new music

In need of some new tunes from your favorite queer artists? We’ve got your covered. Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.

From Billie Eilish’s long-awaited new album to Omar Apollo’s moody new single, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:

Billie Eilish, Hit Me Hard and Soft

With her third studio album, Billie Eilish has made one thing abundantly clear — she’s not slowing down any time soon. Hit Me Hard and Soft feels like a purposeful progression from the unabashed eccentricity of When We All Fall Asleep, and the confessional dreaminess of Happier Than Ever. The 22-year-old star simultaneously embraces her fears (“Chichiro”) and her confidence (“The Greatest”) to thrilling effect with each successive song, while maintaining the vocal flourishes and production flair (courtesy of Finneas) that made her a star to begin with. But the star also takes a more candid look at her sexuality throughout the album, allowing herself to declare that she wants to “eat that girl for lunch” and singing about the unrequited love of the girl she sees “in the back of my mind all the time,” offering a new level of intimacy to an already stunning body of work.

Omar Apollo, “Dispose of Me”

Omar Apollo wants to slow it down, and after hearing “Dispose of Me,” you’ll be sure to understand why. This moving R&B ballad serves as a testament to the rising star’s vocal prowess, as he shows off as much of his impressive range as possible. Flowing from flawless falsetto to rumbling baritone, Apollo evokes the heartbreaking feeling the title promises within the first few seconds of this number, making “Dispose of Me” an absolute must-listen for anyone in need of a good cry.

Monét X Change, Grey Rainbow Vol. 1

The exchange rate just went up with Monét X Change’s stunning new R&B album Grey Rainbow Vol. 1. Throughout the Drag Race winner’s new project, Monét takes control of her own narrative with confessional songwriting about heartbreak (“Streetlight”), sex (“Rotation”) and moving forward (“Grey Rainbow”), all while utilizing her silky-smooth, classically-trained voice to thrilling effect. With part two due out later this year, Grey Rainbow Vol. 1 promises even more excellence from a drag superstar to watch.

VINCINT feat. Adam Lambert, “Another Lover”

VINCINT and Adam Lambert is the kind of artist pairing that spins your head with even the thought of them collaborating. So it’s all the more thrilling when the final product of that collaboration, “Another Lover,” is even better than you would have imagined. This pounding dance-pop track perfectly utilizes both artists’ stratospheric voices, as VINCINT and Lambert trade sultry verses about their powers of provocative persuasion. By the time you reach the final chorus, where both stars are riffing and running their hearts out over a thrilling beat, you’ll be feeling the ecstasy they keep singing about on this phenomenal pop banger.

Ben Platt feat. Brandy Clark, “Treehouse”

When you take a Broadway star and pair him with a once-in-a-generation folk singer, you get something magical. Ben Platt and Brandy Clark are a match made in heaven on the stunning new single “Treehouse,” as they duet together on a lovestruck ballad about finding love in all the right places. Neither artist allows the delicate mood to break, keeping their respective voices as tender as possible for this moving ode to building a foundation of love.

Towa Bird, “Time to Pretend” (MGMT cover)

There’s something ingenious about Towa Bird’s Spotify Singles cover of MGMT’s 2007 space-rock jam “Time to Pretend.” Where the original relied on synth arpeggios and electronic distortion, Bird’s version sees the singer embracing her top-tier guitar skills to make a thrilling, markedly-different version of the track. With her own distorted voice filtering through the driving guitar licks that provide the cover its internal engine, Towa Bird takes “Time to Pretend” to a new level on this thrilling new rendition.

Girli, Matriarchy

Rising alt-pop singer Girli has approximately zero time for bulls–t on her entrancing new album, Matriarchy. Across 14 songs, the singer-songwriter embraces a more electro-pop sound to help her talk about self-love (especially on the immediately arresting “Feel My Feelings”), queer crushes (“Nothing Hurts Like a Girl”) and embracing the fact that sometimes, things are just deeply messy (“Lose My Cool”). For anyone dealing with the harsh realities of learning to be an adult, Matriarchy is absolutely essential.

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:

With Pride season just a few short weeks away, there’s no better time to prepare with new tracks from your favorite queer artists. Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.

From Camila Cabello and Lil Nas X’s flirty new collaboration to Beabadoobee’s dreamy new single, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:

Camila Cabello feat. Lil Nas X, “He Knows”

There’s nothing quite like a Friday night out after a stunningly bad week, so Camila Cabello and Lil Nas X decided to bring you an anthem for those unhinged evenings on the town. While “He Knows” continues Cabello’s divisive dance-pop release strategy, the new track takes a few small steps back from “I Luv It,” focusing on a laid-back groove and entrancing vocals rather than a turbocharged beat. And it turns out Lil Nas and Camila make for excellent collaborators, matching one another’s sultry energy with each passing bar to let the boys at the club know that they’re on the prowl.

