New music releases this week are led by Victoria Monét, Quavo, Drake and Meshell Ndegeocello, with a light but strong slate landing Friday, Oct. 2, according to Forbes. Here are five albums to hear first, plus reissues and a catch-up on last week’s releases.
Contents
The biggest new music releases this week
Victoria Monét: Frequency of Love
Monét’s album runs 22 tracks and features Bruno Mars, SZA, Bryson Tiller, Leon Thomas, Lucky Daye, Chlöe and her daughter, Hazel, Forbes reported. It follows the singles “Let Me,” which reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Adult R&B Airplay chart in June, and “Reach Out,” produced by D’Mile and Kaytranada. The album is out on Lovett Music and RCA Records.
Quavo: QRÖMELIFE
Quavo’s solo project is executive produced by Pharrell Williams. Forbes said it took shape over 18 months of sessions with Williams. Guests include Tyler, the Creator, Justin Timberlake, Future, A$AP Rocky, Yung Miami and T.I.
Drake: HABIBTI (FOMO) deluxe
Drake added four new songs to his HABIBTI album on Friday, including a collaboration with Don Toliver. Our report on the HABIBTI deluxe edition has the details.
Meshell Ndegeocello: Synonym
Ndegeocello’s third album for Blue Note Records is a 15-track set of classic songs reimagined as duets. Collaborators include Cynthia Erivo, Chaka Khan, Cat Power and Robert Glasper. The lead single, “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” pairs her with Erivo on the song first recorded by George Michael and Aretha Franklin.
Greg Freeman: All Set the Bone
Freeman’s album rounds out the new music releases this week. It was produced by John Congleton and arrives on Transgressive and Canvasback. Its lead single is “Indu.”
Reissues and singles worth a listen
Beyond the new music releases this week, catalog fans have options, too. The Official Charts Company’s weekly guide lists a Super Deluxe special edition of The Beatles’ Rubber Soul, a 25th anniversary remaster of Starsailor’s Love Is Here and an expanded 10th anniversary edition of Mac Miller’s The Divine Feminine. We looked at that one in our Divine Feminine anniversary story.
Noah Kahan also shared a new single, “Draw You Out.” In the U.K., Blossoms, Johnny Marr, Take That, Girls Aloud and Fontaines D.C. all released new material.
Catch up on last week’s releases
Several of the albums people are still talking about were new music releases a week ago, on Sept. 25. Taylor Swift released four bonus tracks on The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, led by “Patient Zero.” Tinashe’s Popstar, Kenny Chesney’s Silver Sands Marina, Leon Bridges’ Happiness Anytime, Jae Stephens’ Audacity and Blondshell’s Violins also came out that week, per Billboard’s roundup. Read how Swift debuted the “Patient Zero” video at the MTV Video Music Awards.
Check back each Friday for our guide to the new music releases this week and what to hear first.
