Lots happened this week — Lizzo unveiled the tracklist for her new album Special, Blackpick announced a comeback, and Charlie Puth revealed the release date for his new album Charlie. There’s great stuff on the horizon, but there were also tons of notable songs to come out this week.
Each week, Uproxx rounds up the best new pop releases. Listen up.
Aespa – “Girls”
Nothing is more exciting than a new Aespa song, and “Girls” delivers. It’s an abrasive, fearless anthem with undeniable, contagious attitude and limitless energy. All four of them put everything they have into it, and it explodes with just the right amount of bombast. It’s a perfect song for the summer.
DNCE – “Got Me Good”
DNCE are always supplying invigorating pop tracks that are awesome for dancing to at the club or driving to on the highway under the sun. This new track “Got Me Good” takes things slower, but it’s no less enticing: “Guess that’s the price / Price that I pay / For falling so hard for you in less than a day,” they sing.
King Princess – “Change The Locks”
King Princess’s new song “Change The Locks” is a rock-tinged ballad about disappointment and moving on. It’s haunting with powerful buildups and intense lyrics that cut like a blade: “You have had your heart and body / Turned to someone’s hobby.”
Blackbear – “The Idea”
Blackbear is known for having trouble with love, and his new song takes on an MGK-like pop-punk edge with Travis Barker on the drums to explore a conflicted relationship. He’s more earnest than ever, giving up rapping for sincere singing: “Wake up my demons and my biggest fears / Are you in love with me or the idea?”
James Bay – “Save Your Love”
James Bay is directly tugging at his listener’s heartstrings with this visceral ballad “Save Your Love,” which reckons with someone who is lusting after someone who doesn’t treat them well. It’s absolutely crushing when he sings the hook “Save your love / For someone who’s never gonna run,” but it’s also inspiring.
Ed Sheeran, Burna Boy – “For My Hand”
Ed Sheeran has been doing a bunch of unexpected collaborations, but this new one with Burna Boy is a pleasant surprise. Their voices together are a delight, and it’s a wholesome song off the bat: “I wanna be in your life until the night is over / I want to hold you so tight,” they sing.
Niki – “Oceans & Engines”
Niki has been impressing with her songs from her forthcoming album Nicole, and “Oceans & Engines” only builds the hype for the LP more. “I wrote this song in 2016 when I was 17 experiencing the earth-shattering heartbreak of a first love moving away for good,” she said about the track, and this intensity is captured perfectly in the poignant ballad.
Easy Life, Benee – “OTT”
The genre-bending Benee has teamed up with Easy Life for this new song “OTT,” a feel-good, funny track with great quips: “I don’t understand you, / ‘Cause you’ve got a face like a slapped fish / Always in vain but in vogue and on trend / Sure hope you calm down in the end.”
Tini, Becky G, Anitta – “La Loto”
This collaboration between Tini, Becky G, and Anitta is all anyone could ask for; it’ll definitely be one of the biggest party anthems of the year. It has fierce, catchy energy, and pulsates with an infectious beat. All of the vocals are strong and mix together amazingly.
Brakence – “Venus Fly Trap”
It’s impossible to not dance to Brakence’s new track “Venus Fly Trap.” The beat is relentlessly compelling as his frustration comes across in the spitting of the irresistible hook: “I take it better when she don’t even ask me / Three chords, and she all over me nasty.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Source: https://uproxx.com/pop/best-new-pop-aespa-ed-sheeran-king-princess/