Hope you're ready for a little musical time travel, because this week's New Music Friday is filled with music old, new and everything in between.
Luke Bryan finally unveils his latest album "Mind of a Country Boy" after teasing it with two years' worth of singles, and Moneybagg Yo adds seven new tracks to SPEAK NOW OR…, the deluxe edition of his fifth album Speak Now. Plus, Michael Bublé compiles the greatest hits collection Best of Bublé as he takes his seat in one of the spinning chairs on "The Voice"; Gavin DeGraw celebrates the 20th anniversary of his debut album with a re-recorded version, Chariot 20; and Christina Aguilera honors the 25th anniversary of her self-titled debut with live versions of classic singles.
Elsewhere, Rosalía is still riding high from the Sept. 24 release of her new single "Omega," Miranda Lambert teams up with Jake Worthington on new single "Hello S—ty Day," and Kygo recruits Imagine Dragons for "Stars Will Align." There's even two intriguing covers to enjoy: Sierra Hull's roots-laced rendition of the Grateful Dead's "Black Muddy River," and Nile Rodgers and Cedric Gervais's revved-up dance remix of the Sister Sledge classic "We Are Family."
Below, press play on nine more new releases, including a surprise side project from Lady Gaga to celebrate her starring turn in Joker: Folie á Deux, a powerhouse duet from country powerhouses Cody Johnson and Carrie Underwood, a solo career kick-off from Måneskin frontman Damiano David and more.
One week before the curtain rises on Lady Gaga's latest acting role in Joker: Folie à Deux, Little Monsters got something else they've long been waiting for: a brand new album from their queen.
Gaga's Harlequin serves as a companion album to the upcoming Joker, filled with thrillingly genre-defying reinterpretations of the Great American Songbook that give insight into the lush soundtrack playing inside the mind of Lee Quinzel — the pop star's take on Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix's clown-faced Arthur Fleck.
Songs like the free-wheeling "Get Happy" and "That's Life" (made famous by Judy Garland and Frank Sinatra, respectively) land stylistically in the realm of Gaga's GRAMMY-winning jazz albums with late friend Tony Bennett, and the album also contains a pair of original tracks — the waltzing "Folie á Deux" and vulnerable centerpiece "Happy Mistake." All of it should keep Little Monsters everywhere temporarily sated as they anxiously await LG7.
Stevie Nicks pens a powerful rallying cry for women's rights in the form of new single "The Lighthouse." Spurred to action following the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, the legendary singer/songwriter said in a statement that she's been working on the anthem "ever since."
Nicks continued: "I have often said to myself, 'This may be the most important thing I ever do. To stand up for the women of the United States and their daughters and granddaughters — and the men that love them."
The iconic Fleetwood Mac frontwoman refuses to pull any punches on the timely protest anthem, warning, "Don't close your eyes and hope for the best/ The dark is out there, the light is going fast/ Until the final hours/ Your life's forever changed/ And all the rights that you had yesterday/ Are taken away/ And now you're afraid/ You should be afraid."
Cody Johnson teams up with Carrie Underwood for "I'm Gonna Love You," the first bonus track off the deluxe edition of his 2023 album Leather and the "American Idol" champ's first release since news broke she'd be replacing Katy Perry on the judging panel of the reality show's ABC reboot.
On the stunning ballad, the two country stars weave together an all-encompassing love story that lasts a lifetime. "So good that it almost hurts/ Steady and true as a Bible verse/ My heart skips just thinking of you/ Go on and bet it all, baby we can't lose," they sing in harmony as herds of wild horses thunder across the screen in the Dustin Haney-helmed music video.
SOPHIE's posthumous, self-titled album is equal parts love letter to the late producer (whose life was cut devastatingly short after falling from a rooftop in Athens, Greece in January 2021) and an enduring testament to her influence as an avant garde pioneer of hyperpop, electronica and underground dance music.
Completed by her family, SOPHIE's 16-song project is filled with the producer's trusted collaborators and friends, including Kim Petras (lead single "Reason Why"), LIZ (one-two punch "Live in My Truth" and "Why Lies"), Hannah Diamond ("Always and Forever") and more.
"Sophie didn't often speak publicly about her private life, preferring to put everything she wanted to articulate into her music," SOPHIE's family shared on social media ahead of the album's unveiling. "It feels only right to share with the world the music she hoped to release, in the belief that we can all connect with her in this, the form she loved most. Sophie gave all of herself to her music. It's here that she can always be found."
After nearly 10 meteoric years fronting Måneskin, Damiano David launches his solo career with the unveiling of his debut single "Silverlines."
Produced by Labrinth, the intimate track is a surprising departure from the Italian rock god's signature, high-energy stylings. Instead, David shows off a more vulnerable and emotional side of himself as he sings, "I feel sorrow no more/ The calm after the storm/ And peace belongs to me/ Until my tears run dry/ And clouds fall from the sky / And all my fears, they disappear/ And I see silverlines."
Rahim Redcar — 'HOPECORE'
Just 15 months after releasing the transcendent concept album PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE, the artist formerly known as Christine and the Queens officially retires his stage name and reintroduces himself to the world as Rahim C Redcar with the new LP HOPECORE.
Though just seven tracks compared to its predecessor's sprawling triptych of angelic visitations in 20 songs, HOPECORE is equally prodigious in its ambition. Redcar shifts his gaze from the heavens to the club, describing pulsating highlights like "ELEVATE" and "DEEP HOLES" as "a call of the flesh, a prayer for justice and freedom" and "a healing, metatronic purple grid."
To support the latest chapter in his artistic vision, the French auteur will embark on a club tour of Europe and the U.S. this November, with stops in London, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, New York, and more.
Continuing the momentum from his 2022 single "SLUT ME OUT" featuring Sexyy Redd, NLE Choppa doubles — and triples — down on the raunch factor with his new project SLUT SZN.
The eight-track collection contains both "SLUT ME OUT 2" and "SLUT ME OUT 3" featuring Whethan and Carey Washington as well as "SLUT ME OUT 2 — COUNTRY ME OUT" with J.P. Other tracks include opener "Gang Baby," recently released single "Or What" and Yausel LM collaboration "Catalina."
Mickey Guyton delivers the heat with her sophomore album, House on Fire. On pre-release single "Make It Me," the four-time GRAMMY nominee splashes her country sound with a dose of flirtatious dance-pop while album cut "My Kind of The Country" finds her happily eschewing Nashville elitism in favor of inclusivity ("Go on make yourself at home/ On my side of the country") as she leads a do-see-do-ing line dance and proudly declares, "Yeah, we got country coast to coast!"
Elsewhere, the LP includes "Nothing Compares To You," a resplendent duet with Kane Brown and "Scary Love," a tribute to her three-year-old son Grayson in the wake of a recent near-death experience.
A decade after their last release, The Fray returns with a new EP, appropriately titled The Fray Is Back.
Now a trio following the departure of frontman Isaac Slade in 2022, the four-time GRAMMY nominees behind 2000s hits like "How to Save a Life" and "Over My Head (Cable Car)" deliver more reliable pop-rock anthems like the wistful "Time Well Wasted" and the crescendoing "Don't Look Down." To mark the new era of the band, The Fray have also embarked on a headlining tour across the U.S., with sold-out stops in Washington, D.C.; New York City; Chicago and more.