The All-American Rejects Return with “King Kong,” Announce ‘Sandbox’ Album and 2026 Live Dates
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Editorial Dept.
The All-American Rejects have returned with new music, leading the way with their new single ‘King Kong.’ The track represents the sound and direction on their forthcoming full-length Sandbox album, and signifies a new chapter for the band. With live dates already out, they are also getting ready to see their fans again on stage.
In a press release, The All-American Rejects’ management announced that the Sandbox album is due out on May 26th.
As for the new single “King Kong”, it is about leaving Los Angeles,” frontman Tyson Ritter shares. “I’m from a small town in Oklahoma, and I moved back home. When I got to L.A., I fell into an interesting crowd. It was the quintessential, ‘I’m in L.A. in my twenties and early thirties’, life. It’s a town where everyone is chasing the same industry. There’s no real life about it for me that I experienced until I left. Nick brought out the quality in the song. It was a very natural combination of our efforts.”
Watch the lyrics video for “King Kong”:
Driven by an acoustic guitar that creaks beneath a sunny vocal, ‘King Kong’ builds with a hypnotic pulse and a slippery bassline anchoring the verses before erupting into a biting, undeniable chorus: “You’ll always be around to let me…DOWN.” Sky-scraping electric guitar cuts through the track as teases, “You want to play like Godzilla? You’d better bite down hard!”
‘King Kong’ follows the momentum of previously released singles ‘Easy Come, Easy Go’ and ‘Get This,’ both of which have helped fuel the band’s resurgence across streaming platforms, alternative radio, and viral charts. With Sandbox marking their first album in over a decade, The All-American Rejects are entering a defining new era with renewed creative momentum and a deepening connection with fans across generations.
In addition to the new release, the band announced last month at SXSW that they will be hitting the road once again for a second iteration of their wildly popular House Party Tour. Building on the viral success and fan-driven energy of the first run, the upcoming tour promises even more intimate, unpredictable, and high-energy performances in unique spaces across the country. Additional details and dates will be revealed soon.
Pre-order the Sandbox album:
The All-American Rejects UK live dates 2026
Sat 13th June – Download Festival, Leicestershire. UK
Sun 14th June – Academy, Manchester, UK – SOLD OUT
Tue 16th June – O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, UK – SOLD OUT
About the All-American Rejects
Beginning a renaissance in the 2020s, the band managed to quietly sell out venues across the country on their first proper headline tour in over a decade: 2023’s Wet Hot All-American Summer Tour. They magnetically attracted tens of thousands of fans to see them at free guerilla pop-up concerts at USC, in a cornfield, and outside of a house in Nashville during 2025’s wildly popular “House Party Tour”.
Surveying their influence, Variety put it best, “They won over young listeners with sticky songs about broken hearts and adolescent lust that have resonated across the decades.” For as much as their bulletproof back catalog is attractive to generations of fans, it’s the uncontainable energy of the collective that inspires all listeners to stick around.
Now and forever, The All-American Rejects are proudly “a band of the people,” cutting through the bullshit, silencing the noise, and meeting audiences exactly where they are with music that they need. This spirit surges through their fifth album, first INDEPENDENT release, and first full-length LP in 14 years, Sandbox. It’s the sound of rock’s unsung antiheroes doing what they do best, pulling no punches, and delivering sticky, sharp, and sometimes sweet anthems.
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