It’s been decades since Queen released a brand-new original song, but in a new interview with U.K. magazine Mojo, guitarist Brian May doesn’t rule out the possibility of the band creating more music.
“I think it could happen,” May said when he was asked whether he could imagine writing a new Queen tune. “Both [drummer] Roger [Taylor] and I are constantly writing and coming up with ideas and doing things in our studios.”
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Added Brian, “I could have the beginnings of a Queen song right there in front of me now. It’s just whether the idea reaches maturity or not. It’s whether that seed can grow.”
The last official original Queen single was “No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young),” which was recorded in 1997 by the band’s three surviving original members—May, Taylor, and bassist John Deacon. The song was written by May, who shared lead vocals on the track with Taylor. The song also was released in ’97, six years after Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury died of AIDS.
Deacon retired from music soon after, but May and Taylor have continued to tour together on and off ever since. From about 2004 to 2009, they toured and collaborated with Bad Company frontman Paul Rodgers under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers. That project also released a studio album in 2008 titled The Cosmos Rocks.
Since about 2011, May and Taylor have toured with one-time American Idol finalist Adam Lambert as Queen + Adam Lambert.
Taylor Discussed Queen Making New Music in a 2024 Interview
Taylor made similar comments about Queen possibly recording new music in an interview with U.K. magazine Uncut in October 2024.
“I think we might,” Roger noted. “Brian and myself were talking the other day, and we both said that if we feel we have some good material, why not? We can still play. We can still sing. So I don’t see why not.”
Taylor and May also have both released multiple solo albums, with the most recent being Roger’s 2021 studio effort, The Outsider.
May and Taylor Recalled What It Was Like Presenting New Songs to Queen
In the Mojo interview, May and Taylor shared their recollections of presenting new songs to Queen’s other members. Although all four bandmates wrote hit songs for Queen, May and Taylor both admitted they would get apprehensive when introducing new tunes.
“Every time I brought a new song to the boys I’d be as nervous as hell, thinking, ‘They’re gonna say it’s rubbish, they’re gonna hate it…” May recalled. “I’d always be embarrassed and apologizing. That never ever went away.”
Taylor, meanwhile, shared with a laugh, “I used to make a little demo and see how that went down.”
Roger added, “It’s true that Brian and I had an advantage over John because we could sing, but Freddie was an enormous help to John in his writing—and to all of us, actually. We’d say, ‘You’re the leader,’ and he’d say, ‘No, no—I’m the singer.’”
No Current Queen Tour Plans
Queen last toured with Adam Lambert in February 2024, when they played five concerts in Japan. The group has no shows on its current schedule.