first stream

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

This week, Doja Cat turns into a hip-hop titan, Zach Bryan has more tricks up his sleeve and Shakira keeps piling up the wins. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Doja Cat, Scarlet 

[embedded content]

Not many music stars could release an album with five bonafide pop hits, follow that up by declaring a new rap-focused era, and find just as much artistic and commercial success — but that’s exactly what Doja Cat has achieved with Scarlet, a thrilling curveball that still complements her inherent skill set. Planet Her demonstrated that Doja could toss off fierce, funny rhymes in between pop hooks, and while Scarlet contains plenty of hummable melodies to follow the one on recent No. 1 single “Paint the Town Red,” the album’s primary triumph resides in Doja’s fully rendered verses, with boastful onomatopoeia (“Shutcho”), extended sex metaphors (“Gun”) whirlwind romance (“Agora Hills”) and deafening clapbacks (“F–k The Girls (FTG)”). Scarlet proves that Doja could reside among hip-hop’s elite for a long time — but that would presume she doesn’t create a whole new dazzling world on her next project.

Zach Bryan, Boys of Faith EP

[embedded content]

For those surprised that Zach Bryan’s self-titled album was only 16 songs long following last year’s 34-track epic American Heartbreak, Boys of Faith, a surprise EP released less than a month after the country superstar’s first chart-topper, helps even the scales a bit, while also boasting some more intriguing sounds and collaborations to add to Bryan’s repertoire. The immediate focus will be on the back-to-back guest spots from Noah Kahan (on the rolling, wistful “Sarah’s Place”) and Bon Iver (on the wrenching, fuzzed-out title track), but opener “Nine Ball,” on which Bryan recounts his complex feelings toward his father as he helps him win a billiards bet, highlights this rewarding addendum to a breakthrough project.

Shakira & Fuerza Regida, “El Jefe” 

[embedded content]

“I feel like a cat with more than nine lives; whenever I think I can’t get any better, I suddenly get a second wind,” Shakira told Billboard during her recent cover story interview. Amidst a period of personal tumult and professional victories, Shakira sounds like she’s positioned herself to enjoy another smash with “El Jefe,” a collaboration with regional Mexican group Fuerza Regida that transports her unmistakable voice into their ever-expanding world while pushing the tempo as the guitar strums and bubbling horns gradually turn more urgent. “El Jefe” sounds like no other Shakira song before it, and turns truly exciting — that’s why she keeps getting better.

Blink-182, “One More Time” 

[embedded content]

Blink-182’s 2023 reunion tour included plenty of arena and festival dates, even more scatological jokes from the stage and the jokey 2022 comeback single “Edging” joining the pop-punk vets’ collection of anthems; the live run also held some unexpected moments of reflection from the trio, who candidly spoke about Mark Hoppus’ 2021 cancer battle and how they were grateful to be back together. “One More Time” bottles that appreciation into a somber, genuinely moving three-and-a-half minute self-examination: as Hoppus and Tom DeLonge sing to each other, “I don’t want to act like there’s tomorrow / I don’t want to wait to do this one more time,” longtime fans will be wiping away tears, grateful that they didn’t.

Kylie Minogue, Tension 

[embedded content]

Although “Padam Padam” represented a surprise comeback for Kylie Minogue — reaching international charts that the dance-pop veteran hadn’t graced in a decade, as well as becoming her first top 10 single in the 10-year history of the Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs chart in the U.S. — the reinvigoration of Minogue’s aesthetic that the hit single hinted at can now be heard in full on Tension, her most complete full-length since 2010’s Aphrodite. Minogue’s gift for airy, energetic pop music sounds more natural on songs like “Things We Do For Love,” “Green Light” and the title track than it has in years, as the Australian star mines simple pleasures in each track and then amplifies their impact.

Editor’s Pick: 070 Shake, “Black Dress” 

[embedded content]

070 Shake is currently playing stadiums as an opening act on Coldplay’s current west coast run, and “Black Dress,” the daring hip-hop artist’s first single release of 2023, deserves an enormous venue: like 070 Shake herself, the song defies easy categorization — it combines a heavy guitar riff, swirling electronics and a “na-na-na” pop refrain — but the mixture rings out as massive. After 070 Shake enjoyed a surprise top 40 hit alongside Raye with “Escapism” earlier this year, let’s hope “Black Dress,” which precedes a forthcoming new album, receives a mainstream moment as well.

