GoneTrending

While the event is technically called the Essence Festival of Culture, one of its biggest draws is the nightly concert featuring some of the biggest names in Black music. But at the 2025 Essence Fest in New Orleans, those names and the music they represent could be seen, heard, and felt throughout the weekend, all over the city — whether that was in the convention hall or just walking the streets of the Big Easy.

If you had to pick an unofficial anthem for the weekend, it’d have to be the 2024 hit from South Carolina native 803Fresh, “Boots On The Ground.” It seemed that every ten minutes, a line dance would break out, with festival attendees answering the chorus question “where them fans at?” with a demonstration that said, “everywhere.” Propelled by a viral TikTok trend and embraced by the populace at large, “Boots On The Ground” joined Cupid’s 2020 single “Flex” as the line dance jingles du jour, becoming part of the long continuum of line dancing songs near and dear to Black culture.

Each night’s concert brought a different perspective to the multiple facets of contemporary Black music, from the sort of thing your mom/auntie/grandma might have played on Saturday morning right before a cleaning frenzy to the hits that soundtrack the average Friday night out.

Speaking of Friday night, the highlight of the weekend was undoubtedly GloRilla’s Friday night set. She even acknowledged the coincidence of her booking, the sweltering heat in New Orleans, and the opening lines of her latest runaway hit, “TGIF”: “It’s 7 pm Friday / It’s 95 degrees.” One of the great things about Glo is that she knows where her talent lies; she lets the dancers dance, and focuses on delivering the absolute heck out of her lyrics.

Also, don’t be surprised if you see Von Dutch make a comeback sometime in the next couple of months. Glo and her dancers were decked out head-to-toe in the once iconic brand favored by millennials in the early 2000s. Yes, even the trucker hats, which we once donned ironically — the younger generation, it seems, has taken a liking to the admittedly tacky accessory, though I’m not sure if they’re making fun of us or just trying to recapture some of the nonchalant optimism of that era.

Even if you couldn’t get into the official concert at the Superdome, there were still plenty of opportunities to catch some of the hottest contemporary artists in Black music at the convention center itself. At AT&T’s stage, Leon Thomas drew a crowd looking to see a performance of his unapologetic smash, “Mutt,” and were treated to a full set of tracks from the album of the same name. To me, this was even more exciting than watching from stadium seating; Leon was literally close enough for some fans in the front row to touch.

Saturday night’s show was utterly captivated by the magnetic presence of Erykah Badu, whose wit played up an unexpected appearance from Anthony Anderson, the difference in camera angles on the stadium screens between Badu and her ASL interpreter, and just how much performance time had been set aside for her in a show that ran increasingly late as it continued. “I got 26 dollars worth of music to get through,” she joked as she launched into a remixed rendition of “Didn’t Cha Know” for her finale.

By now, you may have encountered reports of the lateness of the concerts in general. Now, I’ve never attended this particular festival before, but I have been led to believe that this is unusual, even for Essence Festival. In general, I’m used to concerts running late — especially where Lauryn Hill is involved, no shade intended — and look… we all know “CP Time” is a thing. But whatever the behind-the-scenes reasons for the delays were, there should still be a certain expectation of decorum if you’re already asking folks to wait until 10:30 pm to see Nas, and damn near midnight for Master P, the local icon who was celebrating his final performance before hanging up his mic for a coaching position at the University of New Orleans.

But those are minor quibbles, at least for me. While most folks probably don’t get to go to quite as many concerts as a music writer, I’d argue that the entire point of Essence Festival is not the music, but the opportunity to immerse oneself in the Culture. That’s why it’s called the Essence Festival of Culture, not the Essence Music Festival. In Los Angeles, there are arguably fewer opportunities to take in the breadth of unfiltered Blackness minus the self-conscious code-switching that life here sort of requires.

I don’t think there was a single time in my life I was called “baby” by more people I did not know than this past weekend. That New Orleans vocal tick was accompanied by the unmistakable accent that made every phrase sound more musical. The joy that accompanied every outbreak of line dancing was palpable — and lasted long after the fans were folded back into purses. Every salesperson at one of the Black-owned businesses with a booth in the convention hall gave a hard sell, but peppered with the sorts of compliments we only give each other (I’m not giving you the codes, either, keep it moving).

