It's Friday, and while you may be hard at work thinking about what your song of the summer is — or what it should be — over here in the land of New Music Friday, we've been focused on the future. Over the past few weeks, we've been previewing dozens of the albums that hit streaming today, Aug. 8, and coming up with our list of your potential new faves.
This week, we loved Atlanta rapper J.I.D's highly anticipated God Does Like Ugly, which is overflowing with features from Clipse, Vince Staples and Ty Dolla $ign (to name a few). Amaarae's BLACK STAR is a futuristic album steeped in nostalgia (with a necessary cameo from PinkPantheress). And Ethel Cain returns with a prequel to her epochal album Preacher's Daughter; it's called Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You.
Stephen Thompson welcomes DeShun Nance from NPR Member station WJSU's The Sipp to the show to discuss these albums and more favorites out this week.
The Starting Five
- J.I.D, God Does Like Ugly (RIYL: EARTHGANG, Dreamville)
- Ethel Cain, Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You (RIYL: Haunted houses, southern gothic)
- Amaarae, Black Star (RIYL: Tems, PinkPantheress)
- Charley Crockett, Dollar a Day (RIYL: Sturgill Simpson, Sierra Ferrell)
- Gordi, Like Plasticine (RIYL: Lucius, Bon Iver)
The Lightning Round
- Hayes Carll, We're Only Human
- Big Freedia, Pressing Onward
- Ashley Monroe, Tennessee Lightning
- Bryson Tiller, The Vices
- Ada Lea, when i paint my masterpiece
The Long List
Rock/Alt/Indie
- Galaxie 500, CBGB 12.13.88
- Les Rallizes Dénudés, Jittoku '76
- Westside Cowboy, This Better Be Something Great EP
- America, Hearts (Reissue)
- Anamanaguchi, Anyway
- Animals in Exile, Animals in Exile
- BABYMETAL, Metal Forth
- Bad Suns, Accelerator
- Borderline, Crysalis
- Chris Staples, Don't Worry
- Crypt Sermon, Saturnian Appendices
- Field Medic, Surrender Instead
- Humour, Learning Greek
- Lydia Night, Parody of Pleasure
- Mild Orange, The//Glow
- NEWMEN, Terminal Beach
- No Joy, Bugland
- P.G. Six, The Well of Memory (2025 Expanded Edition)
- Passion Killers, They Kill Our Passion With Their Hate And Wars
- Primitive Impulse, Piss It Away
- Shepparton Airplane, Forecast
- T. Hardy Morris, Artificial Tears
- Teethe, Magic of the Sale
- The Black Keys, No Rain, No Flowers
- The Royston Club, Song for the Spine
- The Thing, The Thing
- The Unknowns, Looking From The Outside
- Thee Oh Sees, ABOMINATION REVEALED AT LAST
- Theurgion, All Under Heaven
- Warburton, Hurricane
- Wombo, Danger in Fives
Pop
- Blessing Offor, Real
- Conor Matthews, Magic
- Elijah Waters, Violence!
- Good Charlotte, Motel Du Cap
- Jonas Brothers, Greetings From Your Hometown
- mgk, lost americana
R&B/Soul
- Craig David, Commitment
- Isaia Huron, CONCUBANIA
- iyla, WEEPING ANGEL
- Jenevieve, CRYSALIS
- Lew Apollo, Fool's Gold
- Majestic Arrows, The Magic of the Majestic Arrows (Reissue)
- Odyssey, Odyssey (Reissue)
- V/A, Stax Revue: Live In '65!
Rap/Hip-Hop
- Gunna, The Last Wun
- Mozzy, INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2
- Young Nudy, PARADISE
Country/Folk/Americana
- Bailey Zimmerman, Different Night Same Rodeo
- David Franklin Courtright, Brutal Tenderness
- Niko Moon, American Palm
- Paul McDonald, So Long To The Dark Side
Electronic/Out There
- Cameo Blush, Grace In Motion EP
- Phil Elverum & Arrington de Dionyso, GIANT OPENING MOUTH ON THE GROUND
- DJ K, RADIO LIBERTADORA!
- Mechatok, Wide Awake
- Ninajirachi, I Love My Computer
- Valesuchi, Futuro Cercano
Classical
- Joe Hisaishi, Joe Hisaishi Conducts
- Tamar Sagiv, Shades of Mourning
Jazz
- John McLaughlin, Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022
- Tom Gershwin, Wellspring
Credits
- Host: Stephen Thompson
- Guest: DeShun Nance, The Sipp
- Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell
- Digital Producer: Elle Mannion
- Production Assistant: Dora Levite
- Editor: Otis Hart
- Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
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