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 Cardi B with a rare new song and Chance The Rapper also make a big comeback. 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 newsletter.
Cardi B — “Imaginary Playerz”
New Cardi B tunes have been relatively rare as fans wait for her long-overdue second album. She delivered last week, though, with “Imaginary Playerz,” which borrows from Jay-Z’s “Imaginary Player” but adds a modernized twist.
Steve Lacy — “Nice Shoes”
Lacy had a chart-topping hit with “Bad Habit” three years ago, then he pretty much went silent. He’s back now, though, with news of a new album and the single “Nice Shoes,” which boldly starts, “If I had a dollar for the friends I would f*ck / I could buy a pair of really nice shoes.”
Chance The Rapper — “No More Old Men”
For a while, it was unclear when Chance’s project Star Line would arrive, but last week, it finally did. Some have hailed it as a return to form and he did it with help along the way, like from Jamila Woods on “No More Old Men.”
ASAP Rocky — “Trunks”
Rocky has his acting hat on at the moment with his new movie Highest 2 Lowest. He’s not leaving the music behind here, though, as he just dropped two new songs from the soundtrack.
Dijon — “Baby!”
After contributing to Bon Iver’s new album SABLE, fABLE and Justin Bieber’s Swag earlier this year, Dijon is putting himself in the spotlight with a new album, Baby. The title track is a good reference for the diversity and adventurousness of the project as a whole.
Kaytranada — “Do It! (Again!)” Feat. TLC
Kaytranada pulled so strongly from a TLC song on Ain’t No Damn Way!, his new album, that he went ahead and gave the group a feature credit for the sample. So, it’s not a full-blown collaboration, sadly, but it’s still a hell of a time.
Conan Gray — “Caramel”
After two years of “secretly writing songs” “after shows in the basements of the venues, in the sheets of my hotel beds, in narrow gaps between tours,” Conan Gray’s new album Wishbone has arrived. It’s led by soaring and dramatic tunes like the latest single, “Caramel.”
Kenny Beats and Archie Madekwe — “Love And Obsession”
The movie Lurker is a look at the music industry in Los Angeles, so having Kenny Beats doing the score is a tremendous asset. So too, it turns out, is star Archie Madekwe, who plays an artist in the movie and sounds great on soundtrack cuts like “Love And Obsession.”
Ashnikko — “Trinkets”
Smoochies, the latest album from Ashnikko, is on the way. The artist describes the project as “sexy, playful, and feminine, while toeing the line of grotesque and absurd,” and the “older sister” of her Demidevil project.
King Princess — “Girls”
Girl Violence is coming: We’re less than a month away from King Princess’ new album. She continued to tease the project last week with a new single, the retro-flavored slow-burner “Girls.”