Another thing that felt minor, but that impressed itself on me once I got back home; not a single customer service person in Louisiana was nice to me. I know that feels like something that would actually be annoying — and in, the moment, it was — but think about it. They don’t have to be nice. That expectation of acceptability, the performance around it, felt unnecessary in a place where seemingly everybody is related, everyone comes from the same place, and everyone shares that same acknowledgement that having to work on 4th of July weekend is some ol’ bullshit. Get your lil’ pralines and get on, tourist. Having worked in the service industry and dealt with my fair share of Karens on a holiday, I appreciate that.

In New Orleans, just for a weekend, Essence attendees get to glimpse a version of the world centered around us, around our music, our language, our customs, and the parts of our history that don’t give us PTSD. It’s worth the trip or that experience alone. For the next few weeks, I’ll be hearing those fans flapping and toes tapping, and looking forward to the new one.

Indigo De Souza’s new album Precipice will be out in a few weeks now, towards the end of this month. We’ve already heard “Heartthrob,” and now, today (July 8), De Souza has shared another new one, “Be Like The Water.”

De Souza says of the song:

“Be like the water is about being brave and protecting your energy. It’s about listening to your inner self and respecting your gut instinct. My favorite lyric in the song is ‘you can leave if you want to, and you don’t have to say why.’ Whether it’s leaving the room, leaving the conversation, or leaving a toxic relationship, you have the power to make a change and life is too precious to waste your spirit.”

Watch the “Be Like Water” video above and find De Souza’s upcoming tour dates below.

Indigo De Souza’s 2025 Tour Dates

07/11 — Cincinnati, OH @ Woodward Theater #
07/12 — Lexington, KY @ The Burl (Indoors) #
07/14 — Columbia, MO @ Blue Note #
07/15 — Des Moines, IA @ Wooly’s #
07/16 — Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall #
07/18 — Indianapolis, IN @ Everwise Amphitheater *
07/19 — Chicago, IL @ Fairgrounds at The Salt Shed *
07/20 — Chicago, IL @ Fairgrounds at The Salt Shed *
08/30 — Seattle, WA @ Bumbershoot Festival
10/18 — Columbus, OH @ Athenaeum Theatre ^
10/19 — Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall ^
10/20 — Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall ^
10/22 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer ^
10/23 — Washington DC @ 9:30 Club ^
10/25 — Norwalk, CT @ District Music Hall ^
10/26 — Boston, MA @ The Royale ^
10/27 — New York, NY @ Webster Hall ^
10/30 — Charlottesville, VA @ The Jefferson ^
11/02 — Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel ^
11/05 — Paris, FR @ Pitchfork Festival
11/08 — London, UK @ Pitchfork Festival

# with Primer
* supporting Lord Huron
^ with Mothé

Precipice is out 7/25 via Loma Vista Recordings. Find more information here.

La Dispute are currently readying a new album, No One Was Driving The Car. Today (July 8), they just dropped off a healthy chunk of it, sharing five new songs, which collectively are billed as the third act of the album.

The release comes with a video for “Sibling Fistfight At Mom’s Fiftieth/The Un-Sound,” which was shot, edited, and directed by the band’s Jordan Dreyer.

In a lengthy statement, Dreyer explains the narrative inspirations behind this batch of songs:

“the next act encompasses in more focused detail the narrator’s look backwards down the path, beginning at their shared home in the present day, where the dissociation introduced in act one as almost entirely a self-inclosed thing trickles outward and troubles the comfort outlined in the last section of the song preceding it. he examines his own life through imagined self-portraits, in various sequences of time (fractions of days first, then weeks, months, years), and through multiple specific events. from there, four critically influential events from his earlier life are detailed in four songs:

first, a story from his early teenage years, where he and his brother–up north hunting with their father in the area where he and his own brother (the boys’ uncle, who has long lived far away elsewhere), and their father (who died when they were young)–stumble upon what they believe to be an abandoned paramilitary compound. in the middle of the field beside it they come to a hole dug in the ground full of deer carcasses. the narrator becomes fixated on the bodies below, unable to break his gaze from them, while the brother continues on toward the compound, a metaphor both for their diverging paths and for the obsessions/explanations that motivated them to take which ones they did.

