57th & 9th is the twelfth solo studio album by British singer-songwriter Sting, his first rock album in 13 years. From late 2015 and throughout the first half of 2016, images of Sting working in the studio were periodically published across his various social media outlets. The resultant album was eventually announced on 18 July 2016. In a teaser video published subsequently, Sting described the album as having a spontaneous feel, featuring a lot of rock 'n' roll with themes of searching, travelling, the road and the pull of the unknown.