In a video posted to Instagram Friday, Aug. 14, the San Francisco-born musician said the record is finished. She also disclosed that she became critically ill after traveling to England, where she said she was hospitalized repeatedly and told by doctors that she was going to die.
“I almost died,” Love said. “I lost all my hair. I was about 100 pounds.”
Love did not identify the illness or provide details about her treatment. She said she eventually recovered and is now healthy.
The disclosure came as Love addressed questions from fans about the album, which would be her first solo release since 2004’s “America’s Sweetheart” and her first full-length project since Hole’s “Nobody’s Daughter” in 2010.
“A lot of you are asking where my record is at,” Love said. “It’s done. My record is done.”
She said she worked on the project during the illness, writing and recording whenever she was not in the hospital. In a caption accompanying the video, Love said she believed the album might be her last and made “the record I always wanted to make.”
Love said she is trying to determine how to release the music and return to public life. She also expressed a desire to tour, though she did not announce dates or a release schedule.
“I want to tour more than anything,” she wrote. “I want to sing. That’s what keeps my soul & body happy.”
The album includes contributions from several prominent musicians, including R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, Echo & the Bunnymen guitarist Will Sergeant, former Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur and producer Butch Walker.
The record is also featured in “Antiheroine,” a documentary directed by Edward Lovelace and James Hall. The film premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival and follows Love’s life, career and creative work as she developed new music.
Love, 62, formed Hole in Los Angeles in 1989. The band’s 1994 album, “Live Through This,” became one of the defining records of the alternative-rock era. Hole later released “Celebrity Skin” in 1998 before disbanding in 2002.
The group reunited with a new lineup for “Nobody’s Daughter” and toured between 2009 and 2012. Love has recently said she may perform new material with Auf der Maur, but has clarified that the plans for a formal Hole reunion.
For now, Love is asking fans for patience as she prepares the next stage of her career.
“I will be back,” she said in the video.