team explained the delay was: 'Due to scheduling changes Britpop', going on to say: '(It) will now be released on February 6, 2026. Your order will be dispatched in line with the new release date. Apologies for any inconvenience caused, we promise it will be worth the wait.'
How did he originally announce it?
Robbie announced the album back in May 2025, when he also revealed the first song from the album was 'Rocket' with Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi on guitar.
He wrote on social media: ‘BRITPOP’ - the brand new album from Robbie Williams will be released this autumn and is available for pre-order now from the Official Store.
'I set out to create the album that I wanted to write and release after I left Take That in 1995. It was the peak of Britpop and a golden age for British Music. I’ve worked with some of my heroes on this album; it’s raw, there are more guitars and it’s an album that’s even more upbeat and anthemic than usual.
'There’s some ‘Brit’ in there and there’s certainly some ‘pop’ too – I’m immensely proud of this as a body of work and I’m excited for fans to hear this album. I also can’t wait to perform a song or two from it on my upcoming ‘BRITPOP’ tour, which
'I’m opening in the UK, naturally. RW ❤️
'The first song to be released from ‘BRITPOP’ is ‘Rocket’ which features Black Sabbath legend Tony Iommi on guitar. Listen now at the link in bio.'
What songs has he already released from the album?
Alongside the album announcement on Wednesday 21st May, Robbie delighted fans by also announcing a brand new single called 'Rocket', which features Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi on guitar and gives fans a first taste of his hugely-anticipated new era.
Since then he has released 'Desire' with Laura Pausini which is the official FIFA anthem, as well as 'Spies', 'Human' and 'Pretty Face'.
What is the name of Robbie's new album?
Robbie's new studio album is called 'BRITPOP'.
What is the tracklist?
The album features songs with Gary Barlow, Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Supergrass frontman Gaz Coombes.
The singer revealed in 2025 that his album would feature a song with former Take That bandmate Gary Barlow. The song called 'Morrissey' was written about The Smiths frontman.
'BRITPOP' is the first album since 2016's release ‘The Heavy Entertainment Show', that is made up solely of new material.
- 'Rocket'
- 'Spies'
- 'Pretty Face'
- 'Bite Your Tongue'
- 'Cocky'
- 'All My Life'
- 'Human'
- 'Morrissey'
- 'You'
- 'It’s OK Until The Drugs Stop Working'
- 'Pocket Rocket'
Is Robbie going on tour?
Robbie's tour of the UK finished in 2025, however he has now announced several intimate gigs in support of his album. The gigs will take place in Glasgow, Liverpool, Wolverhampton and London.
The gigs will feature his album in full as well as his debut, 90s album 'Life Thru a Lens', which featured hits such as 'Angels', 'Let Me Entertain You' and 'Old Before I Die'.
Take a look through Robbie Williams' best moments over the years:
1989: Career beginnings with Take That
Starting with a line-up of five young men, Take That consisted of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Mark Owen, Jason Orange and Robbie Williams, with the original (short-lived) name of Kick It. Thankfully they changed their name and after a few unsuccessful songs in the early 90s Take That's breakthrough hit 'It Only Takes A Minute' was released. The song was a cover of a 1975 song by Taveres and reached Number 7 in the charts.
1992: Take That in their prime
In 1992, Take That had hits with 'A Million Love Songs' and 'Could It Be Magic'. The boys' follow-up single 'Could It Be Magic' quickly propelled them to super-stardom with a string of Number 1s not far away. Take That's success continued in 1993 with 'Pray', 'Relight My Fire' (featuring Lulu) and 'Babe'.
1994: BRITs performance
The band's continued to dominate the charts - and everyone's hearts - in 1994 with 'Everything Changes' and 'Sure'. Here they are performing at The BRIT Awards 1994.
1995: Robbie left Take That
However, in July 1995 after countless hits, fans heard the devastating news; Robbie Williams would be leaving the band following friction with other band members. Robbie later admitted in a TV documentary in 2005 that he did some "stupid stuff" after parting ways with the band over 20 years ago, but said he didn't regret it because he was young. In 1997, Robbie released his first album 'Life Thru a Lens'. The album included the single, 'Angels' which is still his best-selling single of all time.