the second song happens a few years later, at their mother’s fiftieth birthday party, where several siblings–drunk and airing internal grievances–fight on the basement staircase while their mother contemplates what role her own actions as a parent played in their arrival at that moment and in the conflicted history that led up to it. in the second half of the song, the siblings are gathered at the parents’ house again, years after the fight, for a quarterly group birthday celebration for several of their own children.

the third song occurs years on from there, with a pitch made to the partner of the narrator–working through undergrad at the time–from purveyors of a multi-level marketing company central to the history of grand rapids, and in some ways inextricably entwined with the christian reformed church mentioned earlier on the record (somewhat importantly, the rapture is invoked at the very end of the song, in a section discussing extraordinary wealth).

the final song centers around the friend whose funeral appeared earlier in act two, and is presented as reflections of their shared experiences together in youth, chiefly a snowy night drifting in a car together across an empty church parking lot, and the crash that occurred when the car spun on ice to slide sidelong into a curb and embankment. the end of the song harkens back heavily to the second section of act two (the song ‘Environmental Catastrophe Film’) and represents a full-circle consideration of the control dictated to him via exposure to calvinist teachings in childhood.”

Watch the “Sibling Fistfight At Mom’s Fiftieth/The Un-Sound” video above.

No One Was Driving The Car via 9/5 via Epitaph. Find more information here.

Danny L Harle is busy. He was a primary producer and co-writer on Dua Lipa and Caroline Polachek’s most recent albums, and in general, he’s usually bringing his special sauce to somebody else’s project. Now, though, he’s getting back in the solo realm with “Starlight,” his first new music since his 2021 debut album Harlecore. It’s also his first song for his new label, XL Recordings.

For the track, he teams up with another previous collaborator, PinkPantheress. Harle says of the song:

“Starlight reaches for a kind of euphoric melancholy — a guiding light in all of my music. It’s shaped by my love of the melancholic songwriting traditions of Europe from composers like Monteverdi and John Dowland, all the way to 90s Eurodance and the uplifting trance of the 2000s — artists like Gigi D’Agostino and Alice Deejay. Pinkpantheress is the dream collaborator for this song, her love for ornamental melodies and hypnotic lyricism fit perfectly into my sound world.”

PinkPantheress, by the way, recently generated some attention by sharing a photo of herself after winning an under-25 chess tournament, saying, “i don’t mention the chess lineage that runs in my family enough girl.” As she reminded in a recent Reddit AMA, her aunt is chess grandmaster Susan Lalic.

Listen to “Starlight” above.

It appears Deftones have something new coming.

At a performance in London last week, they teased something called “Private Music,” along with what seemed to be a release date of July 10.

Now, they’ve taken the tease to social media. Yesterday (July 7), on Instagram, they shared two images, what appear to be screenshots from a music video or something similar. The first one has overlaid text that reads, “negative space in cycles been caught on our radar,” and the second says, “we’ve been waiting here patiently locked in this state clocking our time.”

In a 2024 interview (as Metal Injection notes), Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter said of the project, “I feel this one sounds like a continuation of Ohms and Koi, that’s what I would say… I tell you what, I think when you hear it, like all of our records, you will hear our sound. You’ll hear us. But I think you’re going to hear things on this one that you never heard on any of them.” He also said of Chino Moreno, “He’s really good at flipping up what he does, like, he always changes what he does, [while] still doing what he does. It’s actually pretty dope.”

This comes after Everlast said the band is prepping a new album set for August and noted, “[It] sounds like Deftones all got in time machines and got back out and hit the studio last week and are feeling young and beautiful. That record is amazing, man, all three [songs] that I heard… It’s gonna be a good musical summer for people who like what we do.”

