New Music Report - New Releases Week of July 24th

FPM

Happy Monday! Kickstart your week ahead by checking out all of the new music that has just been released in this roundup of new songs, new albums, and new artists that you need to be listening to. From new albums by Foster the People and Lana Del Rey, to new songs from Shania Twain and X Ambassadors, to new collaborations from Bebe Rexha & Louis Tomlinson and Justine Sky & Jeremih, take a look at this week's new releases.

Louis Tomlinson featuring Bebe Rexha & Digital Farm Animals - "Back To You"

Following his collaboration with Steve Aoki, Louis Tomlinson has returned with his own solo single featuring Bebe Rexha and UK producer/DJ Digital Farm Animals. The melodic EDM-influenced single is about "the most extreme situation of that kind of relationship," as explained by Louis during a recent UK radio interview. In the chorus, Louis and Bebe sing, "Whoa, you stress me out, you kill me/You drag me down, you f*** me up/We're on the ground, we're screaming/I don't know how to make it stop/I love it, I hate it, and I can't take it/But I keep on coming back to you."

"Back To You" will appear on Tomlinson's debut solo album, according to Billboard, and also comes with a music video. The three-minute and eighteen-second visual shows Louis and Bebe singing the song in city streets and in a soccer stadium. Louis tweeted about the clip, "Hope you all like the video. I'm really proud of it."

Foster The People - Sacred Hearts Club

Sacred Heart Club is the third studio album by Foster the People and hears the rock band touch on a '60s inspired sound with a psychedelic influence. Instead of utilizing super-producers, Mark Foster and Isomm Innis provide much of the production for the collection and when they're not offering up bars (yes, bars), they're flowing into a sea of electronic techniques with some warm melodies. It’s probably a little more mainstream than most FTP following are used to but, after almost a decade in the game, they have to evolve in one way or another. See: “Pay the Man” and “Sit Next to Me"

Foster The People

Lana Del Rey - Lust for Life

Lana Del Rey returns with her new album, Lust for Life, and it’s a 16-track collection, which hears the pop siren offering her narratives about America through her dreamy pop lens. As her fifth studio album, which she said was made specifically for her fans, LDR teams up with a number of prolific guests like A$AP Rocky, The Weeknd, Stevie Nicks and Benny Blanco for the gorgeous set. "This record is really different. When there were the women’s marches, I was writing about that. There was enough space in my mind to really absorb everything,” she recently said of the set. "I think I was very much in the mix of culture in California over the last five years, but it feels good to feel more connected to a wider world."

Lana Del Rey

Steve Aoki - Kolony

Steve Aoki has taken a break from his Neon Future to release the heavily hip hop focused album Kolony. Kolony features ten new songs and includes features from rappers like Gucci Mane, T-Pain, Migos, Lil Uzi Vert, Ma$e, Wale, 2 Chainz, Lil Yachty, and more. Steve recently told iHeartRadio of the making of his new album: 

"Last year, I was on the road to finishing you know Neon Future III, and thing is when you're taking sessions and you're doing sessions with all kinds of different artists, you don't know what's going to happen, you don't know where it's going to go, or where it fits. And a lot of the production I was doing, a lot of the sessions I was doing with the hip hop artists I was working with, it all seemed to fit in its own project; its own world."

Steve Aoki

Nine Inch Nails - Add Violence

Nine Inch Nails has also returned with a new EP called ADD VIOLENCE, a five-track follow-up to 2016's Not The Actual Events. It's part of a longer plan for the rock veterans. In fact, you can expect two more EPs before the year wraps, completing the trilogy of records that they've announced. As per a press release, the rock staple attempted to work on a bigger sonic transition with this part of their trilogy. “The sonic palette expands significantly from Not the Actual Events, incorporating elements of beauty into the dark dissonance. The narrative arc linking the three records begins to emerge through the disassociated lyrics and the provocative and clue-filed cover artwork and accompanying physical component,” the press release reads.

Add Violence

Tyler, The Creator - Flower Boy

After the public heard leaked audio of his new album, Tyler, The Creator’s project is finally here. A couple of weeks ago, the recording artist caused a frenzy when some lyrics from his Flower Boy album surfaced and suggested that he was gay. On "Garden Shed," he rapped: "All my friends lost/ They couldn't read the signs/ I didn't wanna talk and tell 'em my location/ And they ain't wanna walk. Truth is, since a youth kid, thought it was a phase/Thought it'd be like the Frank; poof, gone/ But, it's still goin' on." Plus, on "I Ain't Got Time!" Tyler says: "Next line will have 'em like 'Whoa'/ I been kissing white boys since 2004."

