You can’t argue that 2018 has been anything less than eventful for Ariana Grande, for better or worse (and most likely a mix of the two), and we can only imagine the toll of playing everything out in the public eye could have on a person. But the show must go on and she hasn’t missed a beat with her music. “breathin” couldn’t have come at a better time as some form of self-affirmation. While we’re still waiting on the official full-length follow up to American Teen, Khalid has been on his grind, slowly but surely establishing himself as a powerhouse in pop. “Better” has a hell of a feel good vibe to it and the video’s laid back visuals, with slight anxiety inducing effects, paired with his ‘in the moment’ dancing really drive those feels home. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone as hot as Bad Bunny right now, he’s popped up all over the place with all manner of big names in the game and he’s back again, this time with the seemingly ageless Jennifer Lopez. There’s a latin wave right now so it’s no surprise to see J-Lo continue to capitalize on it and while “Te Guste” is more run of the mill than not, it still has a decent bop to it. The video…well like I said she’s seemingly ageless.
Even if you haven’t heard of the Free Nationals, you’ve heard of the Free Nationals, as they are Anderson .Paak’s backing band. They’re back with a number of their own and it’s as sultry and funky as we’ve come to expect from them with an equally surreal video full of great use of colors and ASMR visuals. Buddy has been criminally slept on, by myself included, but I think he has what it takes to be a major factor in music – a great sense of humor/wit, strong visuals, and even stronger music to back it all up. “Shameless” is a perfect representation of everything he brings to the table and worth the watch just for the White Men Can’t Jump references.
Check out everything I rounded up below and let me know which ones you like the most.
Ariana Grande – breathin
Lady Gaga – Always Remember Us This Way
Khalid – Better
Shawn Mendes – Youth (ft. Khalid)
Arin Ray – Damn
Jennifer Lopez & Bad Bunny – Te Guste
Free Nationals – Beauty & Essex (ft. Daniel Caesar & Unknown Mortal Orchestra)
Lil Peep – Life Is Beautiful
Robb Bank$ – Bad Vibes Forever
Buddy – Shameless (ft. Guapdad 4000)
Atmosphere – Graffiti
Dom Kennedy – Christopher Columbus (ft. Ray Wright)
Too $hort – Only Dimes (ft. G-Eazy & The-Dream)
Lil Durk – Neighborhood Hero
Jay Critch – Try It (ft. French Montana & Fabolous)
Apollo Brown & Joell Ortiz – Cocaine Fingertips
Styles P – Welfare (ft. Whispers)
https://youtu.be/Vh_oEUpUNmA
Sheck Wes – Wanted
The Black Eyed Peas – Yes Or No
Swizz Beatz – SWIZZMONTANA (ft. French Montana)
What’d you think about this week’s videos? Which ones were your favorites? Did I miss any that I should check out? Let me know in the comments below and be sure to subscribe to stay up with all the new content.