2000: 'Rock DJ' and BRIT Award win
At the start of the millennium, Robbie released his third solo album, 'Sing When You're Winning'. The album included the single 'Rock DJ' which had a rather controversial music video, involving Robbie trying to impress a group of women by stripping down but, when the clothes didn't work he starts removing his skin and muscle until he's just a dancing skeleton. Many TV networks edited the video because of this.
However, the single was still a great success with it being the UK's fourth best-selling single of 2000. The song also went on to win Best British Single and Best Music Video of the Year at the BRIT Awards as well as Best Special Effects at the VMAs.
2001: Swing album
Having grown up loving the music of Frank Sinatra, Robbie went in a new musical direction in 2001 when he released the album 'Swing When You're Winning'. With the title being a pun on his previous album, Robbie described the record as "the big band album he had always dreamed of making". The album includes guest performances from Rupert Everett, Nicole Kidman, Jon Lovitz and Jane Horrocks as well as Frank Sinatra posthumously duetting with Robbie. Despite not being his usual style, the album was still a success and made it to Number 1 on the UK charts.
2002: EMI deal
In 2002, Robbie signed a whopping £80 million deal with EMI which was the biggest music deal for a British artist - a record only broken in 2016 by Adele. The deal included a promise from EMI that they'd help him break into the United States. While his next album, 'Escapology', did perform better internationally than his previous albums, it still didn't perform as well as he'd hoped in the US.
2005: Move to LA
From the mid noughties, Robbie Williams started calling Los Angeles home, early on he started his own football club called Los Angeles Vale F.C. The club played in the LA premiere league in Santa Monica. The team is named after his hometown club, Stoke-on-Trent's Port Vale F.C.
2006: The 'Close Encounters' Tour
In 2006, Robbie embarked on his 'Close Encounters' Tour where he performed over 50 shows across the globe. The tour got him into the Guinness Book of World Records after he sold a whopping 1.6 million tickets in a single day!
2009: 'Reality Killed The Video Star'
Robbie was back with his eighth studio album, 'Reality Killed the Video Star', including the singles 'Bodies', 'You Know Me' and 'Morning Sun'. While the album still managed to sell over a million copies in Europe, it wasn't enough to land the top spot on the UK album charts, coming second place to JLS' debut album.
2010: Take That reunion
In a move that shocked fans up and down the country, Robbie Williams made an unexpected return to the Take That in 2010, joining forces with Gary Barlow - the first time since 1995 - with the song 'Eight Letters' appearing on later albums by both Take That and Robbie - 'Progress' and 'Take the Crown'.
Then, later that year, the news that all Take That fans had been waiting for was confirmed: the original line-up would be reforming for the wildly successful album, 'Progress' and its live tour. Their lead single 'The Flood' was released and peaked at Number 2 featuring both Gary and Robbie as lead vocals. He left the group once more in late 2011.
2012: Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee
Robbie took part in the celebration of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee, celebrating her 60 years on the throne. Robbie was the opening act of a concert held in the gardens of Buckingham Palace to commemorate the anniversary.
2013: 'Swings Both Ways'
Robbie returned to the world of swing with his second album in the genre, 'Swings Both Ways'. The album included some original songs written by Robbie, his long-time collaborator Guy Chambers and Chris Heath, as well as some covers of some classics including The Jungle Book's 'I Wan'na Be Like You' and The Wizard of Oz's 'If I Only Had a Brain'. The album includes duets with Olly Murs, Michael Bublé, and Kelly Clarkson.
2018: FIFA opening ceremony performance
In the summer of 2018, Robbie performed at the opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup that took place in Moscow, Russia. During the performance he sang some of his greatest hits that included 'Let Me Entertain You' and 'Angels'.
2018: The X Factor judging panel
Later on in 2018, it was announced that Robbie would be joining the judging panel of the 15th series of The X Factor on ITV. Robbie was one of three new judges on the panel joining Simon Cowell - the other two were his wife, Ayda Field, and former One Direction member Louis Tomlinson.
