The Secret of Us

The Secret of Us is Gracie Abrams' second studio album, released June 21, 2024 via Interscope Records. It debuted at #2 on the US Billboard 200 with 89,000 album-equivalent units, marking her first top-ten album, and reached #1 in the UK, Canada, Australia, and several other countries.^[1]

The album was born from an unusual creative arrangement. Following her run as an opening act on Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, Abrams moved in with her childhood best friend Audrey Hobert, who became the album's primary co-writer. The two spent a roughly ten-month period processing the full emotional landscape of early adult relationships together, spilling details of their lives into a shared creative space that generated the album's characteristic feeling of unguarded, in-the-moment confession.^[2]

"We would spill every detail of our lives in the time that we had," Abrams said. "There was a real urgency to our storytelling, and it very naturally led to us songwriting together."^[3] Recording took place at Aaron Dessner's Long Pond Studio in the Hudson Valley and at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. Dessner co-produced the majority of the album, with Taylor Swift co-producing the closing track "Us."

Produced largely by Aaron Dessner (of The National) with additional production from Julian Bunetta, the record represents a step forward in sonic ambition from her debut. Rolling Stone praised it as a proper showcase of Abrams' songwriting that sharpens earlier tendencies into something more catchy, melodic, and bubbly, while NME called it a move into a more anthemic sound ready to be blasted out in larger venues. It earned a Metacritic score of 80 out of 100 and was ranked #16 on Billboard's 50 Best Albums of 2024 list.^[1]

Thematically, the album explores the messiness of romantic relationships in your early twenties, drawing a complex picture of heartbreak, jealousy, self-awareness, and gradual recovery. Abrams described its emotional register as "wistful, petty, judgmental, nervous and also madly in love."^[3] The album marks a pivot from her debut, Good Riddance (2023), which processed a single long-term breakup from the inside. Here, Abrams looks outward, capturing relationships as dynamic exchanges rather than self-contained wounds.

A deluxe edition released October 18, 2024 added four new tracks including the viral hit "That's So True," which became Abrams' first-ever #1 single in the UK, Canada, Australia, and Ireland, and her first track to surpass one billion Spotify streams. The closing track "Us," a collaboration with Taylor Swift, earned a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards.^[1]