This week’s new music Friday features a mega collaboration across genres with Travis Scott, The Weeknd and Bad Bunny teaming up for a track, as well as the return of former One Direction member ZAYN and Britney Spears — with help from Will.i.am — for new singles.
Scott, The Weeknd and Bad Bunny’s new single “K-Pop” has none of the trappings from the genre of the same name. Instead, the track opts for Afrobeats for instrumentation as Scott and Benito carry the first half of the song. The Weeknd gets listeners moving toward the end of the track, and ultimately reveals the drug that the title of the track is in reference to.
Spears dips a toe into her Blackout era lyricism with Will.i.am collab “Mind Your Business.” On the single, the pop star sings, “Paparazzi shot me, I am the economy/ Follow me, follow me, follow me,” recalling the hectic swarm of media attention she received in the early aughts as well as the 2020s. Much like their previous collab “Scream & Shout,” “Mind Your Business” is an electro-pop ear worm that has potential to inch its way onto the charts.
Zayn returned on Friday with “Love Like This,” his first offering since releasing his third studio album, Nobody Is Listening, in 2021. Re-energized from a switch to a new label (Mercury Records), the former boy bander tries new sounds through use of U.K. garage instrumentation. The choice is a wise one that allows his vocals to sensually float above the thumping beats, as he sings of giving himself up to a new and enticing romance.
There’s also new material from Ice Spice, Diplo and Chris Stapleton, and the Barbie The Album on Friday. It’s a lot to choose from, but what was your favorite new release of the week? Vote in the poll below.
