New music Fridays are a thrilling, yet daunting prospect for any music lover.
It's essentially a weekly holiday where fan-favorite artists and fresh faces alike drop their latest offerings for all the world to hear, flooding streaming services and digital retailers with an onslaught of aural goodies. But who has the time to sit there and listen to everything before updating their playlists? There's just too much good stuff! (And, if we're being honest, usually a few stinkers, too.)
As it turns out, we do. Welcome to The MixtapE!
Another week down, music fans. And, somehow, we find ourselves in the middle of November.
While we sit here, puzzling over how time has ceased to have any meaning in this upside-down year, our favorite artists have continued bringing the heat. If you're going to do your part and keep on staying home in the hopes of slowing down a resurging coronavirus, you might as well have a fire soundtrack to keep you company.
Your playlist for the weekend of Nov. 13-15 has arrived. Enjoy and stay safe!
Billie Eilish — "Therefore I Am"
The Grammy-winning wunderkind returns with a spunky new single that finds her making it perfectly clear to someone that they're not friends. "This song is very, very up for interpretation," she told Apple Music of the track. "I'm very curious to see what people get from it and also what they feel when they hear it. I don't know. But yeah, it's a little mean. I love it."
Lil Nas X — "HOLIDAY"
On his first new release in quite some time, the "Old Town Road" record-breaker delivers another absolute earworm as he lets the haters doubting his longevity know that he isn't going anywhere.
Tones And I — "Fly Away"
The Aussie artist responsible for the smash hit "Dance Monkey" gets personal on her latest release. The soaring anthem, which serves as the first taste of her forthcoming full-length debut, takes a poetic look at the reality of life after achieving your dreams and how it rarely matches up to your expectations.
Rauw Alejandro — "Dile a Él"
This opening track from the Puerto Rican rising star's debut LP Afrodisíaco is a real standout, perfectly setting the stage for the myriad reggaeton-R&B wonders that await. And yes, that is Rosalía harmonizing with him on the song's hypnotizing outro.
Coco & Breezy feat. Dawn Richard — "U."
The former Danity Kane member brings her soulful vocals to this funky house track from the designer-DJ sister duo, making for one dreamy collaboration destined to have you dancing.
Judah & the Lion — "Spirit"
The percussion punctuations in this new track from the alt-folk band are so major. You will feel them deep in your bones. And by the time the song erupts into a wall of sound that includes some furious fiddling and a triumphant horn section, it's a full-on spiritual awakening.
Thundercat feat. Ty Dolla $ign & Lil B — "Fair Chance (Floating Points Remix)"
British DJ Floating Points takes this standout ballad off Thundercat's latest album It Is What It Is, written as a tribute to the late Mac Miller, and amps up the BPM, turning it into a blissed-out celebration of life on the dance floor.
Alfie Templeman — "Shady"
The British singer-songwriter's latest single is a slick and funky ode to living in the moment. "It's about trying to stay true to myself, doing what I wanna do in my life and trying to avoid all the arguments and shady people that come with it," he said in a statement. "No more negativity, more making sense of the past and enjoying what the present has to offer."
GRACEY — "99%"
Just a sultry slice of synthpop off the English upstart's new EP The Art of Closure. Get into her now. You won't be disappointed.
Chris Stapleton — "You Should Probably Leave"
This track off the country star's latest album Starting Over is a true stunner. The sexy, smoky song about trying (and failing) to avoid making a bad decision after a night of drinking has been a longtime fave of fans, as footage of Stapleton performing it live has existed for years. But now it finally gets an official release—and we couldn't be happier.
Bonus Tracks:
3OH!3 & 100 gecs — "LONELY MACHINES"
John K — "parachute"
Kelsea Ballerini & Shania Twain — "hole in the bottle"
BENEE feat. Grimes — "Sheesh"
Happy listening!