Bop Shop: Songs From Laura Mvula, Orville Peck, Migos, And More

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  Maharani: “Tere Bina”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/YGodc-hbAGA?T=149
  
  
  
  London-based singer-songwriter Maharani released her EP AnBae late last year, and I've had it in rotation ever since. Influenced by R&B artists like Tinashe, Tank, and Jhené Aiko, her sound is transportive, a musical cauldron combining Hindi, Dutch, Tamil, and English, often layered over an eas synth beat. Her latest release, "Tere Bina" ("Without You” in English language) simultaneously puts me at ease and makes me wish to be in love. Produced by fellow Londoner Itsyaboikay, the two are charting their own lane in R&B, and I am buckling in for the ride. —Virginia Lowman
  
  
  
  
  



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  Orville Peck: “Born This Way (The Nation Road Version)”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=OCN0uYl_H_4
  
  
  
  Like any good gay person, I knew Lady Gaga teasing the title of the cover “Born This Way (The Nation Road Version)” was code for a Orville Peck collab. My musical gaydar was correct, and Little Monsters, I’m happy to inform you that the masked singer was rightfully entrusted with the anthemic song. Peck’s rendition of “Born This Way” is a campy delight, infused with the twangy strings and soulful croon that put the queer nation singer on the map. Yee-freaking-haw! —Sam Manzella
  
  
  
  
  



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  Tinashe ft. Buddy: “Pasadena”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=Q5bVfpRRngA
  
  
  
  What’s the world’s first post-quarantine summer without a fire playlist to vibe out to? Tinashe is giving us just that with her single and visual for “Pasadena.” The pop dazzler is serving up her airy, soprano vocals over a hot beat in her newly released single. The visual brings us some much-needed California sunshine and carefree vibes, and like Tinashe sings, “Now more than ever, life is all what you make it.” Let’s make the warm season count! —Taura Kimble
  
  
  
  
  



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  Ivy Mono: “Stars Are Blind” (Paris Hilton cover)
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=nwD0h3ZiL6w
  
  
  
  Paris Hilton’s mythic debut single “Stars Are Blind” celebrated its fifteenth anniversary this month, making it ripe for the picking for an indie electro-pop soft-boi cover. And I use that term endearingly because Ivy Mono has noticed a way to curate an entirely different sun-drenched vibe with his synth-driven take on the 2006 single. While the original is top-down on the highway, making out on the beach, and the smell of sunscreen, Ivy Mono’s cover feels like iced coffee in the summer, yearning from across the bar, and yes, making out on the beach, also. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Pom Pom Squad: “Crying”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=pN-O-z4wpVI
  
  
  
  Everything weeps on “Crying.” Singer-songwriter Mia Berrin howls, the creeping strings wail like coyotes in the night, and the layers of guitar crunch add a visceral sonic weight to the complete affair. It’s (sadly) not a Roy Orbison cover, however it lives in the same melancholy universe, as well as the rest of Death of a Cheerleader, Berrin’s goth-fuzz new album from project Pom Pom Squad, out June 25. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Blanks: “What You Do to Me”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=HIW24llrPuA
  
  
  
  No one is giving more full-hearted tributes to '80s new-wave pop now than 24-year-old Simon de Wit, better referred to as Blanks. “What You Do to Me” is a brisk, breezy rush of synth where he finally confesses his heartfelt feelings. Yet certainly, the fear of falling in love has him overthinking. “I need you right now to get me outta my head,” he reveals. “'Cause baby, any time we touch, it’s like the entire world stops.” —Terron Moore
  
  
  
  
  



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  Migos ft. Justin Bieber: “What You See”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=Dw_Iy7CL02E
  
  
  
  Justin Bieber’s lately made himself a hook machine, and on “What You See,” he lets his floating falsetto soar over a gentle beat infused with acoustic guitar. It provides the ideal backdrop for Migos to unpack questions about real love: “How several times that you got furious or informed me you done with me?”; “If I was down to my last dime, would you slide, go Bonnie and Clyde?”; And most importantly, “What you want from me?” —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Laura Mvula: “Got Me”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=CJohzGzstag
  
