28 New Rap and R&B Songs Out This Week
This week in rap and R&B, we got the new Teyana Taylor album, which you can read more about in Notable Releases (where you'll also find a review of the new hip hop-adjacent album by jazz/soul legend Roy Ayers, which was made with Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest). Also scroll down for new music from Anderson .Paak, Noname, Public Enemy, Ric Wilson, Chronixx, theMIND, Mereba/6LACK, Ho99o9, Tee Grizzley/Meek Mill, 42 Dugg/DeJ Loaf, Joey Fatts/Vince Staples, Kamaiyah, John Legend/Rapsody, Fivio Foreign/Young M.A, Saweetie, Iron Wigs, and more.
Also check out which artists and labels are offering special releases and donations for Bandcamp's Juneteenth fundraiser, which benefits the NAACP.
ANDERSON .PAAK - "LOCKDOWN" (ft. JAY ROCK)
Anderson. Paak's powerful new song "Lockdown" addresses protests in the age of pandemic, the long history of racism and unjust police killings that fueled them, the terrifying ways police responded to protests, and more. Read more about it here.
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NONAME - "SONG 33" (prod. MADLIB)
Noname dropped a new Madlib-produced song, on which she responds to J Cole's "Snow On Tha Bluff." Read more here.
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J COLE - "SNOW ON THA BLUFF"
And here's the J Cole song.
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RIC WILSON - "FIGHT LIKE IDA B & MARSHA P"
Fresh off releasing a collaborative EP with Terrace Martin (who then went on to release great protest songs with Leon Bridges and Denzel Curry) has now released a powerful new protest song, named after late 1800s/early 1900s civil rights leader Ida B. Wells and LGBTQ activist/Stonewall riots veteran Marsha P. Johnson. Ric wrote, "When I think about next level courage to ball your fist up & look Patriarchy, racist,sexism, homophobia & transphobia right in the eye & fight against it, I feel like blk folk like Ida B Well and Marsha P Johnson are of the bravest of us all. And if ima fight any injustice I wanna have the courage of blk queer & femme freedom fighters like them. I believe the liberation of black womxn and black trans womxn lead to the liberation of all black people."
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CHRONIXX - "SAME PRAYER" (ft. KABAKA PYRAMID)
Modern-day reggae great Chronixx has shared a second single off his highly anticipated sophomore album Dela Splash. It's a more chiilled-out sounding song than the first single, and Chronixx says, "'Same Prayer' is, in part, a prayer for the younger generation to reflect on internally. It’s also a reminder that there is a greater power directing things in the physical space. Instead of looking for solutions in our material lives, we can both reach out to this higher power and look deep within ourselves."
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THEMIND - "A SPIKE LEE JAWN" (ft. KRYSTAL METCALFE)
Chicago artist theMIND (who frequently works with Mick Jenkins, Noname, Saba, Smino, Jamila Woods, and others) has a funky, soulful, lyrically powerful new single out now as a Bandcamp exclusive that he released timed with Bandcamp's Juneteenth fundraiser for NAACP. He says, "To Whom it May Concern, FUCK 12 and reparations have been due. This song is a 400 year old invoice."
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MEREBA - "HEATWAVE" (ft. 6LACK) (ACOUSTIC)
As members of Spillage Village, Mereba and 6LACK were both part of "END OF DAZE," one of the best singles of the past couple weeks, and now they've released an "acoustic" version of their 2019 collaborative song "Heatwave." This version is arguably even more impactful.
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KOJEY RADICAL - "SAME BOAT" (ft. MEREBA)
For more Mereba, she appears on UK sing-rapper Kojey Radical new single "Same Boat," which follows his recent single "Proud of You."
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HO99O9 - "CHRISTOPHER DORNER" & "PRAY OR PREY"
Punk-rap duo Ho99o9 are back with a two-song single that will benefit the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Campaign Zero, Advancement Project and the National Black Disability Coalition. "Christopher Dorner" (named after the former Black LAPD officer who killed four people and himself after alleging that the department discriminated against him because of his race) is a straight-up hardcore punk song, while "Pray or Prey" is a hazy rap song. Both are great.
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TEE GRIZZLEY - "LIONS & EAGLES" (ft. MEEK MILL)
Tee Grizzley dropped his new project The Smartest today, and in addition to including his recent protest song "Mr. Officer," it includes this awesome collab with Meek Mill.
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JOEY FATTS - "HAVIN' MY WAY" (ft. VINCE STAPLES)
Long Beach rapper Joey Fatts' new project Olive Boy is out today via Cutthroat Records, and it includes this song featuring his frequent collaborator Vince Staples (and produced by Mike & Keys, who have worked with Nipsey Hussle, Buddy, Georgia Anne Muldrow, and more). Joey and Vince always prove to be a dynamic duo, and this song is no exception.
