Kate Nash Tackles Free Speech, Sexual Abuse & More In Powerful New Single and Music Video “Freedom Of Me”

Tuesday, October 13 - Platinum-selling recording artist Kate Nash releases unflinching and powerful second single & music video " Freedom Of Me " from her recently announced album Cailín , out on January22, 2027 via iconic labelKill Rock Stars. Cailínis available now to pre-order here .

" Freedom Of Me " finds an emboldened Kate playing the tin whistle on this vital, punk track that tackles the flagrant abuse of the term "freedom of speech."

Speaking on the single Nash says: "I've noticed the globalisation of this American approach to, and obsession with, freedom of speech on social media. We think of George Orwell's 1984 when it comes to controlling what we can or cannot say, and it makes us feel like freedom of speech is incredibly important. But is it? I don't really think it is, and I think America is selling a lie. The far right are very concerned with and protective of freedom of speech. I'm obviously someone who speaks out about what she thinks. But in the UK, our speech is governed by national legislation, including the Public Order Act 1986, the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006, the Online Safety Act 2023, and the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021. Rightly so, in my opinion. I would argue that my right to exist free from rape and violence, with access to healthcare without political debate, is far more important than freedom of speech. The same goes for a trans person. My right to protest is fundamental. The song is also a reflection on how the media treats women in rape cases. I wrote it right after watchingDispatches' 'Russell Brand: In Plain Sight' and watching the commentary online. It's quite difficult as a woman to listen to the derogatory and casual things people say, and to watch the way women are dissected: the mistrust, the anger, the jokes, then the boredom. I listened to the radio the next morning and heard people who worked for these massive TV corporations feigning shock. I thought, 'How could you be shocked?' It made me angry that we pretend this isn't normal. I was also listening to the Covid inquiry into the Conservative Party at that time. Men in positions of power who literally run the country saying things like 'dodging stilettos from that cunt' really stuck with me. It's not lost on me that this song is dropping the week Russell Brand is on trial and we are reading about the Cornell 7. The terrible thing about this song is how it will always be relevant."

WATCH HERE

The accompanying video is unflinching. Kate, wearing Rion Hannora, stares down the viewer in a way reminiscent of Marina Abramović's The Artist Is Present, challenging those watching to look away and deny what is happening around them. It was made with Irish filmmaker Tom Beard, with whom she has collaborated on all the videos for the new album, each filmed in Dublin in black-and-white infrared.

Kate adds: "For the video for 'Freedom Of Me' I had this idea of wearing a medieval torture device called the Heretic's Fork. They would be placed between the breastbone and under the chin so you could not sleep or speak. It was supposedly used during the Spanish Inquisition to punish and extract confessions from those accused of heresy, the method was not meant to kill, but to injure & push the victim to the brink of madness, which feels suitable for the subject matter. I worked with Tom Beard again and he had this super simple idea for shooting it lip sync to camera. The first take wasn't really working so we had to make the device more uncomfortable for me to wear, it was genuinely quite freaky as my neck was stretched so far back. It just kinda had to be uncomfortable to make sense. I can barely get the words out because it was obstructing my tongue, again it all feels relevant. It's kind of Frankensteinish and then weird body horror until it zooms out and you see my tits and then it's weirdly sexual. Again all quite fitting."

" Freedom Of Me " follows on from the first single " Spilt Milk " ("to defy the ways women are silenced, Nash pointedly, bluntly gets loud" - New York Times ) which takes a sideways look at reproductive rights that are being eroded for women and minority groups. "Spilt Milk," like a lot of Kate's music, and all of it on her new album, does not shy away from important yet difficult subjects.

Eleven years in the making, Kate Nash's sixth studio album Cailínwas produced by KoOoLkOjAk and recorded on the West Coast of Ireland at Stiúideo Cuan, under the watchful eye of pioneering trad musician Charlie Lennon. Cailín is a raw, raucous album combining traditional Irish sounds with punk energy, nods to hip hop production and Nash's knack for a killer hook.

Nash holds dual nationality, with her mother born in Dublin, and grew up in an Irish community in North Harrow. When visiting her mother's "loving, vibrant Irish family" in Ireland every summer, she found that music infused the fabric of life in a way that felt natural and instinctive. Marrying punk protest songs with a joyful celebration of trad music, Cailín explores themes of family, forgiveness, love, colonialism, inequality, religion, and internalised shame, drawing on the rich texture of Irish folklore and mythology.

The record captures the spontaneous, collaborative spirit of impromptu pub performances, and Nash's clear enthusiasm for live music is evident. From Uilleann pipes to claps and flutes, Nash's Irish heritage shines through. Contributors including Niamh Dunne, Lottie Cullen, Aimée Farrell Courtney andBiird's Lisa Canny play fiddles, flutes, the bodhrán, harp & banjoand Nash herself plays the tin whistle - the first instrument she learnt. "God bless my parents for putting up with it", she says.

On Cailín, Kate takes aim at the rising whirl of malevolence we're seeing around us. In the tradition of Sinéad O'Connor, Shirley Manson and Siouxsie Sioux, she goes where others might shy away. She is an artist for all time.

Nash just announced her North American headline tour, kicking off on November 3 in Somerville, MA and runs throughNovember 16 in San Diego, CA, with additional stops in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles,Toronto and more - full tour dates here .

2026 North American Tour Dates

Tuesday, November 3: Somerville, MA @ Arts at the Armory

Wednesday, November 4: Philadelphia, PA @ The Lounge at World Cafe Live

Friday, November 6: New York, NY @ Joe's Pub

Saturday, November 7: Washington, DC @ The Hamilton Live

Monday, November 9: Toronto, ON @ Paradise Theatre

Tuesday, November 10: Detroit, MI @ The Loving Touch

Wednesday, November 11: Chicago, IL @ Martyrs'

Thursday, November 12: Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room

Saturday, November 14: Los Angeles, CA @ Sid the Cat Auditorium

Sunday, November 15: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Hall

Monday, November 16: San Diego, CA @ Music Box

Full Track List for 'Cailín'

1. I Guess I Never Learnt A Thing
2. Cailín
3. Freedom of Me
4. Famine
5. Spilt Milk
6. Wild Atlantic Way
7. Crying
8. Irish Saints
9. Póg Mo Thóin
10. Lady Gregory
11. Pay Up
12. Christmas Eve

ABOUT KATE NASH:

BRIT Award-winning singer, songwriter, actor and activist Kate Nash has achieved a lot in her twenty year career so far, from finding huge commercial success in 2007's hit "Foundations," reaching number 1 in the UK, touring the world as an independent punk artist, writing & performing in the musical Only Gold in New York and starring in HBO's hit wrestling drama, GLOW. Her powerful trans ally anthem "GERM" was released in 2025, and saw Kate enter the Billboard Charts in the US and make headlines around the world. "GERM" was the latest release on legendary label Kill Rock Stars, following Kate's fifth album 9 Sad Symphonies in 2024. In August 2026 at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Belfast she debuted new material from her forthcoming new record, a raw, raucous album combining traditional Irish sounds with punk energy, hip-hop production and Nash's knack for a killer hook.

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