Billboard's Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday's most essential releases — the essential music everyone will be talking about today and that will dominate playlists this weekend and beyond.
This week, J. Cole hits back, Vampire Weekend gets heavenly, and Doja Cat returns with more fire. Check out all of this week's picks below:
J. Cole, It may be deleted later
Like it was with Future and Metro Boomin's We Don't Trust You two weeks earlier, the immediate focus on J. Cole's surprise new project It may be deleted later will be in for a brief burst of controversy: on the final song, “7 Minute Drill,” Cole returns applause to Kendrick Lamar's “Like That” by taking shots at K. Dot's reputation and discography. However, “7 Minute Drill” is just the coda to an unexpected return that will leave longtime Cole fans excited and satisfied, with inspired guest slot choices — the slow-burning opener “Pricey,” for example, features Gucci Mane, Ari Lennox and a hook from the always great Young Dro.
vampire weekend, Only God was above us
Vampire Weekend have long since transcended the indie-rock boom of the late '00s and moved into arena headliner status in the decade that followed, but fifth album Only God was above us nods to the subtler pleasures of their self-titled debut as well as the muted colors of 2013 The modern vampires of the city. Tracks like “Classical,” “The Surfer” and “Connect” capture a band reflecting on what makes them great while aging gracefully — Only God was above us could be called a course correction from the most extensive of 2019 Father of the Bridebut the lessons from that album have also been folded in here as Vampire Weekend continues to move forward.
Doja Cat, Scarlet 2 CLAUDE
With the Red era, another monster hit for Doja Cat, thanks in part to hits like “Paint the Town Red” and “Agora Hills.” Scarlet 2 CLAUDE The deluxe edition could have been a spectacular victory lap — but instead, Doja delivers seven more songs of warmth, further changing her futuristic pop approach and offering more radio fodder than leftovers. The strongest new track is “MASC”, a spacious breakup lament that fully unleashes Teezo Touchdown, though “URRRGE!!!!!!” featuring A$AP Rocky is the type of funky rap track that Doja fully embraced on the original Red.
Bryson Tiller, Bryson Tiller
The recent hit “Whatever She Wants,” which became Bryson Tiller's first solo Top 20 Hot 100 hit since his breakthrough single “Don't,” served as an exclamation point on what has been a consistently stellar studio run for Tiller. at the top of the R&B song, while occasionally crossing over to hip-hop and pop platforms. His new self-titled album is brimming with heartfelt sexual innuendo, a cocktail of ecstasy and sadness that Tiller fans will be on repeat – although recent Best New Artist winner Victoria Monét almost steals the show with some intense wordplay on “Persuasion”.
Young Miko, att.
While artists such as Bizarrap and Feid have co-signed Young Miko – and helped the Puerto Rican artist score some of her biggest hits to date – new album att. represents the rising star's moment on her own two feet and shows just how far-reaching her vision of contemporary Latin music can become. Although Miko often moves quickly over heavy beats, she can work effectively on dance floors, sing impressively in more heartfelt moments, and graciously concede the floor whenever a guest star pops. In other words, it has no glaring weaknesses att.and album opener 'Rookie of the Year' is aptly titled.
Editor's Pick: Kehlani, “After Hours”
Summer is fast approaching and we're already thinking about which singles will define the hottest season… and just like that, Kehlani is back with her first solo release since 2022 Blue Water Road, and promptly throws her hat in the ring. “After Hours” fizzes on its track, as Kehlani lifts Cordel “Scatta” Burrell's “Coolie Dance Rhythm” and reimagines the classic as a siren call: “Why don't you stay here after hours?” she nods, the power of her voice and the swirl of production making it difficult to tear away from the single until its breathless end.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/friday-music-guide-j-cole-vampire-weekend-doja-cat-1235649866/