It's Friday, and yes, Taylor Swift got engaged Tuesday. While we all wait to see what a happy, settled and soon-to-be-wed Taylor Swift album could look like, our newest pop royalty, Sabrina Carpenter, is still making sense of love and lust in her new album, Man's Best Friend.
Ahead of the 2025 AMERICANAFEST (which you can stream thanks to WMOT in Nashville), folk and country stars are coming into a big weekend as well. Not only does genre veteran Rodney Crowell's new album Airline Highway shine, but he motivates Margo Price to do the same, playing guitar on her album Hard Headed Woman.
Before Stephen Thompson welcomes Jessie Scott from WMOT in Nashville to dig into this week's massive Americana offerings, NPR Music's Hazel Cills walks us through Sabrina Carpenter's return, as well as some shimmery indie-pop highlights.
New Music Friday is a feature of NPR's All Songs Considered podcast. Hear the discussion on the NPR App, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
The Starting Five
- The Beaches, No Hard Feelings (RIYL: Blondeshell, Wet Leg)
- The Beths, Straight Line Was A Lie (RIYL: illuminati hotties, Alvvays)
- Margo Price, Hard Headed Woman (RIYL: Charley Crockett, Sierra Ferrell)
- Rodney Crowell, Airline Highway (RIYL: Buddy Miller, Emmylou Harris)
- Anna Tivel, Animal Poem (RIYL: Joan Shelley, S.G. Goodman)
The Lightning Round
- Blood Orange, Essex Honey
- Jaelee Roberts, Let Me Be Lonely
- Brad Mehldau, Ride Into the Sun
- CMAT, EURO-COUNTRY
- Tiwa Savage, This One Is Personal
The Long List
Rock/Alt/Indie
- Jehnny Beth, You Heartbreaker, You
- Nova Twins, Parasites & Butterflies
- The Hives, The Hives Forever Forever The Hives
- Balu Brigada, Portal
- Big Wild, Wild Child
- Bryan Adams, Roll With The Punches
- Chartreuse, Bless You & Be Well
- Darian Doovan Thomas, A Room With Many Doors: Day
- Dummy, Dump EPs
- End It, Wrong Side of Heaven
- Flyte, Between You and Me
- Forever★, Second Gen Dream
- Fun Lovin' Criminals, A Matter of Time
- Ganser, Animal Hospital
- Hawkwind, Hall of the Mountain Grill (Box Set)
- Jens Kuross, Crooked Songs
- Joseph Shabason, Nicholas Krgovich, Tenniscoats, Wao
- Lathe of Heaven, Aurora
- Lucie Sue, Battlestation
- Marshall Crenshaw, From the Hellhole
- merci, mercy, Don't Take It To Heart
- Modern Nature, The Heat Warps
- Pinkshift, Earthkeeper
- Runnner, A Welcome Kind of Weakness
- Slow Crush, Thirst
- Sowulo, NIHT
- TTSSFU, Blown
Pop
- Belinda Carlisle, Once Upon a Time in California
- John Oates, Oates
R&B/Soul
- Braxton Cook, Not Everyone Can Go
- Maurice Brown, Betta Days
- Nicholas Cole, Blue Magic
Country/Folk/Americana
- Candice Ivory, New Southern Vintage
- Chance Peña, When I Change My Mind I Don't Mean It
- Colbie Caillat, This Time Around
- Connor Selby, The Truth Comes Out Eventually
- Levi Foster, We Made Fire
- Preston Cooper, Toledo Talkin'
- Ron Sexsmith, Hangover Terrace
- Tift Merritt, Time and Patience
- Wynn Williams, Country Therapy
- Zach Top, Ain't In It For My Health
Electronic/Out There
- K-Lone, Pressure EP
- C.R. Gillespie, Island of Women
- Galya Bisengalieva, Polygon Reflections
- Glisz, NO:MAD
- Llasa Petik, Thymia
- Lyder, weird.fishes
- Myd, Mydnight
- NGHTMRE, MINDFULL
- Oren Ambarchi / Johan Berthling / Andreas Werliin, Ghosted III
- Rockers Hi-Fi, Mish Mash
- Trinix, Origin
Global
- Guedra Guedra, MUTANT
- The Good Ones, Rwanda Sings with Strings
- Pitbull and IAmChino, UNDERDOGS
- SPINALL, ÈKÓ GROOVE
- V'ghn, Point of View
Jazz
- Christian McBride, Without Further Ado, Vol. 1
- Nate Smith, LIVE-ACTION
- Nicholas Payton, TRIUNE
- Trombone Shorty, Second Line Sunday
- Aruan Ortiz, Créole Renaissance
- Conrad Herwig, Reflections-Facing South
- Dan Rosenbloom, Coordinates
- daoud, ok
- George Coleman, George Coleman with Strings
- Jacob Garchik, Ye Olde 2: At the End of Time
- Roy Ayers, Roy Ayers Delfonic Reworked #1 - EP
Credits
- Host: Stephen Thompson
- Guests: Hazel Cills, Jessie Scott (WMOT)
- Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell
- Digital Producer: Elle Mannion
- Editor: Otis Hart
- Production Assistant: Dora Levite
- Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
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