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Hilary Duff's music career is no longer "so yesterday." The actor-singer released her new single, "Mature," on Thursday, marking her return to music after over a decade away. Her last studio album, “Breathe In. Breathe Out.," was released in June 2015. Since then, Duff, now a mom of four, has focused on acting, starring in shows such as "Younger," which aired from 2015 to 2021, and "How I Met Your Father," which ran for one season on Hulu in 2022. Her new single comes amid a resurgence in millennial-focused pop culture. Duff, 38, charmed millennial fans with her role as the titular character in Disney's “Lizzie McGuire," which followed a young teen as she navigated middle school with her best friends, Miranda and Gordo, all while her animated alter ego narrated her life. Millennials, typically defined as individuals born between the early 1980s and the mid-1990s, are now at a point in their lives where their generational nostalgia is front and center. After the music video for “Mature” debuted at 8 p.m. ET, Duff elaborated on the single’s meaning, writing on Instagram that it “speaks to my mature self calling my not so mature self on the phone many years ago, and she’s letting her know we landed softly. This was a brief time with a lover that left me with so many questions… It felt like a good place to start.” Duff had previously teased a return to music, something many of her fans had been anticipating after she signed with Atlantic Records in September. “We’re getting something really soon,” she told Variety last month. “I have been hard at work in the studio with my husband [Matthew Koma] and a few other amazingly talented people. [My fans] are going to hear something so soon, like in the blink of an eye.” She told the publication that she "always knew" she'd return to music eventually. “I needed to feel safe and I needed to have the right people in my corner and be absolutely 100% ready," she said. "Honestly, I needed to have 10 years of life under my belt. I needed a lot to say. This album feels like the inner workings of my brain and I really am so excited to connect with people again on that level, that very forward-facing level.” This week, she made the news of her return to music Instagram official. “So happy this is finally yours to hear,” Duff wrote in a post on Monday. “Been keeping this one quiet too long.” Fans have flooded social media to share their support for Duff. "Remember when Hilary Duff tried to save pop music in 2025 and y’all let it SUCCEED?" wrote one X user. "Hearing new Hilary Duff music in 2025 is so nostalgic it’s so so good" wrote another X user. Even husband Koma shared his love, writing in a comment on Instagram, "Oh so you ARE doing music again." A docuseries about Duff’s return to music and her personal life is also in the works.
