Friday Music Guide: New Music From ROSÉ, Jack Harlow, ‘Wicked’ and More
Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
This week, ROSÉ wants to hit “Number One,” Jack Harlow wants to make your heart swoon and Wicked wants you to sing along. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
ROSÉ, “Number One Girl”
While “APT.,” ROSÉ’s smash collaboration with Bruno Mars, became her first career top 10 hit and introduced the BLACKPINK’s star solo oeuvre to U.S. radio listeners, “Number One Girl” (which was created with Mars, in fact) effectively swerves in a different direction, a piano ballad that showcases her pleading voice and expands her story.
Jack Harlow, “Hello Miss Johnson”
“I think it’s a song about courtship, first and foremost,” Jack Harlow recently told Apple Music about his latest single — and indeed, “Hello Miss Johnson” finds the rapper nodding toward OutKast’s “Ms. Jackson” over a lightly sashaying beat while spitting game to try and impress a lady.
Various Artists, Wicked: The Soundtrack
With Wicked hitting theaters this weekend and beguiling families ahead of Thanksgiving, the film’s official soundtrack captures the movie magic thanks to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo — co-stars, and vocal powerhouses — injecting new life into the musical’s beloved centerpieces. Read the full review.
Jelly Roll, “Run It”
Talk about prolific: on the same day that he dropped “Hurt,” a new collaboration with OneRepublic, and the same week that he announced a stadium tour slot in support of Post Malone, Jelly Roll also unveiled “Run It,” a snappy clap-along for the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 soundtrack that sounds primed to transcend the family film.
Wizkid, Morayo
While Wizkid’s latest full-length features a satisfying array of collaborations (with features from Jazmine Sullivan, Brent Faiyaz and Asake, among others), Morayo, which is dedicated to the Nigerian star’s late mother, hits close to home, with songwriting defined by memories and intimate revelations.
Lil Nas X, “Need Dat Boy”
Although his biggest hits are uptempo, chest-thumping anthems, Lil Nas X also sounds comfortable slowing down the BPM and turning insular — and “Need Dat Boy,” in which he works through his complex feelings of fame and loneliness over sparse production before the beat switches, deserves a big listenership as well.
Quevedo, Buenas Noches
Madrid native Quevedo has made a sizable mark on Latin urban music over the past three years — a line that can be traced back to his enormous Bizarrap session in 2022 — and Buenas Noches sounds like a new star being coronated, his deep voice and springy flow given ample room to dazzle.
Editor’s Pick: Miguel, “Always Time”
Since his last album, 2017’s War & Leisure, Miguel watched his song “Sure Thing” become a viral sensation a decade after its release; now, he’s demonstrating the gorgeous ache in his voice with “Always Time,” a somber new track that sounds like a check-in with new and old fans alike before a major 2025.
Powered by Billboard.