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

This week, Selena Gomez’s new “Single” is here, Miley Cyrus waxes poetic on her youth, and Zach Bryan drops another affecting opus. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Selena Gomez, “Single Soon” 

[embedded content]

Although Selena Gomez has been plenty busy over the past few years — with her starring role in Only Murders in the Building, her Spanish-language project Revelación, her cooking show Selena + Chef and her remix of Rema’s summer smash “Calm Down,” among other endeavors — a proper follow-up to her great 2020 album Rare has remained elusive. Within that context, “Single Soon” functions as both a promise of new music on the horizon, and a delicious first bite: unlike the sweeping emotion of Rare lead single “Lose You to Love Me,” “Single Soon” shrugs off a relationship and looks ahead to giddy independence with oversized synths and a sing-along melodies (Gomez does, in fact, perform karaoke to the song in its music video).

Miley Cyrus, “Used to Be Young” 

[embedded content]

Miley Cyrus’ mammoth 2023, led by her longest-leading Hot 100 chart-topper “Flowers,” doubles as the 10-year anniversary of her Bangerz era, back when hits like “We Can’t Stop” and “Wrecking Ball” firmly removed her from her Disney Channel days. “Used to Be Young,” which appears on an expanded edition of her Endless Summer Vacation album, finds Cyrus reflecting on how she’s evolved to the point where now her wild days are in the rearview mirror: “You tell me time has done changed me / That’s fine, I had a good run,” she admits, tapping into the pop balladry that she’s utilized her entire career, from “The Climb” to “Wrecking Ball” to “Flowers.”

Zach Bryan, Zach Bryan 

[embedded content]

In the midst of a wild run of country songs and artists near the top of the Hot 100, Zach Bryan, one of the genre’s biggest breakout stories of the past few years, has stayed steadily successful, with “Something in the Orange” spending months on the chart while his album American Heartbreak remains in the Billboard 200’s top 20. Whereas American Heartbreak was a marathon — 34 songs, most of them gorgeously written, over a two-hour run time — his new self-titled full-length is a 54-minute sprint through grief, bitter memories, love stories and formative travels across the country; Bryan’s lyricism is as affecting as ever, the arrangements are more thoughtfully rendered, and Zach Bryan immediately establishes itself as one of the strongest country projects of a topsy-turvy year.

BLACKPINK, “The Girls” 

[embedded content]

“The Girls” catches BLACKPINK at a celebratory moment: the new single, which launched as part of their popular mobile game The Game and comes in the midst of U.S. stadium dates, allows the K-pop quartet to flex a bit after all of their successes. On a stopgap single that sounds just as fresh as their best cuts from Born Pink, BLACKPINK praises girl power by exuding strength in numbers — over bouncy pop production and crackling percussion, all four members sharpen their individual skills while complementing one another on the hook.

Burna Boy, I Told Them… 

[embedded content]

With his album Love, Damini last year, Burna Boy scored a real, world-spanning smash, as “Last Last” grew into the Nigerian superstar’s signature hit; with the follow-up I Told Them…, Burna tries to catalog his journey to household-name status while also crafting a more fully formed full-length statement. Guests ranging from J. Cole to GZA to Dave to Seyi Vibez make for inspired ways of switching up the album’s energy, but the solo run of songs in the middle of the track list, beginning with the boisterous “Big 7” and ending with the sensual “City Boys,” showcases why Burna Boy is able to gaze down from the heights he’s scaled and declare “I told them so.”

