Billy Joel released the song "Turn the Lights Back On" in 2024, marking his first new single since 2007. The release follows a recent interview in which Joel explained his decades-long pause in songwriting and the personal standards that led him to step away from creating new pop and rock material.

Joel gave an interview to Rick Beato regarding his songwriting career, during which he detailed the emotional and creative calculus behind his decision to stop releasing original songs after his 1993 album "River of Dreams." That album, his 12th studio release, became a symbolic endpoint for Joel, who drew a parallel to The Beatles’ 12-album catalog. "'You know what? The Beatles had 12 albums.' And that was just enough for me," Joel said.

He described a loss of motivation that coincided with major life changes. "I was married [to Christie Brinkley], I had a child. I didn't want to lock myself in a cave and devote myself like a monk to writing anymore," Joel explained.

His marriage to Brinkley lasted nine years before ending in 1994, and their daughter, Alexa Joel, is now 40 years old. Joel later married Alexis Roderick in 2015.

Joel emphasized that he wanted to preserve the integrity of his musical legacy rather than risk diminishing it through lackluster work. "Maybe they're not as good as they used to be or they're not as motivated as they were, but it ends up trailing off. I didn't want to go like that," he said.

He added, "I didn't want to just keep beating a dead horse and being played because I was Billy Joel. I wanted it to be good, and I recognized that I didn't have the same motivation that I used to have so I said, 'Stop. Don't kill it.'" At the time, his mindset was clear: "I felt like I was done."

Even stepping away proved difficult. "It's not easy to do. Saying no sometimes is really hard to do," Joel acknowledged.

He described the psychological toll of maintaining his own artistic expectations, saying, "'You better learn how to stop songwriting because it's gonna drive you crazy. You'll go insane. You get to a point you can't do it anymore. 'You've tapped it out, you reached such a high level that you can't stand not reaching that level anymore and you hate yourself.' You beat yourself up, and I don't want to put myself through that anymore.

Though he stopped writing pop songs, Joel did release a classical piano album titled Fantasies & Delusions" in 2001. Reflecting on that project, he said, "I was ready to do that and it was something I had to get out of my system. The album represented a creative outlet that didn't carry the same pressures as his earlier songwriting.

Turn the Lights Back On" was released on February 1, 2024, through Columbia Records and was performed by Joel at the Grammy Awards on February 4, 2024. The song was produced by Freddy Wexler and co-written by Joel, Wexler, Wayne Hector, and Arthur Bacon. It is Joel’s first new single since "Christmas in Fallujah" in 2007.

During a meeting at Joel’s estate in Oyster Bay, N.Y., where he ordered clams on the half-shell and a BLT, Wexler—whose wife had long worked to connect him with the musician—collaborated with Joel on the track. Their introduction was facilitated through mutual medical contacts.

Joel’s return to songwriting after more than two decades carries significance for both his legacy and the broader music industry. His prior decision to stop releasing pop material was rooted in a desire to avoid artistic decline, a stance that distinguished him from peers who continued producing work well into later career stages. The release of "Turn the Lights Back On" suggests a recalibration of his creative boundaries rather than a full resumption of songwriting.

The song’s debut at the Grammy Awards—a major cultural platform—underscores its importance as a rare new entry in a catalog that has shaped American popular music since the 1970s. Joel’s self-imposed standard, which he once compared to Beethoven’s, reflects a disciplined approach to artistry that continues to influence how musicians consider the arc of their careers.