Audacy host Bru is joined by Adam, Jack, and Ryan of AJR for an Audacy Check In with the brothers' brand new, fifth studio album The Maybe Man arriving today (11/10), and 2024 tour plans to support the release just announced.

AJR's Adam, Jack, and Ryan Met zoomed in to dive into their recording and creative process this time around, and fill us in on what they’ve got planned for their just-announced North American tour kicking off in April 2024 on the East Coast.

The band knew the first single from their new offering, “Yes, I’m a Mess” was the right choice by "just a feeling at this point," Jack Met admits, with the fun they had singing the "Hip-Hop-style" and "old Western" feel of the melody. "It's just unique enough to set things off," he says. "The lyric of the fantasy of blowing up your life, starting over, moving away, and having a completely different life," Jack adds. "is such a relatable concept that I'm sure every single person has thought about before when things get really stressful."

Though each brother has their own strong opinion when it comes to song choices, "We know who to listen to, we've been working together for so long," says Ryan Met regarding internal band dynamics. "I think I'm better at the emotional stuff, so if I say to Jack, 'This kind of melody is gonna make people cry I promise,' he knows to trust me. If Jack says, 'This is more of a hit concept,' I'm gonna listen to him. He has his finger on the pulse in terms of mainstream," Jack adds. "And then Adam gets the final decision... he gives the final thumbs-up."

Fans will find less tinkering and sound design on this new album Ryan says, with a focus more on live instrumentation and the emotional side of the record's production. "We thought, 'Let's make this the most personal album possible, that we could ever write,' because we just had a crazy couple of years writing it, both internally and external weird things that happened to us. So we thought, 'Let's make this the emotional album and see what happens.'"

Be sure to check out the AJR brothers’ newest single, “Yes, I’m a Mess,” above -- from the band’s 2023 album, The Maybe Man, out now, perhaps the group's "most identifiable body of work yet -- coming up with a larger-than-life way to explain the existential crisis of growing up while also processing their father’s passing."

'The Maybe Man,' the title character the band says, "is a big sad superhero who is always questioning who he is. Like a giant out of your favorite fairy tale (remade in kickass 3-D), emotion hangs over his head, so it doesn’t have to hang over yours." Scroll below for the full tracklist.

With the new album officially out now, a new round of live dates are also on the horizon for AJR. "Our life dream to be an Arena band has now come true," AJR said announcing their 2024 dates.

"We plan our tours as we're writing," Jack explains. When in the middle of writing a song, if they know it will make it onto an album, "we immediately start going, 'OK on stage we're gonna do this...' Our concerts are very much not just concerts. We don't just sing the songs, we like to have wild production and magic, and weird tricks and elements on stage," he adds. "I think that the next tour is gonna be definitely our most ambitious and craziest -- and never-before-seen."

Ticket pre-sales for AJR's The Maybe Man 2024 dates start Monday, November 13 with the general on-sale beginning on Friday, November 17. See their full itinerary below, and pick up your tickets right HERE.

Don't miss Bru's full Audacy Check In with AJR above -- and stay tuned for more conversations with your favorite artists on audacy.com/live.

AJR - The Maybe Man tracklist:

1. Maybe Man
2. Touchy Feely Fool
3. Yes I’m A Mess
4. The Dumb Song
5. Inertia
6. Turning Out Pt. iii
7. Hole In The Bottom of My Brain
8. The DJ is Crying For Help
9. I Won’t
10. Steve’s Going To London
11. God Is Really Real
12. 2085

AJR’s The Maybe Man 2024 tour dates:

Tue-Apr-02-24 - Norfolk, VA - Scope Arena
Wed-Apr-03-24 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
Thu-Apr-04-24 - Boston, MA - TD Garden
Sat-Apr-06-24 - Hartford, CT - XL Center
Sun-Apr-07-24 - Baltimore, MD - CFG Bank Arena
Tue-Apr-09-24 - Raleigh, NC - PNC Arena
Wed-Apr-10-24 - Charlotte, NC - Spectrum Center
Fri-Apr-12-24 - Indianapolis, IN - Gainbridge Fieldhouse
Sat-Apr-13-24 - Louisville, KY - KFC Yum! Center
Sun-Apr-14-24 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena
Tue-Apr-16-24 - Des Moines, IA - Wells Fargo Arena
Wed-Apr-17-24 - Minneapolis, MN - Xcel Energy Center
Fri-Apr-19-24 - Kansas City, MO - T-Mobile Center*
Tue-Apr-23-24 - Boise, ID - Idaho Central Arena
Wed-Apr-24-24 - Portland, OR - MODA Center
Fri-Apr-26-24 - Seattle, WA - Climate Pledge Arena
Mon-Apr-29-24 - San Francisco, CA - Chase Center
Wed-May-01-24 - San Diego, CA - Pechanga Arena*
Sat-May-04-24 - Oklahoma City, OK - Paycom Center
Tue-May-07-24 - Austin, TX - Moody Center
Thu-May-09-24 - Tampa, FL - Amalie Arena
Fri-May-10-24 - Orlando, FL - Amway Center
Sun-May-12-24 - Jacksonville, FL - VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena
Tue-Jun-25-24 - Pittsburgh, PA - PPG Paints Arena
Thu-Jun-27-24 - Cleveland, OH - Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse*
Fri-Jun-28-24 - Columbus, OH - Nationwide Arena
Sat-Jun-29-24 - Rosemont, IL - Allstate Arena
Sun-Jun-30-24 - Detroit, MI - Little Caesars Arena
Sun-Jul-04-24 - Milwaukee, WI - American Family Ins. Amp. (Summerfest)*^
Sat-Jul-06-24 - St Louis, MO - Enterprise Center
Tue-Jul-09-24 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center*
Wed-Jul-10-24 - Fort Worth, TX - Dickies Arena
Fri-Jul-12-24 - Phoenix, AZ - Footprint Center
Sun-Jul-14-24 - Los Angeles, CA - Kia Forum
Tue-Jul-16-24 - Salt Lake City, UT - Delta Center*
Thu-Jul-18-24 - Denver, CO - Ball Arena
Sun-Jul-21-24 - Omaha, NE - CHI Health Center
Tue-Jul-23-24 - Cincinnati, OH - Heritage Bank Center
Thu-Jul-25-24 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center*
Fri-Jul-26-24 - New York City, NY - Madison Square Garden
Tue-Jul-30-24 - Atlanta, GA - State Farm Arena
Wed-Jul-31-24 - Nashville, TN - Bridgestone Arena
Fri-Aug-02-24 - Washington DC - Capitol One Arena
* - Verizon Up Presale not available
^ - Non-LiveNation date

Words by Joe Cingrana Interview by Bru