It happened. Kanye West heard every Tidal naysayer’s cries to make The Life of Pablo available anywhere else, and he dropped his album on Apple Music, Spotify and other music providers. Also, Views From the 6 is apparently on its way very soon, Frank Ocean is this close to releasing his comeback album, and Avicii retired from live performance. As usual, the music industry is a mess. Here’s a neater recap of what’s popping off lately.
1) “Free” by Broods
The New Zealand brother-sister duo of Caleb and Georgia Nott is back with this track, the lead single from their forthcoming second studio album. In this darker creation, Georgia distinguishes her vocal talent from Lorde, to whom the group is often compared, likely a result of the fact that they share a producer, Joel Little.
2) “How Does It Feel” by Kamaiyah
A few weeks ago, Oakland rapper Kamaiyah dropped her debut mixtape, A Good Night In The Ghetto. She released this track before the mixtape as a hint at what the tape would come to stand for thematically. Kamaiyah told music blog Pigeons & Planes that this song is “an anthem for the underprivileged to celebrate life and to make it OK to not be wealthy again.”
3) “Come and See Me” by PARTYNEXTDOOR feat. Drake
Twenty-two-year-old OVO signee PARTYNEXTDOOR, who started in music years ago mixing and producing as Jahron B, has found his way into the news many times this past week. Unfortunately, none of it has to do with an upcoming album. In the meantime, enjoy this track, rumored to be part of Drake’s next release.
4) “Black and White” by Liam Horne
From Aberdeen, Scotland, Liam Horne first set foot in the music industry at age 16, when he co-wrote Justin Bieber’s “Out of Town Girl” after dropping out of high school. He’s only dropped a few singles of his own; it’s unclear if an album is on the way.
5) “Heading Home” by Gryffin feat. Josef Salvat
Dan Griffin (Gryffin) has racked up millions on millions of plays on his remixes posted to SoundCloud. He was classically trained in piano and guitar and thus prefers live instrumentalism at his shows. The song’s featured artist studied law at the University of Sydney before deciding to pursue music full time, citing huge influence from Sia, a fellow Aussie.
6) “Cold” by Mating Ritual feat. Lizzy Land
Mating Ritual is made up of 26-year-old Los Angeles singer Ryan Marshall Lawhon, singer Lizzy Land and drummer Rob Humphries. Lawhon’s brother, Taylor Lawhon, was once part of the band and is named as a key in getting the band off the ground. The group’s debut album released a month ago.
7) “California Daze” by Peace
Old-fashioned indie rock band Peace hails from Worcester, England. The group’s debut album came out in 2013, years after its members came together as a band in college. With a deep respect for old-school rock ‘n’ roll, the group’s sound feels like a flashback to the ’70s and ’80s, when artists like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd were in their heyday.
8) “War” by Tunji Ige
Philly-bred Tunji Ige began pursuing his rap career while still going to college full time. He started receiving attention when he released a remix of 2014’s “Day2Day” featuring iLoveMakonnen and Michael Christmas. This was followed by the drop of his debut mixtape The Love Project and, most recently, his seven-track EP Missed Calls.
9) “Silhouette” by Aquilo
British friends Tom Higham and Ben Fletcher are the names behind this sobering indie duo. They were more or less thrown into the popular indie scene, as their fourth show took place at the Glastonbury Festival. They have since received nods from Pigeons & Planes and The Guardian.
10) “Horns” by Bryce Fox
Originally from Bloomington, Indiana, Bryce Fox is placing himself in a realm where big and bold production is top priority. He got into the industry writing songs for others but then decided to pick up a solo singing career. This song is full of layers of heavy instrumental that fill out the track as a whole.
By this time next week, I’ll be back — and who knows, maybe Frank Ocean will be, too.