Editor’s Pick: Victoria Monét, Jaguar II 

[embedded content]

The title of Victoria Monét’s new project is a bit deceptive — after all, the original Jaguar was a 2020 EP that found a fervent fan base but didn’t deliver the veteran singer-songwriter as a commercial artist. Jaguar II may be a sequel in name, but the full-length stands on its own, head and shoulder above its predecessor in every way: the interpretations of R&B, funk and soul are markedly more distinct, the Kaytranada-produced “Alright” sounds like a surefire hit, and Monét generally comes across as more comfortable commanding each track, conjuring a handful of dazzling moments while announcing her real, undeniable arrival.

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

This week, Olivia Rodrigo wrestles with a (great) bad idea, Karol G keeps collecting W’s and Trippie Redd shows a new side of himself. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Olivia Rodrigo, “bad idea right?” 

[embedded content]

Two years ago, Olivia Rodrigo preceded her debut album with a spectacularly emotional ballad and a head-banging pop-punk anthem; both of those songs, “drivers license” and “good 4 u,” reached the top of the Hot 100, and Sour became a year-defining full-length. Rodrigo is utilizing a similar playbook with her sophomore effort, GUTS, as the theatrical epic “Vampire” has been followed by the driving shout-along “bad idea right?” — although the new single is far from a rehash, instead mixing pop, riot grrrl rock and new wave into a compact call-and-response ode to ex-boyfriend temptation. More than anything, Rodrigo understands how to give wide swaths of listeners exactly what they need, regardless of tempo or sound — it’s the reason why she’s a superstar at the age of 20.

Karol G, Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season) 

[embedded content]

Few popular artists are having a better commercial year than Karol G: after Mañana Será Bonito album became the first all-Spanish language album by a woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, the Colombian superstar plotted headlining dates in football stadiums, performed on Saturday Night Live and popped up on the best-selling Barbie soundtrack. Now, the winning streak continues with Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season), a companion piece to her recent album, but also a 30-minute project that stands on its own; new collaborations with Kali Uchis and Peso Pluma are especially dynamic, while previously released single “S91” sounds even more impactful in the context of a full-length.

Trippie Redd, A Love Letter to You 5 

[embedded content]

A Love Letter to You 5 may be the fifth and final edition of Trippie Redd’s popular mixtape series that began in 2017, but the 19-track project feels particularly thoughtful and expansive, as if the hip-hop streaming juggernaut wanted to end the project with the biggest, best installment possible. Lil Wayne, Roddy Ricch and The Kid LAROI all swing by, although the pair of collaborations with Skye Morales, the gifted singer and Trippie Redd’s former partner, are especially poignant, and shed new light on a prolific star’s emotional range.

DJ Khaled feat. Lil Baby, Future & Lil Uzi Vert, “Supposed To Be Loved” 

[embedded content]

Summertime is a season for beach days, backyard barbecues and star-studded DJ Khaled singles — and although it’s already mid-August, Khaled has come through with a song that will no doubt linger in the mainstream until the leaves begin to fall. “Supposed To Be Loved” not only corrals Lil Baby, Future and Lil Uzi Vert and lets them unfurls some surprisingly tender bars, but Khaled positions the hip-hop summit over a sample of Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T.,” as extra insurance that the new single will be smooth and summer-friendly.

V, “Love Me Again” 

[embedded content]

A few weeks after his BTS band mate Jung Kook topped the Hot 100 chart with his Latto collaboration “Seven,” V steps forward with his own solo bid, albeit with a very different sonic approach. “I wish you would love me again / No, I don’t want nobody else,” V sings, his vulnerability matched by sensitive R&B production that motions toward jazz and classic soul; the subtleties of “Love Me Again” begin to reveal themselves on the first listen, then deepen with each new play.

Editor’s Pick: The Hives, The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons 

[embedded content]

Swedish punk veterans The Hives invaded America during the garage-rock movement of the early ‘00s, as singles like “Hate to Say I Told You So” and “Walk Idiot Walk” made their intense presences felt on MTV and alternative radio. The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons is the quintet’s first album in over a decade, but from the opening riffs of lead track “Bogus Operandi,” the group swaggers back into view like they never left, filling 31 hard-charging minutes with punk performances that will make any thirtysomething want to get back in the pit.