Now, we can listen to the project in it’s entirety and learned more about what the rapper is saying – and what he has been saying for years without people paying much attention before. Flower Boy has 14 tracks, including previously released “Who Dat Boy,” “911 / Mr. Lonely,” “Boredom,” and most recently “I Ain’t Got Time!” Enjoy the trip in Tyler’s deepest thoughts.

Tyler The Creator

Shania Twain - "Poor Me"

Country QUEEN Shania Twain is giving us another taste of her new upcoming (and long-awaited) album Now, which is set to be released this September. Shania shared a new song called "Poor Me," which follows previously released lead single "Life's About to Get Good." "Poor Me" begins with a guitar with that sounds very similar to The Chainsmokers' "Don't Let Me Down," but the melodic emotional song is all about betrayal in a relationship, and trying to move on from the heartbreak. Shania sings, "Why do I keep looking back?/Poor me this, poor me that/It's not white, it’s not black/Grey's the color that I see/Still can't believe he'd leave me/To love her." And playing off the song's title, Twain follows up the chorus with, "Pour me another."

Meek Mill - Wins & Losses

Meek Mill released his third studio album, Win and Losses, on Friday (July 21) and it’s his most personal project to date. In an interview with iHeartRadio, Meek told us: I named the title of my album Wins and Losses [because] I wanted to give the fans my perspective on wins and losses, and my trials and tribulations, and what made me be the person I am today. In this album, I'm really speaking on a lot of things I've been through in the last few years. So, [I] just [want] to give people my side of the story.”

When the rapper was asked how listeners of his album will hear his growth, he continued: I think people are going to see the maturity in my music [by] the way I'm talking, the way I'm flowing, expressing myself better. [I’m] just not using anger most times. Sometimes on this new album, being vulnerable and expressing my real feelings and showing people both sides, I ain't just showing them the tough side of me. I'm showing them the emotional side, the wiser side, the more mature side. So, I think they'll see growth in it.”

Meek Mill

X Ambassadors - "Ahead of Myself"

After the world premiere of the song via their performance on the Late Night With Seth Meyers, X Ambassadors unleashed the studio version of “Ahead of Myself.” The song hears the band starting off slow with acoustics, before it explodes into bigger territories with a heavy drum beat and splashes of electronic elements. "Ahead of Myself" is the first official single from X Ambassadors' forthcoming sophomore album, the follow-up to 2015's "Renegades"-boasting debut, VHS. It's going to be a hard act to follow-up, but "Ahead of Myself" shows some promise!

JCY featuring Sisqo - "Thong Song"

Sisqo is back with a fresh new take on his 1999 hit "Thong Song" and a sexy video to match. The singer partnered up with Norwegian production group JCY to create an EDM version of the smash. For the most part, the lyrics and summer fun vibes are all still there. This new video also takes place on a beach with beautiful women in bathing suits. Sisqo even dances the same choreographed moves from the original vid.

"I've been asked so many times over the years to make a new version of 'Thong Song,' and I have declined every time until I heard the new version that JCY did," Sisqo told Buzzfeed News about the remake. "I thought it was dope and figured maybe it was time to put some new rims on the Bugatti."

A-Trak featuring Quavo & Lil Yachty - "Believe"

A-Trak has teamed up with Quavo and Lil Yachty on his new single "Believe." According to Billboard, the track is the result of a "hangout sessions at Atlanta’s Quality Control studios," and showcases both rappers going back and forth about how far they've come. Quavo spits, "They call me Quavo J Crawl/Middle finger to the law/Did what it takes to be boss." Later on in the track they rap, "They hated me like Bush/But I'ma still rise, woah."

Sage The Gemini - Morse Code

With barely any warning at all, Sage The Gemini released an EP entitled Morse Code. He previously dropped the singles “Reverse,” “Handle,” and “Grip” But, we had no idea that an entire project was coming to us this quick. The new EP consists of 15 tracks. Artists like Kap G, Show Banga, Kent Jones, and Lil Yase are featured on Morse Code, as well. Talent who helped produce the EP includes Sage, himself, as well as Joe London, P-Lo, Axident and Ian Kirkpatrick. Morse Code is the follow up to 2014’s Remember Me.

Sage The Gemini

Tyga - B*tch I'm The S**t 2

Don’t sleep on Tyga because he stays busy. The rapper just released his sequel to 2011’s B**ch I’m The S**t mixtape. This new mixtape has 16 tracks total and one is hotter than the next. Tyga wasn’t playing any game when it came to the features on the project. The likes of Kanye West, Vince Staples, Quavo, Young Thug, Pusha T, Ty Dolla $ign and more are all on it. West even lent a helping producing hand, as well. “I think I’m just creating my own sound now.” Tyga told Hot New Hip Hop album his new body of work. “From sampling other records that I was inspired by, and telling more of a story and painting a picture of the lifestyle.”

