Fresh off the release of “Who Will You Follow,” Evanescence have revealed plans for their upcoming album, 'Sanctuary,' due out June 5. Amy Lee joined Abe Kanan for an Audacy Check In to talk touring, the inspiration for the album, and what it means to balance motherhood and music.

The album has been a work in progress for "3 years solid," with Amy sharing that the new song, "Who Will You Follow," was the second-to-last track written for the project. “I felt very fueled, by the state of the world creatively,” she says of the song and album. “I feel like I have a ton to get off my chest. This music is a sanctuary for me.".

"I've been kind of underground for the beginning of this year. I just sort of had to disappear and finish all the lyrics, which seemed more important than ever, and finally pulled my head up and we just finished the album.”.

Lee views the music, and the new album 'Sanctuary,' as a personal haven and a space for self-expression without censorship. She also notes that she is now less "precious and insecure" about collaboration than earlier in her career, working with 3 producers on the new project. “It's just like, here it is,” says Amy. “I'm not afraid of rejection. I want to open my heart to hear what somebody else has to say.”.

“I feel like, when we were making our first music, when we were making our first album, I was just shy. It was hard to share with anybody and also, you know, really trying to prove myself in those first couple of albums, especially like as a writer. Everybody knows I'm a singer, but like let me do my s*** all myself, a lot of the time, when it just doesn't have to be that way.” .

“Music is from the universe, like all these things that we share, this is spiritual, this is deeper than one person's journey, but at the same time it's all very, very specifically personal to me in my life.”.

For more from Amy Lee of Evanescence, check out the full conversation above.

Evanescence have offered up the first official sample of their upcoming album, 'Sanctuary,' and Amy Lee stopped by our Los Angeles studios to unpack their latest effort during an Audacy Check In with Kevin Ryder.

Set to arrive on June 5, 'Sanctuary' finds the band in a “huge creative burst,” thanks in part to collaboration with producers Nick Raskulinecz, Zakk Cervini, and Jordan Fish. “We've worked with some incredible people this time around, Three producers actually,” Amy explains. “So as a team, being in there with them and creating these songs, and we just had a huge creative burst. It has been, just a, I don't know, like a new energy. It's hard to really explain, but it feels really special.”

It starts now with the new single, “Who Will You Follow,” which Amy reveals is about breaking through the lies to what’s real. “I feel like we're just inundated with so much information now, with people that have a stake in what we believe,” Lee says. “It feels like truth is for sale. So this for me is about breaking through that into the real world and, the album, you know, it's called ‘Sanctuary,’ it's like that. It's a sanctuary, not an escape from this chaotic, surreal, violent time, but escape from the lies, saying that we're not living in that crazy time.”

“It is a sanctuary of truth and community,” she adds. “Moving from the song to album, I just feel like this music is a sanctuary for me. It has been. It is every time, you know, last time we made an album, it was the pandemic hitting all around us at the same time and kind of wondering what's next and how do we go on tour and will things ever be normal again. I think when we're in these big, in my life, powerful and painful and difficult moments, and also in the outside world going through these wild moments where we feel like we don't have control and things are slipping through our fingers, the music is a place for me to be able to say anything. No censorship, no holding back. Nobody's telling me I can't, anything. It's our world, and it just feels so beautiful also to give somebody else something that gives them joy.”

For much more from Amy Lee of Evanescence, check out the full conversation above.

Just days after the release of their triumphant return to music, 'ARIRANG,' the members of BTS gathered inside the Rockstar Suite at Hard Rock Hotel New York to talk with Bru about the emotions surrounding their return, the lessons they learned while they were away, the making of their chart-topping album, and so much more.

Starting with the lead single, “SWIM,” BTS unpacked their now-number one album, 'ARIRANG,' saying that the track is one they connected with the most when recording in the states. “This was the track we connected with the most,” shares Jimin, “which is why we chose it as our lead single.

“What personally resonated with me was the idea that BTS is a team with room for continuous growth, one that keeps moving forward toward better music That message really stuck with me and felt just right for the lead single.”

“We felt like we have to come back with a big project,” RM reveals, when asked why the group went all out with a full album for their return. “With fresh new songs.”

Even when away from the spotlight, BTS would connect in the group chat about what the next chapter might look like, sending each other links of inspiration and ideas, according to V. The result is an album packed with collaboration and purpose, with each member quick to shout out a different track that they were most proud of.

There were a lot of emotions for both fans and the members of BTS during their time away, but the overwhelming lead of it all was imagining how it would feel to reunite with each other. “I think the first emotion or the first thought that came to mind was just curiosity about what it would be like when we get back together, and what kind of music would we do as a group?” shares j-hope. “So we just wanted to get back together as soon as possible and just get on to it.”

There were also moments of missing out along the way, wondering what would be if they were together.

“So I was the first one who got discharged from the group,” says Jin. “I went to the Paris Olympics for the torch relay. That's when Jimin's album was released when he was in the military, and I felt like it would've been really nice if Jimin got out to enjoy this and celebrate this together.”

It’s a rarity that a group the magnitude of BTS gets to experiment with solo projects as much as the members have, each bringing something new to the mix when it was time to come back. “I felt a lot of that while working on this album,” Jung Kook says. “Like j-hope mentioned earlier, that was why I have been looking forward to working together again as a group, because we couldn't be there to witness each other growing through all those experiences and time. So I was very much looking forward to this song session and then this project.”

“We just want to have a good time with the ARMY and the people that love us and listen to us,” RM reveals about the group’s legacy, something he says they have collectively discussed quite a bit.

“We just want to claim ourselves again, we started rooted in Korea, and now we're here.We're in New York, we're in Europe, we're everywhere, but still, we just wanna make it clear, we all born in Korea, started everything in Korea. We just wanted our new album and our sound from now on could be universal and eternal like the Korean traditional song.”

The group also took time to talk about what’s left on their bucket list, their Netflix special, and the role that fashion plays in the group. “Honestly, back when we first debuted, I don't think I had much room to think about things like matching the outfits to the music,” smiles j-hope. “But now it just goes shoulder to shoulder. Fashion inspires our music and I definitely think that fashion is a way to express our music in a better way.”

For much more from BTS, check out the full conversation above.