Week of June 6, 2025

Keeping track of all the new music that drops every week is a nightmare. I’m here to do it so you don’t have to! Welcome to Nu Musique Friday. Pull up some headphones and stay awhile. Several albums on this list are available on Bandcamp. Today only, 100% of the money spent on music on Bandcamp goes directly to the artists, so consider supporting them by buying any relevant albums today!

My latest piece for Hearing Things is an interview with New Jersey rapper-producer duo Fatboi Sharif and Driveby. I spoke with them about the music they'd like to have played at their funeral and the creative process behind their fantastic new album Let Me Out. If you like what my co-founders and I are up to, consider subscribing to the site (and paying for it, if you can). We don't bite, promise.

Check out the Reel Notes podcast, dedicated to exploring the relationship between rap and film. The 18th episode of season 5, featuring New York rapper and engineer blackchai and Tennessee-via-North Carolina rapper, producer, and engineer Illohim, who record together at the duo Pathfinders, is available now. New episodes drop every Monday on my Patreon for paying members and every Wednesday wherever podcasts are sold, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more via Buzzsprout. Reel Notes is also available via my personal YouTube channel, and Podcasts on Vevo.

If you really wanna be tapped in, join the Reel Notes Patreon! For as little as $5/month, you'll gain access to video of every forthcoming Reel Notes interview, our Discord server, exclusive interviews and reviews, early access to new episodes, & more.

My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is out right now! Purchase your digital copy on Amazon and read it on the Kindle app (You don't need a Kindle to read it. Buy the book and download the app or read it on your desktop via Amazon).

Reel Notes stands in solidarity with the oppressed peoples of Palestine, the Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, The Palestinian Youth Movement, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti. Please also consider donating to The Okra Project, an organization dedicated to helping feed Black trans youth.

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Lil Wayne - Tha Carter VI

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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Little Simz - Lotus

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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Sada Baby - Black Tape N.W.O.

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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JPEGMAFIA - Veteran: Director's Cut

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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McKinley Dixon - Magic, Alive!

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal / Bandcamp

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Joey Purp x Thelonious Martin - Champagne Seats

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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D2x - Boy In The Blue Hoodie

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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BoofPaxkMooky - Sincerely Boof

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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BigBabyGucci - Internet Explorer

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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Tomibillsbigger - Kept Ballin

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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T.F. x Khrysis - The Green Bottle

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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Vic Spencer x Bucky Luger - Interstate Potluck

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal

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Defcee x Parallel Thought - Other Blues

Listen: Spotify / Apple Music / Tidal / Bandcamp