New Music Friday is closing out August with plenty to unpack. Rod Wave returns with another emotional deep dive, Erykah Badu links with The Alchemist for her first full-length project in over a decade, and Yung Miami recruits several heavy-hitters to stretch the summer of “Spend Dat” a little longer.
Rod Wave is back in his feelings with “Don’t Look Down,” a 20-track album that keeps the Florida singer-rapper planted in the emotionally heavy territory that turned vulnerability into his signature. Released through Alamo Records and Sony Music Entertainment, the project includes previously released records “Hustle” and “Piece Of Your Love,” while songs such as “War Wounds,” “Lost & Insecure,” “Take Care,” and “Toast” hint at the emotional range surrounding them. The lone listed feature is Luv Von on “Mainstay,” leaving Rod to carry most of the project himself. That should not surprise longtime listeners. His biggest records have often sounded like private thoughts that accidentally made it into millions of headphones, and “Don’t Look Down” gives him another 20 tracks to get some things off his chest.
Erykah Badu and The Alchemist finally deliver “Before The World Blows,” a collaboration that pairs two artists who have made careers out of refusing to fit neatly inside anybody else’s box. The 16-track album is Badu’s first full-length project since 2015’s “But You Caint Use My Phone” and her first studio album in more than a decade. “Witch Doctor” introduced the project, complete with a visual that revisited the concept behind her unforgettable “Window Seat” video. From there, the guest list gets interesting. Steve Lacy appears on “To The Moon (Plan C),” Thundercat joins “They Ain’t You,” Earl Sweatshirt pulls up for “I Know That Man,” Kamasi Washington appears on “Black Box,” while Westside Gunn, DRAM, Joi, and DJ Creole Princess also contribute. Badu described herself as an “ever-changing vessel” while discussing the project, and putting her voice and instincts next to The Alchemist’s production certainly gives that vessel somewhere new to travel.
Meanwhile, Yung Miami is making sure “Spend Dat” does not clock out just because summer is winding down. After the J. White Did It-produced original became the biggest solo record of her career, Caresha recruited Lil Baby and Kodak Black for the official U.S. remix. The 3-minute, 14-second update gives Miami a fresh verse before Baby and Kodak take their turns, adding Atlanta and Broward County to an already very Miami affair. The original has reached No. 1 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Rap Airplay, and Urban Radio, while peaking at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. And she did not stop with one remix. An international version featuring Shenseea, Davido, and Vybz Kartel also arrived Friday. At this point, “Spend Dat” is spending its own success very wisely.
From Rod Wave turning pain into another full-length confession to Badu and The Alchemist taking the scenic route creatively and Yung Miami squeezing another round out of her biggest solo hit, this week’s New Music Friday has plenty of sauce.
Yung Miami feat. Lil Baby & Kodak Black – “Spend Dat Remix” (single)
Yung Miami feat. Davido, Shenseea, Vybz Kartel – “Spend Dat International Remix” (single)
Tamia – “Forever And A Day” (single)
AZ Chike feat. Tyler The Creator – “Look Like My Mama” (single)
Ice Spice feat. Lil Yachty – “Out My Face” (single)
Babyfxce E – “Never Ending Run” (single)
Rob49 feat. Sexyy Red – “In The Club” (single)
Nardo Wick – “Is Dat Right?” (single)
Rod Wave – “Don’t Look Down” (album)
Erykah Badu & The Alchemist – “Before The World Blows” (album)
Post Malone – “August 26” (album)
Fat Joe – “Organized Rhyme” (album)
YNW Melly – “Collect Call II” (album)
Busta Rhymes – “Dillagence II” (album)
SAINt JHN – “If Tomorrow Never Comes” (single)
E-40 – “Turning My Money Over Quadruple” (album)
Wyclef Jean – “Q Theory – Quantum Leap, Vol. 2” (album)
