November 24, 2023
Dear Music Friends-
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving with your loved ones. Despite the troubles in the world, I feel that I have so much to be thankful for, including wonderful friendships like yours.
While Omah Lay’s, Holy Ghost was our group’s Nov 10 winner, Jack Harlow’s Lovin’ on Me, is the global smash, clocking in at either #1 or #2 in all key geos. Houdini by Dua Lipa and Jung Kook have also charted well- in addition to Chris Stapleton’s, White Horse, which didn’t qualify for the Nov 10 list as it was a pre-release from his album.
Given Thanksgiving- and new releases being mostly holiday music, this (bi)weeks list is not very strong.
Omah Lay, Holy Ghost (AfroBeats)- The Nov 10 winner being carried over to Nov 24
Teddy Swims (and Maren Morris), Some Things I’ll Never Know (Pop/Vocal)- Swims is such an unlikely popstar. He is a tatted 5’6” stocky former high school football player from Georgia- who became famous singing on YouTube. This is a remake of a song from his brilliantly-named, recent album “I’ve Tried Everything, but Therapy”- with Maren Morris vocals added this time. Morris is a talented country music songwriter/singer, who has been vocal in her criticism of racism, sexism, homo/transphobia in today’s Country Music industry.
Chris Stapleton, Think I’m in Love With You (Country/R&B)- Given the weak song selection for this week- and the depth of Stapleton’s Nov 10 album release, I’ve made an exception to add another from Stapleon’s new album. Here he shows versatility in channeling Al Green- and traditional 70’s R&B.
Tate McRae, exes (Pop)- McRae is a 20-year-old award-winning Canadian singer, dancer and actress. This is the follow up to her Summer 2023 #1 global smash, “Greedy”- and her 2020 mega-hit “You Broke Me First”. Likely to be another hit.
Drake (feat J. Cole), Evil Ways (Rap)- This new song coincides with the release of Drake’s “For All The Dogs, Scary Hours Edition”. Whether you like it or not, it is likely to get a lot of airplay- as Drake currently holds 4 of the top 10 most played songs on Apple Music. Drake, Bad Bunny and Taylor Swift are always dominant on the streaming charts.
Calvin Harris and Eliza Rose, Body Moving (Dance)- Super DJ, Calvin Harris combines with Eliza Rose for this brand-new dance single. London-based Rose is a recent favorite vocalist for house dj’s, given her unique, high-pitched, sassy voice.
Ozuna, Baccarat (Latin)- This single is from the Puerto Rican, Ozuna’s recent album release “Cosmo”. 5 of his 6 previous albums were #1 on US’s Latin charts, so Cosmo is likely to follow suit. This banger features Ozuna’s staccato rap and an infectious synthesized reggaeton beat.
The Smile, Wall of Eyes (Alternative)- The Smile is basically Radiohead, featuring singer Thom Yorke and multi-instrumentalist and musical genius, Jonny Greenwood. From one perspective, one may feel that the nice mellow acoustic guitar melody doesn’t go anywhere. However, in typical Greenwood/Yorke style, it features subtle bending dissonant chords and production- both familiar and disturbing at once.
Kali Uchis (feat. KAROL G), Labios Mordidos (Latin)- This is another pre-release song from the Colombian American, Uchis’, much anticipated Spanish-language release, “Orquideas”. On “Labios Mordidos (Bitten Lips)” she teams with the Colombian, KAROL G, who is already a mega-star in Latin America to further market to a crossover audience.
Busta Rhymes (feat. Burna Boy), ROBOSHOTTA (Rap/AfroBeats)- This is from NYC- rap legend Rhymes’ new album, “Blockbusta”, which features an all-star cast including Pharrell, Timbaland, Young Thug, Swiss Beatz, Blxst and others. You’ll either love or hate this song featuring stripped-down boombeats and DanceHall and Afro vocals from Rhymes and Nigerian superstar, Burna Boy. It will probably be played very loud at urban clubs throughout the US, Caribbean and Africa.
Bjork & Rosalia, Oral (Alternative)- I have to credit this selection to my daughter, April who noticed that 8-time Latin Grammy winner, Rosalia dressed as Bjork for Halloween this year. Whether or not you like this one, likely depends on whether you like Bjork.
Mika, Jane Birkin (Pop/Vocal)- The French/British/Lebanese popstar Mika is a huge favorite of Meg and Becca. This French language pop song is an ode to the recently-passed Jane Birkin, the actress and lifelong muse to Serge Gainsbourg. Birkin is also known for “the Birkin Bag”, which was created by Hermes for her- and retailed for up to $500k/each.