Tyga

NAV & Metro Boomin - Perfect Timing

Ever since Metro Boomin announced that a joint album with himself and Nav was in the works back in December, fans have been impatiently waiting for its release. Now, the wait is finally over and it’s Perfect Timing! No really, that’s the name of the project: Perfect Timing. The collaborative project has 15 fire tracks on it and features some of the dopest artists in the game right now. From Gucci Mane, A$AP Ferg, Offset, Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage and more; the LP is life from beginning to end. You won’t be able to stop replaying it.

Perfect Timing

Kevin Gates - "No Love"

Kevin Gates may be locked up. But, that’s not stopping his grind. The rapper released a new song entitled “No Love” last week. Throughout the track, Gates explains why he stopped rocking with so-called friends. “Ni**as want a feature, they gon’ holler Gates,” he raps. “Ni**as want protection, they gon’ say my name / Ni**as want some fame, stand on side of Gates / I can see the snakes, ni**a you too late.” This release is the follow up to “What If,” a song he released back in April, while still being incarcerated.

Vic Mensa - The Autobiography

Surprise! Roc Nation rapper Vic Mensa dropped his much-anticipated The Autobiography album one week early via NPR. This album was executive produced by JAY-Z’s 4:44 producer No. I.D. This new project is such a gem that even Hov, himself, pulled up to one of Mensa’s listening parties and congratulated him on it. It features other artists like Pharrell, Pusha T, Ty Dolla $ign and The-Dream.

During a previous interview with iHeartRadio, Mensa replied when asked about the vibe of the album: “The album is a very continuous, kind of like a linear story, though. It's really narrative-based. The main thing about it is storytelling. And the music on the capsule is a little bit more varied. It's less verbatim of a story. But, that is the thread of the album. It's a sequence of events that all kind of interplay.”

Vic Mensa

Old Dominion - "Shoe Shopping"

We are a month away from Old Dominion's second studio album Happy Endings from dropping, and the band has shared another new song from the upcoming record. "Shoe Shopping" follows previously released songs like "Written in the Sand" and "No Such Thing as a Broken Heart." The new song compares the search for finding that special someone to the search for finding the perfect shoe. In the chorus, Old Dominion lead singer Matthew Ramsey sings, "Looking for the perfect fit, how's about/Some high-heel, high-top, pump 'em up, flip-flop/Heads-up, lucky penny loafer on a sidewalk/Patent leather, blue suede, tailor made, whatever you like/If you're shoe shopping, try me on for size."

Justine Sky featuring Jeremih - "Back for More"

Justine Skye recruited Jeremih for her new song “Back For More.” The Brooklyn singer’s voice always sounds beautiful on each and every track she performs. But, this one is something special. “I'm pretty sure we've all had a situation where a certain ex or person finds their way back in your life," Skye told Billboard about the song. "I've realized that it's not about dwelling over it and overthinking." She continued: “Hitmaka and AyoNKeyz sent the song over, and it spoke volumes to what was really going on with me.”

Emily Warren - "Something To Hold On To" 

Singer/songwriter Emily Warren has returned with another solo single "Something To Hold On To." Emily has written many of The Chainsmokers' hit songs and recently toured with the EDM duo. She is currently working on her solo album and previously released her solo single "Hurt By You," and "Something To Hold On To" serves as the second single from the project. The emotional ballad is about watching the person you love put themselves through harm. Emily starts the song off by singing in the first verse, "You put your lips to nicotine and say it's just the one/But nicotine don't care about your lungs/You squeeze my hand, you say it's fineIt's only when you're drunk/I wish I'd let you just do what you want."

Mobb Deep – "Try My Hand"

The Alchemist, a longtime friend and collaborator, decided to tribute late Mobb Deep member, Prodigy, with the release of a new song entitled "Try My Hand." This track is featured on Alchemist and Budgie’s joint album, The Good Book, Vol. 2. The producer dropped this on Soundcloud and captioned it, “For my brother,” referring to the late Mobb Deep rapper.

Prodigy raps on the song's hook: “Y’all can’t f**k with these bums/They want to test my aim, and challenge my gun/The devil want to try my hand/But God got a master plan.” In his verse, P continues: “She never heard talk like this, I capture your attention/My gat is a gift from God for you to listen” and “Well violence is the best translator/Bullets are universal, see, now you can relate to a thug.”

Jez - "Sober"

Jez Dior's longtime hustle is starting to pay off with the release of his new single, "Sober," which recalls a blurry night out for the Los Angeles-based singer. It includes a somber piano intro that eventually makes its way deep into grunge-rap cut and almost prompts uncontrollable head-bobbing. We’ve all been there before, Jez. Expect to see the visual for this intoxicated anthem in the coming weeks. "Sober" follows the release of his five-track Youthanasia EP, which he dropped last September.


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