Our weekly roundup includes Seventeen, Tame Impala and Thundercat, Jess Glynne, Drax Project, Jim Legxacy and more
April is ending with quite the bang! A slew of new album releases makes it one of the most exciting weeks so far of the year. Let’s start with the surprise release of Jackman, the new LP from rapper Jack Harlow. While his Come Home The Kids Miss You record last year spawned the smash “First Class,” for the most part, the album was devoid of any real personality. Harlow seemed lyrically bored and frankly, had little to say. That changes with his latest release as the album feels extremely personal and is a genuinely soulful hip-hop record. While there is no immediate Top 40 smash, tracks like “They Don’t Love It” deserves to impact strongly. This is a win for artistry.
Speaking of which, Jessie Ware seems to have never really taken a professional misstep. After her stellar What’s Your Pleasure LP got us through the pandemic and beyond, her latest album That! Feels Good! (a very Shania Twain title, if there ever was!) is finally upon us and it might be her best album yet. Disco never sounded this good updated. But much like “Remember Where You Are” from the last album proved to be a standout (heck, it even made the year-end best list of Barack Obama!), it’s the softer tracks here that shine again. My fave – “Hello Love.”
The National also return, this time with First Two Pages Of Frankenstein. The album is quite possibly the softest record the band has ever released and that’s likely due to the guest features the album has, including Taylor Swift, Sufjan Stevens and Phoebe Bridgers. The album works much in the same vein as Swift’s folklore.
Beyond this, the week also sees new single releases from Coi Leray (“Bops,”) Niall Horan (“Meltdown,”) Kesha‘s “Fine Line/Eat The Acid” and Rema’s “Charm.” While these all are likely to garner attention, let’s get to the songs that deserve a little extra nudge – the SHOULD-BE hits of the week. Without further ado, here is this week’s #HitsOfTomorrow.
Okay, SEVENTEEN doesn’t really need the attention but as the band released their “10th Mini Album FML” this past week, all the attention has been paid, rightfully so, to the first single “Super.” While the track is energetic and likely to be an instant fan favorite, I want give props to the opening track of the EP. “F*ck My Life” is quite possibly the strongest single the band has ever recorded. The song actually brilliantly showcases the evolution of the band and the song is their best step forward, in my opinion, for maximum global impact. I rarely make a plea to K-pop bands, but this song screams for an “English version” because this truly is a Top 40 smash production. Here’s hoping we hear that or adventurous radio programmers take note and push this single next.
We’ve not heard anything new for a while now from Thundercat but that changed this week with the release of “No More Lies,” an awesome team-up between the talent and Tame Impala. The single works to both artists’ strengths and sonically feels like the perfect blend of both of their styles. Thundercat is set to play a series of concerts with the Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Strokes soon and this single is likely to resonate with fans of those legendary bands, creating an even larger much deserved fanbase for the Grammy-winning talent. Here’s hoping mainstream radio takes a crack at this, because it would be a shame for this to be strictly relegated to alternative radio stations. Winner!
I often find it strange how an artist with such an immediately distinguishable voice and with such a catalog of massive hits could still be an underdog? But much like Emeli Sande, Jess Glynne hasn’t had the fortune of being a “star” and just getting the attention she has earned with her bag of hits. But yet again, she’s given us a smash for the ages. “Silly Me” is a midtempo bop that within one listen will win you over. Glynne sounds fresh and the single just works because it’s not overproduced and you get taken in by the genuineness of her delivery. Here’s hoping history repeats itself and the track ends up a hit!
Remember there was a time when legit pop music got airplay? Well, here’s hoping Drax Project get that chance with “Atmosphere,” probably one of the biggest-sounding instant hits I’ve heard in years. It shouldn’t come as a surprise when it is co-written with Ferras (Dua Lipa), co-produced by the band with Cory Enemy (Carly Rae Jepsen) and mixed by Tom Norris (The Weeknd). The band, however, doesn’t let the presence of these heavy-hitters take away from what they bring to the table, this is simply a great song by a band we need to have on the radio, across the globe, period.
You know, some mixtapes can change the game and I really hope that’s the case this week with Jim Legxacy’s latest HNPM (Homeless Ni**a Pop Music). Experimental rap is a genre that often gets relegated to outside the mainstream. Legxacy’s genius here is that beyond fusing samples that run the genre gamut, he also has found a way to make an emo record within a hip-hop one that actually has something to say. “amnesia111” is a highlight and I hope it’s the track that gets pushed as a single, because beneath the madness of the entire LP is a slew of singles that actually fit perfectly in the Top 40 sphere today. Let’s hope this exceptional experiment becomes a bonafide success. Programmers, make it happen!
Even More Hits!
(I was hooked instantly with that almost near-identical intro to R.E.M.’s “Near Wild Heaven”)
Listen To #HITSOFTOMORROW Playlist on Spotify!
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