Music lovers tend to look forward to Fridays, as it is their designated “new music release” day. 2023 was an epic year for music, bringing the sell-out of tours like Beyonce and new artists like Ice Spice to the scene. Many artists have started to make music that represents what they want to make, like Andre 3000 creating a flute solo album.
The first Friday of 2024 brought three highly anticipated albums: 21 Savage’s American Dream, Kid Cudi’s INSANO, and Kali Uchis’s ORQUÍDEAS, along with Ariana Grande’s new single yes, and?
This is 21 Savage’s first solo album since I am > I was in 2018. Some of Savage’s peers are featured on the new album, including Doja Cat, Travis Scott, Lil Durk, Burna Boy, Summer Walker, Brent Faiyaz, Mariah The Scientist, and the currently incarcerated Young Thug. It also features production by London On Da Track, Cardo, and Savage’s longtime friend Metro Boomin. The third track from the album redrum, which spells murder backward and was taken from the movie The Shining, has been talked about for the beat drop.
Over the years, Kid Cudi has had a resurgence with his assistance on Kanye’s acclaimed Kids See Ghosts, and his most recent albums Man on the Moon III and Entergalatic, which was released with a movie on Netflix. Kid Cudi’s discography involves many songs that are tied to mental health struggles. Previously, Cudi has produced slower, psychedelic beats that add a spacey vibe to his songs. However, on INSANO, he trades the signature sound for trap. In this album, there are features from the closely acquainted Travis Scott, Lil Yachty, ASAP Rocky, Lil Wayne, Pharrell Williams, Young Thug, and the late XXXTentancion.
Kali Uchis’s fourth studio album is a mixture of Spanish and English combining her Colombian and American roots. Across her discography, Uchis’ power has always been her fluidity: of culture, genre, and language, moving from Spanish to English in her sultry sounds about love, loss, and divination. She collaborates with Karol G, Pusa Pluma, El Alfa, JT, and Rauw Alejandro. In ORQUÍDEAS, the songs go from exciting reggaeton to a fierce and deep bolero. In this album, she’s able to create a lush world of divine feminine.
After three years without releasing a solo project, Ariana Grande sends a song out to the world. Grande rebukes any interest others have in her personal life through the single yes, and? The song welds Grande’s frustration with the constant speculation about her personal life into an empowerment song that encourages anyone facing hardships to own their stuff and shake off criticism. It’s a twist on the pop classic genre “haters,” drawing connections between the perils of famous life and people’s regular everyday troubles.
The first music release Friday has seemed to serve all music fans justice. There are countless Fridays left in 2024 and many speculations of artists’ releases. Music lovers around the world are already making their predictions for the album of the year, and with these fresh albums, there is a big year ahead of us.
