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!
It's time to fully immerse ourselves into the magical world of Montero.
Lil Nas X has already won everyone over, becoming a two-time Grammy winner before his debut album even dropped. But obviously, he goes all out with the self-titled "baby," Montero, full of the same artistry and imagination as his hit singles "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" and "Industry Baby" with Jack Harlow.
Then, three heartthrobs hit us with their latest, with new sounds from the Jonas Brothers, Enrique Iglesias and LILHUDDY.
Round out your weekend with emotional numbers from Carly Pearce, Marc E. Bassy and Ylona Garcia.
What follows are our picks for the best of the best. Your playlist for the weekend of Sept. 17-19 has arrived. Enjoy!
Lil Nas X — "That's What I Want"
The 22-year-old singer announced his album was "due" soon with a controversial "pregnancy" photoshoot earlier this month. Now that it's here, it's obvious why Montero is his pride and joy.
Enrique Iglesias — "Pendejo"
It's been seven long years, but Iglesias finally has a new album for us to feast on. Following 2014's Sex and Love, his 11-track Final Vol. I was well worth the wait. His latest single is called "Pendejo" ("Stupid") as in Crazy, Stupid, Love—full of lust, heartbreak and romance—filmed alongside Renata Notni on the Brooklyn Bridge.
Carly Pearce — "Mean It This Time"
Pearce was 29 when she got married to and divorced from fellow singer Michael Ray. It was a year that changed her life, and now at 31, she's letting us all experience that emotional turmoil. Her new songs are so personal, in fact, that Pearce said she was "fearful" that no one would "ever let me" release that music that first appeared on her EP 29 and now on her album, 29: Written in Stone. As she told the Grammy Museum, "All these things were my reality of owning my story, saying her February song "29" really "opened my heart wide open to create the rest."
Jonas Brothers — "Who's In Your Head"
In the midst of their Remember This tour, the boys have still found time to drop new music. They teased "Who's In Your Head" at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado, and it instantly reminded fans Joe Jonas' 2011 song "Just In Love." Yet, it was Nick's high note that really made the audience roar that night.
Marc E. Bassy — "Bowie"
Fans of G-Eazy and Kehlani, this one's for you. Bassy, who has previously collaborated with both artists, gets the vibe just right with his latest single with his own record label, New Gold Medal. "Let me fade in the heat of the night / Before you remind me that you're not mine," he sings on the introspective track. Bassy has been teasing new music coming this fall, promising, "My best work on the way. Much love."
LILHUDDY — "Partycrasher"
LILHUDDY is expanding his kingdom from TikTok to Spotify! Though he might be one of Gen Z's biggest stars, his new music video is for the '90s kids. Needless to say, Chase Hudson, 19, is leveling up his superstardom with the release of his debut album, Teenage Heartbreak, and the pop-punk video for "Partycrasher." As you'd expect from both titles, he takes on a bad boy persona while channeling old school MTV (fake IDs, black nail polish and all). Plus, you'll even get a cameo from Charli D'Amelio.
Ylona Garcia — "Don't Go Changing"
For old-school fans of Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus or Demi Lovato, listen to this next time you need a good cry.
The Sydney-based singer tapped super-producers Jonas Jeberg and Marcus Lomax (who are behind hits from all three of the Disney stars) for this power ballad that really lets her vocals shine. As Garcia explained in a statement, her new song "embraces truth towards life's many mysteries, tough love in particular."
Happy listening!