Bop Shop VMA Edition: Songs From Chlöe, Lorde, Polo G, And More

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  Chlöe: "Have Mercy"
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/FfesqRkdSEk
  
  
  
  With her debut solo foray right after years of making serene R&B cuts with her sister Halle Bailey, Chlöe has arrived. This song is a viciously sexy pop statement, and it’s all about the chorus, which as a sinfully repetitive call and response. Chlöe climbs the scales operatically like a stairway to heaven, as she sings about "all this ass up in my jeans." Lord, have mercy. —Coco Romack
  
  
  
  
  



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  Kacey Musgraves: “There Is a Light”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/vRCgBRL0NUo
  
  
  
  On Star-Crossed, VMA performer Kacey Musgraves sings about damaged hearts, painful memories on her phone’s camera roll, and wishing to go back to simpler times like hanging at the local mall. Although, the penultimate track on the album, “There is a Light” is a joyful celebration, a spiritual sequel to Golden Hour’s danciest track, “High Horse.” With the “Ventura Highway”-esque guitar intro, “There is a Light” sounds like a lost America song, one that will have you grooving along in your seat, especially as soon as the whistling flute kicks in halfway through. Kacey sings, “There is a light at the end of the tunnel / there really is a light indoors of me,” a good reminder in these dark times that some days the brightest light can be noticed within. —Chris Rudolph
  
  
  
  
  



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  Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak): "Skate"
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=CEw-7cMnBDY
  
  
  
  Once eventual three-time VMA nominee "Leave the Door Open" dropped in March, shiny and lightly funky and soulful as hell, it literally opened the door (sorry) for the Silk Sonic superduo to follow up with something even more lush and symphonic a couple of months later. And so they delivered! "Skate" is so flawlessly cast in polyester that it may as well have been delivered in a time machine. Even if we have to wait a little longer for the entire Silk Sonic album, two songs that sound like this make the waiting part actually pretty easy. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Lorde: “Secrets From a Girl (Who’s Seen It All)”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=LNIP_e66bUE
  
  
  
  Solar Power, Lorde’s long-awaited third album, is no Melodrama, nevertheless that’s sort of the entire point. The reclusive Kiwi pop singer and Best Cinematography nominee has come of age, an inevitability she addresses directly in “Secrets From a Girl (Who’s Seen It All).” It’s a gentle, guitar-led cut addressed to Lorde’s teenage self, nevertheless she understands her opinions will probably go unheeded (“You can take it in case you want it, these are just / Secrets from a girl who’s seen it all”). Does the song tiptoe into cheesy territory? Certainly, yet as a longtime Lorde fan and fellow 25-year-old who also “couldn’t wait to turn 15 / Then you blink and it’s been 10 years,” I’m here for it. Come for the tender introspection, and stay for the free therapy (“Everybody wants the perfect for you / Yet you gotta want it for yourself, my love”). —Sam Manzella
  
  
  
  
  



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  Lisa: “Lalisa”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/awkkyBH2zEo
  
  
  
  Pop the champagne — “Lalisa” is finally here! The solo debut by Blackpink’s Lisa is nothing short of explosive. This earworm of a track is an anthemic, “I’m a fucking badass, watch me shine” kind of bop. And she isn’t wrong. I didn’t expect anything much less, and however she still surprised and impressed me. Lisa has already left an exhilarating mark on pop, and in case you didn’t know who she is nevertheless, you’re soon sure to remember and have "Lalisa, love me / Lalisa, love me" on loop. So “sip sip” and drink her up. I’m sure there will be more where this came from. —Daniel Head
  
  
  
  
  



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  Taylor Swift: “Ivy”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=9nIOx-ezlzA
  
  
  
  Between a record-breaking Grammy win and her plans for re-recording her first six albums, it’s been a busy year for Artist of the Year nominee Taylor Swift. The “Willow” singer has offered us with so several tunes that it can be easy to overlook “Ivy,” a warm and folksy cut from last year’s Evermore. Over a charming rubber-bridge guitar lick, Swift weaves a bittersweet and tension-filled tale of a “magnificently cursed” affair: a blooming romance between an enchanting lover as well as a dreamer who’s set to marry someone else. It’s a slow build to an intoxicating bridge because the threat of changing seasons intertwines with a looming end: “Spring breaks loose, nevertheless so does fear / He’s gonna burn this residence to the ground.” Swift finally issues a untimely ultimatum: “Tell me to run / Or dare to sit and watch what we’ll become / And drink my husband’s wine,” before twisting its addictive chorus into a final impassioned plea featuring, perhaps, the perfect use of the word “goddamn” modern music has ever seen. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Polo G & Lil Wayne: "Gang Gang"
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=HQE456q4n5U
  
  
  
  Imagine getting to rap with your heroes. Best New Artist nominee Polo G has lived that reality for years; his three albums boast features from Nicki Minaj and Young Thug. Yet none are more crucial to the story of the Chicago rapper's rise than Lil Wayne, with whom he shares the dynamic "Gang Gang." "Runnin' from the jakes, block hot like I'm Wayne," he repeats on the refrain before Tunechi himself shows up to take everything residence. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Girl in Red: “Hornylovesickmess”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=Ugi7CJFZUM8
  
  
  
  Girl in Red is nominated for Push Efficiency of the Year for a candid rendition of “Serotonin” from her debut If I Would make It Go Quiet, nevertheless it’s been self-deprecating and brutally truthful album cut “Hornylovesickmess” that I can’t get out of my head. Over deceptively cheery piano chords, the Norwegian indie-pop singer reckons with changes in her life and the desperation that strikes late at night: “I don’t wanna be the kind of person who calls you up / Every time I need to get off yet / I guess that’s who I’m turning into.” Admitting to one’s much less attractive facades is no easy feat, although with raw candor, she turns the feeling of “horny lovesick mess” into a mask that’s not only redeemable, however relatable. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Monsta X: “One Day”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/U4_pc_Gqrvk
  
  
  
  First of all, I’d just like to have some very strong words with whoever broke Monsta X’s hearts? Like, I want to fight. Anyway, “One Day,” the latest English language release from the K-pop sextet explores the complex feelings with a breakup each person knew was the ideal choice for you — except you. It’s a somber reflection on coming to terms that it wasn’t the correct fit. It’s also emo AF. “They mention hindsight's 20/20,” the men croon, and although it's over and everyone’s moving on, it’s still OK to feel sad some days. Maybe “one day, one day” you’ll visualize them again. And as soon as that day comes, I think it will all feel just right, gentlemen. —Daniel Head
  
  
  
  
  



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  Foo Fighters: "Floaty"
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=bLmiOuLAO3A
  
  
  
  When's the last time you listened to Dave Grohl's 1995 self-titled debut as Foo Fighters, the one on which he played every musical instrument? If it's been a while, you gotta put it on, man — not just in their honor, because the 2021 VMA Global Icon recipients, although because it simply rules. Take "Floaty," a strummy alt near-classic that captures everything that's made Grohl an icon for decades: the patented growl, a liftoff chorus, never-ending urgency. It's no "Everlong" (what would be, although for several minutes, it feels pretty, well, floaty. —Patrick Hosken