RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesBillboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to New Music Friday’s most essential releases each week — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
Last week , we featured Charli xcx, Tyla, Morgan Wallen and more.
This week: Ariana Grande drops her anticipated new album Petal ; Cardi B shares a surprise single; Shaboozey’s epic 20-track concept album arrives; and Slayyyter releases her latest single after debuting it during the first night of her tour that kicked off this week… plus much more. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Ariana Grande, Petal
Ariana Grande is as equally talented as she is prolific — fortunately for us fans. From her 2013 debut album through 2020, she released an impressive six albums. And since 2024’s return with Eternal Sunshine, the pop superstar has been churning out new projects at a similar clip, following it up with 2025’s deluxe edition, Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Days Ahead , and now this year’s petal . Grande’s eighth studio album is a fierce culmination of everything she has lived and learned — all of which she has chronicled across her previous releases. Only now, she’s talking her s–t, and not taking it from anyone else. As Kyle Denis writes in Billboard ‘s Tracks Ranked for petal : “It’s pretty much a manicured middle finger aimed directly at the public.” Turns out, Ari can even make rage sound oh so sweet. — LYNDSEY HAVENS
Cardi B, “AH HA”
We may have gotten a brand-new album of bops and bangers from Bardi last year in Am I the Drama? , but the Grammy-winning rap superstar has her eyes set on a last-minute Song of the Summer victory with her new single, “AH HA.” “B—es be swearing they so f—ing bad, I don’t see it/ N—a can’t trap me, I won’t keep it/ B—es really hate me, and so be it/ Bathroom floors and these h—s both heated,” she spits over a club-ready, 808-laden beat that quickly morphs into an anthemic sing-rap chorus that’s sure to soundtrack the remainder of the summer and beyond. — KYLE DENIS
Benny Blanco, Selena Gomez & Becky G, “Te Olvido (La La)”
In an ode to their Mexican-American heritage, Selena Gomez and Becky G, along with Benny Blanco as producer, released “Te Olvido (La La),” a Spanish-language track from Blanco’s upcoming studio album Hermoso . Its title, which translates to “I’ll Forget You,” is the second single from the project. It blends a predominant cumbia sound with pop and features a mariachi interlude on which Gomez and G trade lyrics, confronting a love interest who sends mixed signals and acts possessively all while avoiding a serious relationship: “Amor mio/ ¿Qué tienes conmigo?/ Que no me quieres con nadie, pero tampoco contigo. (My love/ What do you want with me?/ You don’t want me with anyone else, but don’t want me for yourself either).” The music video is rooted in Los Angeles’ Chicano culture, featuring emblematic parts of its identity and Mexican immigrant pride, including lowriders, neighborhood street parties and an appearance by beloved Mexican-American actor Danny Trejo as a tribute to his iconic Machete character. — CATA BALZANO
Slayyyter, “BRAND NEW CHANEL$”
Billboard’s current cover artist Slayyyter flexes her star power once more with her new one-off single “Brand New Chanel$.” An apparent response to her hit “Beat Up Chanel$” from her March album Wor$t Girl In America , “Brand New” is a 180 from the dark electro of the first, going in a soaring dance pop anthem direction that matches its themes of empowerment. The song comes with a lush music video directed by Slayyter herself that takes her to same house as in the “Beat Up” video and once again proves her deftness at synthesizing glamour and grit. This one will without a doubt go off during her performance at Lollapalooza this weekend. — KATIE BAIN
Shaboozey, The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales
How does an artist follow up a Hot 100 No. 1 smash such as “A Bar Song (Tipsy)? For Shaboozey, the answer is a 20-track concept album. Across the ambitious album, Boozey tapped a range of collaborators including Gunna, Leon Bridges and Orville Peck to help tell his tall tales. His feature with Kehlani, “Bullets & Blades,” is particularly beautiful and shows off the kind of vocalist and performer Shaboozey is under the rowdiness of a hit like “Bar Song.” See Billboard ‘s Tracks Ranked of the album here . — L.H.
Remi Wolf, “Twiggy”
After a notable appearance in the hit series Off Campus (as the performer at a college campus event), Remi Wolf is back with her first new music in two years: the midtempo and melodic “Twiggy.” And true to form, the funky alternative-pop artist showcases yet another, softer, side of her artistry on the single that’s about a messy past relationship — and whether she should dive back in. “You don’t f—ing miss me, you don’t f—ing miss me/ You just miss your mother, you forgot I raised you,” she sings in curated distress. Wolf first previewed the lyrically-winding “Twiggy” during Hayley Williams’ recent Newport Folk Festival set, which you can watch here . — L.H.
Davido, ORIADÉ
Coinciding with the 15th anniversary of his music career , Davido’s newest LP has landed. Titled ORIADÉ , the new set lands as the official follow-up to last year’s Grammy-nominated 5ive , featuring equally intentional and ambitious collaborations with global stars such as Leon Thomas, Black Sherif and Aya Nakamura. A winning return to his Afrobeats roots that still leaves room for introspection, ORIADÉ is y...
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