Navy Blue

14 New Rap and R&B Songs Out This Week

Surprise! We got a new Denzel Curry/Kenny Beats project today, and it’s awesome. You can read about it in Notable Releases, where I also wrote about the new EP by Obongjayar, which isn’t really rap or R&B but isn’t not rap or R&B. Also this week, we got new singles from Meek Mill/Justin Timberlake, DaBaby, Blueface, Nicki Minaj, DeJ Loaf, Kamaiyah, and more; and new projects from Pop Smoke, Navy Blue, Boldy James, and more. Read on for all the rap and R&B we posted this week (and some stuff we hadn’t posted yet)…

MEEK MILL – “BELIEVE” (ft. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE)

Meek Mill’s hot streak continues. Fresh off a genuinely touching tribute to Nipsey Hussle, he dropped another sentimental ballad featuring the first Justin Timberlake hook since 2018.

DABABY – “SHUT UP”

DaBaby is coming off a humongous 2019, and it looks like he won’t be slowing down in 2020. He just dropped the very DaBaby-sounding and instantly-satisfying “Shut Up,” and it comes with a video that promises this year will be “nothing compared” to last. Speaking of…

BLUEFACE – “OBAMA” (ft. DABABY)

For a minute there, it seemed like DaBaby and Blueface were both simultaneously on the cusp of a big breakout, until DaBaby obviously eclipsed Blueface. But now, DaBaby has lent some of his star power to Blueface’s highly catchy new single “Obama,” which (naturally) comes with an animated visual where two near-nude women dance for Obama in the White House as Obama makes it rain.

NICKI MINAJ – “YIKES”

For someone who’s retired, Nicki sure releases a lot of music! It’s also — given its title — probably at least sort of a response to all the controversy Nicki’s been surrounded by lately. And it’s also a tough, moody rap song that sounds pretty great despite all that other stuff.

DEJ LOAF – “BUBBLY”

The consistently great sing-rapper DeJ Loaf is back with another one. Drop the album, DeJ!!

KAMAIYAH – “SET IT UP” (ft. TRINA)

Kamaiyah will release her new mixtape Got It Made on February 21, and it features this new single “Set It Up.” It features veteran rapper Trina and it’s got exactly the kind of G-Funk-reviving West Coast bounce that Kamaiyah always does so well.

ROYCE DA 5’9″ – “UPSIDE DOWN” (ft. BENNY THE BUTCHER & ASHLEY SORRELL)

Eminem might not be taking advantage of having the Griselda crew signed to Shady Records when he releases his own new music, but at least his frequent collaborator Royce da 5’9″ is.

DRAKEO THE RULER – “OUT THE SLUMS” (REMIX FT. DANNY BROWN & 03 GREEDO)

LA rapper Drakeo The Ruler has a court date set for March 2, as he faces charges of criminal gang conspiracy and shooting from a motor vehicle, and in conjunction with that date, he’ll release a new mixtape called Free Drakeo that features 10 remixes of songs from his 2017 album Cold Devil. The first to be released is this new version of “Out the Slums,” which already featured 03 Greedo and now also features Danny Brown. Drakeo spoke more about the project to The FADER.

A BOOGIE WIT DA HOODIE – “KING OF MY CITY”

Bronx sing-rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie is releasing a new album, Artist 2.0, and its newest single is typically catchy and melancholic “King of My City.”

BOLDY JAMES & THE ALCHEMIST – THE PRICE OF TEA IN CHINA

Boldy James and The Alchemist have teamed up once again for an entire collaborative project, and if you dig psychedelic throwback rap, don’t sleep on this one. Guests include Vince Staples, Freddie Gibbs, Benny the Butcher, and more.

POP SMOKE – MEET THE WOO 2

Brooklyn drill rapper had the New York song of the summer last year with “Welcome to the Party,” but he’s no one hit wonder. He’s back today with a new mixtape and it feels like he just keeps getting better.

NAVY BLUE – ADA IRIN

Navy Blue started catching a lot of people’s attention by appearing on various Earl Sweatshirt and MIKE projects, and this week he released his first full-length album which is cut from a very similar cloth to Earl and MIKE’s stuff and is a great project in its own right.

OVRKAST – TRY AGAIN

Speaking of Navy Blue, he’s also on the recently released Ovrkast album Try Again, alongside Earl/MIKE collaborator Mavi, Pink Siifu, and Demahjiae. This came out a few weeks ago, but if you dig this kinda stuff and haven’t heard Try Again yet, we recommend changing that now.

THE LEONARD SIMPSON DUO (GUILTY SIMPSON X LEONARD CHARLES) – LSD

One more “catch-up” thing: this came out last week, and if you wanna hear Guilty Simpson’s reliably great rhymes over what basically qualifies as psychedelic rock, turn on, tune in, and drop out to this.

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