Keeping up with the best new music can be exhausting, even impossible. From the weekly album releases to standalone singles dropping on a daily basis, the amount of music is so vast it’s easy for something to slip through the cracks. Even following along with the Uproxx recommendations on a daily basis can be a lot to ask, so every Monday we’re offering up this rundown of the best new music this week.
This week saw J. Cole make his anticipated return and Olivia Rodrigo drop her full-length debut. Yeah, it was a great week for new music. Check out the highlights below.
For more music recommendations, check out our Listen To This section, as well as our Indie Mixtape and Pop Life newsletters.
J. Cole — “Let Go My Hand” Feat. Bas, 6lack, and Diddy
Rapper and professional basketball player J. Cole has had fans waiting for a new album since 2018’s KOD, and not long after he officially announced the project, it’s here. One of the standout moments was when he confirmed a rumor about a dispute with Diddy… via a track on which Diddy himself features.
Olivia Rodrigo — “Good 4 U”
Ahead of her debut album Sour, Rodrigo has explored a couple of different musical directions on her first two pre-album singles: “Drivers License” was an emotional ballad, “Deja Vu” was a bit more indebted to Radiohead. So perhaps it wasn’t surprising, then, that her latest pre-release single was the pop-punk-influenced “Good 4 U.”
St. Vincent — “Down”
Annie Clark’s new ’70s-inspired album Daddy’s Home is out now, but before the project was released, she shared one final advance single, “Down.” She doesn’t stray from her chosen decade aesthetic, utilizing the punchy funk sounds of the era.
Jorja Smith — “Bussdown” Feat. Shaybo
“Bussdown” is quite the highlight from Be Right Back, especially since Smith described the 7-track project as basically a collection of songs that won’t make her next album: “It’s called be right back because it’s just something I want my fans to have right now, this isn’t an album and these songs wouldn’t have made it. If I needed to make these songs, then someone needed to hear them, too.”
Sleater-Kinney — “Worry With You”
It hasn’t been long since Sleater-Kinney dropped The Center Won’t Hold in 2019, but the group — now just a duo since the departure of Janet Weiss — is returning with Path Of Wellness this summer. Alongside the album announcement, they shared a groove-driven lead single, “Worry With You.”
Internet Money — “His & Hers” feat. Don Toliver, Lil Uzi Vert, and Gunna
Internet Money had a summertime smash with “Lemonade” last year, and now, they’re positioned to repeat that success with “His & Hers.” That’s especially true considering they went with mostly the same formula this time around: Like the former single, the latter also features Don Toliver and Gunna, although Lil Uzi Vert takes over for Nav this time.
Rowdy Rebel and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie — “9 Bridge”
Rowdy Rebel has been productive since getting out of prison earlier this year, and his latest output is the A Boogie With Da Hoodie collaboration “9 Bridge.” Uproxx’s Aaron Williams describes the track as “a haunting banger of a cross-borough connection,” and the two definitely connect with strong chemistry on the back-and-forth tune.
Leon Bridges — “Motorbike”
It’s been a few years since Leon Bridges’ 2018 album Good Thing, but he’s remained busy in the interim. His latest output is “Motorbike,” a smooth and warm single that arrived alongside an Anderson .Paak-directed video.
Nicki Minaj — “Seeing Green” Feat. Drake and Lil Wayne
Minaj isn’t yet back with a new album to follow 2018’s Queen, but she did bless fans with some new music last week. That came via a rerelease of her Beam Me Up Scotty mixtape, which features a handful of additions, among them being “Seeing Green,” her first new track with both Drake and Lil Wayne since 2018’s “No Frauds.”
Migos — “Straightenin”
It feels like Culture III has been discussed for decades, especially after unfulfilled release date promises like the one from February. There was optimism that it may in fact be dropping soon after Migos shared a video for “Straightenin” last week, and sure enough, a release date for the project was officially confirmed today.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
