The best new hip-hop this week includes albums, videos, and songs from Doja Cat, Killer Mike, Wiz Khalifa and more.

This week, the new releases are flying fast and furious as Gunna makes his heavily anticipated comeback after nearly year-long incarceration. Meanwhile, more long-awaited comebacks find Doja Cat in full-on boom-bap mode and Killer Mike flying solo for the first time in a decade. Rappers releasing singles included Coi Leray, D Smoke, Foggieraw, Gucci Mane, IDK, Saucy Santana, Trippie Redd, and Tyga & YG. That’s one busy week, right?

Well, it doesn’t stop there. While we’re going to pass over projects like Chingy’s return album Chinglish (even though I maintain he was a better rapper than he ever got credit for) and Kool Keith’s Black Elvis 2, there’s still plenty to dig into this week.

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending June 16, 2023.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

Gunna — A Gift And A Curse

Gunna’s back after being locked up for over six months awaiting trial on reportedly trumped-up charges. Amid a backlash for supposedly snitching on his YSL brethren, Gunna returns with a lot to talk about, which he does without the assistance of many longtime collaborators.

Hit-Boy & Big Hit — Surf Or Drown 2

It turns out Hit-Boy saved some of his best beats for his dad. Big Hit also recently returned home from an enforced vacation, and joins his hit-making offspring on what might be the best father-son outing since Goofy and Max crashed that Power Line concert.

Killer Mike — Michael

It’s odd to think that Killer Mike has been in the game over 20 years and yet, for a good portion of that time he was often thought of as the guy who hung out with Outkast or one-half of Run The Jewels. Allow him to reintroduce himself.

Mike Dimes — Texas Boy

The other Mike dropping this week is getting his introduction in early after building a strong resume with his In Dimes We Trust mixtape and strong collabs with artists like IDK and Dro Kenji. He deserves the attention he’s been getting.

Price — Gospel In The Ghetto

While Hit-Boy is the better known Inland Empire native to drop this week, his longtime friend and collaborator Price (formerly Price Tag of Audio Push) drops his own independent project. If you missed out on the last 10 years of his development, this is the perfect chance to get up on one of the West Coast’s most dynamic talents.

Wiz Khalifa — See Ya

Wiz dropped off a surprise collection of breezy, enjoyable songs ahead of his upcoming High School Reunion Tour with Snoop Dogg. They’re perfectly positioned to soundtrack some warm weather fun.

Singles/Videos

Dej Loaf — “Space Jam”

The pint-sized punchline maestro from Detroit hasn’t lost a step since her breakthrough with “Try Me,” and continues to show her gift for melodic deliveries that sink their hooks into your eardrums and truly dig in.

Fresco Trey — “Back In My Shell”

The Memphis rap crooner reflects on the breakdown of a relationship in this lovelorn, introspective ballad. Asking for some clarity, he threatens to go back into his shell — relatable, honestly.

Kota The Friend — “Barcelona” Feat. Samm Henshaw

Kota’s been releasing a string of upbeat, dance-infused singles ahead of his next project, which aims to take advantage of the uptick in breezy, EDM-inspired albums that have been coming out lately. His have had more of a live band feel, which helps set them apart.

Ncognita — “LA” Feat. Kalan.FrFr

The Los Angeles rapper who garnered recognition for being signed to Issa Rae’s Raedio record label drops a smooth single bolstered by Kalan’s singsong hook and a bubbly beat that will sure sound nice being played out of car stereos on Crenshaw.

Shady Blu — “Hoedown” Feat. Zoe Osama

Shady Blu might be from LA, but her new track could just as easily ride out at a party in Texas, Memphis, or Atlanta as it could in LA or the Bay. It’s a hypnotic, upbeat party track that showcases SB’s hit-writing potential.

Wynne — “Hot Friend”

Wynne’s been on a mission to expand her fanbase lately, blending her intricate, wordplay-laden bars with more radio-friendly production, and to be honest, a lot of it is working. With her recent freestyle for Sway In The Morning going viral, her latest single arrives right on time to capture curious ears out looking for more of her work.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

As Donald Trump already weathered a damning federal indictment in Miami over his mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, reports of more charges coming from special counsel Jack Smith began to intensify. According to insiders, those reports are causing Trump’s people to freak out.

While stopping by Morning Joe on Friday, Way Too Early host Jonathan Lemire said Trump’s team is rattled by Smith who has proven to be a relentless opponent that’s unfazed by the former president’s usual bullying tactics.

“He is facing someone now in Jack Smith who they simply don’t know, they feel like they can’t intimidate,” Lemire said. “He is someone who seems immune to what their typical playbook is, which is the smoke screen and the attacks, the assertions of bias and, to this point, that just hasn’t worked.”

