New Adele Song "Hello" Finally Hits The Airwaves

Let's all pause for a second to appreciate that this moment has been four years in the making. Ever since the massive hit 21, we've been waiting patiently — or not-so-patiently — for Adele's follow-up, 25. And now it has begun. "Hello," the first single off Adele's new album, is here. It's also the first track on the album, and fittingly so: The song opens with the lyrics "Hello, it's me / I was wondering if after all these years / You'd like to meet." And we can hypothesize all we want about who or what the song is really about, but it seems like it's also addressed to us, we who have waited so long for this track.

And though Adele declares in the song that she "ain't done much healing," the song sounds a lot like a healing process. It's something she's attested to in recent interviews — while she wrote in a Facebook post that 21 was a "break-up record," 25 would be a "make-up record." Still, between the lyrics for "Hello" and the titles of subsequent tracks like "I Miss You" and "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" indicate that there are still some unresolved issues. In an unbelievably generous move, Adele has given us not only a new song but also its accompanying video, which you can stream below via YouTube.

The song's accompanying music video was directed by Xavier Dolan, a young Canadian actor and director who helms the new Kathy Bates, Kit Harington, and Jessica Chastain feature, The Death and Life of John F. Donovan. It was filmed just outside Montreal, and though its pastoral imagery belies the proximity to the city, we all know how quickly urban settings turn into the boonies in Canada.

"Hello" is piano-driven and powerful, a lot like a successor to "Someone Like You" in aesthetic, and perhaps also in theme. It's stunning and shows that Adele's still got it after these four long years. It's a perfect snapshot of what's coming — her new album 25 will drop Nov. 20. But it's also just enough to make us salivate, when what we really need is to gobble up the whole album in its entirety. The insight of the track list that came out when the single was announced is tantalizing to say the least, and it seems like the vintage Adele we have come to love. Nov. 20 can't come soon enough.