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 a new side of Nicki Minaj and a J summit. 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 Flash newsletters.
Nicki Minaj — “Red Ruby Da Sleeze”
Nicki Minaj is Nicki Minaj, but she’s also a number of other people, like Roman Zolanski and Chun-Li. Now, she has added Red Ruby Da Sleeze to her list of alter egos by debuting them on a new self-titled song. Ruby introduces herself by rapping, “Only on them Cs if it’s breeze / Red Ruby Da Sleeze / Chinese on my sleeves / These wannabe Chun Lis / Anyway, ni hao / Who the f*ck told b*tches they was me know.”
Kali Uchis — “Deserve Me” Feat. Summer Walker
Uchis had one of last week’s most hyped new albums with Red Moon In Venus, her well-received third full-length. She carries the LP but gets assists here and there, like from Summer Walker on “Deserve Me,” a smooth number that’s ready for nighttime.
J-Hope and J. Cole — “On The Street”
The biggest J’s of hip-hop and K-pop have linked up at last with “On The Street.” This collaboration is especially meaningful for BTS member J-Hope, as he’s long been a passionate fan of J. Cole and has been forthcoming about the rapper’s influence on him.
Boygenius — “Not Strong Enough”
Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker are finally doing it: releasing a full-length album under their collaborative project, Boygenius. They’ve offered enticing advance tastes of the project so far, the latest being last week’s “Not Strong Enough,” which comes with a video that shows off just how much the three enjoy basking in each other’s auras.
6lack — “Since I Have A Lover”
6lack recently announced when his anticipated new album Since I Have A Lover Is Dropping (later this month), and now we have the title track. 6lack called the track “the highs of having a healthy love, compressed into song format,” adding, “It’s a note to self, that I’m no longer who I was or where I was, and that there’s a bigger purpose starting to reveal itself in the things I create.”
Arlo Parks — “Impurities”
My Soft Machine is coming in May but before that, Arlo Parks has offered a taste of her forthcoming album with “Impurities.” Uproxx’s Alez Gonzalez notes that on the song, Parks “celebrates her chosen community, who embraces her impurities and encourages her to do the same.”
Don Toliver and Travis Scott — “Embarrassed”
Don Toliver quickly followed his new album Love Sick up with a deluxe edition, and who wouldn’t when the expanded album adds a Travis Scott collab to the proceedings? Toliver also didn’t wait long to perform “Embarrassed” live, as Scott popped up at Toliver’s release concert a few days ago.
Gorillaz — “Crocadillaz” Feat. De La Soul and Dawn Penn
Speaking of meaningful additions via deluxe albums, on the expanded version of Cracker Island, Gorillaz reunited with regular collaborators De La Soul on “Crocadillaz.” This comes at a particularly bittersweet time for De La Soul: Their music is finally streaming after years of waiting, but this follows the recent death of group member Trugoy, who leads the way on the new Gorillaz collab.
Yves Tumor — “Heaven Surrounds Us Like A Hood”
Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) is out soon (maybe by the time you finish reading the title). Yves Tumor dropped “Heaven Surrounds Us Like A Hood” last week and Uproxx’s Flisadam Pointer notes it “spins that narrative that no matter how pure your intentions are, eventually, life will chew you up and spit you out.”
The Dare — “Good Time”
The Dare (aka Harrison Patrick Smith) earned some attention with the 2022 single “Girls,” which aesthetically hearkens back to the 2000s dance-ready indie rock of artists like LCD Soundsystem. The Dare returned last week with more of the same on “Good Time,” which Smith described as “the hangover to the celebration of ‘Girls.’”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. .
