Keeping up with 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 Cordae knocking out of the park on his highly anticipated new album and Earl Sweatshirt doing much of the same. 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.
Cordae — “Chronicles” Feat. HER and Lil Durk
Cordae kept busy last week, dropping a Tiny Desk concert and visiting The Tonight Show and The Breakfast Club. All of the fuss was related to Cordae’s new album, From A Birds Eye View, which was, as evidence indicates, the week’s headlining hip-hop release. The album was full of headlining features, too, including a track with Eminem (“Parables (Remix)”) and another with both HER and Lil Durk, the similarly titled “Chronicles.”
Gunna — “P Power” Feat. Drake
Gunna and Drake’s collaboration “P Power” was supposed to be on DS4EVER, but when the album dropped the song was nowhere to be found. Eventually, though, the tune came out, and it’s dedicated to the women and a certain power they possess, as hinted at by the title. The song is built on a sample of Donna Summer’s “Could It Be Magic,” which Metro Boomin used to give the track a bit of subtle funk.
Earl Sweatshirt — “Sick!”
A few months ago, The Alchemist discussed a 21-minute Earl Sweatshirt project he worked on, saying of it, “He has an album that is done and it’s incredible. […] I couldn’t even describe it… that would be a disservice to it.” Well, that project might just be Sick!, which dropped a few days ago and runs for about 24 minutes. A highlight is the title track, a 2-minute effort that sees Earl in his woozy bag.
King Princess — “Little Bother” Feat. Fousheé
Fousheé’s emergence over the past year or so has been real, as she’s built up a roster of collaborators that includes Lil Wayne, Lil Yachty, Vince Staples, and now, King Princess. Last week, they linked up on “Little Bother,” a driving tune that borrows from ’80s pop and rock while putting a contemporary spin on both.
Earthgang — “All Eyes On Me”
Earthgang’s highly anticipated second album, Ghetto Gods, is coming out at last towards the end of January. In the meantime, they held fans over last week with a new single, the smooth “All Eyes On Me.” Uproxx’s Wongo Okon notes of the track, “The track finds the duo acknowledging the many eyes that might be on them as both successful musicians and Black men in America.”
JID — “Surround Sound” Feat. 21 Savage and Baby Tate
It looked like JID’s The Forever Story might have been released in 2020, but he decided to delay it for pandemic-related reasons. We’re still waiting for that LP, but in the meantime, JID shared a 21 Savage and Baby Tate collaboration, the hard-hitting “Surround Sound.” Uproxx’s Wongo Okon notes that “JID leads the way with a quickfire verse that sits perfectly over the song’s thumping production,” then Savage and Tate do their thing, then JID comes back “to lay another cut-throat verse to conclude his grand return. “
FKA Twigs — “Jealousy” Feat. Rema
Before dropping Caprisongs on Friday, FKA Twigs unveiled one last advance single from it: “Jealousy,” a collaboration with Nigerian singer/rapper Rema. On the chill cut, Twigs sings of somebody who needs to get it together: “Jealousy you put on me / You’re in your feelings way too deep.”
NLE Choppa — “Too Hot” Feat. Moneybagg Yo
After two projects in 2020, NLE Choppa came up empty in 2021 but has Me Vs. Me coming later this week. Ahead of that, he linked up with Moneybagg Yo on “Too Hot,” which sees both rappers flexing as they rap about guns, wealth, and related topics of the sort.
Raveena — “Rush”
On the strength of her 2019 debut album Lucid, Raveena impressed enough to land herself a label deal with Warner Records. Now, she’s back with a fresh new tune, “Rush,” a rhythmic melding of cultures. Uproxx’s Adrian Spinelli notes the song “meets at the intersection of sweet, sensual R&B, with the sounds of her Indian roots.”
Mitski — “Love Me More”
Mitski is releasing Laurel Hell in under a month, an LP she previewed last week with “Love Me More.” The song borrows from both throwback pop and indie rock, as the song’s verses are generally a blend of those genres while the hook is pure ’80s pop. When releasing the song, Mitski noted that it was written pre-pandemic, which both changed some of the song’s meanings and enhanced others.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.