Vocalist Tracye Eileen to Release New Album “Forever Girl” on Nov. 13th, 2026

Tracye Eileen: Forever Girl

Released: 13th November 2026

Chicago born and raised, Paris-based vocalist and songwriter Tracye Eileen is proud to present her forthcoming album Forever Girl. This vibrant new body of work is Tracye Eileen’s fifth studio album and her first fully developed project from her relatively new base in Paris, having been a highly respected fixture on the Chicago music scene. Blending Jazz/Soul R&B with French Afro/Caribbean grooves, Forever Girl perfectly reflects the excitement and vibrancy of Tracye’s high-energy, groove-driven live show. The album retains all of the deep and soulful vibes of Tracye Eileen’s Chicago roots, while also projecting a new European ambience, based around her experience of residing within the city of light.

The making of Forever Girl grew out of a close collaboration between Tracye, guitarist and musical director Ralph Lavital, and producer Andrew Read. The repertoire itself was shaped by Tracye and producer Andrew Read, who set the direction for the album’s songwriting well before recording began. Having worked with Ola Onabulé on a number of his earlier albums, Andrew knew there were standout songs in his back catalogue worth revisiting, so Tracye and Ralph selected four of them to reimagine for this project, alongside a selection of songs from her own back catalogue. This built on a shift toward Afro-Soul that Tracye was already exploring, and one she found herself surrounded by after settling in Paris. Ralph Lavital and Tracye then reworked all of these songs from the ground up, giving each one a completely new arrangement and identity, while Ola contributed to the vocal arrangements together with Tracye and Andrew as part of the production process. Working between Paris and the Netherlands, they set out to create an album that naturally connects Tracye’s Jazz/Soul R&B roots with an African perspective. Ralph selected a core French Afro/Caribbean rhythm section from his own Yusan Band: pianist Kevin Jubert, bassist Gwen Ladeux, and drummer Mathieu Edouard, giving the project a firm grounding in the current Paris scene. German Saxophonist Nora Kamm and American trumpeter/arranger Philip Lassiter add further colour to the sound, linking European jazz and American funk/soul tradition.

Musically, Forever Girl sits where Jazz/Soul & R&B intersects with a French Afro/Caribbean influenced touch as the red line running through the album. American Soul and R&B is the musical foundation, rooted in that songwriting tradition. That rhythmic and tonal touch runs through the whole record, even as individual songs lean towards other genres. Across all of this, the same core sound and rhythmic threads keep the album feeling like one coherent whole. At the centre of the album is the title track, “Forever Girl”. Tracye sees it as a haunting, elegant declaration of love as something enduring—unshaken by time, distance, or change. The song speaks to the duality of love for another person, but also the love for oneself: the inner steadiness that remains when life circumstances, geography, and relationships are in motion. That idea of a “forever girl” runs through the record. It reflects a woman who has lived, changed cities and careers, and yet still recognises herself. The songs explore devotion, choice, and spiritual certainty in several forms—romantic, familial, and personal—always from the standpoint of someone who chooses love deliberately, rather than treating it as something naïve or accidental. Forever Girl is an expertly crafted recording that showcases the talent of a unique musician, creating pioneering art that is sincere in mind, body and spirit! https://www.tracyeeileen.com

Photo Credit: Marc de Boisrolin

Dynamic Agency