To know where the R&B singer Mýa is headed in 2026, it is best to look backwards.

In 2003, she released her third studio album, Moodring, featuring the track Sophisticated Lady. It wasn't a single, but it was noteworthy: a new take on Rick James’ Cold-Blooded, a swerve into funk music from a performer best known for midtempo slow jams. “I've given you all the baby-making music I can,” she joked to The Associated Press — and the James cover offered something a little different. It was another sonic direction she was waiting for the right moment to fully explore.

Her 10th studio album, Retrospect, out Friday, threads the needle from then to now. It's a collection of throwback bangers, weaving ’70s and ’80s Minneapolis funk, pop, R&B and soul in one cheerful, nostalgic package.