Lorde debuts unreleased song and plays 'Girl, So Confusing' solo at Gov Ball 2026

Lorde debuts unreleased song at Gov Ball 2026, nine years after her last appearance

Lorde returned to the Governor's Ball in New York City on June 5 to headline night one of the 2026 festival, nine years after her last appearance at the same event. The New Zealand artist opened with what appeared to be an unreleased song, singing the lines "Don't look for me now that I'm gone / Don't look for me, I'm gone" from a synth board at the side of the stage. According to Billboard, the set marked the first time she played a revamped festival version of her Ultrasound World Tour show.

A set built across four albums

All four of Lorde's studio albums got representation during the 20-song performance. She moved from Hot 100 No. 1 hit "Royals" into Virgin lead single "What Was That" early in the night, and later touched on Pure Heroine classics like "Buzzcut Season" and "Team," plus Melodrama favorites "Perfect Places," "The Louvre" and "Liability." Solar Power was the least represented, appearing only through "Oceanic Feeling."

Before "Liability," she addressed the crowd directly: "Don't you feel like so much has changed in the last nine years? To me, the world is unrecognizable compared to where we were in 2017. There's a loss of dignity that I feel."

The 'Girl, So Confusing' moment

One of the standout sequences was "Man of the Year" segueing into "Girl, So Confusing," the 2024 Charli xcx remix that brought the two artists back together after a period of personal tension. Charli did not appear in New York, so Lorde performed their duet alone. Billboard noted that Lorde had not played the song on the main Ultrasound trek, making the Gov Ball inclusion a notable addition.

Closing with a message

For the penultimate song, "David," Lorde dedicated the track to "anyone who knows what it's like to be under a boot" as a large banner reading "I don't belong to anyone" was unfurled over the crowd. She then moved to a B-stage deep in the audience to close the night with "Ribs," watching her own fireworks from that vantage point before signing off with "Look after each other. Let's go Knicks."

Lorde is scheduled to continue the festival run with stops at All Things Go in Toronto on June 7, Mad Cool Festival in Spain, NOS Alive in Portugal, and Festival de Nîmes in France in July.