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KAMAIYAH - "BLACK EXCELLENCE"
Kamaiyah's been dropping new singles all year and here's another one. Her retro-meets-modern West Coast bounce never gets old.
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42 DUGG - "HARD TIMES" (REMIX ft. DEJ LOAF)
Rising Detroit rapper and Lil Baby collaborator 42 Dugg dropped a deluxe edition of Young & Turnt 2 today, and it comes with this new remix of "Hard Times" featuring some genuinely awesome additions by DeJ Loaf.
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SHY GLIZZY - "RIGHT OR WRONG" (ft. LIL UZI VERT)
Lil Uzi Vert has been on fire this year, and he keeps the momentum going with a verse on DC rapper Shy Glizzy's melodic new single.
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NOCAP - "COUNT A MILLION" (ft. LIL UZI VERT)
For more Lil Uzi, he's on rising Alabama rapper NoCap's new single too.
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OXYMORRONS - "JUSTICE"
Alternative rap group Oxymorrons go into rap-rock territory on "Justice," which they say is "more than a song, but an act of solidarity with the people." Proceeds from the song will "be given back to the community through various charities, non-profits, and movements."
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CRUEL SANTINO - "END OF THE WICKED" (ft. OCTAVIAN)
Nigerian artist Cruel Santino (fka Santi) is gearing up to release his new album Monster Boy on Interscope this year, and along with the announcement comes this new single featuring UK rapper Octavian. It's a chilled-out, atmospheric fusion of both artists' sounds, and it's very cool stuff.
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FIVIO FOREIGN - "MOVE LIKE A BOSS" (ft. YOUNG M.A)
Brooklyn drill rapper Fivio Foreign taps the more traditional New York rapper Young M.A for this new song and their styles go very well together.
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PUBLIC ENEMY - "STATE OF THE UNION (STFU)" (prod. DJ PREMIER)
Public Enemy (including both Chuck D and Flavor Flav) released a new DJ Premier-produced protest song, "State of the Union (STFU)." Read more about it here.
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BLACK NOI$E - "THE BAND" (ft. LIV.E)
Black Noi$e became the first artist to sign to Earl Sweatshirt's Tan Cressida label besides Earl himself, and his first new single for the label is "The Band." Read more here.
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SWAE LEE - "REALITY CHECK"
Swae Lee, the half of Rae Sremmurd who's been more popular than ever since appearing side by side with Post Malone on "Sunflower," is back with an airy new solo cut.
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SAWEETIE - "TAP IN"
Saweetie is gearing up to release her new project Pretty B*itch Music (which has production by Timbaland and Danja) this summer), and it'll feature this new song, which was inspired by Too $hort's "Blow the Whistle" and puts a fresh spin on that song's classic West Coast bounce.
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IRON WIGS - "BALLY ANIMALS & RUGBYS" (ft. ROC MARCIANO)
Iron Wigs -- the Chicago rap trio of Vic Spencer, Verbal Kent, and SonnyJim -- recently released "Problematic" (ft. Crimeapple) off their upcoming album Your Birthday's Cancelled (due 6/27 via Mello Music Group), and here's another smoky, laid-back track from the album featuring the great Roc Marciano.
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RMR - "RASCAL" (REMIX ft. YOUNG THUG)
After releasing his debut EP Drug Dealing Is A Lost Art, RMR has released a new remix of the song that made him a viral star, "Rascal." "Rascal" was already an anti-cop anthem before the entire country took to the streets to protest police brutality, and Young Thug's new verse on this remix goes into even greater detail on that same theme.
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JOCKSTRAP - "ROBERT" (ft. INJURY RESERVE)
Jockstrap's Wicked City EP is out today via Warp, and it includes this song which features Injury Reserve, It blends that group's avant-rap with moody spoken word and maximalist electronics.
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SKYZOO - MILESTONES
Skyzoo released this project in honor of Father's Day, but also to celebrate fatherhood "in a time where black fathers are being ripped from their homes due to the injustices against our people."
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JOHN LEGEND - "REMEMBER US" (ft. RAPSODY)
John Legend's new album Bigger Love is out today, and one of the highlights is this song with a great guest verse by Rapsody.
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ALICIA KEYS - "PERFECT WAY TO DIE"
Alicia Keys has released an emotional new song about a mother whose son was shot to death after a "simple walk to the corner store." "They say 'just another one gone' and they tell her 'move on,'" Alicia sings on the devastating song.
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For even more new songs, browse our daily 'New Songs' lists. For more hip hop news, browse our 'Hip Hop News' category.