It’s fine: Nicki Minaj, “Ganja Burn” (video) – This music video’s first offense is the unattractive font used for the opening story exposition, which explains: once upon time “there lived a queen” and yadda-yadda-yadda she put her enemies to death. Nicki Minaj emerges from the sand, writhes about, gazes at a skull, and sings into the sepia-toned camera. There’s some fire-dance worship, and the gold Cleopatra braids at the end are gorgeous. The video’s sole purpose is to sell the point that Nicki is the queen of any domain. —Clover Hope
Uhhh: Ja Rule and Ashanti, “Encore” – This twosome that was most famous in the 2000s deigned to turn Cheryl Lynn’s classic “Encore,” already a great barbecue jam, into a song that’s basically a soundtrack for a beach day everyone’s too busy to attend. This just makes me want to listen to the Cheryl Lynn station on Pandora. —CH
Y: Justus Proffit & Jay Som, “Nothing’s Changed” – Jay Som, musical project of Melina Duterte, has always tickled me with her classical jazz background and ambitious orchestration, which complicates potentially formulaic indie pop songwriting to make something unusual. Take that, and combine it with the sweet Big Star power-pop melody of Justus Proffit and a soul-crushing trumpet solo and you have “Nothing’s Changed.” It’s familiar, not derivative-sounding, and oh so soft. —Maria Sherman
Uhhh: Ja Rule and Ashanti, “Encore” – This twosome that was most famous in the 2000s deigned to turn Cheryl Lynn’s classic “Encore,” already a great barbecue jam, into a song that’s basically a soundtrack for a beach day everyone’s too busy to attend. This just makes me want to listen to the Cheryl Lynn station on Pandora. —CH
Y: Justus Proffit & Jay Som, “Nothing’s Changed” – Jay Som, musical project of Melina Duterte, has always tickled me with her classical jazz background and ambitious orchestration, which complicates potentially formulaic indie pop songwriting to make something unusual. Take that, and combine it with the sweet Big Star power-pop melody of Justus Proffit and a soul-crushing trumpet solo and you have “Nothing’s Changed.” It’s familiar, not derivative-sounding, and oh so soft. —Maria Sherman