Tune in to the latest must-hear releases from Jung Kook, DRAMA, Libianca, Mustafa and more
While the world is going through all kinds of mayhem, it seems nothing can really stop new music from making its way out there and finding its way to be a healer.
After several single releases, Blink-182 release their much-anticipated LP One More Time… – an album that is surprisingly thin on introspection and maturity and almost feels like lost-tapes release. It’s unfortunate the band refrains from showing depth after all the members have gone through very public challenges. While they may have thought let’s give the old fans what they want, I think the old fans will likely just repeat their previous hits rather than listen to this new collection.
The same can’t be said for The Rolling Stones, who give us Hackney Diamonds, their first new release in 18 years. While we’ve already heard their collab with Lady Gaga and Elton John respectively, the truth of the matter is that they don’t need guest features to give us substance. The album is first-rate and that’s not just for long-term fans of the legendary band. We don’t know how many more rounds the rockers have in them but if this is it, it’s a great way to end!
Beyond these bands, there are new singles from the likes of Charli XCX with Sam Smith – their “In The City” collab is probably a notch above the Priyanka Chopra & will.i.am similarly-titled song, which isn’t saying much. Chris Brown continues to turn every genre into a Chris Brown song as he teams up with Afrobeat stars Davido and Lojay for “Sensational.” I don’t know how this man manages to make every song sound like you already know it.
And then we have Sabrina Carpenter who gives us a Spotify Singles release worth talking about, namely because she got the blessing from Taylor Swift herself on her cover “I Knew You Were Trouble.” Carpenter has slowly been becoming a mainstay on the charts and it would be kinda awesome to hear a Swift cover actually make it to radio and become a hit on its own again!
Of course, there are many other track that deserve our attention this week – the SHOULD-BE hits if you will. Here are this week’s #HitsOfTomorrow.
So this song probably doesn’t deserve to make the cut for the column because it’s likely to blow up rather instantly thanks to the very interesting pairing of The Kid LAROI, Jung Kook and Central Cee. But I’ve included it here because there are so many collabs these days and very few live up to the hype. Not since Justin Bieber’s “Peaches” has there been a Top 40 collab between male artists that felt as spot-on and an instant hit. Central Cee has been riding high in Europe but he is not a global star yet and The Kid LAROI hasn’t necessarily managed to get another big hit like “Stay” (incidentally with Justin Bieber) since – so the truth is – Jung Kook is the only real global slayer here. After the Number One hit “7” with Latto and “3D” with Jack Harlow, “Too Much” completes a trifecta of smash hits, probably with this latest single being the one that deserve long legs and all the attention it gets.
It’s maybe not as big a collab as “Too Much” but I have to say “Tonight” brings together NSG, Libianca and JAE5 so perfectly, you’d have to wonder if their teams didn’t realize that this Afrobeat single would become a global smash. Here’s hoping that’s exactly what transpires as the track is warm, inviting and irresistible. Libianca has been riding high since “People” became a smash hit and her feature here on NSG’s best single from their just released album Area Boyz is hopefully going to prove to be a repeat chart success. Smash!
Australia has been giving us some great indie rock as of late and this week The Rubens prove their worth with “Good Mood,” a track that likely wasn’t based around the current global climate but perfectly can sum up many people’s sentiments. “Sometimes things fall down and you feel more alive, like having a cold beer on the balcony of a house that’s on fire.” It is strange how many of us can come alive when there is chaos, in fact, we can excel. Here’s hoping this message which really should work at any time really gets brought across now as the world needs more positivity and The Rubens know exactly how to get us there!
If there is any justice at radio, “Dollar $hort” would go into heavy rotation ASAP. Arguably DRAMA’s best release to date, the single further benefits from the fact that it features one of my faves Flight Facilities. The funky retro vibe here works to create a feeling of joy and we just don’t have enough tracks that have that feel-good vibe to them. Both The Rubens and DRAMA here give us a 1-2 punch this week of new singles that deserve our attention not just because they are great songs but because we need tracks that brighten our days.
Of course, given the moment we’re living through right now, it seems almost too perfect that Canadian Mustafa releases his latest “Name Of God,” a beautiful touching single that has the artist looking back at the death of his brother, who passed away over the summer and his relationship with Islam. There used to be a time when protest songs and touching confessionals became mainstream hits. This year we saw a glimpse of that with Oliver Anthony’s “Rich Men North Of Richmond” but here there is something genuine, something apolitical but with incredible heart, truth and most importantly, it’s actually a great song. I really hope programmers take note as this moving track could prove to be a sleeper hit.
Even More Hits!
Listen To #HITSOFTOMORROW Playlist on Spotify!
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