Robyn makes long-awaited return with new single Missing U - Listen

This week sees Robyn return with a brand new single, called Missing U. It's a fitting title, given her last album, Body Talk, celebrates its eighth birthday this November. The Swedish singer-songwriter has been out of the public eye pretty much ever since, save the occasional collaborative project.

In the years following Body Talk, the album's lead single Dancing On My Own has gone from cult favourite to pop catalogue staple, racking up over 100 million plays on Spotify thanks to appearances on TV shows such as Girls, Orange is the New Black and Rupaul's Drag Race, plus good old fashioned word of mouth, usually filed under: "can't believe this wasn't bigger". Much of Dancing On My Own's success is down to its perfect encapsulation as a crying-on-the-dancefloor banger; its sad-euphoria is still a blueprint for many pop songs today. 

This hasn't all gone unnoticed by Robyn, who trailed the release of Missing U with a mini documentary about the track and the Cult of Robyn that has developed over the past 15 years. The clip sees fans, including Rupaul's Drag Race stars Detox and William, at a monthly Robyn tribute party held New York's Brooklyn Bowl telling us why Robyn is the ultimate when it comes to sad-happy pop. "She embodies what it is to feel alive on a dancefloor" explains one fan, while another says: "Robyn is the soundtrack of my literal coming out of the closet". The video culminates with her making a surprise appearance at the bash.

Missing U, which is out today after a clip of the song leaked last week, is in similar territory to Dancing On My Own; 4 minutes and 51 seconds of emotionally wrought yet exhilarating synth-pop that may allude to the death of her friend and some-time mentor Christian Falk in 2014. 

"Missing U is about this trippy thing that happens when people disappear," she explains in the trailer. "It's like they become even more clear, and it's like you see them everywhere. And it's also maybe a little bit of a message to my fans - that I've missed them. Giving back to them is important."

Welcome back Robyn, pop's ultimate emotional support crutch.