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

This week, Taylor Swift unveils her latest re-recording, TOMORROW X TOGETHER creates summer fun with Jonas Brothers, and new albums from Rauw Alejandro and Dominic Fike are ready to be fired up. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) 

[embedded content]

Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), the newly released re-recording of Taylor Swift’s 2010 album, reanimates a country-pop masterpiece that was solely written by Swift as her teens gave her to her twenties. Speak Now showcased Swift’s aesthetic command and solidifying point of view during a period of personal growth — and along with revisiting one of the most complete projects of her career, the six “From The Vault” songs on Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) are of a piece with that growth.

Click here to read more about all six “From The Vault” songs on Speak Now (Taylor’s Version).

TOMORROW X TOGETHER & Jonas Brothers, “Do It Like That” 

[embedded content]

Shortly after offering a sparkling summer jam with “Waffle House,” Jonas Brothers have joined forces with TOMORROW X TOGETHER to faithfully provide fans with more fodder for their cookout playlists: “Do It Like That” is a no-frills jam from a pair of collectives whose brands of pop fit together quite easily. Much of the song’s immediate appeal comes from its percussive bounce, snaps and pops and found-sound clanging piquing eardrums, but the JoBros and TXT ride those drums admirably, offering plenty of charm over “Do It Like That’s” short run time.

Rauw Alejandro, Playa Saturno 

[embedded content]

The cover of Rauw Alejandro’s new album Playa Saturno features the Puerto Rican superstar alone on a desolate planet, lounging in a beach chair under an umbrella; the implication is that, no matter what the environment, Alejandro will be ready to unleash summery pleasures. The best moments of Playa Saturno find Alejandro enhancing the kinetic grooves that he previously explored on hits like “Todo De Ti” and “Party” with Bad Bunny; “Si Te Pegas,” featuring Miguel Bosé, is saved for the final minutes of the full-length, but may be the most joyful distillation of Alejandro’s formula in recent memory.

Dominic Fike, Sunburn 

[embedded content]

Florida is the beating, complicated heart of Sunburn, Dominic Fike’s second studio album, which examines the singer-songwriter’s upbringing as he refines his singular approach to emotionally honest pop. Songs like “Mona Lisa,” “Sick” and the Weezer collaboration “Think Fast” carry a hangdog appeal on top of more serious issues, as Fike pivots from rapping to crooning over fuzzed-out guitars with aplomb while prodding at the many issues in the past and present of his home state.

FendiDa Rappa feat. Cardi B, “Point Me 2” 

[embedded content]

Cardi B’s year of blessing rising women in rap with scorching-hot guest verses continues: after hopping on GloRilla’s “Tomorrow 2” and Latto’s “Put It On Da Floor Again” — and sending both songs charging up the charts — the superstar has linked up with Chicago MC FendiDa Rappa on “Point Me 2,” scooping up the ominous beat as her own while also giving her new collaborator ample room to shine. Each of these guest verses have shown Cardi in smash-the-world mode, and here, she rips into lines like “I blow fifty racks in Target, on some stupid shit” with enough force to flatten a city block.

Editor’s Pick: NewJeans, “Super Shy”

[embedded content]

While songs like “OMG” and “Ditto” have helped NewJeans mount their position as one of K-pop’s most exciting new acts, their new single expands their boundaries even further, simply by locating a type of bubblegum wonder that fans of any strain of popular music can happily chew. “Super Shy” sports rapidly shuffling beats, subtle synth work and the NewJeans members seamlessly weaving in and out of rap breakdowns and melodic yearning, as they try to combat their bashfulness together and achieve one of the summer’s most undeniable pop tracks.

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

This week, Doja Cat demands your “Attention,” Gunna contemplates a new reality, and Queens of the Stone roar back after too long away. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Doja Cat, “Attention” 

Following a commercial run that has included a string of huge singles and an indelible mark on pop music, Doja Cat can go anywhere she wants — and on highly anticipated new single “Attention,” the multi-hyphenate flaunts her power by crashing sounds into one another and cutting off anyone trying to crash her party. After an intro that combines harp and finger-picked guitar, the melodies and rhythms of “Attention” snap into place, and Doja rattles off a pair of highly impressive rap verses; Doja had been teasing a more hip-hop-leaning project to follow 2021’s Planet Her, and here, she combines influences like Tyler, The Creator’s internal rhyming and Eminem’s wordplay into molten-lava bars about the balance of body image and artistic gravitas. “I am not afraid to finally say s–t with my chest,” Doja proclaims — a sentiment that “Attention” makes abundantly clear.

