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Music fans guessing as record stores are being shipped “mystery vinyl” from a “major artist” with pitched-down vocals

Variety of new and used vinyl albums in a store

A “mystery vinyl” with pitched-down vocals has arrived in record stores, and fans are trying to guess which artist is teasing a new release.

Shops in the UK and US, including Rough Trade, recently got a new shipment of “mystery” records, which are pressed on vinyl and contain no artist name or title. The cover is a plain white sleeve, and there is nothing printed on the record itself revealing which artist it belongs to.

The boxes of vinyl have been free for customers to take, and some have shared that employees have described it as a sneak preview of a new song from “a major artist” which is set to be released properly soon.

For those who took the record home and played it, it was immediately clear that song is a piano-based ballad, with the vocals pitched-down to disguise the singer’s voice.

“Don’t give up on us,” the male vocalist sings, building up to the powerful, lovelorn chorus where they seem to repeat the phrase “Stay low”.

@simplycc04

Internet detectives…this is your time to shine! #mystery #roughtrade #musictok #vinyl #internetmystery

♬ original sound – ℬ

People online have been quick to begin guessing which artist might be behind the release, and based on the vocal inflections and romantic lyrics, many are convinced that the song is an upcoming single from Lewis Capaldi.

“It’s think it’s Lewis, I’ve pitched it up with a software and that sounds like his accent,” one person commented on a TikTok post. “AND on another video of this vinyl I heard that in the lyrics he says something like ‘This ain’t love’… that is exactly the name of an unreleased song that you can find listed on ACE Repertory. I’m 99 per cent sure.”

“Lewis Capaldi? it sounds like his vocals but also giving James Arthur, hmmmm,” someone speculated on Twitter/X, before someone else said that they were “sure” that it was the Scottish pop star. “I’ve also seen him live several times and his voice stood out straight away when I heard this.”

“It’s gotta [be] Lewis Capaldi, he did this with his album ‘Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent’, and his comeback single ‘Forget Me’. It’s gotta be him,” someone else agreed, while another shared: It’s Lewis Capaldi. I got one earlier. If you speed it up, it’s clearly him.”

@leeleenyc_

Who do you guys think it is?! This was so fun and cool! @Rough Trade US @roughtradeofficial #fyp #nyc #newmusic #vinyl #recordplayer

♬ original sound – Storage

Another name widely speculated to be behind the mysterious single is James Arthur, and other artists who have been thrown into the mix include The 1975, Bon Iver and Niall Horan.

Someone on TikTok also suggested that it could be Paul McCartney behind the release – both as he is set to release a new album soon and the white cover could be a nod to The Beatles’ 1968 self-titled ‘White’ album. However, this seems unlikely after hearing the vocal style and songwriting approach on the mystery record.

Check out more fan speculation below.

If it does turn out to be a new single from Capaldi, it will likely arrive before the pop star makes two huge appearances this summer at BST Hyde Park and Roundhay Festival 2026.

The singer returned in November last year with an EP, ‘Survive’, marking his first new music since his 2023 album ‘Broken By Desire to Be Heavenly Sent‘.

That EP followed his surprise set on the Pyramid Stage at this year’s Glastonbury, which was a particularly poignant slot as his break from performing live started after he was forced to cut his set on the same stage in 2023 short due to struggling with tics caused by Tourette’s.

Since making his comeback, Capaldi has made a surprise appearance at a charity event alongside Matty Healy, made a cameo in Taylor Swift’s ‘Opalite’ music video, and hinted at new music on the way.

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