Whether you heard them on TikTok, on the radio or on a fresh slab of old-fashioned vinyl, new songs helped make sense this year of a world that seemed to need more interpretation with every passing month. Cakes Da Killa, “W4TN” While we all wait for Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” tour and visuals, here’s another landmark work of queer Black club music …
Heat Check Roundup: Smino, Ayra Starr, Ghais Guevara and more Enlarge this image toggle caption Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Interscope Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Interscope The Heat Check playlist is your source for new music from around the worlds of hip-hop and R&B with an emphasis on bubbling, undiscovered and under-the-radar acts. — Gabby Bulgarelli YouTube Ayra Starr, "Rush" Once …
As normal came back into view in 2021 — then seemed to slip away again — great songs arrived from places we could predict and places we never thought to look. SZA’s gorgeous and enveloping psychedelic-soul jam is all about her pursuit of an empty mind, but in truth, “Good Days” is overflowing with emotional data — a world of …