  
  
  Summer is here, we have our vax (you have your vax, right?!), And it’s time to bask in a season of good vibes and fierce music. Laura Mvula’s synth sensation “Got Me” is serving the ideal bop for sitting in the sun, by the beach, or in a park. Like a '80s pop track with a 2021 twist, it’s a nostalgic smorgasbord of serotonin that puts a spring in your step. “In my adult years I had forgotten how key dance was to me as a vital tool of my creative expression,” Mvula told NME. “I brought it back, just for me, so I may find my delight in dance again. And right now I can’t stop dancing. I can’t wait to play this album live.” —Zach O’Connor
  
  
  
  
  



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  Nao ft. Lianne La Havas: “Woman”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/lmvr7xq5cDE
  
  
  
  For the record: You can't go wrong with Nao or Lianne La Havas, so their team-up for the feminist anthem "Woman" was bound to be a sure-fire winner. This track got me through a summer alone indoor last year, and nevertheless outdoors is open right now, the song has such good energy that it's become a sort of mantra for me. "If God is woman / On Sunday Imma worship us," the hook announces. And as far as I'm concerned, daily is Sunday, and each person should act accordingly. —Virignia Lowman
  
  
  
  
  



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  Nnamdï: "Lonely Weekend" (Kacey Musgraves cover)
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/B6zNRHb-Lp0
  
  
  
  To mention Nnamdï has covered Kacey Musgraves's gorgeously melancholy "Lonely Weekend" is to do the multitalented Chicago artist's version a disservice. As a substitute, it's a complete overhaul, a work of disassembly and reassembly in real time across three minutes. I've listened to it about six times right now, and every time I've known it was a cover of a song I know quite well, however there's habitually a point where I get fully lost in how he's reimagined it. What a complete thrill. Find Nnamdï's freak-folk take on "Lonely Weekend" on record label Secretly Residents of Canada latest SC25 Singles collection. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Armaan Malik, Eric Nam with KSHMR: “Echo”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=4CjNYcEF4cY
  
  
  
  In an epic cross-national teamwork, Bollywood's Armaan Malik, Seoul-based K-pop artist Eric Nam, and Indian-American producer KSHMR join forces on the EDM-tinged “Echo.” Though the song is a fantastic crying-on-the-dance-floor bop, it stands for something much larger: transcending borders to smash the limitations between genres and celebrate the richness of Asian experiences, on the heels of AAPI Heritage Month. Leveraging their unique talents and notoriety in their respective industries, Malik, Nam, and KSHMR have crafted a pan-Asian group effort the likes of which EDM, K-pop, and I-pop have never seen, gesturing toward global solidarity and unity. —Sarina Bhutani
  
  
  
  
  



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  Peach Tree Rascals: “Oh Honey! (I Love You)”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=6XL5tv1D0eY
  
  
  
  Peach Tree Rascals’ latest EP Camp Nowhere couldn’t be more appropriately titled. Its nostalgia-flecked sound evokes the days of summers past, while offering the ideal soundtrack for sunny new moments. “Oh Honey! (I Love You)” is the band's most earnest single nevertheless. Their goofy humor shines through in its cinematic visual, which stars singer Joseph Barros and his real-life girlfriend in a park picnic before panning to Isaac Pech, Dom Pizano, and Tarrek Abdel-Khaliq in full marching musical group attire. No matter how long the high temperatures last, the season will come to an end, yet the calming track reminds us it’s OK. Maybe the most crucial memories are the ones we don’t know we’re making. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Jessie J: “I Want Love”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/g1svGinCsxk
  
  
  
  The post-pandemic dance-track boom is real, and it’s rarely sounded as massive as on Jessie J’s return single “I Want Love.” The pianos and strings are high in the mix, the four is on the floor, and Jessie’s voice is a clarion call commanding each person back to the dance floor. Spoiler alert: Yes, there’s a key change. It’s all about the drama. —Patrick Hosken