It seems that Blur and Gorillaz’s Damon Albarn has some money coming his way: Back in 2023, he said of Oasis, “I can guarantee they’re going to reform, in fact, I’ve put money on it. They’re brothers and it would be wonderful to see them reconcile.”

Albarn hasn’t forgotten about his prescience about the now-ongoing Oasis reunion tour: In a recent interview with Italian newspaper Il Messaggero, he said (roughly translated from Italian), “The Oasis reunion? Two years ago, I was prophetic when I said it would happen and that the path was clear.”

He added, “Well, you can’t really believe that two brothers won’t eventually make peace. From my perspective, that’s a positive thing.”

When asked if he plans to make it out to a UK reunion show himself, he said with a laugh, “No, I’m literally too busy.”

Albarn is currently in the midst of some tour dates with Africa Express until July 11, while Oasis’ UK dates run from that day to August 12.

Find Oasis’ upcoming tour dates below.

Oasis’ 2025 Tour Dates: Oasis Live ’25

07/11 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/12 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/16 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/19 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/20 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/25 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/26 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/30 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/02 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/03 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/08 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/09 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/12 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/16 — Dublin, IE @ Croke Park
08/17 — Dublin, IE @ Croke Park
08/24 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Stadium
08/25 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Stadium
08/28 — Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field
08/31 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
09/01 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
09/06 — Los Angeles, CA @ Rose Bowl Stadium
09/07 — Los Angeles, CA @ Rose Bowl Stadium
09/12 — Mexico City, MX @ Estadio GNP Seguros
09/13 — Mexico City, MX @ Estadio GNP Seguros
09/27 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
09/28 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
10/31 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/01 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/04 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/07 — Sydney, Australia @ Accor Stadium
11/08 — Sydney, Australia @ Accor Stadium
11/15 — Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Estadio River Plate
11/16 — Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Estadio River Plate
11/19 — Santiago, Chile @ Estadio Nacional
11/22 — São Paulo, Brazil @ Estadio MorumBIS
11/23 — São Paulo, Brazil @ Estadio MorumBIS

Syd has been busy, but it’s been a while since we’ve had new solo music from her. It’s been three years, actually, but that changes with today’s (July 7) release of a new single, “Die For This.” The track initially premiere today on BBC Radio 1’s New Music Show as the “Hottest Record In The World.”

A press release notes Syd shared the song because she “wanted to just give a peek into her process.”

There’s no news of a new album yet, but if one is on the way, it’d be Syd’s first since 2022’s Broken Hearts Club. Last year, though, her band The Internet indicated they were working on new music.

Listen to “Die For This” above. Syd also has upcoming tour dates supporting Billie Eilish and Reneé Rapp, so find those below.

Syd’s 2025 Tour Dates

07/07 — Glasgow, UK @ OVO Hydro *
07/08 — Glasgow, UK @ OVO Hydro *
07/10 — London, UK @ The O2 *
07/11 — London, UK @ The O2 *
07/13 — London, UK @ The O2 *
07/19 — Manchester, UK @ Co-op Live *
07/20 — Manchester, UK @ Co-op Live *
07/22 — Manchester, UK @ Co-op Live *
07/23 — Manchester, UK @ Co-op Live *
07/26 — Dublin, IE @ 3Arena *
07/27 — Dublin, IE @ 3Arena *
09/27 — Sterling Heights, MI @ Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill ^
09/29 — New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden ^
10/02 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden ^
10/06 — Columbia, MD @ Merriweather Post Pavillion ^
10/08 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena ^
10/10 — Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory ^
10/13 — Portland, OR @ Theater of the Clouds ^
10/15 — San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium ^
10/17 — Inglewood, CA @ KIA Forum ^

* supporting Billie Eilish
^ supporting Reneé Rapp

This past weekend was incredibly packed in terms of live music. Oasis finally reunited. So did Blackpink, and so did Black Sabbath. Amid all that, Lana Del Rey had a couple shows at London’s iconic Wembley Stadium, too, on July 3 and 4.