Beabadoobee, “Take a Bite”

Beabadoobee is back, and with “Take a Bite,” she’s sharper than ever. The introspective pop-rock ballad follows Bea Kristi through her own occasionally intrusive thoughts about the grass being greener on the other side of everything — relationships, careers, and everything in between. Her silky voice glides over a simple beat and some sumptuous guitar chords, making “Take a Bite” an excellent return for the singer-songwriter.

Orville Peck, Stampede: Vol. 1

For his third studio album, Orville Peck is throwing a celebration. On Stampede: Vol. 1, the country crooner is teaming up with stars from all over the spectrum of music to toast their game-changing contributions to country, rock, pop and Americana. Between his excellent duet with Willie Nelson on “Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other” and his rollicking rendition with Elton John to “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting),” plus collaborations with Allison Russell, Nathaniel Rateliff and plenty more, Peck proves that he’s more than just a singer with a mask — he’s a world-class curator paying tribute to the stars who helped pave the way for him.

Adam Lambert, “Whataya Want From Me ’24 (White Shadow’s HEmix)”

It may not seem like 2009 was all that long ago, but plenty has changed in the 15 intervening years. For starters, LGBTQ+ artists didn’t used to feel comfortable singing using their romantic interests’ pronouns. So, Adam Lambert decided to correct the record with a “HEmix” of his 2009 hit “Whataya Want From Me.” Along with bringing in White Shadow to update his classic power ballad with a crunchy EDM beat, Lambert updates one key lyric — instead of singing that “It messed me up/ Need a second to breathe,” the rock singer now declares that “he messed me up.” It might seem like a small update for 2024, but a two-letter word can make all the difference, as Lambert proves on this thrilling remix.

Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Love Hate Music Box

Since unveiling their debut album in 2013, Rainbow Kitten Surprise has made a career out of refining their familiar indie rock sound. But 11 years in, the band is ready for something different. Enter Love Hate Music Box, a sprawling 22-track LP that throws the band’s established sound out the window, aiming for bolder, brighter sounds in pop, rock, dance and Americana, all while maintaining some of the sharpest songwriting in the group’s history courtesy of frontperson Ela Melo. For just over an hour, Love Hate Music Box promises to make you feel just about everything — and we can confidently say that it delivers on that promise.

Remi Wolf, “Toro”

Remi Wolf has always excelled at taking hyper-specific, intimate moments and turning them into grade-A pop bangers. “Toro” is no exception to that rule, as Wolf transforms a last-minute, high stakes romantic encounter and turns it into a grooving, deliciously sexy alt-pop jam. With a bass line that refuses to stay still, Wolf lets the audience know exactly what’s up on the instantly-memorable chorus: “We’re waking up the people down the hall/ You’re a bull, and I can’t help but saying ‘Toro, Toro.’”

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:

With summer fast-approaching, why not fill up your warm-weather playlists with new songs from your favorite queer artists? Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.

From St. Vincent’s raucous new album to Anitta’s exhilarating funk-flavored new LP, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:

St. Vincent, All Born Screaming

To distill All Born Screaming down to one particular concept is to misinterpret it as a work of art. Throughout St. Vincent’s stunning, self-produced seventh studio album, Annie Clark flits in and out of genres, themes and ideas with ease, instead opting to create an album that is at all times changing its shape while maintaining the artistry it took to make it. Whether she’s waxing romantic via art-rock banger “Flea” or giving nihilism a disco-funk makeover on “Big Time Nothing,” St. Vincent has never been more immediately herself than on this thrilling new project.

Anitta, Funk Generation

After proving her dominance as the premiere Brazilian pop sensation, Anitta is ready to help introduce you to her culture. Funk Generation, the latest LP from the Grammy-nominated artist, is a love letter to Brazilian funk music, as she showcases a formative genre of her home for an international audience. The entire album plays as a well-crafted ode to the sounds of favelas, but “Ahi” in particular stands out, as Anitta and guest Sam Smith give audiences a crash course in how to get down.

Salute feat. Rina Sawayama, “Saving Flowers”

Salute wants you to immediately fall into the sounds of summertime with their thrilling new song “Saving Flower.” An ecstatic electronic anthem featuring vocals from British pop star Rina Sawayama, “Saving Flowers” is a song that refuses to take its foot off the gas, maintaining its fervent pop sound for a blissful three and a half minutes. Pairing nicely with Sawayama’s airy voice, Salute’s new song comes just in time to become your new favorite song of the summer. c

Trixie Mattel, “Shadow” (Ashlee Simpson cover)

Drag superstar Trixie Mattel delivering a stirring acoustic rendition of a 20-year-old pop-rock track may not have been on your bingo card for 2024, but that only makes her new Spotify Single that much more interesting. Taking Ashlee Simpson’s “Shadow” and transforming it into a heartfelt ballad, Mattel flexes her crystal-clear baritone voice, adding in just enough folk-flavored twang to make the song definitively her own.

