After multiple volumes of work together, Duran Duran and Nile Rogers have collaborated again on 2026 single ‘Free To Love’, a track Duran Duran frontman Simon Le Bon has described as “disco for the 2020’s.” The song and its retro-television music video dropped today, following both acts confirming they were in the studio together last year.
In one corner, we have Duran Duran, one of the biggest British pop and new wave acts of the 80s – in the other, American guitarist and producer Nile Rogers, founding member of Chic, an iconic figure in the history of funk and disco music. While both acts had their heydays in the 20th century, neither have been remotely quiet in the 2000s – Duran Duran have consistently released quality albums, while Rogers has enjoyed immense success with his Chic-revival live shows and chart-conquering singles like those with French house duo Daft Punk.
Duran Duran have worked extensively with Rogers, since both parties met at a Blondie concert in 1982. Rogers said of it “From the moment we met, we loved each other, we were running around the venue like little kids.” Rogers remixed the band’s 1984 song ‘The Reflex’, which shot to the top of the charts in the UK and US, becoming Duran Duran’s first American number one single. Rogers later produced and played guitar on their 1986 album ‘Notorious’, as well as contributing to their 2015 single ‘Pressure Off’, and has described Duran Duran as his “second band”.
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In a news bulletin on their website last June, Duran Duran shared that they had entered London’s famed Abbey Road Studios to record new music with Rogers. Last week, they began teasing the project, revealing the song would be called ‘Free To Love’ and would premiere on BBC Radio 2 at 7:30 this morning, the 23rd of April. The promotional material hinted at the music video being inspired by the BBC’s famous-but-retired chart show Top Of The Pops, a TV programme remembered fondly for the aesthetic style of its 70s and 80s designs. Both the music video and song are certainly a throwback. The video, which is produced by Grammy-winning director Jonas Åkerlund, is a beautiful pastiche of Top Of The Pops, starring DJ Clara Amfo as a presenter, while the song itself captures Duran Duran’s timeless pop sound within a sexy, disco groove driven by Roger’s signature funk guitar playing.
Duran Duran’s members write about the single on their site, with singer Simon Le Bon saying “Free To Love is disco for the 2020s. It’s up-beat and up-tempo; it’s about freedom; it’s about loving the modern world instead of hating it, and that is something we need right now. Be free! Be free to love!” Keyboardist Nick Rhodes mentions their joy at working with Rogers again, adding “Every time we plug in and play with Nile, the electricity he generates could light up a whole city. We share a common belief that music is a force for good and something that brings positive energy into the world. ‘Free To Love’ is our call to all the people out there who want peace, hope and understanding to prevail.” Their post also includes a quote from Nile Rogers, who says “True love is free and unconditional. My love for Duran Duran and what our music together has always been about, is the love we share for our song’s deepest meanings. Whatever chaos is going on outside, inside the studio we’re free to love our peace.”
‘Free To Love’ is out now on streaming platforms, ahead of Duran Duran’s blockbuster BST Hyde Park show on the 5th of July. Scissor Sisters have been announced as special guests on the bill, with further acts to be announced. Nile Rogers is playing in the UK this June and August, with full dates and tickets on his website.