On both nights, Del Rey tapped Addison Rae as her opener, and also on both nights, Rae joined Del Rey during the main set. During both performances, they sang Rae’s “Diet Pepsi” (here’s a video) followed by Del Rey’s “57.5” (here’s a video). As Stereogum notes, this was Rae’s first-ever stadium performance.

Meanwhile, during Rae’s first opening set on the 3rd (as setlist.fm notes), Rae performed seven songs, including the live debuts of “Money Is Everything” and “Summer Forever.”

Check out Del Rey’s setlist from the first night (via setlist.fm) below.

Lana Del Rey’s Wembley Stadium Setlist

1. “Stars Fell On Alabama”
2. “Henry, Come On”
3. “Stand By Your Man”
4. “Chemtrails Over The Country Club”
5. “Ultraviolence”
6. “Ride”
7. “Video Games”
8. “Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd”
9. “Quiet In The South”
10. “Young And Beautiful”
11. “Summertime Sadness”
12. “Born To Die”
13. “Venice Bitch”
14. “Diet Pepsi” (Addison Rae cover, with Addison Rae)
15. “57.5” (with Addison Rae)
16. “Take Me Home, Country Roads” (John Denver cover)

For years, it seemed like it would never happen. Then, this past weekend, it finally did: Oasis reunited. For two nights in Cardiff, Wales this past weekend, the band kicked off their long-awaited comeback tour. As for who is responsible for this whole stunning ordeal, Noel Gallagher has seemingly identified the driving force.

As NME notes, at the second show, there was a section where Noel introduced the band members, and while introducing guitarist Paul Arthurs (also known as Bonehead), he said, “On guitar, if it wasn’t for him, none of this would have happened.”

Some have interpreted this as Gallagher crediting Bonehead as the reason for the reunion, but he could also have been referring to the fact that Bonehead was a founding member of the band, and that if he hadn’t helped bring the group to life, Oasis wouldn’t have existed at all.

Find some clips from the first show here and check out the full setlist below, along with Oasis’ upcoming tour dates.

Oasis’ Oasis Live ’25 Tour Setlist

1. “Hello”
2. “Acquiesce”
3. “Morning Glory”
4. “Some Might Say”
5. “Bring It On Down”
6. “Cigarettes & Alcohol”
7. “Fade Away”
8. “Supersonic”
9. “Roll With It”
10. “Talk Tonight”
11. “Half The World Away”
12. “Little By Little”
13. “D’You Know What I Mean?”
14. “Stand By Me”
15. “Cast No Shadow”
16. “Slide Away”
17. “Whatever”
18. “Live Forever”
19. “Rock ‘N’ Roll Star”
20. “The Masterplan” (encore)
21. “Don’t Look Back In Anger” (encore)
22. “Wonderwall” (encore)
23. “Champagne Supernova” (encore)

Oasis’ 2025 Tour Dates: Oasis Live ’25

07/11 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/12 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/16 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/19 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/20 — Manchester, UK @ Heaton Park
07/25 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/26 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/30 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/02 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/03 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
08/08 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/09 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/12 — Edinburgh, UK @ Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
08/16 — Dublin, IE @ Croke Park
08/17 — Dublin, IE @ Croke Park
08/24 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Stadium
08/25 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Stadium
08/28 — Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field
08/31 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
09/01 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
09/06 — Los Angeles, CA @ Rose Bowl Stadium
09/07 — Los Angeles, CA @ Rose Bowl Stadium
09/12 — Mexico City, MX @ Estadio GNP Seguros
09/13 — Mexico City, MX @ Estadio GNP Seguros
09/27 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
09/28 — London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
10/31 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/01 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/04 — Melbourne, Australia @ Marvel Stadium
11/07 — Sydney, Australia @ Accor Stadium
11/08 — Sydney, Australia @ Accor Stadium
11/15 — Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Estadio River Plate
11/16 — Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Estadio River Plate
11/19 — Santiago, Chile @ Estadio Nacional
11/22 — São Paulo, Brazil @ Estadio MorumBIS
11/23 — São Paulo, Brazil @ Estadio MorumBIS

We live in the Dot era. After demolishing rap rival Drake last year, Kendrick Lamar’s victory lap has dominated 2025 and the current hip-hop landscape. Super Bowl performance. More Grammy wins. “Not Like Us” still in rotation. “Luther” reigning for 13 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Record-breaking stadium status tour with SZA still going strong.