2019: The Boy In The Dress
Robbie co-wrote the music for the musical adaption of David Walliams' The Boy in the Dress along with Guy Chambers. The musical was produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company and premiered in Stratford-Upon-Avon in late 2019. The show was due to transfer to the Savoy Theatre in London's West End in Autumn 2020, but the Coronavirus pandemic has put those plans on hold.
2019: 'The Christmas Present'
Robbie released his first ever Christmas album in November 2019 called 'The Christmas Present'. The album had some original songs along with some festive classics such as 'Winter Wonderland' and 'The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)'. The album features guest performers including Helene Fischer, Rod Stewart, and Tyson Fury. The album made it to Number 1 in the UK charts during its second week and knocked Robbie up to joint-second place with Elvis Presley for amount of Number 1 albums in the UK.
2020: Lockdown Take That reunion
Robbie reunited with Take That for a very special performance in May 2020 during the lockdown amid the global pandemic of Coronavirus, performing a 40-minute virtual set.
2022: 'XXV' album and tour
Robbie Williams announced a new album and tour called 'XXV', which was released on 9th September 2022 and includes all of Robbie's biggest hits, re-recorded with a full orchestra.
2023: Netflix documentary released
A documentary about Robbie Williams was released on Netflix in 2023. It follows the singer on his ups and downs in both his personal and professional life, and features 25 years' worth of never-before-seen footage.
2024: BST Hyde Park performance
Robbie took to the stage at BST Hyde Park in July 2024 to perform some of his greatest hits, and even a few covers - including 'Parklife' by Blur, for which he brought out Danny Dyer to perform Phil Daniels' verses. It was sensational!
2025: Robbie gets his 15th Number 1 solo album
In January 2025, Robbie Williams got his 15th Number 1 album as a solo artist, his 20th overall including his time with Take That. By achieving this milestone with the 'Better Man' soundtrack, Robbie equalled a record previously held by The Beatles for the most Number 1 albums in the UK.
2025: Robbie wins prestigious Music Icon Award at The Ivors
In May 2025, Robbie picked up the prestigious PRS for Music Icon Award at The Ivors in recognition of a songwriting career which they say 'has touched millions and defined a generation'. Collecting his award at the event in London on Thursday 22nd May, Robbie launched into verse, showing off the iconic lyric-writing skills we've come to know him for.
2025: Robbie goes on 2025 UK tour
After announcing the tour in 2024, Robbie went on his 2025 UK tour throughout May and June, performing in the likes of Edinburgh, Manchester, London and Bath with songs from his biopic, Better Man, as well as old hits and new music.
2026: The 'Long 90's Tour'
Robbie will be embarking on the 'Long 90's Tour' in February 2026, performing in Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Wolverhampton. Rob will take to the stage to delight audiences with not only his upcoming album, 'BRITPOP', but also his debut record - 'Life Thru A Lens', which features many of his biggest hits such as 'Old Before I Die', 'Angels' and 'Let Me Entertain You'.
2026: Robbie releases new album 'BRITPOP'
In May 2025, Robbie delighted fans by announcing his new album 'BRITPOP'. He said of the album: "I set out to create the album that I wanted to write and release after I left Take That in 1995. It was the peak of Britpop and a golden age for British Music. I've worked with some of my heroes on this album; it's raw, there are more guitars and it's an album that's even more upbeat and anthemic than usual. There's some 'Brit' in there and there's certainly some 'pop' too - I'm immensely proud of this as a body of work and I'm excited for fans to hear this album. I also can't wait to perform a song or two from it on my upcoming 'BRITPOP' tour, which I'm opening in the UK, naturally."
The album's release date was moved from originally being Autumn 2025 to February 2026 - before Robbie surprise-released it on Friday 16th January 2026! Fans scrambled to buy the new record - and it remains to be seen if he'll break The Beatles' record.
Now read:
Robbie Williams: A complete career timeline through the years
Everything you need to know about Robbie Williams' 'Better Man' soundtrack
Robbie Williams announces 'Long 90's' UK tour for 2026