It's been a pretty wild week, kickstarted with the surprise drop of Frank Ocean's Blonde. The boy really came through. But it didn't end there. Last night, another boundary-pushing artist released his own highly anticipated project, as Young Thug attempted an artistic rebirth of sorts with No, My Name Is Jeffery, which arrived with the most memorable album cover of the year. It'll be well worth your time to listen to both Blonde and Jeffery in full, but there aren't any tracks from either project on tonight's Staff Picks playlist.
Instead, we opted for the songs that didn't quite get the immediate headlines but deserve your attention nonetheless. Thugger fans can still hear an innovative verse from their man on the remix to Migos' hypnotic single "Cocoon." And fans of either Thug or Migos will likely enjoy the new Lil Uzi Vert track, produced by the almighty Zaytoven, who's also behind the smoking-hot new collab from Young Dolph and Guwop. That one's off Dolph's Rich Crack Baby, another essential that dropped last night. The playlist also includes new work from Earl Sweatshirt, Ro Ransom, Starrah, Mathaius Young, and more.
Stream the playlist and check out each staff member's picks below.
Danny Schwartz: Starrah feat. Kehlani "Rush (Remix)"; Mari "Paper Run"
Rose Lilah: Migos feat. Young Thug "Cocoon (Remix)"; Mathaius Young feat. Drayco McCoy "No More"
Kevin Goddard: Lil Uzi Vert "Buy It"
Carver Low: Ro Ransom feat. Kensei Abbot "Donuts"; Eric Bellinger feat. Phil Ade "In My Prime"
Trevor Smith: Earl Sweatshirt feat. Knxwledge "Balance"
Angus Walker: Young Dolph feat. Gucci Mane "Strippa"; Jeff Chery "Ridin on the Blocc"