Weekly Bop Roundup feat. AOA CREAM, Cupcakke, Dua Lipa, Izzy Bizu and Mya
Last week was a bit of a quiet one for my iTunes. I fleshed out the week’s sparse new releases with the discography of Neo-soul queen Erykah Badu, and some leaked demos from Natalia Kills, Lady GaGa, Foxes and The Veronicas. Of course, one of the big additions was the unexpected “Formation”. Here are my thoughts on the others:
The sugary sweet first single from AOA’s subunit, featuring singers Hyejeong and Yuna and rapper Chanmi. It’s a super catchy track, featuring siren synths whipped together with a pop-trap beat and infectious melodies.
Mark my words – Dua Lipa is the next big pop girl from the UK. Her third single is explosively mellow, and shows incredible potential when sat next to her previous singles “Be the One” and “New Love”.
Izzy Bizu has been making her mark on the industry since her debut in 2013, and with good reason. The curly haired diva released the next single from her hotly anticipated debut album A Moment of Madness, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. Izzy’s vocals sound sublime, floating across mellow guitars and pianos. Hopefully, 2016 will be the year of Izzy Bizu.
https://soundcloud.com/elizabeth-harris-480819185/sets/cum-cake
Cum Cake is the first mixtape from viral rapper Cupcakke. With a title like that, it’s no surprise that the feisty 18 year old from Chicago raps about sucking dick like a pro and, basically, how much she loves sex. Behind the obvious ploy for attention however are hard hitting tracks like “Exceptions” and “Furniture”, as well as the acapella “Reality”, detailing tumultuous relationships and the trials and tribulations of life. They add legitimacy to the gritty-voiced rapper’s first mixtape, balancing out the hardcore porn tracks “Juicy Coochie”, “Deepthroat” and the questionable bop “Pedophile”.
My girl Mya is finally back with a global album for the world after focusing exclusively on Japan since 2008. The R&B veteran has gone down the indie route, one that is paying off for her – both financially and musically. Smoove Jones is a triumphant return to top form, featuring steamy slow-jams like “Phya” and “Coolin'”, the ‘ol skoo’ joint’ “One Man Woman” and house cut “Circle of Life”, as well as the turn up single “Team You”.
Here’s the full list of my iTunes additions. As always, I suggest you find all of these singles and albums on Spotify or Apple Music (that TIDAL shade!) to see what you (don’t) like.
