Adele! Kanye! Rihanna! Frank Ocean! Sufjan! Seriously, we’re freaking out.
originally posted on Buzzfeed
2. Kanye West, TBA
Slaven Vlasic / Getty Images for (RED)
Appreciators of G.O.O.D. music are starved for new ‘Ye after a 2014 in which a much-anticipated follow-up to Yeezus was teased repeatedly but never produced. One track allegedly leaked, while another made a brief and tantalizing appearance in a World Cup Adidas commercial. On New Year’s Eve, Kanye threw fans for another loop by premiering the first official taste of his next project — an emotionally devastating ballad written from the perspective of his late mother and featuring Paul McCartney. Dubbed “Only One,” the piano-driven tearjerker is about as far from the queasy pyrotechnics of Yeezus as you can get. And with several more McCartney collaborations promised in a press release, the only thing we know is that everything we thought we knew about Yeezus II is wrong. New day, new ‘Ye.
3. Rihanna, TBA
Def Jam
It’s been two years since Rihanna’s last album and expectations are at an all-time high. Once known for releasing a new album every year, pop’s hardest working hit-maker decided to take some time off in 2013. While she continued to listen to demos and “phuck round” in the studio, it wasn’t until October 2014 that she really buckled down and got to work. According to insiders, her eighth album — dubbed #R8 by fans — will be a mix of ballads and edgier, Hudson Mohawke-esque bangers. She’s also reportedly recordeda song titled “Burritos,” so, yeah, it sounds like this album will be worth the wait.
4. Kendrick Lamar, TBA
Interscope
What we know: 1) “i” and the untitled track he performed as the last musical guest ever on Colbert both slay. 2) His last album Good Kid M.A.A.D City was a rare kind of insta-classic revelation that floored just about everyone exposed to it. 3) Kendrick himself is a rare music artist, unafraid to take risks, confound fans, and say what’s on his mind in this era where nearly everyone is content to play it safe. All that adds up to next-level anticipation for whatever it is King Kendrick has planned, and we’re told from a label rep who has heard the album that our expectations aren’t misplaced. “I can’t tell you anything about the album,” he told us. “Except it’s going to blow you away.” Of course, label reps are paid to make hyperbole sound natural, but we are completely inclined to agree here.
5. Troye Sivan, TBA
EMI
If you don’t know the name Troye Sivan yet, you will soon. Thanks to a startlingly self-assured EP and an enormously dedicated fanbase, the Australian YouTuber-turned-singer is poised for IRL stardom. His five-song debut, TRXYE, cracked the top five of theBillboard 200 with almost no press and just three days of sales. More than just a stylish collection of synth-pop, TRXYE established Sivan as an artist with things to say and a voice worth listening to; mixed in with the songs about love and lust are critiques of prescription pill culture and thoughts on toxic masculinity. His forthcoming debut album for Capitol is to likely solidify his standing as one of pop’s most exciting newcomers.
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Justin Timberlake is back with “Can’t Stop the Feeling” from the new DreamWorks animated film “Trolls.”
Last night, Gwen Stefani threw a pre-Grammy bash at Los Angeles’ Orpheum Theatre. She performed her first full solo concert in almost eight years. In addition to tracks from her solo LPs Love.Angel.Music.Baby and The Sweet Escape, Stefani sang her two new singles “Spark the Fire” and “Baby Don’t Lie,” her Calvin Harris collaboration “Together” and, for the first time, a new ballad called “Start a War,” co-written by Sia.
With a little help from The Roots, Gwen performed a few of her biggest solo track including her latest single with Pharrell “Spark The Fire” before going into “Rich Girl” and “What You Waiting For?” and “Sweet Escape.”
Good Music. Good Life. 