What better way to kick off a weekend than with new music? Fridays are always chock full of the latest songs and albums ready to be the soundtrack to everyone’s antics, and here you’ll find some of the week’s standout releases. Whether you’re ready to spin an anticipated song from a favorite artist or just taking a look at what’s out there, there’s a whole lot of tunes to dive right into. Who knows—maybe you’ll find your next obsession.
Lady Gaga
Chromatica
Chromatica is Lady Gaga doing what she does best: Making irresistible dance music. It was something that she may have well left in the past—2016’s Joanne was the polar opposite of her previous material, and the meteoric rise to a new level of fame with film and soundtrack for A Star Is Born further showcased her talent, which goes beyond a dance floor. Her return to such a sound doesn’t miss a single beat—the house vibes of “Rain on Me” are magnified thanks to the inclusion of Ariana Grande, and the Blackpink-assisted “Sour Candy” is a future club staple.
Cady Groves
Bless My Heart
Cady Groves’ voice and songwriting ability are truly larger than life, and it’s incredibly strange to even mention her name and “posthumous” in the same sentence. With her tragic death earlier this month, her newly finished EP shows us she was in the best place ever musically. Bless My Heart is a full-circle return to country-pop, which was what kick started her career to begin with. The songs come across as vulnerable and as genuine as they come—a mainstay in Groves’ artistic DNA—and it’s a beautiful goodbye to someone whose songs will live forever.
Diplo
Diplo Presents Thomas Wesley,
Chapter 1: Snake Oil
Diplo has run his sound through the musical gauntlet over the years. Jamaican-inspired club with Major Lazer…dance pop with LSD…festival-sized EDM with Jack U. Now, courtesy of Thomas Wesley, he can add country to the resume too. His country alter ego meshes his production prowess with pop, hip-hop, and country stars for an LP that’s framed as a country record (but you can consider the term used loosely). Really, it’s a fun as hell pop record with country influences sprinkled in. And his “Old Town Road” remix is in there just for good measure.
Travis Barker
“Drums Drums Drums” (feat. Wiz Khalifa)
Nobody’s having a more prolific year than Travis Barker. A part of numerous collabs, remixes, and joint EPs, the Blink-182 drummer has made good use of these past five months, but it’s his solo work that lets his creativity shine. Following up the frantic “Dogs**t” single from earlier this year, “Drums Drums Drums” enlists star power from Wiz Khalifa to help give the track a little more personality. Khalifa might be past his prime, but he doesn’t show it here due to the unique beat Barker provides.
The Night Game
“Magic Trick”
After cementing himself as a star frontman in pop outfit Boys Like Girls, then as a behind-the-scenes hitmaker (co-writing for other artists), singer/songwriter Martin Johnson settles into his latest project once again for LP 2. The Night Game’s first record has arguably been Johnson’s best work to date, and the follow-up should
have no problem creeping on that success. “Magic Trick” is the first of 11 tracks
set to be released over the next couple of months and it’s worth getting excited for the rest. The single’s got atmospheric production that hits its hardest in the 80s-influenced chorus.
Juice WRLD
“Tell Me U Luv Me”
Juice WRLD’s second posthumous single comes in the form of “Tell Me U Luv Me”, a track fans will recognize as having been performed live last year before his passing. Featuring Trippie Redd, the laid back cut reveals what he was cooking up in the lab; it’s a matter of time until we get to hear more where that song came from.
Monsta X
Fantasia X
Month by month, k-pop phenoms Monsta X get just a little bit bigger in the U.S. market, but drops like Fantasia X are going to help accelerate that growth much quicker. Wasting no time since their first English-speaking album back in February, their new EP is an easily digestible batch of tracks that emphasizes Monsta X’s strong suits—enormous hooks mixed with hip-hop infused dance beats.
Billie Joe Armstrong
“Manic Monday”
Get Billie Joe Armstrong to sing a phone book and it would still rack up a couple million streams. The Green Day frontman’s voice is just like a security blanket—in the sense that hearing it lets us know that, maybe, things will be ok. You could
say his vocals, at times, were nearly unrecognizable on his band’s Father of All album, earlier this year, but there’s no mistaking it on his cover of the 80s hit
“Manic Monday”.
Qveen Herby
EP 8
Pop duo Karmin didn’t get the proper chance they deserved after breaking into the mainstream with “Brokenhearted”—a track that still holds its own over eight years later. While Karmin is on hiatus, likely permanently, singer Amy Noonan has found her calling under the moniker Qveen Herby. She’s been a bit under the radar but the work ethic is there: EP 8 is, well, her eighth EP. Karmin fans will find plenty to enjoy with this one as she continues to use the Herby name to flex her hip-hop stylings and rapping ability.
Other new releases:
No Rome – “Hurry Home”
G-Eazy – “Stan By Me”
Bright Eyes – “One and Done”
Tones and I – “Ur So F**king Cool”
Lamb of God – “Routes”
Jason Mraz – “You Do You”
Lil Yachty – Lil Boat 3
Kygo – Golden Hour / “Broken Glass (with Kim Petras)”
Joyce Manor – Songs From Northern Torrance
The Hunna – “If This is Love (feat. Phem)”
Deerhoof – Future Teenage Cave Artists
i_o, Lights – AM 444
Zella Day – “My Game”
Steven Universe: Season 1 (Original Television Score)
Ella Eyre, Yxng Bane – “Dreams”
I Prevail, Joyner Lucas – “DOA”
6LACK – “ATL Freestyle”
Galantis, Ship Wrek & Pink Sweat$ – “Only A Fool”
Tayla Parx – “Dance Alone”
ROSALIA – “TKN (feat. Travis Scott)”
The Raconteurs – Live at Electric Lady
Alec Benjamin – These Two Windows
Oliver Tree – “Bury Me Alive”
Lucky Daye – “Shoulda (feat. Babyface)”
SAINt JHN – “Roses Remix (feat. Future)”
GASHI – “Paranoid”
Ne-Yo, Jeremiah – “U 2 Luv”
Little Big Town – “Wine, Beer, Whiskey (Radio Edit)”
