Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa Team Up in the Lavishly Cinematic “Sweetest Pie”
Plus, Jazmine Sullivan offers more Heaux Tales and Eliza Niemi offers an off-season soundtrack to a summer fling.
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Hard yes: Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa, “Sweetest Pie” – Just when I thought no one could top the cinematic drama of “Montero,” here come Dua Lipa and Meg Thee Stallion in this dominatrix wonderland where the men are their prisoners. From the latex, witchy, bedazzled, gold-encrusted costumes alone to the twerking statues and devilish dancers, it all sent me over the edge. It’s whimsy with a dash of danger. Will the men that stumble into the Stallion and Lipa forest escape alive? One can only hope not. —Khalisa Rae Thompson
YES: Eliza Niemi, “Sushi California” – I’m already planning on playing this song on a road trip and sticking my hand out the window to ride the undulating waves of empty air. That is the MOOD this dreamy, funny, pop song puts me in. The drums and sinking ship reference feel like a strong nod to 2003 Dido “White Flag,” if only just in my own sentimental mind. Perfect soundtrack for an ephemeral summer fling. —Kady Ruth Ashcraft
Y: Nia Archives, “Part of Me” – The beat is ‘90s jungle, the VHS visual aesthetic is ‘80s, the velour tracksuit is ‘00s Juicy Couture, the vocal is not far from the nasal jazzy stylings of Amy Winehouse. Nia Archives’s single from her new EP Forbidden Feelingz is pastiche, it’s incredibly well-curated pastiche and that she manages something so hypnotic in just two minutes is nothing short of an achievement. —Rich Juzwiak
Yes, always Jazmine, everyday: Jazmine Sullivan, “Selfish” – Cuffing season is over and everyone is in spring love and lust, so a deluxe, expanded edition of Jazmine Sullivan’s Heaux Tales is such a genius project to drop right now. “Selfish” will surely be a summer concert singalong banger: I can just see Jazmine pointing her mic into the crowd during that addictive, “Sellfiiiish loooove” hook. Her heartbreaking voice pierces you to the core. Honestly, these tell-all skits give us all the tea we need for the chilly days—there’s gender-role reversal on “Breaux’s Tale,” and the declaration on BPW that goes: “Tell me whenever I’m with ya, that I’ve got the best pussy in the world.” “Issa’s Tale” shows the human side of celebrity breakups, makeups, and pleasure. Her vulnerable experience being “tooted and booted” is not only relatable, but refreshing. (“He gave me three to four pumps…”) Then Jazmine talks about body image and feeling undesirable as a Black woman. What else could you need? —KRT
Yes: Tank and the Bangas, “Stolen Fruit”- Tank and the Bangas have done it again with this ancestral calling for us to return to ourselves and find home. The flute and piano feel like a refreshing breeze and gave me a feeling and calm and ease. What takes the cake for me in this video is the breathtaking interpretive dances in red—and then there’s the smile that comes to your face when you hear, “Your roots are golden.” It’s a breath of fresh air to see a little Black boy happy and sun-kissed basking in freedom as Tank and the Bangas call for him to come home. —KRT
YES: Eliza Niemi, “Sushi California” – I’m already planning on playing this song on a road trip and sticking my hand out the window to ride the undulating waves of empty air. That is the MOOD this dreamy, funny, pop song puts me in. The drums and sinking ship reference feel like a strong nod to 2003 Dido “White Flag,” if only just in my own sentimental mind. Perfect soundtrack for an ephemeral summer fling. —Kady Ruth Ashcraft
Y: Nia Archives, “Part of Me” – The beat is ‘90s jungle, the VHS visual aesthetic is ‘80s, the velour tracksuit is ‘00s Juicy Couture, the vocal is not far from the nasal jazzy stylings of Amy Winehouse. Nia Archives’s single from her new EP Forbidden Feelingz is pastiche, it’s incredibly well-curated pastiche and that she manages something so hypnotic in just two minutes is nothing short of an achievement. —Rich Juzwiak
Yes, always Jazmine, everyday: Jazmine Sullivan, “Selfish” – Cuffing season is over and everyone is in spring love and lust, so a deluxe, expanded edition of Jazmine Sullivan’s Heaux Tales is such a genius project to drop right now. “Selfish” will surely be a summer concert singalong banger: I can just see Jazmine pointing her mic into the crowd during that addictive, “Sellfiiiish loooove” hook. Her heartbreaking voice pierces you to the core. Honestly, these tell-all skits give us all the tea we need for the chilly days—there’s gender-role reversal on “Breaux’s Tale,” and the declaration on BPW that goes: “Tell me whenever I’m with ya, that I’ve got the best pussy in the world.” “Issa’s Tale” shows the human side of celebrity breakups, makeups, and pleasure. Her vulnerable experience being “tooted and booted” is not only relatable, but refreshing. (“He gave me three to four pumps…”) Then Jazmine talks about body image and feeling undesirable as a Black woman. What else could you need? —KRT
Yes: Tank and the Bangas, “Stolen Fruit”- Tank and the Bangas have done it again with this ancestral calling for us to return to ourselves and find home. The flute and piano feel like a refreshing breeze and gave me a feeling and calm and ease. What takes the cake for me in this video is the breathtaking interpretive dances in red—and then there’s the smile that comes to your face when you hear, “Your roots are golden.” It’s a breath of fresh air to see a little Black boy happy and sun-kissed basking in freedom as Tank and the Bangas call for him to come home. —KRT
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