Idina Menzel’s next album appears to be on the horizon! Idina announced that MOVE, her first single, will be released on May 12! She’s posted a few teasers on her social media pages. Here are links to teasers one, two, and three! Make sure you pre-save/pre-add MOVE here!

Idina also teased a second song, Royalty, on her TikTok. They sound great! I’m so excited for a new musical era! As a side note, she’s been pretty active on TikTok, so make sure you follow her.

Of course, a new album makes us all think about a new tour! A couple of shows at Pride events have been announced so far:

June 2 – WeHo Pride at West Hollywood Park. This event is FREE but registration is required because capacity is limited. Reserve tickets here.

June 16 – Providence, RI. Details TBA.

Make sure you’re following me on Twitter & Instagram because I’ll be updating the dates there as they pop up.

Mr. Schu Reads shared the adorable cover of Cara Mentzel and Idina Menzel’s second children’s book, Proud Mouse! The book is illustrated by Jaclyn Sinquett, who also illustrated Loud Mouse. Here’s the book description:

Cara Lee is a proud mouse. She is proud of her big sister Dee. She is proud of her specially decorated journal. And now she’s proud to become what she’s always wanted to be: a student. But her first day of school is different than she imagined. Everyone keeps comparing her to Dee. But who is Cara Lee? When you have a big sister with such a LOUD talent, how can you find room to shine in your own way?

Cara further elaborated on the plot in an interview with Mr. Schu Reads, saying “Proud Mouse tells the story of Cara Lee, a little sister who is very proud of Dee, her talented, big, and loud sister. So proud, in fact, she wishes she had bigger paws to clap with. On Cara Lee’s first day of school, it seems everyone wants to know if she is just like Dee, and Cara Lee doesn’t know. But she is a mouse full of curiosity and when it’s suggested that sometimes it can be easier to see yourself clearly if you stand alone, Cara Lee heads out into the forest to do just that.”

Idina also commented, saying “[Music is] my go-to form of self-expression, both melodically and lyrically. Now, as a children’s book author, music is part of my writing voice. The refrains in Loud Mouse and Proud Mouse can help children connect with our characters and, as my sister, teacher and co-author of the books would say, music helps early readers access and engage with print.”

PROUD MOUSE will be released September 12 but is available for pre-order now!