Beauty School Dropout is gearing up for a jam packed and exciting second half of 2025.

The L.A. based rock group are currently on the Idobi Summer School Tour, just dropped their newest single “Sex Appeal” and announced their debut album WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTERFLIES GO? . The band is also scheduled to hit the stage at Van’s Warped Tour Long Beach and Orlando, and are hitting the road with Blink-182, Alkaline Trio and letlive. Needless to say, the group is just getting started. 

Music Manager Alicia Kobasic and Social Media Manager Skylar Bridgeforth spoke with the band about their new album, upcoming shows, musical inspirations and more. You can check out their conversation with Beauty School Dropout below. 

Congrats on the new single “SEX APPEAL”!  This is the third single off of your upcoming album WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTERFLIES GO? How do you feel this song encapsulates the overall sound and theme of the album? 

“Sex Appeal” is an exciting leap for us in a new direction that we haven’t quite tapped into in the past. It’s a bit slower, sexier and moodier all around. I think of it like a little taste of one of the album’s many personalities, which is a fun way for us to tease what’s coming next while getting a gauge of how people might receive this side of us.

Did you have any specific inspirations or concepts you wanted to make sure portrayed in the music video for “SEX APPEAL” ? 

Mostly the tumblr era. That was my escapism as a teenager so I wanted to create something for my younger self to be inspired by. I grew up working as a PA on cinematic photography sets from the age of 13 and was always inspired by films like Drive, A Place Beyond the Pines, Enter the Void, etc. 

You worked with Neal Avron on your album. He has worked with amazing bands like Fall Out Boy, Linkin Park, and Twenty One Pilots. What was that experience like? Did you learn anything that you plan to take with you as you work on future projects? 

Working with Neal Avron was an absolute dream. If there is one thing that we learned, it is patience. He really emphasized the importance of finding unique tones and performing the best takes possible, as raw as possible. I know that sounds obvious, but everything is so easy to manicure in the DAW now that sometimes it’s easier to get an okay take and chop it into something “better” than getting something that is singularly amazing. That is a part of the process I think  we will take with us into all our future works.

When you went in to start working on the album, was there anything you did differently or wanted to change from when you made WE MADE PLANS AND GOD LAUGHED and READY TO EAT?

We were pretty deliberate in taking our time. The last two projects we had rushed to the finish line while we were on the road or in between all the obstacles of getting this band  off the ground. This time we made absolutely sure that our only focus from the inception of the album to its final masters was that we were focusing on this project and nothing else. It allowed us to be a lot more concise about our creative decision making/songwriting and I believe that will translate when you get to hear this album in full.

Who or what was your biggest inspiration for WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTERFLIES GO? Did any of the bands or artists you grew up listening to or currently listen to influence the record?

We had many inspos for this album, but even more so than sonically we took the approach of looking at groups that built a world with their sound. Bands like The Killers, Depeche Mode, Deftones, where even if you don’t know many of their songs you can identify them by their sound alone. We wanted to land on something that people might consider BSD’s Staple sound.

You guys have a full touring schedule for the year with Warped Tour, Idobi Summer School Tour, tour dates with Blink-182 and Letlive. How excited are you guys for the live shows? 

The live show is what we live for. One of the hardest parts of making this album was committing to staying in the studio the whole time, but now that we are back on the road we are ecstatic to get to breathe life into these songs again.

What songs are you most excited to play live during your upcoming shows?

All of them.

What songs on WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTERFLIES GO? Are you most excited for the fans to hear? Are there any songs that you think will surprise fans? 

Again, all of them. This album is meant to be experienced in full. There are so many personalities and new sonics that we have never touched before I’m confident there are going to be a group of songs people will be surprised by but if I had to pick the 3 biggest ones it’s probably “Madonna”, “Daddy Don’t Cry” and the title track off the album. 

The support of your fans is incredible. What does having the support online and at the shows mean to you? Are there any fan interactions that stand out in particular? 

It means everything to us. We would be nothing without our fans. It’s becoming more and more common that we hear these stories about how our music has helped people get out of their darkest times and “saved their lives”. That is what this stuff is about you know? I think music saved us all from ourselves one way or another. Being able to give that back to our fans is one of the most rewarding feelings there is.

You have collaborated with many artists from Mark Hoppus,  Mod Sun, and jxdn. If you could collaborate with any band or artist, who would be your dream collab? 

The list goes on but to keep it short: Turnstile, 2hollis, Skrillex, and letlive.

When people listen to WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTERFLIES GO? what do you hope people feel or take away from the album after their first listen or after they have listened to it a few times? 

This album as a whole is meant to be the sonic representation of what it feels like to fall in love and have your heart broken. Every bit exciting as it is painful. I hope people feel seen and heard by its honesty.  

Anything else you would like to add or shout out? 

Shout out to all the dropouts. We love you guys so much and can’t wait to watch how this community blossoms. ❤

You can stream Beauty School Dropout on all major streaming platforms. WHERE DID ALL THE BUTTEFLIES GO? is out on September 5. You can pre-order the album now on their official website.