Smith also seems to be moving on Trump from multiple fronts. On top of the Miami indictment, there are reports that Smith is looking to file new charges in New Jersey for Trump’s mishandling of documents at his Bedminster golf club. Oh, and don’t forget about Georgia.

Via Raw Story:

“We see the New Jersey thing, I also heard last night from a few people in the Trump world saying, we’re not sure how real that is, but they also can’t rule it out,” he continued. “They didn’t expect all that’s happened to this point. We know that it’s not just New York, which they actually feel fine about. They’re deeply concerned about the Mar-a-Lago documents, and they’re really worried still about Georgia. Georgia has been the one that’s been the flashing light for them all along.”

But, wait, there’s more. According to the Wall Street Journal, Smith is also actively investigating the January 6 attacks and recently brought in two Nevada Republican party officials as the special counsel delves into the events that led to the insurrectionist riot following Trump’s “Stop the Steal” really.

(Via Raw Story)

The same two teams have squared off in the AFC Championship Game in each of the last two years. Back in 2022, the Cincinnati Bengals shocked the Kansas City Chiefs to earn a spot in the Super Bowl, and last year, the Chiefs were able to enact a measure of revenge en route to lifting the Lombardi Trophy.

With respect to guys like Josh Allen and Justin Herbert, the Bengals and Chiefs have the two best quarterbacks in the NFL in Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes. While most folks — including Burrow — would say that Mahomes is the better of the two players and is therefore the best player in the NFL, Cincinnati receiver Ja’Marr Chase doesn’t agree. He recently said Burrow is the best player in the league, and when he was told that Burrow believes that title belongs to “Pat,” all Chase could respond with was “Pat Who?”

It’s a funny dig, as the implication here is that Burrow really likes Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth or something, but unsurprisingly, Mahomes had something to say about it. The Chiefs got their championship rings on Thursday night, and Mahomes used this as a chance to let Chase know who his QB meant.

We’ll have to wait and see if Burrow and Mahomes get to battle in the playoffs again, but one thing is guaranteed: The two will go head-to-head at Arrowhead Stadium on New Year’s Eve this season.

The same two teams have squared off in the AFC Championship Game in each of the last two years. Back in 2022, the Cincinnati Bengals shocked the Kansas City Chiefs to earn a spot in the Super Bowl, and last year, the Chiefs were able to enact a measure of revenge en route to lifting the Lombardi Trophy.

With respect to guys like Josh Allen and Justin Herbert, the Bengals and Chiefs have the two best quarterbacks in the NFL in Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes. While most folks — including Burrow — would say that Mahomes is the better of the two players and is therefore the best player in the NFL, Cincinnati receiver Ja’Marr Chase doesn’t agree. He recently said Burrow is the best player in the league, and when he was told that Burrow believes that title belongs to “Pat,” all Chase could respond with was “Pat Who?”

It’s a funny dig, as the implication here is that Burrow really likes Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth or something, but unsurprisingly, Mahomes had something to say about it. The Chiefs got their championship rings on Thursday night, and Mahomes used this as a chance to let Chase know who his QB meant.

We’ll have to wait and see if Burrow and Mahomes get to battle in the playoffs again, but one thing is guaranteed: The two will go head-to-head at Arrowhead Stadium on New Year’s Eve this season.

The Farris brothers are back at it. D Smoke, who has expanded his artistic portfolio with an acting role in the Paramount Plus series The Mayor Of Kingstown, returns to his day job with “Work Hard Play Hard,” a laid-back new single that celebrates his success with the help of his younger brother SiR. As he’s done in the past, Smiddoke raps in both English and Spanish, surveying and contrasting the difficulties of labor and the pleasures of the payoff.

Both brothers would certainly know a thing or two about that. While D Smoke has slowly but surely risen in stature in the rap world behind his appearance in Netflix’s Rhythm + Flow, the Inglewood rapper continued his independent grind, dropping beloved bangers like “Say Go” and “Crossover” with Westside Boogie. Meanwhile, SiR has been slowly rolling out the successor to his 2019 album Chasing Summer with singles such as “Life Is Good” and “Nothing Even Matters.

Neither has yet announced an album but with their increased activity in recent months, it’s likely safe to say that such an announcement can’t be too far away. In the meantime, you can enjoy the Inglewood natives’ newest single “Work Hard Play Hard” in the video above.

The Farris brothers are back at it. D Smoke, who has expanded his artistic portfolio with an acting role in the Paramount Plus series The Mayor Of Kingstown, returns to his day job with “Work Hard Play Hard,” a laid-back new single that celebrates his success with the help of his younger brother SiR. As he’s done in the past, Smiddoke raps in both English and Spanish, surveying and contrasting the difficulties of labor and the pleasures of the payoff.

Both brothers would certainly know a thing or two about that. While D Smoke has slowly but surely risen in stature in the rap world behind his appearance in Netflix’s Rhythm + Flow, the Inglewood rapper continued his independent grind, dropping beloved bangers like “Say Go” and “Crossover” with Westside Boogie. Meanwhile, SiR has been slowly rolling out the successor to his 2019 album Chasing Summer with singles such as “Life Is Good” and “Nothing Even Matters.

Neither has yet announced an album but with their increased activity in recent months, it’s likely safe to say that such an announcement can’t be too far away. In the meantime, you can enjoy the Inglewood natives’ newest single “Work Hard Play Hard” in the video above.

With the NBA Draft coming up next week, teams are prepping for numerous trade scenarios that could occur in the lead-up to Thursday night. There are an unusual amount of teams that are both unsatisfied with their roster and determined to make a serious push next season, which has made the NBA rumor mill more fervent than usual.

The New Orleans Pelicans serve as one of those teams after a season that saw them climb to the No. 1 seed in the West and then completely miss the playoffs. It’s a roster that certainly has the talent to compete, but has been riddled with injuries to their stars. Recently, New Orleans was rumored to be interested in acquiring a top-3 pick to draft phenom point guard Scoot Henderson. A trade of that magnitude would require New Orleans to give up a star-level player, but Shams Charania went on the Pat McAfee Show to reveal that one team wouldn’t want that player to be Zion Williamson.

It’s a bit surprising that Charlotte would prefer Brandon Ingram over Williamson considering what we’ve seen out of the latter when he’s played, but the injury list for Zion has reached an alarming point. The former No. 1 overall pick played in just 29 games last season, and there have been consistent questions about his conditioning. That’s an alarming trend for any franchise interested in a player on a max contract.

With the NBA Draft coming up next week, teams are prepping for numerous trade scenarios that could occur in the lead-up to Thursday night. There are an unusual amount of teams that are both unsatisfied with their roster and determined to make a serious push next season, which has made the NBA rumor mill more fervent than usual.

The New Orleans Pelicans serve as one of those teams after a season that saw them climb to the No. 1 seed in the West and then completely miss the playoffs. It’s a roster that certainly has the talent to compete, but has been riddled with injuries to their stars. Recently, New Orleans was rumored to be interested in acquiring a top-3 pick to draft phenom point guard Scoot Henderson. A trade of that magnitude would require New Orleans to give up a star-level player, but Shams Charania went on the Pat McAfee Show to reveal that one team wouldn’t want that player to be Zion Williamson.

It’s a bit surprising that Charlotte would prefer Brandon Ingram over Williamson considering what we’ve seen out of the latter when he’s played, but the injury list for Zion has reached an alarming point. The former No. 1 overall pick played in just 29 games last season, and there have been consistent questions about his conditioning. That’s an alarming trend for any franchise interested in a player on a max contract.

Back in March, during Tyga’s rollicking Rolling Loud set, his fellow Compton rapper YG popped out for a surprise performance of their 2019 collaboration “Go Loko,” after which they announced they’ve got a new joint album in the works. True to their word, they followed up last week with the Blxst-featuring single “West Coast Weekend.” While that song channeled laid-back some picnic vibes typical of LA hip-hop, their new single, “Platinum,” goes the other way, tapping into the street-stomping gangbanging culture which is equally as emblematic of life on West Coast.

The video for the new song is fittingly sun-drenched — which is impressive, considering what the weather has been like out here lately — and proud of that heritage. Lowriders cruise by, a huge crowd gathers to admire dancers doing the Blood walk, and the duo stomps the streets outside the Oracle Arena in the Bay Area. All the while, they insist they’re going to go platinum, which both have plenty of experience doing.

The full-length album — which has yet to be titled — is likely due sometime later this year, but for now, Tyga and YG have the West Coast party scene sewn up for the summer. You can watch the video for “Platinum” above.

Back in March, during Tyga’s rollicking Rolling Loud set, his fellow Compton rapper YG popped out for a surprise performance of their 2019 collaboration “Go Loko,” after which they announced they’ve got a new joint album in the works. True to their word, they followed up last week with the Blxst-featuring single “West Coast Weekend.” While that song channeled laid-back some picnic vibes typical of LA hip-hop, their new single, “Platinum,” goes the other way, tapping into the street-stomping gangbanging culture which is equally as emblematic of life on West Coast.

The video for the new song is fittingly sun-drenched — which is impressive, considering what the weather has been like out here lately — and proud of that heritage. Lowriders cruise by, a huge crowd gathers to admire dancers doing the Blood walk, and the duo stomps the streets outside the Oracle Arena in the Bay Area. All the while, they insist they’re going to go platinum, which both have plenty of experience doing.

The full-length album — which has yet to be titled — is likely due sometime later this year, but for now, Tyga and YG have the West Coast party scene sewn up for the summer. You can watch the video for “Platinum” above.