But despite Mr. Duckworth’s dominance, there’s some other rap music from the past six months that you must get familiar with. And who better to help guide you than hip-hop’s greatest journalist? These picks ain’t just personal: I truly take into account my unbiased view on how these tunes have impacted hip-hop culture.

Spoiler alert: All hail what Pharrell and the garcons cooked up in Paris. Yup, rap vets still rule. Pardon me, youth. Y’all day will come.

Songs

10. Wale — “Blanco”

Folarin drinks away the pain on this slow-winding, self-reflective requiem.

9. Young Thug — “Money On Money” Feat. Future

Thugger’s triumphant return is a rattling rollercoaster ride alongside his ATL partner, Pluto.

8. Lil Baby — “Dum, Dumb, And Dumber” Feat. Young Thug and Future

This trap-rap triumvirate cut through the competition and displayed their captivating chemistry.

7. Playboi Carti and The Weeknd — “Rather Lie”

Truth is this song should be Carti’s biggest hit. Rap radio, please respond ASAP.

6. Lil Tecca — “Dark Thoughts”

You can’t knock this New York hitmaker’s hustle. Make some room on the dance floor.

5. Doechii — “Anxiety”

The Swamp Princess took one of her old viral hits and made it better. Fresh for ’25.

4. Rob49 — “WTHELLY”

The slang anthem of the year. Word to me. WTHELLIOTT.

3. Joey Badass — “The Ruler’s Back”

Jo-Vaughn spent New Year’s Day challenging his fellow MCs from coast to coast. Boy, did they respond.

2. Drake — “What Did I Miss?”

Drizzy begins his comeback season with his best post-battle song. Let’s go!

1. Clipse — “Ace Trumpets”

The brothers Thornton deliver luxury rap that you can’t afford to ignore.

Albums

10. Slick Rick — Victory

Hip-hop history’s most acclaimed storyteller simply proves that age ain’t nothing but a number on this sharp resurgence.

9. Ray Vaughn — The Good The Bad The Dollar Menu

The young MC of TDE delivers his outstanding origin story that leaves you with the hunger for more.

8. Saba & No I.D. — From The Private Collection Of Saba & No I.D.

The Pivot poet connected with fellow Chicagoan and legendary producer Dion to form a dynamic duo and they quickly flourished here. Cheers to more public consumption.

7. Central Cee — Can’t Rush Greatness

It ain’t easy for British rap to break through in America, but Cench is making it look easy. Language barriers aside, this dynamic debut album deserves many listens.

6. Lil Baby — WHAM

He was untouchable in 2020 with My Turn, stumbled a bit in 2022 with It’s Only Me, and despite the mixed and negative reviews, I’m digging Dominique Jones’ fourth studio album, WHAM. Stop sleeping!

5. PartyNextDoor & Drake — Some Sexy Songs 4 U

Fresh off his rap battle defeat, Aubrey Graham switched up the program and leaned heavy in his singing bag. It’s surprising how much he has to carry the load here. Sorry, Party.

4. Key Glock — Glockaveli

Memphis’ finest MC continues to honor his mentor, Young Dolph, with his stellar consistency. Not Pac-level, but still pretty good.

3. Larry June, 2 Chainz, & The Alchemist — Life Is Beautiful

A hip-hop odd squad contrive a lil yacht rap for your listening pleasure. Pass the white wine.

2. Playboi Carti — Music

Evil Jordan brings his cult crowd to the mainstream on this rage-rap masterwork.

1. Clipse — Let God Sort Em Out

Pusha T has had the same marketing plan for all his projects: “I just made the rap album of the year.” In partnership with his brother Malice, Terrence has done it again. Deeper than coke raps.