Best Songs of the Week (March 9, 2018)

With so much good music steadily coming through, it's easy to miss some of the best. To help prevent this, we've rounded up the best new songs of the week. Here are the songs you can't afford to skip, in no particular order.

Vince Staples might've won the week when he responded to criticism of his live show with this GoFundMe. Vince has been touring the States with Tyler, the Creator, and his opening set has come under fire—so the rapper offered to find a nice two-bedroom in Palmdale and retire for $2 million. 

Two days later, Vince's true intentions came to light when he dropped "Get The Fuck Off My Dick" this morning. Whether the song inspired the GoFundMe or the GoFundMe inspired the song is irrelevant. All that matters is once Vince got our attention, he followed through and dropped one of his best songs to date.—Graham Corrigan 

Throughout the month of February, we get a chance to celebrate all of our great black heroes who helped paved the way for us today. For 28, sometimes 29, days out of the year the world's attention is pointed directly at our community and everything we've helped build. However, as soon as March rolls around that sense of pride can die down rapidly.

For his latest single, Buddy delivers an anthem that's sure to keep that momentum of pride going strong. Simply titled "Black," Buddy and A$AP Ferg list off various things that showcase how proud they are to be black—including dreams of copping a black Tesla and dressing like Huey P. Newton. I'm not sure if this classic scene from the 1993 comedy CB4 played any part in inspiring Buddy's new single, but the catchy hook feels like beautiful homage as well as a reminder that we're out here making black history every single day. Say hello to your new empowerment anthem.—Adrienne Black

Watch our Who Is? video profile with Buddy here.

"Dance Like U" is Okay Kaya's second single off her forthcoming album. Much like "IUD," it's an understated, patient lullaby that reveals a staggering depth upon closer listening. Kaya's story of conflicted self-love floats over organs and stuttering drums—the Porches production is more apparent on this second single, and Kaya leans into it with some falsetto harmonies that makes "Dance Like U" feel like a religious experience.

"What I wanted to explore with these videos is what the psychological condition would look like if it had a physical embodiment," she said of the video. "So having this twin that is all your trauma or all the shit that you have to deal with in your life."—Graham Corrigan

Two years after his breakthrough Lil Boat mixtape, Lil Yachty finally delivers Lil Boat 2. The project features bass-heavy beats and high-energy raps, but the most compelling Yachty songs are the ones that have him floating melodically over dreamlike production. The Trippie Redd-featuring album closer delivers just that and closes out Lil Boat 2 on a high note.—Jacob Moore

Watch what happened when we spent 24 hours in Miami with Trippie Redd here.

Sango and Smino go together like [insert your favorite combination of foods]. Smino might have worked more extensively with the also excellent Monte Booker, but when he connects with Seattle-based producer Sango, the result is always magic. "Khlorine" comes from Sango's new album, and we get to enjoy the full range of the St. Louis artist's talents—from rapping to singing—over a sparkling beat. It's perfection.

Sango's album In The Comfort Of is out is out March 16, and it features JMSN, Jesse Boykins III, Dave B, and more.—Alex Gardner

2 Chainz is perhaps rap’s greatest motivational speaker, and his latest message is a simple one: get your funds up. Part of the new mixtape from Ethika, which also features Lil Wayne and MadeinTYO, “Go Get You Some Money” showcases the chemistry between 2 Chainz and his signee Skooly, with the two trading verses and flossing with abandon atop a warm, textured synth line. The song isn’t stuffed with as many quotables as the best cuts off Pretty Girls Like Trap Music, but colorful bars about Skooly’s Reese’s colored peacoat and 2 Chainz rhyming “chopsticks and katanas” with “Dolce & Gabbana” are the perfect appetizer for Rap Or Go to the League, Tity Boi’s upcoming album.—Grant Rindner

Welcome back, Anderson .Paak. The first original solo song we've heard from him since 2016, "'Til It's Over" caught us by surprise this week by arriving as the soundtrack for a new Apple short film/advertisement directed by Spike Jonze. Finding Anderson in an experimental frame of mind, the song pairs rich, buttery vocals with electronic glitches and bass that we're not used to hearing from him. It works really well, though—as illustrated by FKA Twigs' dance-like-no-one's-watching moves in the video. You can listen to "'Til It's Over" on Apple Music here or continue for the Apple spot.—Eric Skelton

Killy blew up with a viral hit, "Killamonjaro," which most people first experienced watching the accompanying music video. The catchy hooks and this young looking kid wilding for the camera was a strong first impression, but would the Canadian artist turn out to be a one hit wonder who got lucky? His debut project, Surrender Your Soul, suggests otherwise. It doesn't deviate too for from the melodic style that is so popular in contemporary rap, but Killy is a strong hook writer and the production from 1mind, Y2K, and Wondagurl keeps things interesting throughout. On "No Sad No Bad," for example, we get flutes, layers of Auto-tune, and even a guitar solo towards the end.—Alex Gardner

Old school funk is in Topaz Jones’ DNA, and his latest single takes those roots and builds a bassy, swaggering come-on out of them for “Pleasure Pain Passion.” The track is a cosmic, groovy love song where Jones shows off nimble flows and an improved singing voice, dancing around the metered percussion like a running back in the end zone. The faux call-and-response hook is a great ‘70s inspired touch, and a chamomile-scented KAMAU crafting a hilarious situation where the man with the object of his affection turns out to be her cousin is pure absurd fun. There are shades of Anderson .Paak to both of their approaches, but each brings their own unique easygoing charm that elevates this funky collaboration.—Grant Rindner

Everything is coming together for Tobi Lou right now. The Chicago artist has been on our radar for a couple years now, but "TROOP" feels like a major step forward. Accompanied by an excellent That '70s Show-inspired video directed by Glassface, the song finds Tobi in a playful mood as he leans into his loneliness and embraces the magic of imagination. It's almost enough to distract us from the fact that there's a great Smino verse sitting at the end of this thing. "TROOP" has it all.—Eric Skelton

Read our interview with Tobi Lou here.

Jeremih can't stop singing about sex, and if the cover and title gives any hints, his new EP The Chocolate Box is more of the same. But he does it so well, and "Forever I'm Ready" is an instant standout, with a full, live band feel that explodes during the chorus. This song is bigger and brighter than we normally hear from Jeremih, and it sounds great.

Jeremih is incredibly versatile and a wildly talented singer and songwriter—the fact that he isn't one of the biggest pop/R&B artists in the world still surprises me sometimes, but that's a conversation for a different day.—Alex Gardner

Spanish indie rockers Hinds have always had a charming messiness to their sound. They make jangly garage rock loosely held together by a beat, and in the past, this style felt like the result of a young band still figuring it out. On "The Club," it's a decision. "We know what we are doing more and we chose this dirtiness and sound," Hinds' Carlotta told BBC. "In the first one, it wasn't like a decision that was 100% made, it was just like 50% choice as we were more ignorant." Hinds is still the most fun indie rock band out right now, and they're getting better at what they already did so well.—Jacob Moore

Read our 2016 feature on Hinds here.