Christine and the Queens, “Rentrer Chez Moi”

After experimenting with his sound, his look and his persona for the last few years, Christine and the Queens would like to come back home. On his moving new song “Rentrer Chez Moi,” Chris returns to the quiet, echoing music that defined much of his early career, singing entirely in his native French about a relationship that’s run its course. The simple-yet-elegant production (the artist produced the song himself) matches Chris’ vocal fragility on this stunning new single.

Isaac Dunbar, Beep Beep Repeat

Step into Isaac Dunbar’s time machine and allow him to transport you back to the musical universe of 1970’s New York City. That’s the world Dunbar thrives in throughout his new EP Beep Beep Repeat — one populated by transient bass, four-on-the-floor drums and theatrical vocals. For six songs, Beep Beep Repeat invites you to disengage from our stark reality and simply revel in some good old-fashioned house parties (“Apartment A”), hangovers (“American High”) and heartpounding rhythms (“Photoshoot Tonight”).

Durand Bernarr, “Unknown”

Durand Bernarr doesn’t have time to wait around for you to make up your mind. On “Unknown,” the latest slice of smooth R&B from the fast-rising artist, follows Bernarr as he narrates the story of a frustrating, lovesick missed connection, where two people who could have been together missed their moment. The slick, pared down production certainly gives the track a boost, but as with every other Durand Bernarr song, the true star is the singer’s unmatched vocals; Bernarr dives into his soulful baritone just as effortlessly as he flips into a sonorous falsetto, making “Unknown” the best kind of sensual vocal rollercoaster ride that you could ask for.

Trinity the Tuck feat. Jujubee, “‘Til Death Becomes Us”

In the immortal (literally) words of Meryl Streep, “these are the moments that make life worth living.” With her new song “‘Til Death Becomes Us,” Drag Race star Trinity the Tuck aims for revenge in a thrilling homage to 1992’s Death Becomes Her. With fellow Drag Race alum Jujubee, the pair deliver a slick, early-2000’s dance-pop banger based solely on that deep, petty loathing you feel for that one person who just won’t get out of your life. Add in their hilarious, campy music video, and you’ve got the recipe for a winning new song from a pair of drag superstars.

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:

When you’re finished listening to Taylor Swift’s Tortured Poets Department, why not dive into some new tunes from your favorite queer artists? Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.

From Joy Oladokun’s reflective new song to Lava La Rue’s rallying cry against oppression, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:

Joy Oladokun, “Questions, Chaos & Faith”

For anyone dealing with the problem of existentialism, Joy Oladokun doesn’t have any answers for you — but she does hope you’re not alone in feeling lost. On her stunning new single “Questions, Chaos & Faith,” the singer-songwriter wrestles with the big questions of life, death, God, endings and all of the intermediate things between. With a set of stacked vocals and an acoustic guitar strumming behind her, Oladokun aims away from certainty, knowing that she can’t provide it over some chords and a pleasing melody. Yet when she delivers the chorus’ opening line, “Nothing is certain, everything changes,” there is no sadness in her voice; just a soft, beautiful acceptance of all those things she cannot change.

Lava La Rue, “Humanity”

In the opening moments of her new music video, Lava La Rue delivers a message directly to her audience: “Be very skeptical of anyone who promotes the narrative that in order to care about the humanitarian right of one group of people, that means you don’t care about another group.” It’s a simple, and extremely effective thesis for the song that follows. “Humanity” tracks La Rue’s own difficult relationship with the concept of collective conscientiousness, wondering why, exactly, we seem to have lost the plot on caring about the people around us. Mixed with her signature groove and pared down for an intimate listening experience, the song poses a question that will ring in your ears: “So many humans, and where’s the humanity?”

Debby Friday, “To the Dancefloor”

If you’re ready to unplug and just feel yourself for a minute, electronic star Debby Friday’s got you covered. “To the Dancefloor” brings a superbly-produced dance track designed to get you out of your feelings and into your body. The scintillating beat and echoing vocal production brings about a thrilling vibe, while Friday’s commanding-but-casual voice draws you even further into her sonic world. You heard what she said — get to the dancefloor, already!

Wafia, “Background”

Indie pop darling Wafia is back, and she’s ready to stand firmly at center stage. With her latest single “Background,” the singer-songwriter sings to a lover who wants to share the limelight with her whenever she can. Through softy-strummed guitars and some delicate synths, Wafia communicates that she’s more than happy to share, and even take a backseat in order to help them feel the warmth of the sun. “if you need me now,” she sings, “I’ll be in the background.”

Pillow Queens, Name Your Sorrow

Packing as much thematic content as they could into their latest album, Pillow Queens are ready to have a frank conversation about the emotinal ebbs and flows of living today. Name Your Sorrow follows through on the promise of its title, with the group diving headfirst into complicated, aching songs about heartbreak, grief, loss, and ulitmately elation, all encompased in cozy, occasionally haunting indie-rock stylings. But don’t let the title fool you, either — Name Your Sorrow may deal in hardship, but it’s a joy to listen to.

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below: