Billboard’sFriday Music Guideserves as a handy guide to New Music Friday’s most essential releases each week — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
Last week, we featured Charli xcx, MUNA and Kelela.
This week: Gracie Abrams teases her recently-announced fourth album, Daughter From Hell, with its lead single; Drake returns with his anticipated Iceman — plus two more projects titled Maid Of Honour and Habibti; and Maluma delivers his most personal album to date, Loco X Volver … plus much more. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Gracie Abrams, “Hit the Wall”
Gracie Abrams’ now longtime collaborator Aaron Dessner wasn’t playing when he spoke about the singer’s upcoming album in an Instagram caption earlier this week: “You’ll hear us expanding our musical vocabulary and pushing into uncharted waters sonically…it feels elevated in every way.” Lead single “Hit the Wall” is an airy and lyrically loaded track, with lines like, “A room full of doctors and an inkblot/ I’m drawn into headlights, have a blind spot” or, “I live in a pattern of breakdowns/ You’ll bend to my silence, it’s so loud.” The track arrives as the perfect connector for where Abrams has been and where she is heading — and proves that if this is her starting point, Daughter From Hell is surely going to hurt like hell.
Drake, Iceman
After teasing his anticipated Iceman album, Drake more than delivered — also dropping Maid of Honour and Habibti on Friday. In all, the three releases total 43 new tracks and nearly two-and-a-half hours of listening (and push his solo full-length discography into double digits). Needless to say, the artist had a lot to get off his chest since his For All the Dogs release in 2023.
Iceman focus track, “Ran To Atlanta,” features Future and Molly Santana and is one of just two tracks on the project that taps guests. Meanwhile, Maid Of Honour and Habibti are a bit more feature-packed, with artists including Sexxy Red, Central Cee, PARTYNEXTDOOR and others appearing across the tracklists. So, roll your sleeves up and get to listening.
Tove Lo, “I’m Your Girl Right?”
It’s been four years since Tove Lo released an album (her last was 2022’s Dirt Femme) and new single “I’m Your Girl Right?” reminds listeners of what we’ve been missing. The track finds a sweet spot between mid-tempo pop and full-blown dance banger — exactly what Tove Lo has always done best. The track serves as the lead single for her upcoming sixth album, ESTRUS, out Sept. 18. As the artist shared in a statement: “I know you’ve been waiting along time and I hope it’s worth the wait. It was for me!”
Rostam, “Hardy (feat. Clairo)”
With the release of Rostam’s third solo album, American Stories, he continues to prove that patience pays off (his last album, Changephobia, arrived in 2021) and that he still has that magic touch. Standout track “Hardy” opens unexpectedly with jittery, gorgeous strings that subtly fade into piano chords — only to return again halfway through for an instrumental interlude that also features trumpet to introduce Clairo’s verse. The song then ends with the chorus that’s all about acceptance: “Some things you said to me have stuck in my mind/ And though I’ll never have the chance to say why/ Maybe the greatest art is never completed/ We only have to leave it knowing we tried.”
Jorja Smith, “What’s Done Is Done”
Jorja Smith’s sultry, silky vocals are an expected, welcomed component of all her songs — and while they do their thing on “What’s Done Is Done,” the production comes as a surprise. Loaded with heart-pounding synth and bass, there’s a creeping, electric backbone to the track that perfectly soundtracks the basement club energy Smith channels in its music video.
Lenny Tavárez, “PA’ LO BONITO”
Lenny Tavárez continues to prove his artistic versatility in his new single “PA’ LO BONITO,” produced by award-winning hitmaker Sergio George. A shift from Tavárez’s sultry reggaetonero identity — both lyrically and sonically — the track is a love letter turned salsa music with hints of cumbia beats. During an intimate press event in Miami earlier this week, the Puerto Rican artist said he originally penned the song for Chayanne to collaborate with Ricky Martin, but he decided to keep it for himself because not only did he fall in love with it, but he joked about needing a new hit. In the music video, Tavárez shows off his sleek salsa dance moves with his wife. — JESSICA ROIZ
Maluma, Loco X Volver
If the title is any indication, Maluma was dying to return — to his roots, to his essence, to Colombia, to his family. After a hectic touring life, during which he experienced panic attacks, and becoming a first-time dad, the Colombian artist presents his most personal and honest album to date, Loco X Volver. Home to 14 tracks, Maluma steps out of his signature reggaetón sound and navigates rhythms that are essential to his country: salsa in “Tu Recuerdo,” vallenato in “El Vallenato” and música popular in “Con el Corazón” with the late singer Yeison Jimenez.He also flirts with kizomba, norteño music, and pop rock à la Juanes, as well as a sweet lullaby dedicated to his two-year-old daughter Paris. Loco X Volver, which the artist previously expressed on Instagram “helped me heal,” is dedicated to the aspiring artists in Medellín and serves as a reminder that hard work, discipline and passion go a long way, as Maluma himself shares in the opening self-titled track. — J.R.
