The Rolling Stones and Jimmy Fallon Team Up to Announce the Band’s New Album, ‘Hackney Diamonds’

The ‘Tonight Show’ host interviewed Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood about their first album in 18 years at the Hackney Empire in East London

Ronnie Wood, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger at a launch event for their new album Hackney Diamonds. PHOTO: DANIEL LEAL/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

The Rolling Stones are back.

On Wednesday, the British rockers teamed up with Jimmy Fallon at a press event in London to announce that they’re releasing their first album in 18 years.

Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood took the stage at the Hackney Empire to talk about their album, Hackney Diamonds, with the Tonight Show host.

During the event, which was shared with fans around the world in a YouTube livestream, the band told Fallon, 48, that their new record will be released on Oct. 20 and the first single is called “Angry.”

“We wouldn’t have put out this album out if we didn’t really like it,” said Jagger, 80. “We must say that we are quite pleased with it. We’re not big headed but we hope you like it.”

The trio also opened up about what it was like recording their first album since the death of their drummer Charlie Watts, who joined the band in 1963 and died in August 2021 at the age of 80.

“Ever since Charlie’s gone it’s different, he’s number four,” Richards told Fallon. “He’s missing, he’s up there. Of course he’s missed incredibly.”

Richards, 79, then went on to reveal that it was Watts who actually recommended drummer Steve Jordan as his replacement in the band “if anything happened to him.”

“It was a natural progression,” said Richards of Jordan, who he revealed appears on “most” of the album’s 12 tracks. “It would have been a lot harder without Charlie’s blessing on that.”

Ronnie Wood, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards on the stage at the Hackney Empire.THE ROLLING STONES/YOUTUBE

In 2021, Jordan filled in for Watts during the American leg of The Rolling Stones No Filter Tour while Watts was undergoing a medical procedure.

Watts does feature on two tracks on the record, however: “Mess It Up” and Live By The Sword”, which were recorded in 2019. The band also revealed that former bassist Bill Wyman appears on one of the album’s tracks.

As for collaborations, fans can expect to hear Lady Gaga on “Sweet Sound of Heaven,” a track Fallon described as “unbelievable,” while actress Sydney Sweeney appears in the music video for the record’s first single “Angry”.

Jimmy Fallon and Sydney Sweeney.THE ROLLING STONES/YOUTUBE

Sweeney, 25, was in the audience at the Hackney Empire during the album announcement and told Fallon she “freaked out” when she was asked by the band to star in the video, which also premiered during the launch.

“I freaked out and called my family,” the White Lotus and Euphoria star, who was accompanied by her mom, said. “This is the biggest thing ever.”

She added of “Angry”, “I didn’t know it was going to be the first single but I loved it when I heard it. It’s been stuck in my head.”

Sydney Sweeney in the music video for “Angry”.THE ROLLING STONES/YOUTUBE

PEOPLE spotted Sweeney as she walked back into the Hackney Empire following the announcement. She responded to a fan who said, “Welcome to Hackney,” and told her she looked beautiful, “I love it here. It’s so fun.”

Also in the audience was 76-year-old Wood’s daughter Leah, 44, along with Jagger’s girlfriend Melanie Hamrick, who he has been in a relationship with since 2014.

“What an amazing event!! @hackneyempire 😎,” former ballerina Hamrick wrote alongside a series of photos from the event.

The album artwork for Hackney Diamonds.GEFFEN RECORDS

Meanwhile, Jagger explained the meaning behind “Hackney Diamonds” and revealed it’s an English slang term. “It’s like when you get your windscreen broken on a Saturday night in Hackney,” he said.

Richards added, “We were slinging ideas around we went from Hit and Run and Smash and Grab and somehow we came up with Hackney Diamonds, which is a variation of the both and it’s a London band.”

Other tracks on the album include “Dreamy Skies“ and “Driving Me Too Hard.”