Boy George’s ‘This Is What I Do’ Gets North American Release Date

Christina Lee | January 26, 2014 9:22 am

Boy George has set a March 25 North American release date for This Is What I Do, his first new album of original material in 18 years. The British pop star had first released the record last October in the UK, and to critical praise; The Guardian called it “the comeback of the year.”

“I was listening to things like Beast Of Burden by the [Rolling] Stones, and I had my head most definitely in the Seventies,” Boy George said in a statement. “I was also writing from a happy place. This time, no ex-lovers to get revenge on.” He made this clear last month, when he sang This Is What I Do single “Bigger Than War” on The Paul O’Grady Show, smiling throughout. (See his chat and performance after the jump.)

Featuring legendary Barbadian producer-bassist Dennis “Blackbeard” Bovell, “Bigger Than War” inspires Boy George to sing of love being bigger than The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Elvis Presley. He was inspired by John Lennon‘s “more popular than Jesus” remarks, but he’s since called the song “Sesame Street meets Hair: The Musical.”

(Important side note: Boy George was in talks with Pharrell for What I Do, too. “He had some great ideas, but I just had to follow my instincts and say, I know what kind of record I wanna make,” he said to eMusic.)

As he preps the album’s North American release, Boy George will also be writing for a new Culture Club record, with hopes of touring later this year.

[via Rolling Stone]