Gunna, A Gift & A Curse 

In the spring of 2022, Gunna was riding high off of his DS4ever album and its standout single “Pushin P,” leading Young Stoner Life alongside Young Thug as a new hip-hop powerhouse. Soon after, YSL was the target of a sprawling RICO case, and Gunna was able to strike a plea deal last December after months behind bars — although many hip-hop fans perceived his release as an untrustworthy sign of cooperation with the authorities. Gunna unpacks his complex circumstances on the aptly named A Gift & A Curse, the formerly vibed-out rapper adopting a somber tone while reflecting on his journey and ultimately finding a semblance of peace in his craft on a compelling, guest-free project.

Queens of the Stone Age, In Times New Roman… 

Six years after linking up with Mark Ronson and aiming to dance a little with 2017’s Villains, Queens of the Stone Age are back to what they do best: grand, crunchy rock, with the bluesy exterior and Josh Homme’s innate gift for hook-writing inviting a beer-hoisted boogie. In Times New Roman… follows a difficult period in Homme’s life that included a cancer diagnosis and subsequent surgery, and the painful life experiences have been mined for a batch of snarling, self-produced songs –QOTSA hasn’t sounded this invigorated since 2005’s Lullabies to Paralyze, and Homme deserves credit for guiding this return to form.

Don Omar, Forever King 

Don Omar has been a reggaetón pioneer long before the sound fought its way into the U.S. mainstream, and maintained his stature during a recording break following 2019’s The Last Album. With Forever King, however, Omar visits a variety of different sounds, from mambo to tropical to urban, expanding the contours of his reggaetón aesthetic while welcoming a slew of collaborators (Residente, Wisin, Nio Garcia and Maluma among them) and asserting his dominance within Latin music as a whole. Forever King plays out like the perfect type of album from a veteran artist: tasteful experimentation abounds, with plenty for longtime fans.

Read a full review and track ranking for the new Don Omar album.

Carly Pearce feat. Chris Stapleton, “We Don’t Fight Anymore” 

“This song embodies a place that I think, if we are honest with ourselves, we’ve all felt at some point in a relationship,” Carly Pearce shared in a press release of her new Chris Stapleton collaboration, “We Don’t Fight Anymore.” “The distance that feels heartbreaking, yet you’re also indifferent.” Both country greats bring their A-game to this story of a relationship cold war, but Pearce and co-producers Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne nail the song’s atmosphere: an uncluttered country arrangement is marked by mournful fiddle and guitar, bubbling up as if to remind the voices of the fond memories before once again disappearing.

Asake, Work of Art 

Fast-rising Nigerian artist Asake has delivered his second album, Work of Art, to lofty expectations: he’s touring North America in a few months, including a headlining show at Barclays Center in Brooklyn; collaborating with stars like Davido and Fireboy DML; and working with a handful of producers who know how to elevate artists on an international scale. Fortunately, Work of Art addresses the professional pressure with pure joy, a confident synthesis of different African music styles heavy of wide-reaching vocal harmonies and string flourishes, with a few clear hits (“Basquiat,” “Amapiano” with Olamide, “2:30”) headlining the potential breakthrough.

Editor’s Pick: Peggy Gou, “(It Goes Like) Nanana”

Need to physically shake off a long work week? “(It Goes Like) Nanana,” the first new track from dance auteur Peggy Gou in nearly two years, has arrived to inspire uninhibited movement with nods to classic house anthems, ‘90s jock jams and modern club sounds. Gou has long been capturing feelings of bliss, but “(It Goes Like) Nanana” is immediately one of the producer’s most self-contained and accessible singles to date; her first release on XL Recordings and the lead single of a long-awaited debut album, the song precedes an exciting artistic period, as well as a summer full of dance breaks.