1. On It — Jazmine Sullivan and Ari Lennox

Jazmine Sullivan’s most recent project Heaux Tales is undoubtedly her best yet. The EP melds her gift for storytelling with an even more fine-tuned pengame, gathering the voices of Black women to build an anthology of stories surrounding sex, relationships, money, and Black womanhood.

“On It” takes a stab at the former topic on that list, and surely succeeds. “On It” is a sexy, sultry, smooth, mid-tempo R&B ballad, leaning on a bluesy guitar lick and a 6:8 beat. “I want to sit on it/So tell me why you deserve it/Come on and prove (Prove)/Why I should move/Spit on it.” The two R&B icons sing passionately about their desire for passionate sex, but demand that the man of interest prove why he deserves it. They flaunt their sexuality, enticing the listener with an in-depth explanation of the pleasure that awaits them — if they can prove it. The song is edging at its finest, and after one listen, you’ll definitely want to get freaky.

Listen to “On It” here

2. Good Days — SZA

“Gotta get right/Tryna free my mind before the end of the world.”

Sister Solána is back. “Good Days,” which has already peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking SZA’ s biggest solo chart hit to date, is an alternative R&B/soul anthem that laments lost love, lost time, and a lost mind, while envisioning a happier future. It’s a song we can all relate to right now. While the world burns around us, we all yearn for past and future visions of good days. We are all trying to protect our bodies and minds as each day feels like a million minutes, dropping one-by-one like dominoes in slow motion. “Tryna make sense of loose change/Got me a war in my mind.” Once again, SZA created an anthem for our generation. We are all just tryna free our minds before the end of the world.

Watch the Good Days “fan video” here

3. Peng Black Girls — ENNY feat. Amia Brave

I came across “Peng Black Girls” while reading Twitter discourse regarding A COLORS SHOW performance of the remix featuring Jorja Smith. Folks argued that the replacement of Amia Brave with Jorja Smith reinforced colorism and contradicted the message of the song. A discussion of that discourse would have to be its own article — but the reality is while I really like the remix, I prefer the original with Amia Brave.

“Peng Black Girls” is an anthem dedicated to Black girls and women. ENNY, a UK-based rapper and singer who was signed to Jorja Smith’s label in April 2020, bounces effortlessly over the beat about the beauty, multeity and power of Black women and girls. The song is of the genre of self-empowerment songs (which is a slippery slope), but it succeeds so well in having non-cheesy lyrical content that actually critiques the world we live in: where the aesthetics, vernacular, and culture of Black women are the zeitgeist but Black women themselves are not. “Want a fat booty like Kardashians, no/Want a fat booty like my Aunty got, yo.” ENNY reminds us who the blueprint is— Black women.

As a Black person, it’s almost dystopic to watch your entire culture be monetized and appropriated in front of your very eyes while perfectly recalling the bullying you endured for those same traits (that you were born with) from the exact people appropriating it, and the messages you received growing up that your features, traits and culture were aberrant. ENNY cleverly, cooly, and confidently declares those feelings over an islandic hip-hop beat that ensures that even in the face of a frustrating topic itself, the song will leave you smiling with more energy than you had when you started listening.

“I was Black when it wasn’t even in style.”

Watch “Peng Black Girls” here

A COLORS SHOW Remix

4. River Road — ZAYN

ZAYN released his third studio album Nobody is Listening in January to middling reviews, streams, and chart performance. However, I thought the album was great, and “River Road’ was a huge highlight for me. While some songs fell flat, he was strongest on tracks like “River Road,” where he leans into a more acoustic, raw and vocally-strained sound. On “River Road,” he sounds more raw than ever, and the imperfections of his vocal delivery make the song more emotionally impactful. “River Road” is designed to be a slow burner— it only features three refrains sung multiple times throughout the song, each time in different parts of his range, with intensifying production. By the end, he is belting at the top of his range, singing the “chorus” for the first time. The emotion, storytelling, and intensity he brings to this last chorus makes you forget its the refrain he started with. The song is brilliantly made and brilliantly sung, and is a total slow-building tease. He is at peak vocal ability on “River Road,” and makes immensely intentional, creative choices structure wise.

Check out “River Road” here

5. F.U.C.K — Victoria Monét

Victoria Monét is on fire. Last year, she released her debut EP Jaguar to universal acclaim, landing spots on year-end best album lists in publications like NPR, Associated Press, and Noisey. “F.U.C.K” is her first release since Jaguar, the first of three EPs that will come together to create her debut studio album.

Victoria Monét’s clever pengame not only wrote most of Ariana Grande’s biggest hits, but also is the backbone of her own sultry, R&B-pop discography. “F.U.C.K” is a prime example — the song itself is an acronym for “friend you can keep,” weaving in and out of clever metaphors that describe a secret lover with whom you know things are just platonic. “Uh, I’m just tryna jump your bones, we don’t gotta jump the broom, you know/Might be across the room but in private we be super close.” Melodically, the song is reminiscent of Monét own “Touch Me,” with a satisfying chorus layered with jazzy, sexy chords. And per usual, those melodies will kick your ass if you try to sing them a cappella around your house.

At this point, it’s just exciting watching Victoria Monét consistently grow and develop as a solo artist, and “F.U.C.K” is a clear sign that this next EP is going to be a step up from what I’d describe as a near-perfect debut effort. We are all along for the ride, Vic.

Peep the F.U.C.K music video, featuring model, actress and singer/songwriter Tanérelle.