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.
This week, Latto keeps hip-hop fans on their toes, Shawn Mendes returns on his own terms and J Balvin brings a ton of friends to the party. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Latto, Sugar Honey Iced Tea
Time and again over the course of his career, Latto has zagged away from expectations, lobbing out pop tracks as an underground star then turning in ferocious verses instead of catering to radio; similarly, new album Sugar Honey Iced Tea abides by Southern rap touchestones but refuses to be pigeonholed, as Latto offers up old-school bars while tinkering with his own image and that of popular hip-hop.
Shawn Mendes, “Why Why Why”
“I stepped off the stage with nothing left / All the lights were f–king with my head,” Shawn Mendes admits on “Why Why Why,” a highly compelling piece of folk-pop that finds the singer-songwriter vulnerable to the point of sounding haunted, two years removed from canceling a tour due to mental health purposes — lucky for us, the next line goes, “But here I am, singing songs again.”
J Balvin, Ray
Only four of the 15 tracks on J Balvin’s new album Ray are solo cuts, with the guest-heavy project boasting visits from Feid, Carin Leon, Zion and Bad Gyal, among many others — yet Balvin never gets overshadowed as he hopscotches across genre exercises, keeping the tempo up and sounding at ease within trap, reggaeton, Mexican and electro-pop compositions.
Katy Perry, “Lifetimes”
Katy Perry teased “Lifetimes” as a new single aimed at listeners who “want to rave,” and indeed, the follow-up to “Woman’s World” contains a more club-ready thump and outsized hook — but “Lifetimes” also marks the return of Perry’s emotional intensity, with her passion and undying devotion now directed to her daughter, Daisy.
Asake, Lungu Boy
Nigerian superstar Asake has put in quick work to become one of the biggest Afrobeats artists in the world, and Lungu Boyhis third album in three years, is designed to keep his momentum intact: the Travis Scott team-up “Active” is a deserving mainstream shot that will get plenty of party spins, but the quieter moments on songs like “My Heart” and the Wizkid collaboration “MMS” make for a more well-rounded project.
Ravyn Lenae, Bird’s Eye
After grabbing hold of R&B diehards on 2022 debut HYPNOSRavyn Lenae has honed her approach on Bird’s Eyewhich features Childish Gambino and Ty Dolla $ign but is defined by the airiness of Lenae’s melodies — from the excellent opener “Genius” onward, she sounds like a sorceress, conjuring hooks out of the atmosphere around her.
NIKI, Buzz
88rising breakout NIKI has earned a large following with subtly drawn pop songs that swell up in front of sprawling festival crowds; Buzz, her latest full-length of ella, tweaks her atmospheric approach and drills down on her personal touches of ella, revealing more from the rising star even on instances in which her voice of ella is distorted or evaporating.
Beabadoobee, This is How Tomorrow Moves
Light years removed from her breakthrough thanks to Powfu’s “Death Bed (Coffee For Your Head),” Beabadoobee continues carving out a singular alt-rock path on third album This is How Tomorrow Moveswith Rick Rubin helming the new full-length and helping streamline the guitar chug and wistful hooks on songs like “California” and “Beaches.”
Bear Bear, Life Till Bones
Whether he’s working in the emo, indie-rock or pop worlds, Jade Lilitri remains a towering songwriting force — and Life Till Boneshis latest Oso Oso project, may be his finest moment to date, an accessible update to the aesthetic that made 2019’s Basking in the Glow so essential while also reflecting on personal tragedy and the strength that can unexpectedly result from such sadness.
Editor’s Pick: Amos Lee, Transmissions
After settling into his skin on 2022’s DreamlandAmos Lee continues operating in a winning mode — with even more introspection — on Transmissionsa collection of gentle, jazzy Americana-pop amalgamations that include some of Lee’s strongest songwriting to date, particularly the poignant self-examination of “Beautiful Day” and “Carry You On,” a lump-in-throat tribute to a fallen friend .
