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Photo credit: Jora Frantzis
There's new hip-hop and R&B albums from Megan Thee Stallion, Jeezy, French Montana, SAINt JHN, Ivy Sole, Kali Uchis, and more.
There is an overwhelming amount of music that drops on New Music Fridays. Unless you have hours of free time, it’s almost impossible to wade through all the sewage out there to get to the good stuff.
That’s where Okayplayer comes in. On Friday morning, we are out here listening to as much new music as humanly possible. The biggest album to drop this week is Megan Thee Stallion's debut album, Good News.
After that, there's new releases from Jeezy, French Montana, Meek Mill, SAINt JHN, Ivy Sole, Kali Uchis, and more. Scroll down to see the best new hip-hop and R&B albums to drop this week.
Megan Thee Stallion — Good News
Photo Credit: 300 Entertainment
Megan Thee Stallion's debut is here. There is not much more we can say at this point. You're either in or you're not. We will say: the opening track, "Shots Fired," where she flips The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Who Shot Ya?", is one of the hardest rap songs of the year.
Jeezy — The Recession 2
Photo Credit: Def Jam
The Recession 2 is the sequel to Jeezy's 2008 classic. The album has a bunch of soul samples. That's not a mistake. Jeezy was listening to a lot of older music while recording this album. In an interview with The Ringer, Jeezy said:
"I was listening to Bobby Womack and Marvin Gaye and a lot of those guys. Music then really captured the time and the pain and what was really going on. That’s how you aligned yourself to what was going on, and we had all types of different movements that was going on at that time."
French Montana — CB5
Photo Credit: Montana Entertainment
Gucci Mane and Jeezy aren't the only two who squashed a long-lasting beef recently. Jim Jones and French Montana making peace on "Too Late" is the highlight of CB5. French spoke about it with Ebro on Apple music:
“Me and Jim and Max was caught up in this little turmoil for about 15 years. We missed out on a lot of money together. I think we owed that to the city, and to the people that are fans of both crews. Me and Jim never really had to altercations. Nobody died. So for us to keep it like that for no reasons all those years, I felt like we had to come to the conclusion of that.”
DaBaby — My Brother’s Keeper
Photo Credit: Interscope
LVRN — Home for the Holidays
Photo Credit: LVRN
Time to get into the holiday spirit. Interscope's Love Renaissance imprint has released its first-ever holiday album. The album features Summer Walker, 6LACK, DRAM, who now goes by Shelley, and more.
Russ — CHOMP EP
Photo Credit: Russ My Way
Independent rapper Russ has dropped a new EP called CHOMP. The talent on this one is out of the world. The project features Black Thought, Ab-Soul, DJ Premier, Benny the Butcher, and more.
Meek Mill — QUARANTINE PACK EP
Photo Credit: Maybach Music Group
Meek Mill has been pretty quiet the last two years. He finally returns with a mini-project: QUARANTINE PACK, which features Lil Durk, 42 Dugg, and Vory.
SAINt JHN — While the World Was Burning
Photo Credit: Godd Complexx
Former First Look Friday alumni SAINt JHN told us two years he wasn't going to stop until he was a superstar. He's pretty close now, thanks to "Roses," the biggest song of his career. Peep his latest album While the World Was Burning.
Gucci Mane — Trap God Classics: I Am My Only Competition
Photo Credit: Atlantic Records
After his glorious Verzuz match with Jeezy, Gucci Mane dropped Trap God Classics, a collection of some of the best street Gucci songs. The audio quality of some of these songs is spotty, but there is truly some of the best rap music of the 21st century on here.
Ivy Sole — SOUTHPAW
Photo Credit: Les Fleurs
Philadelphia-spitter Ivy Sole just dropped her latest project, SOUTHPAW. This one is only six songs but it's as tough as the artwork. One of the hip-hop and R&B albums you should check this week.
Kali Uchis — Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞
Photo Credit: Universal Music
Kali Uchis' has dropped her first-ever Spanish language release, Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞. This might be a disappointment to fans who want her to drop English music, but grow up and enjoy the album.
Scribz Riley — Wish Me Luck
Photo Credit: Scribz Riley
Rising East London artist Scribz Riley unleashes his debut EP, Wish Me Luck. This is actually pretty long for an EP — 10 tracks — but it's strong.
Sons of the James — Everlasting
Photo Credit: Fresh Selects
Sons of the James, a duo consisting of Atlanta singer Rob Milton and producer DJ Harrison, drop their powerful Everlasting album. Bandcamp describes the album as a "blend of classic Gospel music and early 2000's Soulquarians-era R&B and Soul." It's definitely one of the strongest hip-hop and R&B albums to drop this week,
Radiant Children — There's Only Being Yourself
Photo Credit: No Tricks
Two years after dropping their stellar EP, Tryin, Radiant Children — Tyler Acord, Marco Bernardis, and Fabienne Holloway — release their full length There’s Only Being Yourself. Holloway wrote an essay about making the album for Audiomack. She writes:
"This album is a time capsule of a human experience. “Sky Mind” is about learning how to meditate and calm toxic thoughts. “Jane” is all about hiding from the world. “I Need Love” is about the love your inner child needs. “Pretend” is finding lightness in the honest and awkward moments. It’s about growing in a perfectly un-perfect way. Back to front, with ups and downs, and in your own time."
Rich The Kid & YoungBoy Never Broke Again — Nobody Safe
Photo Credit: Rich Forever Music
Rich The Kid connects with YoungBoy Never Broke Again for a new album called Nobody Safe. The album is lead by the melodic single "Bankroll."
Billy Danze & TooBusy — The Listening Session
Photo Credit: WeBusy
Billy Danze, from MOP, has been regularly putting out solid rap music over the last couple of years. His new album was produced entirely by TooBusy and features Method Man, Cormega, Havoc, DJ Premier, and more.
Rasheed Chappell & Buckwild — Sinners and Saints
Photo Credit: Get on Down
New York City rapper Rasheed Chappell hooks up with legendary producer Buckwild for his latest album Sinners and Saints. Speaking about the album, BuckWild said:
“My goal was simple: don’t try to recreate anything they have done, just create something that no one else can do, which is to be me,” Rasheed says. Buck echoed that sentiment when he talked about the record in a documentary, in which he expressed his excitement to work with not just a talented rapper, but a skilled artist. “Being an artist is just as important as putting two words together to rhyme."
