Best Songs of The Week: ft. Ab-Soul, Little Simz, and More

The Round-Up is Okayplayer’s weekly playlist of the best songs in the worlds of hip-hop and R&B. This week’s set features new music from Ab-Soul, Little Simz, Pete Rock, The Alchemist, and more.

Scroll through selections from this week’s sequence below and subscribe to Okayplayer’s Spotify channel today. 

Little Simz - "Gorilla"

Little Simz calls back to Native Tongues era smoothness on this brawny boom bap specimen from her surprise album, No Thank You, which arrived earlier this week via Forever Living Originals.

Chester Watson - "day trip (clocks)"

A lucid and loping cut off nobody home in soulville, a new abbreviated set out today from Miami rapper and producer, Chester Watson.

Ab-Soul - "FOMF"

Ab-Soul swings for the fences on this hulking stadium anthem from his first album in six years. Hear it on Herbert, which is out today via Top Dawg Entertainment, featuring appearances from Lance Skiiiwalker, Big Sean, Joey Bada$$, SiR, Jhene Aiko, and more.

Pete Rock - "Do Our Thing"

Pete Rock offers a glimpse at some of his earliest experiments in sleek jazz chops on this perfectly-swung selection from his new vault-scraping instrumental album, Return of The SP1200 Vol. 2, which is officially free of vinyl exclusivity as it lands on streamers today via Tru Soul Records.

The Alchemist featuring ScHoolboy Q - "Clip in a Tray"

Alchemist reunites with ScHoolboy Q on this crawling and symphonic closer to his star-studded compilation album, Sandwich, which arrived today (just 24 hours after it was announced,) via ALC Records, collecting some of his hardest-hitting collaborations with heavyweight MCs, including Roc Marciano, Black Thought, Action Bronson, and more.

Boldy James - "Earned Not Given"

It's the 59th minute of the 11th hour of what is arguably his most prolific year to date and somehow Boldy James still has some syllables left in the chamber. Quite a few, actually. Here the Detroit rapper takes a victory lap over a breezy, pitched-down boogie chop from Cons, who produced the whole of Be That As It May, another frigid and fierce project from Boldy. It's out today via Tuff Kong Records, featuring contributions from Lord Apex, Bo Skeet, and more.