After over a year-long wait, the Weeknd is finally back with his latest track “Heartless”, and trust us it’s worth the wait. Anticipation around the release of this track has been palpable, with the artist’s last single release dating all the way back to March 2018. Over the past week, the Weeknd has dropped hints to desperate fans over social media that their long wait was soon to be over. On Wednesday, he finally let us out our misery with the release of “Heartless”. Focusing on his fast lifestyle, the Weeknd sings about trying to find someone to fix him, but ultimately lyricises that all the flings and money have left him with no heart. A heady R&B banger, this single drops just ahead of the artist’s upcoming appearance in Uncut Gems, out 13 December.

Northern Irish singer-songwriter Lilla Vargen’s just-released EP “We Were Thunder” is a stunning collection of pop bangers that will leave you coming back for more every time. Instant chills with Lilla’s highly emotive and breathtakingly beautiful lyrics, with our favourite track as “The Shore”, an ethereal slow-burner, bolstered with the breakout musician’s haunting vocals. One to play, and play again.

LA-based producer Blackbird Blackbird is back with his latest release “Lifestream”, another song from the artist that is an addictive kaleidoscope of genres. Mixing folk with electronica, psychedelic pop, some folk and much more, Blackbird Blackbird once again blows us away with his ethereal sound. Inspired by multiple cultures and people, the young artist really knows how to create emotive tunes that will cause you to feel a million things at once. Having released his latest album Hearts on the 15th of November, which features mixing credits by Mike Marsh, the Hawaii-born 20-year-old continues to build on his reputation, and will definitely be one to watch in the upcoming years.

North London-based rapper Avelino releases his fresh new single “Higher Power” ahead of his debut album that is soon to be released, and we’re happy to say that he’s definitely set the bar high for the rest of the album. Slick wordplay and thoughtful lyrics underpin “Higher Power”, which was named by Radio One presenter Annie Mac as one of her ‘hottest record in the world’ choices. Having teamed up with Dave last month to create the track “Cassuis Clay” and with his first album on the horizon, Avelino promises great things, and we can’t wait to see where he’ll go.

International rap hero Nines follows on from an incredibly successful 2018 with more groundbreaking material this year. He wrote his latest single “Pride” in May this year, reflecting on everything he had achieved since the highly successful release of “Crop Circle” last year. In “Pride”, Nines takes the time to go over his achievements and endeavours that he’s proud of, whilst also looking forward to future aims, making for an emotive piece of UK rap that’s definitely worth a listen. Consolidating his past acclaims whilst also promising fresh new material for the future, there’s no doubt in our minds that Nines has a lot still to give, and we feel sure that the sell-out success of last year’s album will be mimicked again soon.

Italian crooner Calcutta takes us back with a remixed version of hit single: “Paracetamol”. Sung in Spanish, the heartfelt track comes complete with travel-laden visuals, following the subject on an emotional journey through Europe. With a timelessly anthemic vibe and a dash of subtle humour throughout, this is an alternative look at heartache that stands as a shining example of foreign-language music. Don’t sleep on this one!

Grimes has just released the third track from her upcoming album Miss Anthropocene (released Feb 2020), with “My Name is Dark”, written, performed, produced and engineered by Grimes herself. “My Name is Dark” is an eerie, play-on-repeat track that will get you out of bed in the morning and home from work at night. With a slightly darkened, indie-pop beat, this song is classic Grimes, and its addictive sound will get you hooked after the first listen. The track follows the release of two other singles from the upcoming album, “Violence” and “So Heavy I Fell Through the Sky”.