As the week in music comes to a close, HYPEBEAST has rounded up the 10 best projects for the latest installment of Best New Tracks.
This week’s list is led by Kid Cudi and Ariana Grande‘s Don’t Look Up soundtrack cut “Just Look Up” and Cordae and Lil Wayne‘s collaborative effort “Sinister.” Also joining this selection are fresh offerings from Isaiah Rashad and Bando, Tierra Whack, MFnMelo and squeakPIVOT with Saba, Joseph Chilliams and Frsh Waters, Fly Anakin and Nickelus F, Blxst, TDE President Punch Henderson’s newest collective A Room Full of Mirrors, Brahny and Juicy J and Wiz Khalifa.
Kid Cudi x Ariana Grande – “Just Look Up”
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With Netflix’s Don’t Look Up set to premiere this month, Kid Cudi and Ariana Grande delivered their collaborative soundtrack offering, ironically entitled “Just Look Up.” The cut hears Grande’s powerful vocals alongside Cudi’s distinct style, and is sure to make fans excited for the star-studded film which will also see the two artists play a pop star and a DJ.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Cordae x Lil Wayne – “Sinister”
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Cordae enlisted the great Lil Wayne for his latest From A Bird’s Eye View single, “Sinister.” Produced by Hit-Boy, the joint effort is an intriguing preview into the young rapper’s upcoming album, which he promises will feature “a lot of growth.” Cordae previously told HYPEBEAST, “Not to sound self-indulgent or anything, but I’ve just noticed a lot of growth in myself one, as a human being, and two, as an artist. In every format of music, I feel like I have gotten way better as an artist.”
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Tierra Whack – Rap?
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Tierra Whack closed out 2021 with her newest three-track EP, Rap? The followup to her 2018 project Whack World, it also arrives with a music video for “Stand Up” helmed by Daniel Brennan. The visual sees the rapper back in her hometown in Philadelphia, asserting her status as a queen by portraying a monarch in a room full of jesters failing to impress her.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Isaiah Rashad x Bando – “Payday”
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Bando and Isaiah Rashad dropped off a music video for their November 2021 collab, “Payday.” The monochromatic offering sees the pair both doing what they do best, both in the studio and on stage in front of an adoring audience. “This track is intended to encapsulate that feeling you get when you receive the spoils of your labor,” Bando previously said of the song. “Whether that be money, respect, maybe even just a nice meal. ‘Payday’ is the rejoice and swagger that comes with the ‘job well done.’”
Watch: YouTube
Blxst – “About You”
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Rising West Coast hip-hop star Blxst released his first solo material since 2020 — a single entitled “About You.” The cut follows his powerhouse collaborations with the likes of Nas and Snoop Dogg, and is described by the artists as “a song about ignoring outside opinions when it comes to making a commitment.” He added, “Everyone has their own unique version of what love is defined as, but as long as you and your loved one are in sync, nothing else should matter.”
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Fly Anakin x Nickelus F – “Ghost”
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Richmond natives Fly Anakin and Nickelus F teamed up for the collaborative cut “Ghost,” which is set to appear on Fly Anakin’s upcoming LP. The single also arrives with a black-and-white music video shot and directed by No Fun, and follows the release of the Fly Anakin’s self-produced EP Pixote and the joint efforts with Pink Siifu.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Brahny – “Siamese”
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Slowly returning from his hiatus, Toronto-based artist Brahny is back with his brand new single, “Siamese.” The title track of his upcoming EP, he describes the cut as “an attempt to make a song that sounds and feels like home,” and the EP as a project “about sacrifice. It explores the idea of pursuing achievement at the expense of personal character and fulfillment. Siamese attempts to examine the innocence, happiness, love, and personality that are lost in the attempt to conform to established social ideals.”
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
MFnMelo x squeakPIVOT x Saba x Joseph Chilliams x Frsh Waters – “Mood Swing”
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MFnMelo and squeakPIVOT are gearing up for the release of En Route Deluxe with their new single “Mood Swing,” which features contributions from Saba, Joseph Chilliams and Frsh Waters. “Lately I’ve been having even less things to say. Not too many people get it but shorty did. Which makes this way harder. So understanding. So influential. So missed,” MFnMelo shared on Instagram. “This shit weird to promote anything right now honestly but I’d be damn if I didn’t follow thru with our plan! Finishing this was some of the hardest shit I had to do. But because of your love and belief, I stayed #ForeverEnRoute! You know what time it is bro and they soon will too!”
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
A Room Full of Mirrors – Money Bags
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TDE President Punch Henderson introduced his newest collective A Room Full of Mirrors with their visual EP, Money Bags. In an interview, he shared, “I started finishing my album, and then some of the artists that are part of the collective had just started coming around. I knew all of them individually — so they would hang out, listen to the music, and some of them would add stuff to it. Then everybody started crossing paths within those sessions. It was to a point where my album was done and we was just in the studio. So I decided to record a song to see how it would come out with everybody on it.”
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Juicy J x Wiz Khalifa – “Pop That Trunk”
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Longtime collaborators and friends Juicy J and Wiz Khalifa shared their latest effort, “Pop That Trunk.” The single marks their first collab since “GAH DAMN HIGH” from Juicy J’s The Hustle Continues, and serves as the first of many as they are set to release a joint album in early 2022.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
