The full list of this week's key New Music Friday releases appears at the bottom of the page, but first, some highlights...
Justin Bieber previews his new album Justice - out in two weeks time - with Hold On, the fourth track taken from the Canadian's sixth studio record. With the music video being described as a "cinematic, dramatic" short film, it appears Justin is going to be treating fans to a blockbuster song and video.
When Maroon 5 teamed up with Cardi B for Girls Like You, they proved that delivering mellow pop with a scintillating verse from a female rapper really works - it was the most streamed music video of 2018. The Adam Levine-fronted group replicate that formula this week with Beautiful Mistakes ft. Megan Thee Stallion, a chilled, laid-back composition with a singalong bridge and polished second verse rap from Megan.
Having scored five Top 5 singles in the past year, AJ Tracey has nothing to be Anxious about when it comes to his music, so we'll see what he means by the song title when his new track and video drop for #NewMusicFriday.
Nick Jonas' new album Spaceman is out next Friday, and he this week shares the second track from it in as many weeks, This Is Heaven. Featuring some impressive vocal acrobatics from Nick and some euphoric production from Greg Kurstin, This Is Heaven is a much-needed jolt of serotonin we could all do with right now.
While the world waits for Drake's upcoming album Certified Lover Boy (delayed in part due to him recovering from a knee injury), the rap A-Lister is releasing new three-track EP titled Scary Hours 2. The first Scary Hours was a two-track EP that featured Number 1 single God's Plan (which was then included on his 2018 album Scorpion) and Top 40 hit Diplomatic Immunity.
Other acts with singles out to have on your radar this week include James Arthur, Bebe Rexha, Ashe & Finneas, DJ Snake & Selena Gomez, St Vincent, Imelda May (who is performing on The Graham Norton Show), Dean Lewis and Silk Sonic, the new duo comprised of Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars.
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Looking to albums, Kings of Leon will look for When You See Yourself to become their sixth studio album in-a-row to top the Official Albums Chart. The album is available on the usual formats of CD, cassette, vinyl, and for streaming and download, but curiously, also as a type of cryptocurrency called a non-fungible token. We're non the wiser on what an NGT is either, but we expect the album to be full of gritty, stadium stompers that KoL do so well.
After what feels like an eternity away, Zara Larsson's first album in four years Poster Girl is finally being released this #NewMusicFriday. Zara is no stranger to success but also feels super underrated at the same time, so if you missed her 2020 single Love Me Land the first time around, now's the time to check it out along with other sure-to-be pop gems written with the likes of Max Martin, Savan Kotecha and Steve Mac.
