Phoebe Bridgers’ AOTY contender, Troye Sivan’s sincerity, and Jorja Smith preps up for All Points East: it’s Wonderlist!
Phoebe Bridgers – “Lost Weekend”
The mercurial, magical Phoebe Bridgers has now got two of the best albums of the 2020s to her name. 2020’s perfect Punisher, and – some six years later – the gorgeously devastating follow-up, Lost Weekend. Bridgers cements herself as the songwriter of her generation with subtle, cuttingly personal lyricism atop idiosyncratic, electro-tinged folk. Drop what you’re doing and listen to the title track immediately.
Troye Sivan – “She’s the Best”
Troye Sivan’s artistic progression comes to the fore as he kicks off a new era with one of his strongest tracks to date. The Australian has announced that his fourth studio album, She’s the Best, will be released on 9th October; he unveils the first teaser single, the title track, at that. It’s a low-key cut, with spoken voices and a subtle hook, but it manages to be enormously affecting. The Nicole Kidman-starring video is beautiful too.
Jorja Smith – “I Lied, You Lied”
Before she takes over Victoria Park next Friday with her co-headline spot with Tems at All Points East – and shares her hotly anticipated third studio album, What Are The Odds – Jorja Smith has dropped another sentimental summer banger. “I Lied, You Lied” is the Walsall-native at her sundry, sensual best, and comes accompanied by a dazzling visual shot in Mexico City.
Ayra Starr ft. ZAYN – “Heaven Baby”
Love feels like “Heaven Baby” on Beninese-Nigerian pop star’s latest single featuring prime loverboy, ZAYN. Accompanying the release of her new album Starrgirl, this new single feels spacey and eternal with a lingering tenderness. As she dips in and out of falsetto, lyrics coming out as proclamation and plea, ZAYN responds on a whisper-like, sultry verse — this is one for the yearners.
Qendresa – “Besitos”
One of the UK’s most interesting and intoxicating artists right now, the elusive enigma Qendresa is back with a sensational new double-sided single, “Besitos / Gave Myself 2 U”. The former is particularly engaging and artistically erudite, with drowsy synths kept sharp by snappy drums, with the polymath vocally hypnotic atop the sonic palette.
L’Rain – “elmyra”
Artist L’Rain blurs the line between fragility and force on “elmyra”, a spellbinding cut that finds beauty in contradiction. As featherlight harmonies and intricate polyrhythms cross-pollinate with shimmering synths and organic percussion, Taja Cheek moulds a track that feels deeply intimate and expansively cinematic.
Sophia Stel – “Now I’ve Got A Lot To Know”
Sophia Stel is back with “Now I’ve Got A Lot You Know”, her latest release via A24 Music. Following a huge year that saw the Vancouver artist open for Lorde after making her runway debut at Ann Demeulemeester and heading out on her first headline tour, she’s now gearing up for her debut album. Written and self-produced by Stel, the new track comes with a self-edited video featuring her two younger brothers, showing us the past six months of her life. Not a bad way to follow up a breakout year.
KATSEYE – “Hootie Frutti”
The KATSEYE ladies are feeling “Hootie Frutti” with the release of their third EP, “WILD”. Fierce, feisty and fizzing with attitude, it’s a bumping track drip-drip-dripping with sass, built on rattling Brazilian phonk-inspired percussion and maximalist pop production. With a music video to accompany it, the pop quartet are livin’ up the la vida loca in an underground Brazilian party — one on the brink of editing…but luckily, it’s KATSEYE to the rescue.
Karol G ft. Drake – “Ahí”
After a huge year that saw Karol G make history as the first Latina woman to headline Coachella, she’s back with a new album, No Me Arrepiento de Sentir Tanto, featuring collaborations with Bruno Mars and Drake. With the Canadian rapper, she teams up on “Ahí”, a reggaeton track about wanting someone while not quite being ready to fall back into love. Drake also gets another chance to flex his Spanish, following his iconic “MÍA” with Bad Bunny, while the track ends with a recording of a street interview where a man is asked what he wants in a woman and simply replies, “Kind… Latina.” Honestly, what more could you want?
Jordan Rakei – “Promise”
With his sights set on his upcoming album A Safe Place To Be Wild and his biggest UK and European headline tour, Jordan Rakei drops off his second single “Promise” from the project. Bringing us a 70s-tinged psych-soul sound, the New Zealand-Australian artist explores insecurity and doubt in a relationship, yet keeps up hope that it will all work out eventually.
Bawo ft. Scorcher & JME – “Shelloff”
One of British rap’s finest new-gen spitters, Bawo is back to bless us with another EP, ‘Surf’s Up”, dropping on 25th September. To celebrate the announcement, the London rapper has brought in two of the scene’s most esteemed players, Scorcher and JME, for “Shelloff”. It’s quite simply one of the best UK rap singles of the year.
Slow Pulp – “Spill”
Chicago-based outfit Slow Pulp are gearing up to share their new album, Melodie, on 18th September. Each single from the record has outdone the last, and this latest, “Spill”, is no different. Front woman Emily Massey’s voice is one of the most complex you’ll hear – guard-dropping and gregarious, while a sombre darkness lurks behind the beauty. Instrumentally, a marvel, too. An excellent album feels inbound.
Medium Build – “In My Gut”
The “King of Having Fun”, indie-rocking singer-songwriter Medium Build (aka Nick Carpenter) is churning out some heavy thoughts with “In My Gut”. Co-written with one of his “favourite artists”, Annika Bennett, born from an exchange of childhood stories, evaluating the way parents dealt with conflict, the track becomes a subtly raging mix of all of Carpenter’s sonic influences.
