August means that summer is winding down and the youth are getting back to the grind of school days. But even as the dog days start to lose a little bite, the music is still hot as ever. And this week is a wide variety of new ‘ish from some of the best in hip-hop, R&B, and even blues.
The legendary Buddy Guy is riding high off of his Sinners appearance as he drops his new project; plus Metro Boomin delivers a mixtape perfect for the weekend.
A new posthumous Aaliyah performance finally gets a wide release and it comes courtesy of A.I., with an assist from Tank; and the ladies are out front this week, with a new bop from Saweetie; plus a Ciara and Latto pairing you’ve just got to hear.
Of course, the fellas weren’t outdone: East Coast boom bap is in full effect when DJ Premier joins forces with none other than Roc Marciano. And Y.G. teams up with Leon Thomas for “Lovers Or Friends”; while ARAABMuzik brings his A game on the album sequel, Electronic Dream 2.
Each week, Okayplayer will deliver a roundup of all the latest new heat from some of our favorite artists. Check out the latest offerings below.
NEW SONGS
AALIYAH AND TANK – “GONE”
The late R&B singer gets an AI-assisted new release with superstar Tank. The song was originally released in the spring, but is now available on all streaming platforms.
MARIAH THE SCIENTIST W/KALI UCHIS – “IS IT A CRIME”
No the track isn’t a Sade cover or sample, but these two team up for a rumination or forbidden love. Here’s hoping Ms. Adu shows up on a remix.
MILES CATON – “SOMETHIN”
He’s definitely got a soulful, rich sound. The breakout star of SInners is doing the smart thing and dropping his debut single while the world is still buzzing about his performance in that vampire period film.
BUDDAH BLESS W/2 CHAINZ, BIG SEAN, BOSSMAN DLOW – “SEE THE WORLD”
The Grammy nominee has put together quite the lineup for this cut; it’s a celebration of all things global – the kind of luxury rap that it seems like anyone can relate to.
SAWEETIE W/TWICE – “SUPERSTARS”
The K-pop girl group has been posting clips of themselves dancing with Saweetie in a studio. It was the perfect way to intro their collaboration.
CIARA, LATTO AND JAZZE PHA – “THIS RIGHT HERE”
It’s all things Atlanta on this heat rock of a single. Clayton County and DeKalb join forces on this new track from three of the city’s biggest stars.
YG W/LEON THOMAS – “LOVERS OR FRIENDS”
The Compton rap vet has always been the torchbearer for classic West Coast sounds, and on his newest track, he teams up with Thomas for a Cali-soaked reminder that he’s holding the sound down.
THAT MEXICAN O.T. FEAT. PESO PESO – “ACCESSORIES”
He just dropped Chicken & Sauce back in April, but is his latest a sneak peak of what’s coming on the yet-to-be-released Recess?
CONWAY THE MACHINE, “SE7ENTEEN5IVE”
The Buffalo rap star has never had any shortage of introspective, gritty ruminations to draw from; and on his new single he gets ill over a track that sounds like a GZA tune from 1995. In the best way.
SWANK MAMI, “BADDIES”
The Norwegian star is a different kind of pop phenomenon and she seems to revel in doing her own thing and cultivating a broad sound.
TIWA SAVAGE W/SKEPTA, “ON THE LOW”
The Afrobeats is working with Big Smoke setting the table for her upcoming album, This One Is Personal.
INDIA SHAWN W/LUCKY DAYE, “COTTON CANDY BLVD”
She’s pushing into new directions and it’s so exciting to see–and hear. And she teams up with one of the most progressive R&B artists in music today.
BUNNA B – “FINE SHYT”
The East Atlanta rapper knows how to have fun, and she has a gift for the kind of infectious tracks that her forbears Crime Mob used to do so well. Her new single is a perfect example of why she’s one to watch.
GUCCI MANE – “I NEED YOU”
Atlanta’s own trap gawd returns with an ode to his wife. Here Gucci open up for yourself below.
KALAN.FRFR – “HADJU”
After previewing the track on social media for weeks, he finally officially drops the first single from his upcoming album California Player.
VICTORY – “A LOVE SONG FROM GOD”
The Roc Nation artist drops her first release of the year; blending gospel, jazz and R&B over a grand and cinematic soundscape. Deeply emotional performance from a singer’s singer.
TIARA THOMAS – “KISS ME”
The Grammy and Oscar-winning singer-songwriter makes her return with this breezy single– carried by her trademark earnestness and gift for storytelling.
JUVENILE – “HOT BOY SUMMER”
Taking a break from the Cash Money Records’ 30th Anniversary Tour to remind you that summer anthems is what he does. Juvie is back and proving that he’s still one of the best at giving you party anthems.
GHOSTFACE KILLAH – “RAP KINGPIN”
Ghostface is officially getting you ready for his highly anticipated Supreme Clientele 2, flipping an Eric B & Rakim classic as only Ghostdini can.
DJ PREMIER & ROC MARCIANO – “PRAYER HANDS”
Preem and Marci delivering another teaser for their upcoming The Coldest Profession. The project’s second single is a stripped-down groove, as Marci’s lyricism gets plenty of space to shine.
ABIR – “NOTHING NEW”
ABIR returns with “Nothing New,” an emotionally transparent new single that’s as stylish as it is open.
NEW ALBUMS
ARAABMUZIK, ‘ELECTRONIC DREAM 2’
His breakthrough album as an artist blended hip-hop with EDM, and now he’s finally delivering a proper sequel to that project a decade and a half later.
OT THE REAL & 38 SPESH, ‘POSSESSION WITH INTENT’
With their new release, OT gets the best out of Spesh, who contributes vocals and also produced the entirety of the project. A reminder to everyone of how nice he is on the production side.
MONTANA 700, ‘THE GREATEST OF ALL TRAPS’ MIXTAPE
Building on Montana’s “New Dallas” movement, this set bounces from the early to mid-00s ATL sound to smoky Texas bounce to a classic West Coast G funk.
XAVIORSOBASED, ‘ONCE MORE’ EP
After dropping two acclaimed projects in 2024, the rapper out of New York City surprise dropped his new EP, which features a pair of collaborations with OsamaSon.
$UICIDEBOY$, ‘THY KINGDOM COME’
The duo out of New Orleans does it again. Their sixth studio album features the previously released track “Self-Inflicted,” which has been buzzing heavily across social media.
BABYTRON, ‘LUKA TRONCIC 2’
Celebrating his birthday by dropping a sequel to his 2021 mixtape is undeniably cheeky; and you can tell the Detroit rap star is coming into his own.
LIL POPPA, ‘ALMOST NORMAL AGAIN’
The rapper out of Jacksonville continues his hot streak. And he just released his EP Hold That Thought less than three months ago.
BUDDY GUY, ‘AIN’T DONE WITH THE BLUES’
The blues legend got a big boost from Ryan Coogler’s hit Sinners, but make no mistake, Buddy Guy’s bona fides run decades deep. And he’s still one of the greatest guitarists in the world.
YEAT, ‘DANGEROUS SUMMER’
His seventh EP, and the West Coast rapper with the oddball fashion sense is still growing as a rhymer. But he knows how to drum up interest; he has spent most of the summer building anticipation for the project.
CHEF BOY, ‘I AM SUMMER’
He threw a party in West Hollywood to celebrate the release and the audacity of claiming the season feels kind of appropriate. Summer swagger on a hundred, for real.
METRO BOOMIN, ‘A FUTURISTIC SUMMA’ Mixtape
This is a crash course on what Y2K era ATL felt and sounded like. The best kind of musical history lesson is the one that sounds inspired and fresh–not like a “revival.”
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