Mýa, Retrospect
Grammy-winning ’00s R&B icon Mýa is back with Retrospect, her first new album in eight years. Featuring cross-generational collaborations with the likes of 21 Savage, Snoop Dogg, Too $hort, D-Nice, Joyner Lucas, Dizzy Wright, and Phil Adé, Retrospect finds the D.C.-born singer mining late ’70s and ’80s Minneapolis funk for a set of R&B tunes crafted from both the dancefloor and the bedroom. Released through her Planet 9 indie label and distributed via Virgin Music Group, Retrospect marks a bold new chapter and a welcome return for one of R&B’s most buttery, singular voices. — KYLE DENIS
Shaggy, Lottery
Mr. Boombastic is back! Lottery marks Shaggy’s first solo studio album since 2022’s Come Fly Wid Mi, and it’s stacked with 13 tracks that brilliantly fuse reggae and dancehall with a global pop appeal. The record is stacked with high-wattage guest stars — Sting, Robin Thicke, Akon, Jeremih, Anthony Hamilton, Beres Hammond, Dexta Daps, etc. — and Shaggy is the common thread thanks to his commanding, signature voice and knack for irresistible melodies. Be sure to check out the resolute, faith-based opener “God Is Amazing.” — K.D.
Megan Moroney, “Traitor (Roles Reversed)”
Megan Moroney offers up a bonus track from her third album Cloud 9 with this well-written, scathing song. Her voice simmers with frustration and hard-won wisdom as she delivers a sharp, expertly-written takedown, confronting a “master manipulator” who disguises his own infidelity by labeling her as paranoid for daring to question his behavior around another woman. Moroney has long established her expert ability to write keen songs skewering foolish, unfaithful men, and “Traitor” is another cutting example of that skill. — JESSICA NICHOLSON
49 Winchester, Change of Plans
Since forming in 2013, this Virginia-rooted band has toured with artists including Luke Combs and Tyler Childers, and earned a die-hard legion of fans with songs including “Russell County Line.” Their new Dave Cobb-produced project was previewed with songs including “Oh Savannah” and “Pardon Me,” while the project also leans into the group’s rock influences on a cover of Black Sabbath’s “Changes.” This tightly-constructed 10-song album, spearheaded by lead singer Isaac Gibson’s gritty vocals, weaves through the Appalachian strains of “The Window” to the full-throttle country-rocker “Heavy Chevy” and the tender tracks “All Around Me” and “Oh Savannah,” all while continuing to center the group’s music on raw, emotionally-rooted storytelling. — J.N.
Angèle ft. Justice, “What You Want (Fcukers Remix)”
An instant fav when it was released in February, the original “What You Want” by Belgian chanteuse Angèle and Justice gets a heavy rework by NYC cool kid duo Fcukers. Together they reduce the track down to its base elements and assemble a fresh iteration that maintains the sexy, ominous spirit of the original while makingit their own. Theedit bumps along on choppy electro, with the group’s Shanny Wise making it a duet by pairing her breathy vocals withAngèle’s also breathy (and in French!) singing. While the original chugged along with characteristic Justice muscle, this new one is more a sinewy wind up and release, with a heady drop to satisfy headphonelisteners and dancefloor enthusiasts alike. — KATIE BAIN
Madonna & Peggy Gou, “I Feel So Free (Peggy Gou Energy Mix)”
Madonna could’ve likely selected any producer to remix the lead single from her forthcoming Confessions II, and damn if it doesn’t feel exactly right that she picked Peggy Gou. Both style greats, astute businesswomen and — most crucially here — dancefloor final bosses, the linkup finds Gou adding serious bounce to Madonna’s lush, cerebral original. As the “Energy Mix” moniker suggests, Gou goes HI-NRG with the edit, bumping up the BPM, adding elasticity to the bass and making the whole thing more disco without losing the sleek, modern feel. The edit also retains its spiritual anchor of the “Oh, by the way, it all started like this” sample from Lil Louis’ 1989 classic “French Kiss.” An altogether mighty meeting of the minds. No notes.— K.B.