Grumpy – “OBL”
Having just announced their debut album Unfindable Ring, Grumpy keeps the momentum going with their latest single “OBL”. Atop a country-esque, acoustic production, the Brooklyn-based band talks about feeling love towards each other as they navigate touring as a trans band and how they’ll be perceived on the road.
Esme Emerson – “Jackie”
Pop duo Esme Emerson are calling out for “Jackie” on their latest jingle. Here, they ditch some of the bubbling pop traits that have become signatures for something sonically richer and rounder. Chronicling reflections on queer love, loss, absence and grief, this otherwise dreamy soundscape takes on a melancholic hue.
Lauren Juzang – “Smooth talker”
LA-based artist Lauren Juzang is bringing a dreamy mix of indie pop and folk to her music. Her upcoming single “Smooth Talker” is all about that fleeting connection with someone who sweeps you off your feet, only to disappear before you really get to know them. There’s something nostalgic and mystical about Juzang’s sound that makes the track feel like the soundtrack to a summer crush you probably shouldn’t have taken so seriously.
Humble the Great – “Left You”
Following his 2024 album i don’t mind floating, as well as work behind the scenes with artists including Amie Blu, Kamal and Cat Burns and a co-sign from Elton John, London-based artist, producer and multi-instrumentalist Humble the Great is back with “left you”, his first release of the year. On the new track, he strips things back to piano as he looks back on a relationship that probably should have ended sooner.
Erick the Architect – “No Doubt (I’m In Love)”
Musical polymath and founding member/producer of NYC’s Flatbush Zombies, Erick the Architect, returns with captivating new visuals for recent single “No Doubt (I’m In Love)”. Erick takes the video back to his Jamaican roots – his first time ever filming on the island – and it is a visual love letter to Erick’s motherland, showing his version of Jamaica instead of the cliché depictions of what most might associate with the country.
benny blanco ft. The Marías – “Memoria De Paz”
Acclaimed 12x GRAMMY-nominated artist and producer benny blanco has shared some of his best work in years as part of his new record Hermoso. Enlisting a plethora of talented artists to back up his musical vision, a standout moment comes courtesy of The Marias on “Memoria De Paz”.
Babymorocco – “Porcelain”
Babymorocco is back with “The Summer Fables”, a new seven-track mixtape that sees the London pop artist leaning even further into his mix of electronic production, sugary pop and club music. At the centre of it is “Porcelain”, a track about the messy side of desire, while the rest of the project explores romance, obsession and a kind of fantasy that only really makes sense in summer. Following his debut album Amour and its deluxe edition, Babymorocco has built a pretty distinct world around himself, and “The Summer Fables” is another trip into it.
niina – “fuck it”
niina is the pink-haired singer-DJ, and “fuck it” is the mood. On this almost-DNB track, traced by niina’s dreamy touch, she smooths out the tension of riveting electronic layers and an intricate intimacy. Through sizzling synthesisers, ethereal harmonies and a swirling, euphoric chorus, evidently niina is doing whatever she wants — and perhaps the whole point was that you would too.
Dying 4 – “Topaz”
The solo project of Blue Bendy guitarist Joseph Nash, Dying 4, is gearing up to share a debut EP, “Perish Songs”, on 4th September. Its second single, “Topaz”, is a dazzling, uplifting, subtle piece of music; a beat that progresses and impresses, complex without ever feeling busy.
Quavo – “Trance”
Previously previewed at Louis Vuitton’s Spring/Summer 2027 show in Paris, Quavo finally drops his much-anticipated track “Trance (Walk It Down)”. Produced by Pharrell Williams, it follows the new direction the Atlanta rapper’s heading in for his Pharrell-executive-produced album QRÖMELIFE. Bumping 808s, bouncy hi-hats and crispy snares – it’s destined for the dance floor.
Koteri – “Thani”
Alt-R&B duo Koteri call “Thani” with this Arabic instrumentation-fused dance track. With a music video shot in Egypt’s White Desert, it’s wistful and atmospheric, emotionally poignant but fun and free — something the duo has become beloved for. Enlisting the help of Abdallah’s sister Jana Diab, this track is a full-bodied sensory experience without feeling like you’re losing it.
tall child – “Money”
Queer band tall child is talking “Money” this summer. Days out from performing this on the Mountain Stage at Green Man Festival next weekend, where they were crowned the Rising winners, they have a few words about what it means to do the music thing. Through bitter but sweetly witty lyricism and a lo-fi hum and drum, they express their frustrations with being low-income independent artists.
Booter Bee – “Richard Mille”
Booter Bee, one of the hottest and most skilled rappers in the UK right now, follows up “Salah” and last month’s “44” collaboration with 163Margs with hard-hitting new single “Richard Mile”, showcasing the young lyricist’s razor-sharp ability in crafting some of the most forward-thinking rap tracks emanating from these shores.
Henry James – “Love Should Be So Easy (Outro)”
Fast-emerging R&B/Soul multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and producer Henry James continues momentum from his captivating debut album ‘Love Should Be So Easy’ with a brand-new video for closing track “Outro”. The nine-track project, entirely self-produced, served up a rich blend of soul, jazz, and R&B textures and was steeped in themes of romance and emotional excavation, confirming the Phoenix-based artist’s status as a serious one to watch.
