Megan Normani

20 New Rap and R&B Songs Out This Week

Well the year is officially in full swing! We posted over 100 new songs on BV this week (yes, really), at least 20 of which fall under the rap/R&B umbrella. This week also gave us at least one great new rap EP, Mick Jenkins’ The Circus, which you can read about and listen to in this week’s Notable Releases. Scroll down for more of this week’s new rap and R&B songs…

MEGAN THEE STALLION & NORMANI – “DIAMONDS”

Megan Thee Stallion and Normani put their heads together for this booming rap/R&B duet that was made for the soundtrack to Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) and already sounds like it’s got hit potential.

DRAKE & FUTURE – “LIFE IS GOOD”

Drake and Future, whose What A Time To Be Alive is one of the best rap albums of the 2010s, have teamed up again for the new single “Life Is Good.” They’re both even more rich and famous now than they were then, and this song has even more superstar bravado than WATTBA did.

DENZEL CURRY – “13LOOD 1N + 13LOOD OUT MIXX” (FT. GHOSTEMANE, ZILLAKAMI, XAVIER WULF, & AK)

The great, very prolific Florida rapper Denzel Curry is back with 13LOOD 1N + 13LOOD, which is eight tracks presented as one 13-minute piece, featuring new music from him and some of his talented friends. It’s a dark, murky collage that sounds somewhere between a DJ mix and a rap mixtape (Denzel calls it a “Mixx”), and he credits it to his alter-ego ZXLTRXN, writing, “The entity known as ZXLTRXN is here to give you an invitation to the active mind of a man with multiple personalities. Darkness, Happiness, Past, Present, and Future make there way into this Mixx.”

IDK – “HELLO FREESTYLE (PT.4) (PROD. JPEGMAFIA)

IDK continues his annual tradition of kicking the new year off with a new freestyle, and this time it’s the JPEGMAFIA-produced “HELLO FREESTYLE (PT.4).” It’s IDK’s first new music since 2019’s very solid Is He Real?, and it’s more heat from IDK.

THA GOD FAHIM – “IRON FIST”

Atlanta rapper Tha God Fahim is releasing his new album Lost Kingz on January 31 via Nature Sounds, and lead single/opening track “Iron Fist” is the kind of trippy, abstract boom bap that you can really lose yourself in.

KASSA OVERALL – “SHOW ME A PRISON”

Kassa Overall blurs the lines between hip hop and jazz, and on the new single off his upcoming album I THINK I’M GOOD (due February 28 via Brownswood), “Show Me A Prison,” he goes off into heady, psychedelic territory without losing sight of strong pop hooks.

STORMZY & WILEY DISSES

Stormzy and Wiley have been releasing diss tracks aimed at each other all week. Here are the two latest:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcWDNLCjuFQ

J BALVIN – “MORADO”

Reggaeton giant J Balvin follows November’s “Blanco” with another color-themed song, “Morado” (purple). Going by the breezy, instantly satisfying sounds of this one, J Balvin’s reign is not ending anytime soon.

MAC MILLER – “GOOD NEWS”

The late Mac Miller’s family will release his sixth and “final” studio album, Circles, next week, and the announcement was accompanied by this sweeping, six-minute rap ballad that was assisted by Jon Brion.

NEZ – “WILD YOUNGSTER” (ft. SCHOOLBOY Q)

Production duo Nez & Rio have helmed a handful of tracks for Schoolboy Q (and A$AP Rocky and Tinashe and more) in the past, and Nez has now tapped Schoolboy Q for his debut single, the clubby “Wild Youngster.”

070 SHAKE – “GUILTY CONSCIENCE”

Kanye collaborator 070 Shake has debuted another song off her upcoming album MODUS VIVENDI, which comes out on G.O.O.D. Music next week. This one’s part rap song, part swaying R&B-pop ballad.

HIT-BOY – “ALL BUSINESS” (ft. BENNY THE BUTCHER)

Best known as the beatmaker on Kanye & Jay-Z’s “N****s In Paris,” G.O.O.D. Music’s “Clique,” Kendrick’s “Backsdeat Freestyle,” Nicki Minaj & Beyonce’s “Feeling Myself,” and more, Hit-Boy has now teamed up with grimy ’90s-New-York-rap revivalist Benny the Butcher for this new song.

2 CHAINZ & SKOOLY – “VIRGIL DISCOUNT”

2 Chainz is following his great 2019 album Rap Or Go To The League with a new album from his T.R.U. crew (Skooly, Worl, Sleepy Rose, and Hott Locked N), No Face No Case, on February 7 via Atlantic. The first taste is “Virgil Discount,” which finds 2 Chainz in more of a hard-hitting, trap-inspired mode than the often-lush Rap Or Go To The League.

YOUR OLD DROOG – “CAKES” (ft. PRODIGY, prod. ALCHEMIST)

Your Old Droog follows his three 2019 albums with a new Alchemist-produced single, and it features a posthumous verse from the late, great Prodigy. Fans of ’90s-style New York rap do not wanna sleep on this one.

RIPDEE – “SCOOTER” (ft. FREDDIE GIBBS & CASH LANSKY)

Freddie Gibbs follows up his very busy 2019 (which included his great new album with Madlib) by lending his voice to his new track by DJ Ripdee. Ripdee has a much more modern electronic style than Gibbs’ usual production comfort zone, but Gibbs still navigates the throbbing beat like a pro.

KNXWLEDGE – “DO YOU”

LA beatmaker Knxwledge (Kendrick Lamar, Anderson .Paak, etc) has dropped his first new song of 2020, and it’s a gooey, infectious blend of hip hop, jazz, and psychedelia.

SADA BABY – BROLIK (MIXTAPE STREAM)

Prolific Detroit rapper kicked 2020 off with this new mixtape. Guests include G Herbo, Blocboy JB, ShittyBoyz Babytron, and more.

SALAAM REMI – DO IT FOR THE CULTURE 2

Veteran rap producer Salaam Remi dropped a new 25-song compilation featuring Nas, Amy Winehouse, Busta Rhymes, Gallant, Terrace Martin, Joell Ortiz, Bodega Bamz, Miguel, James Fauntleroy, and more.

MONEYBAGG YO – TIME SERVED

One of the first big rap albums of 2020 is the latest from Moneybagg Yo, which features Future, DaBaby, Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Baby, Summer Walker, and more.

For even more new songs, browse our daily ‘New Songs’ lists. For more hip hop news, browse our ‘Hip Hop News’ category.